When people say they’ve been in long distance relationships, they typically mean a state or two away. When Amanda says she was in a long distance relationship, she means half the globe away. She and her (now) fiancé were living about 6,000 miles away from each other at one point!
Amanda met Snir on the way to a cookout in Shoham while she was in Israel taking part in the Masa Israel Teaching Fellows program in Rehovot. Her friend invited her and told her they were picking up another friend on the way to the event. Being 5’2, Amanda was of course sitting in the middle seat in the back, so when Snir got into the car, he had no choice but to sit right next to her. Although being short has its highs and lows, this was definitely a huge perk for her! On the one hand, no one wants to be squished into the middle back seat. On the other hand, Amanda is still so thankful this unfavorable seat led her to her initial meeting with Snir. They ended up spending the whole night talking, and they had their first date a few weeks later in Jaffa.
A couple months after their first date, Amanda’s Masa program ended, and she flew back to the United States for law school. She thought there was no possible way to make their relationship last; she moved to Boston and Snir still lived in Israel. But they agreed to try. They did a year and a half of long distance—flying back and forth during their breaks to see each other—until they moved in together in Tel Aviv for six months while Amanda was studying abroad at Tel Aviv University. Before Amanda left for the States once again, Snir took her on a date to the Sea of Galilee and surprised her at sunset by proposing! Of course, she said yes.
No matter where in the world Amanda and Snir end up, Israel will always be home to them. They can’t wait for their wedding there and to share with their family the country—and the people living within it—that brought them together and has their hearts.
