The Negev is a very enjoyable place, apart from the camels. The camel ride was the one portion of the Birthright trip that I was not looking forward to – and it was pretty much exactly as I anticipated. That said, the rest of our journey in the south was lovely.

Our visit to a goat cheese farm and a beautiful canyon hike more than made up for the discomfort of our morning ride. Our accommodation for one of the nights was in a Bedouin tent and the food was unbelievable (yes, there was hummus).