Virtually anywhere you look these days you can find a vacationing Israeli barbecuing with his or her family, having taken advantage of the week-long Passover hiatus. Some 350,000 people flocked to Israel's parks and nature reserves on Thursday, including politicians. This trend continued on Friday and is expected to last well into the weekend, despite the approaching heat wave. The beaches of the Sea of Galilee and other tourist attractions in the north were full of Israelis who pitched tents for overnight camping. Some of them even got to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his family, who happened to be travelling in the area "This [Passover] is the time to reflect on our lives as a free people in our homeland, but it is also a time to travel with your wife and kids in this beautiful country of ours," Netanyahu said. The Netanyahus' itinerary included the Manara Cliff, the Hula Lake Park and the Sea of Galilee. President Shimon Peres also cleared his schedule to visit the Chai Negev Ecological Village in Kibbutz Revivim. Meanwhile in Jerusalem, some 50,000 Jews participated in the traditional Priestly Blessing at the Western Wall on Thursday.
Credit: Reuters
