About 140 years ago, in a synagogue in the city of Haidan in northern Yemen, during a Mincha prayer prior to Shabbat, a young rabbi read from the Bible, in the book of Song of Songs, Chapter 7 verse 8, as it is written: ” … I said, I will climb the palm tree ….” Suddenly, he had an epiphany about the verse’s meaning. His new understanding of reading the verse was that the word B’Tamar (palm tree), when converted into numbers through Gematria – 1882 – meant that he was destined to go up to the Land of Israel in the year 1882. His family’s protests did not help; the following day, Sunday, he set off with his wife and two donkeys, and began the long and dangerous journey to the Land of Israel, which ended a year and a half later in Jerusalem. This was the beginning of a wave of immigration from Yemen to the Land of Israel, initially settling near the burial caves in the Siloam (Shiloah) village of Jerusalem. This special episode will be told later.
The Jews of Yemen lived with homesickness and longing for the Land of Israel. Their whole existence was filled with readiness for the moment when the sign would come that now was the time of redemption.
This was taken as the sign. In the Land of Israel my family took root, through much hardship, surviving the Ottoman rule, and the British Mandate, and stood proudly with others at the forefront of the defensive forces and in the task of building the State of Israel. Knowledge of the Arabic language led the younger family members behind enemy lines, their contribution to victory is invaluable. The Declaration of Independence found them all on the harshest fronts. Family members perished and were wounded in the battles. The consolation was in the establishment of the State.
My name is Uri, currently a certified tour guide of the Ministry of Tourism in Israel, third generation in the Land of Israel, a grandson and son of those wonderful pioneers, workers and defenders of Torah. Like my contemporaries in Israel I have experience in the defense of the country, I served as an officer in the IDF, I was wounded when I led soldiers in the most difficult battle of the IDF during the Yom Kippur War. At university I studied economics and went on to an MBA (and now archeology …) I am a civil servant, and among my roles I have taken part in formative events that this country has experienced, I was involved in negotiations and agreements with neighboring Arabs. I am married to Lisa, and we have five children. Our youngest serves in the IDF as a fighter.
Lisa was born in the north of Holland in a province called “Friesland”, the daughter of a Christian family. At an early age, she became familiar with the Bible, came to Israel, and converted to Judaism, and her dream is to display the beautiful face of the Holy Land. She is an expert on tours of the Temple Mount and Jerusalem, and works to bring Christians and Jews closer together, as it is written in Jeremiah 31:5: “For there shall be a day, that the watchmen shall call upon the mount Ephraim: arise, and let us go up to Zion, unto the LORD our God.”
Today, we are a family business and committed to success! With the highest level of professionalism, we believe in the smallest details, the broadest knowledge, the direct familiarity we have with the Israeli experience and the entire Middle East.
In my experience, a small group is the best way to get to know Israel. For example: an extended family, or one or two couples together, or a group of friends.
We offer the following combination:
- A stay at our farm accommodation in one of the farm units during your stay in Israel. See below our housing units.Tours of Israel led by a certified tour guide of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism, Check our tours here!
- Combining the two is the right and most comfortable thing to do. Our farm is in the center of Israel, adjacent to the main transportation arteries the length and breadth of the country, 10 minutes from the beach, 35 minutes from Jerusalem and 15 minutes from Tel Aviv. See our location on the map.
