Where do I begin? When I last left off, I was “only” an American citizen and was about to board the plane to bring me to a new life where I would also be an Israeli citizen.
Well…the journey is complete and BH we are Israeli citizens!! Let me share with you some details about the flight and the arrival ceremonies but due to my being SO tired, I need to be brief today. Will get into more details at a later date…
The anticipation that was FELT acutely on the flight was so awesome! We met others, like us, moving to Maale Adumim and others who were moving all over the country. I did not sleep for a minute…at least not that I can tell. We did all of the passport paperwork and immigration info paperwork on tablet computers. By the time we landed, we were registered as Olim Chadashim…new immigrants.
When we landed, I began to shake and cry uncontrollably, as the thousands of emotions that had been coursing through my body all came out at that very moment. All of the planning led to this moment in time! As I walked onto Israeli soil for the first time as an Israeli, I literally laid down on the ground, kissed it and thanked Hashem for this amazing opportunity.
There were thousands of people at the airport to greet all of the Olim. It was incredible how many came out just to greet US. We felt so loved…so special.
I was interviewed by a number of news agencies both in Hebrew and in English. I just hope I remember to find the archived reports to read them!
After the welcoming ceremonies, speeches, getting our luggage, getting our Teudat Oleh and getting a (free) taxi…we finally arrived at Maale Adumim. We are staying near our home with some (new) friends and hope to be able to move in fairly soon.
Thanks to all of you who emailed me in real time to tell me you saw us live on the NBN welcoming ceremony. It was an amazing time and one that I am thrilled that so many people had the chance to watch.
That is all for now…gotta go make a plan of action for tomorrow and then rest a little more. We are thoroughly exhausted…but we will plug ahead.
Regards from our new home…ISRAEL!
