Kibbutz Urim in Israel, including Far East & Europe bike ride.

Sorting through some of my thousands of photos recently, I came across the photo journal of my almost-gap year, when I worked as a volunteer in the Kibbutz Urim, Israel in 1989, and then cycled home 3000+ miles across Europe.  

 This was one of the best experiences of my life. Being interested in photography since I was a teenager, I’d gone from working as a Butlins holiday camp photographer to getting a one way ticket to the Middle East. It had all the excitement and buzz of being at university but without the studying.

The Kibbutz Urim was near the town of Beersheba and was home to a mixed bunch of people from all over the world. Like many other news to communal life I was matched with a set of adopted parents who looked out for me.

My job was to help to irrigate the land with a series of giant hoses, all done under the supervision of a rather portly Egyptian Ishtak and Maurice. It was a hot summer and we kibbutzniks combined that with going to events and festivals whenever we could, enjoying being young and carefree and just having fun.

Although we worked really hard we got time off too, which we spent seeing the sights, including visiting the spectacular Negev desert, near Yeruham, which covers more than half of Israel. 

Before I left Dad gave me some great advice, saying it would be the trip of a lifetime and I should keep a journal. Alongside this I built up a big photo library, armed with my trusty camera.  It was a Olympus OM1n 35mm and also a zoom - nothing fancy, but it did its job and survived the trip. Amazingly, the quality of the slide photos is still good, especially considering they are 24 years old.

Dead Sea and Masada on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert 

Being only 20 miles from Gaza and knowing we had a weapons store on site brought its own worries and we learned to trust our instincts when we left the site. On a solo three-day hitchhiking trip I ended up on the West Bank, where people were concerned about my safety and I sensibly took their advice and made a quick exit!

In those days it wasn’t common to see people with cameras, and I was careful not to flash it about, but the locals were always interested (sometimes too much!) in my gear and happy to have their photos taken. I took roll after roll of Fuji 50asa slidefilm, documenting how families lived and worked and sparking an interest in reportage or ‘as it happens’ photography, a style I’ve since made my own.

At the end of summer one of my friends suggested we extend our trip and cycle home across Europe, and it sounded like a great idea.  I borrowed a girls bike from Matt Carr (above left) ex girlfriend on the Kibbutz and it really was no frills travelling - shorts, panniers, camera, bikes and a tent were all we needed and we left full of excitement and a dash of trepidation about what lay ahead.  We covered Israel, Cyprus, Rhodes, Greece, Turkey, and Istanbul and squeezed in a two day stopover at the Black Sea. 

View of the Bosphorus just before Istanbul, Turkey

Grand Bazaar in Istanbul 

21st Birthday Photo in Greece (top right)

As it was my 21^st birthday we celebrated with a bottle of the local equivalent of Lambrini, and at 10.02am, the exact time of my birth, I posed for a photo for my mum back home.  That’s now turned into an annual tradition for me and I’ve built up a photo journal of birthday pictures over the years, which are fascinating to look at.

In what was then Yugoslavia we hopped onto a train as one of the bikes was broken. We got some bad vibes and left the train at the invite of some local police, who waved their guns at us and made their instructions clear. When we continued our stint by train, we ended up bikeless at one point thanks to our bikes going to Italy while we were heading for Belgrade, which was very inconvenient.

Austria was one of my favourite countries and one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited. The contrast between lakes, sun and snow was beautiful and I got some stunning landscape photos. All the way across the continent we swam in lakes and camped in forests.  It was a matter of pride never to stay on a proper campsite, even when we got eaten alive by mosquitoes.

In Germany I managed to get into the middle of a bunch of 40 semi-professional bike racers on the road. It must have been a fine sight, them in their sports gear on smart racing bikes, and me pedalling my way through the group on my pale blue girls bike, in my cut-off jeans and with my panniers flapping either side. Mr Bean rides again! (link)

In those days there were no mobiles or email, just good old fashioned airmail letters – when I remembered to send one home. So when I finally landed on my parent’s doorstep my mum hardly recognised me, I was brown as a berry and about two stone lighter than when I’d set off.

It was an amazing experience. I still feel very lucky to have done it, as it opened up my mind to different people and other cultures and ways of life. It also taught me how to use a camera, work fast and put people at their ease. All qualities that have stood me in good stead in my 25-year career as a press, commercial, wedding and portrait photographer.

I’ve still got my old faithful hat and my cycling shorts, and thanks to the many boxes of photographs I’ve got stored in the loft I can easily slip back on a nostalgic journey into what was a fantastic summer in my life. 

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Direct Website Link to Dave Charnley Photography