Day 14 - July 19th

It is time to leave. I am truly sad at airport. While I did so much, there was so much more to see and do. Prior to checking in, I am questioned by an Israeli security officer. Apparently, Israeli security personnel interview every person or group before they are allowed to board a plane.

My interviewer is a young man. Pleasant but very inquisitive. He tells me this is a screening process to prevent planes from getting bombed. I can tell that he is carefully observing my body language and how I pronounce words. I think some of my answers raised a yellow flag. I was traveling alone. I did not stay at any hotels. I do not speak Hebrew. He asks what congregation I am a part of in the States, was I bar mitzvahed and a bunch of other questions
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I am now curious to see how strict security is at the magnetometer. Surprisingly, no one has to take their shoes off. No taking off my belt. No full body scanner. No taking diapers off cancer patients. Also, my carry-on has my laptop and a bunch of USB cords, adapters, flash drives, chargers, etc. It usually gets extra scrutiny by TSA folks. They barely look at the bag as it passes through. The interview screening process must be extremely effective because the Israelis have an exceptional record in air travel security.

I have a black car reserved to get home from the airport. I always speak to the drivers to get to know my constituency. We talk about my trip. My driver is Palestinian. I am not making this up.

After dealing with rush hour traffic, I am happy to be home. Some final random thoughts to follow.