Israel in the Eye of the Beholder - Kibbutz Na'an - Milestones Israel

After several visits to Israel , I decided to take a risky opportunity and gave up my life in Scotland for 10 months, for an adventure of a lifetime in Israel, starting off in a kibbutz.

My choice for picking a kibbutz as one of the places to spend my time, or more specifically, Kibbutz Na'an, was a process of elimination more than anything. Originally my priorities were purely financial and then I began to realize that I was looking for a more central location...as i furthered my research I soon discovered that the majority of Kibbutzim are in rather rural locations and frankly, being a city girl myself, it was a number one priority to be near to some city life. Therefore , Na'an appeared to be ideal, located in between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv , not too far north and still seemed to tick all my boxes, I made the decision to spend my first five months of my 10 month program, in Kibbutz Na'an.

I have now been here for three months.I am safe to say that the kibbutz life took some warming to. It is not essentially everyones "cup of tea". However , despite it being a difficult lifestyle to adjust to, what with waking up at the crack of dawn for hard manual labour, to the hebrew being spoon-fed, it has opened me up to a entirely different concept of lifestyle available to me.

To give you an idea of the type of outlook you would gain ,  I shall name  just a few services that the kibbutz offers : 

"Col-bo" Translation  - (Everything here) generally a mini-supermarket on the kibbutz that sells everything you will need. 


Cafe Orli - That's right, the kibbutz has its very own cafe. Run by kibbutzniks , I worked here as part of my job role from the Ulpan. It is actually a cafe and a boutique/store combined. 

Petting Zoo - Located right beside our Ulpan is a petting Zoo. Generally we got to know the animals very quickly seeing as we were so close to them. Highly popular for kids birthday parties and other social events.

Wedding Garden - Mostly known for playing music at loud levels into the earlier hours, although this is a downside , there is a lot of joy and celebration here. It brings a celebratory atmosphere and combined , this helps the kibbutz build stronger communication amongst the locals.

Pub - Yes - Our Kibbutz has a pub. Essentially the Pub is designed to be just like your typical Britishism Pub. It offers a wide range of alcoholic beverages, but its prime attraction without a doubt , is its pool table.

Hadir Nightclub - I was just as intrigued as the next person when we discovered there was a nightclub on our kibbutz. Additionally , we are allowed in for free. This made quite the impact , especially on the more youthful members of our Ulpan. 


Cheder Ochel - Like every well run kibbutz , we too have a Cheder Ochel. For those unfamiliar with the term, this is essentially a dining room, available for lunchtime to every member of the kibbutz,to enjoy their meal with family and friends there.


Basketball Court - This really is at the heart of the kibbutz community. On a weekly basis there are games held and you can expect everyone to be there. Everyone is in high spirits from the competitive atmosphere and there is even a supposed..."Mascot" cheering everyone on. If you ever visit the kibbutz, I would strongly recommend coming when there is a basketball game , so that you can fully fulfill your Kibbutz Na'an expectations. 

Overall , I would say that this kibbutz has really changed my perspective upon my situation in Israel. I gave up on the idea of living on a kibbutz , long-term almost as soon as I got here. However after getting to know the regulars and finding my feet, I have learned how to adjust. Safe to say it is where I now call home and my favorite place in this beautiful country. 

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