“We were so excited”: the surprising country that has Israeli flags everywhere

After visiting dozens of countries around the world and making nomadic life their routine, Merev and Reviv, or as many know them as “Mirbus” from Instagram, continue to discover how much reality can surprise them in the most unexpected places.

When their eldest daughter, Emma, ​​was born, they decided to make a big change in their lives. They quit their jobs as a jewelry designer and associate chef at a restaurant, packed up the apartment and set off on a world trip with a four-month-old baby. Their trip was planned for a year, but quickly became their way of life. Today, three years later, they have already managed to mark V on 26 countries around the world. During the journey, they decided to open a joint Instagram page, where they make sure to upload content and documentation from the trips around the world. In addition, they recently launched a travel website designed to give inspiration, tips and information to parents and show that it is completely possible to fly with babies.

During their journey together the October 7th War broke out while they were in Brazil. Raviv, MP in regular and reserve, boarded the first rescue flight from Sao Paulo to Israel to stand by his comrades in combat. Since then, he served about 500 reserve days. The two had to interrupt their family trip four times because of the reserve rounds, and today, the trips have become a breath of fresh air for them.

Last October they got on a plane again after the birth of their second daughter, Mia, and another reserve tour that Raviv did. This time, they flew to the USA. “We bought a van and a trailer and started crossing the East Coast,” the two tell in a conversation with mako. From there we moved to Belize, where they even delayed us for an hour at the entrance just because we are Israelis after the severance of relations between the countries.”

After that, the two arrived with their daughters in El Salvador, where a big surprise awaited them. “This country used to be considered one of the most dangerous in the world with complete control by gangs, and it has undergone a dramatic change in recent years under the president who declared a state of emergency and managed to dramatically reduce crime to the point where it is today one of the safest countries in Central America,” says Raviv.

But what caught their eyes from the first moment were Israeli flags and Jewish symbols everywhere. “We saw Star of David, lamps, and people with Star of David credentials even though they are not Jewish at all. Even the local car company we rented a car from is called ‘Shalom’, and the guy who brought us the closest one was called ‘Yonathan’.”

“It was a very exciting and surprising moment for us,” the two say excitedly. “This happened after we saw in many places in the world, for example in Bosnia, many Palestinian flags and a less pleasant atmosphere towards us. To see so much sympathy for Israel and Judaism specifically in a small country in Central America that all we know about it is that it was the most dangerous in the world, is unexpected,” they say. “It comes from the pro-Israeli government, evangelical Christians who believe that the State of Israel is the fulfillment of biblical prophecies and supporting it is seen as a religious duty that brings a blessing to El Salvador. There is a large community there called ‘Benni Anosim’ who say they are descendants of Jews and were forced to convert to Christianity in Spain and Portugal. So yes, especially in these days when it doesn’t always feel safe to say we are in Israel, that’s where we felt the safest!”

And what are their plans for the future? “We plan to return to the US to our trailer to continue our amazing journey across America, it’s a dream come true for us.”