By Elizabeth Gartenberg, Kefiada Volunteer, St. Louis

Our day off began with hearing the powerful story of Pini Nakhmani, a man who spent three and a half years in Syria as a prisoner-of-war. His recounting of both his time during interrogation and the P.O.W. camp brought an entirely new perspective to the concept of P.O.W.'s. Surprisingly, Pini was not full of hate or spite towards the Syrian people because of the way he was treated during his capture. Pini brought up some unique theories about how some people are good, some are bad, and some are in the middle with regards to how they treat others. He shared how some guards would treat the prisoners like the scum of the earth, while others offered apologies. After such an intense discussion we needed some relaxing time, which was spent at Camel beach in the Haifa area.

The evening was spent at a nearby Kibbutz Mishmar HaEmek where we were warmly welcomed, spending time at the pool and enjoying a BBQ. This was a tremendously rewarding experience because we were able to spend some time with other Israeli's our age.

We even met an American who was here visiting her friends who she met during her last year's Ulpan experience. This opened up a passionate discussion about the Ulpan programs offered across the country and studying abroad in general. All of us were impressed with her passion and recommendation of the Ulpan program. We were significantly affected by some of the personal stories that were shared throughout the day.