Kfar Blum area Day 4: Kibbutz Misgav Am at the Lebanon border

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Today after breakfast we drove up to see the border with Lebanon. Less than 20 km north from our hotel we arrived at the Kibbutz Misgav Am Visitors Centre.

Misgav Am is a kibbutz northern Galilee. Its name means Fortress of the People. It was founded by Palmach members in 1945 and has served as part of the protection of Israel ever since. It is located on a high hill with the Lebanese border surrounding it on three sides. Toward the east you can see the Hula Valley, Golan Heights and Mount Hermon, while north and westward you can see directly into southern Lebanon. It is a working kibbutz with income from farming, tourism, and inevitably some Israeli entrepreneurial business.

One of the long-term kibbutz residents met us at the Visitors Centre (masked of course) and offered us a private tour. He brought us into a panoramic viewing room and began speaking about the history of the kibbutz. He explained its regional position and how Zionists built the kibbutz in a classic lifestyle. He told us about interactions with terrorists and how the kibbutz provided an Israeli army base in the Lebanese wars. He pointed out various geographic features and described the towns all around, both in Israel and Lebanon. He told us about the economic situation of the area.

Relatively close by we could see the Hezbollah flag flying by a building in nearby Lebanese town. He explained how the original Lebanese citizens there were displaced from their homes by Hezbollah and have since departed for other towns. Half joking, he said Misgav Am feels safe if serious trouble starts, because the rockets will fly over the kibbutz to other targets in Israel. The kibbutz always maintains a watch of the border and alerts the IDF of anything suspicious.

Our guide took us outside for more spectacular views from the lookout. He snapped our picture there, thanked us and left to his other chores. Then we strolled around the Visitors Centre area for a while. It was certainly the most interesting part of our trip.

Back at the hotel we relaxed for the remainder of the afternoon and then went to dinner. We reflected that overall we were very glad to have taken a break from being stuck around home and bravely made this week's trip to the beautiful Galilee region.

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