July 2008

Aran Yardeni is the best tour guide I’ve ever had - enthusiastic, flexible, fun, high-energy, and incredibly knowledgeable.  He arranged a terrific, exciting trip around Israel for my family recently - from the Dead Sea to the lush beauty of the Golan Heights, from the Old City of Jerusalem to the astonishing caves at Bet Govrin, from volcanoes to archaeological digs.  As a trained professional archaeologist, he was able to take us to sites we never would have seen otherwise and show us the ruins of ancient cities in a hands-on way that brought them to life for us.  Aran is also an expert in the history of Israel, from biblical times to today, and best of all he’s a natural storyteller with a great sense of audience - a rare talent among tour guides, I’ve found, but probably the most important.  He was able to connect with our teenage daughter as well as he connected with my wife and me.  Since my wife isn’t Jewish, he made a point of showing us places central to the life of Jesus and the early Christians, which made this ancient history feel real and immediate.  And he was a real pleasure to spend time with - he became a part of our family, and we miss him immensely.  Thanks to Aran, our visit to Israel was absolutely, far and away the best trip we’ve ever taken.  I can’t recommend him more highly.  You’d be lucky to see Israel with Aran Yardeni.  We sure were.

Dear Aran,

So many thanks to you because you have given our family the greatest trip of our lives.  We’ve traveled often, and for so many years, before meeting you, and we’ve had wonderful trips together.  But our trip with you was beyond anything we’ve experienced before.  Your deep knowledge of archaeology, history, Torah, the New Testament, Islam, ancient and modern political issues, the arts (and much more) brought to us a richness and excitement we’ll treasure forever.  Your way of imparting knowledge is the best way, we feel, because we learned everything in the form of great stories, great myths, and great questions.  You’re a terrific and spell-binding storyteller.

We also treasure your sense of adventure and great fun.  We loved the music you played for us while we drove through the most breath-taking landscapes.  We loved swimming near and under waterfalls, floating in the Dead Sea and covering ourselves with its precious mud, sipping wine at the Golan Heights winery and staying in the inn you arranged for us.  We loved riding the camels.  We loved digging for ancient artifacts (and finding them!) at archaeological dig sites that you knew and worked with.

There’s so much more we’re grateful for.  We’re especially grateful that you tailored everything to our interests, desires, and energy levels.  And you did everything with warmth and grace.

We look forward to returning to Israel and to you as our guide.

Best regards,
Michele

Michele Souda
Founder and President
Wordpower Communications



Dear Aran,

It's raining in Brussels and it's kind of cold, but I don't care - I carry in my heart the sweet memory of wonderful days spent with you.

I would have liked you to share with me much more of your immense knowledge, Aran.  We were too short of time, but there will hopefully be another occasion.

Thank you for bringing such a lovely picnic - I cannot believe that I was actually sitting on the "Mont des Oliviers", having lunch with you all - under an old olive tree !
…….. 

In the meantime, thank you again for the unforgettable days - 
Bente