Most aliyah stories have a moment. The lightning bolt. The dramatic phone call. The big announcement at Shabbat dinner.

Judy's Katzin doesn't. And honestly? That's exactly what got me.

She didn't make Aliyah with a checklist in hand or some grand ideological mission statement. She came to Israel as a kid, fell in love with Jerusalem, kept coming back… and one day just sort of looked around and realized she wasn't visiting anymore. She lived here. One decision led to another, and another, and forty-some years later — four kids, ten grandchildren, most of them a short drive away.

This one's a little different from our other episodes. There's no crisis that forced her hand, no single turning point. It's a story about building a life piece by piece, on purpose, over decades — back when "making aliyah" meant doing it without Nefesh B'Nefesh, without Google, without anyone holding your hand. Just you, the Sochnut, a stack of forms, and a whole lot of nerve.

We get into a lot. The year in Jerusalem at twelve that started it all. The hilarious family mix-up where her husband's parents assumed marrying her meant she was staying in America — and slowly realized it meant he was leaving. The breakdown at the JFK baggage counter (and the stranger who quietly made it right). Watching Ra'anana go from a farm town with one traffic light and a guy selling watermelons off a donkey cart into the city it is today.

And then there's the part that stuck with me long after we stopped recording: the "do you leave?" question. The one a lot of us have sat with — me very much included after October 7th. Judy's family has been answering that question for forty years, and what she said about staying when running would've been easier… yeah. That one's going to stay with you too.

If you grew up somewhere Jewish identity wasn't a given, or you've ever felt stuck in the "I'm not Orthodox but I'm not nothing" middle that Israel doesn't always make room for — this episode is going to feel like someone finally gets it. Judy's spent decades helping build that middle. It's quietly one of the most important things she's done.

In this episode:

• (02:18) Meet Judy — a Midwest town with a population of 2,000 and exactly two Jewish families
• (03:32) The year in Jerusalem at age twelve that set the whole thing in motion
• (06:10) Grad school, Arabic, and meeting the man she'd known her entire life
• (07:15) "Wait, you're moving where?" — the family misunderstanding that took years to settle
• (10:27) Making aliyah in 1981 vs. today — life before Nefesh B'Nefesh
• (13:00) The JFK airport breakdown, and the Israeli behind the desk who cut the fee in half
• (13:25) Landing day — the absorption center, the sal klita, the metal beds
• (22:00) Watching Ra'anana grow up from a one-traffic-light farm town
• (28:00) Becoming "more Israeli than American" — and the day going back to the States became the culture shock
• (30:30) The "do you leave?" question — the Gulf War, October 7th, and what it means to stay
• (42:00) The religious dichotomy, and the lifelong work of building a non-Orthodox middle ground
• (46:00) The three things Judy built her life around — and how the balance kept shifting

About the guest: Judy is a tour guide, a writer, and someone with deep roots in Jewish identity who made aliyah in 1981 and never looked back.

🎧 Aliyah Chronicles is a production of Briefly Distracted Media. If Judy's slow-burn story reminded you of your own, do me a favor — subscribe, leave a review, or send this to someone who needs to hear it.

Want more? Check out our other shows: Landings & Layovers for travel junkies and flight-deal hunters, and Briefly Distracted for strong takes on the weirdness of modern life.

📲 Follow along on Instagram and Facebook — just search Aliyah Chronicles.

🌐 aliyahchronicles.com

This one's personal.

If you've listened to Landings & Layovers, you already know Marty. He's my co-host, one of my closest friends, and someone whose Aliyah story I've heard in pieces over the years. What I didn't realize until this conversation is that all those pieces were really just the trailer.

Marty's journey to Israel starts long before his Aliyah. His family has roots in Israel dating back to the 1600s. His father was born in pre-state Israel during the British Mandate. Hebrew was spoken in his home growing up. And yet, despite all of that, it still took nearly 40 years before he finally made the move himself.

In this episode, we talk about the road that led him from New York and Las Vegas to Tel Aviv, why he and his wife decided to make Aliyah, what it was like arriving during the pandemic with two chihuahuas, and the reality of building a life in Israel after the excitement of the move wears off.

Along the way, we get into the stuff that doesn't make it into the Instagram posts.

• Growing up with an Israeli father who spoke only Hebrew and an American mother who spoke only English
• A family connection to Israel that stretches back more than 400 years
• Why a world traveler who had visited 65 countries ultimately chose Israel as home
• Making Aliyah with two chihuahuas during lockdowns and discovering the strange loopholes that came with it
• The Aliyah process, paperwork nightmares, and the moment Israeli bureaucracy essentially said, "We're just going to call you an Oleh Hadash and move on."
• The airport arrival story that somehow involved Marty's childhood rabbi welcoming him to Israel
• Why the WhatsApp groups that help you survive Aliyah are often the same ones you'll eventually mute
• Lessons learned from moving an entire life across the world
• What October 7th changed for Marty and the moment Israel stopped being a place he lived and became a place he truly belonged

One of my favorite parts of this conversation is that Marty doesn't romanticize Aliyah.

He talks openly about the frustrations, the uncertainty, the bureaucracy, the housing challenges, the language barriers, and the cultural adjustments. But he also talks about the friendships, the community, the opportunities, and the moments that remind you why you came in the first place.

And toward the end of the conversation, he shares some advice that I think applies far beyond Aliyah:

If you're considering a major life change, go somewhere uncomfortable first. Travel somewhere you've never been. Learn how to be uncomfortable. Learn how to figure things out. If you can handle being lost in Peru, you can probably handle being lost in Misrad HaPnim.

This episode isn't really about making Aliyah during a pandemic.

It's about identity, belonging, family, community, and the long road to discovering that the place you've always felt connected to is actually home.

Marty Paz is a real estate investor, world traveler, and co-host of Landings & Layovers. He has visited more than 65 countries, works with clients across the United States, and currently lives in Tel Aviv with his wife and family.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who's thinking about Aliyah, living in Israel, or wondering what happens after the plane lands.

🌐 www.aliyahchronicles.com

📸 Instagram: @AliyahChroniclesPod

🎵 TikTok: @AliyahChroniclesPod

🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Aliyah Chronicles is a production of Briefly Distracted Media, sharing the stories of people who made Aliyah and what happened after they arrived.

What happens when Aliyah wasn't your choice?

Lin was just eight years old when her mother moved them from eastern Russia to Israel. She didn't speak Hebrew, didn't fully understand what Aliyah meant, and wasn't making the decision herself. Like many children who move countries, she simply followed where life took her.

Years later, everything changed.

After spending more than a decade building a life in Israel, Lin's mother decided to move back to Russia. Faced with a choice of her own, Lin chose to stay. What followed was a journey through military service, becoming a lone soldier, building a career in Israel's tech industry, relocating abroad, and ultimately discovering that Israel had become home in a way she never expected.

In this episode of Aliyah Chronicles, we discuss:

✅ Making Aliyah as a child

✅ Growing up between Russian and Israeli cultures

✅ Learning Hebrew and adapting to life in Israel

✅ The challenge of trust, belonging, and rebuilding relationships

✅ Life as a lone soldier in Israel

✅ Serving in the Israeli Navy

✅ Choosing Israel after family leaves

✅ Building a career in Israel's tech industry

✅ Relocating to Germany and returning to Israel

✅ Personal growth, therapy, and rebuilding your life

One of the most powerful moments in this conversation came when Lin realized she had effectively made Aliyah twice: once when her mother brought her to Israel, and again when she chose to stay after her mother left.

If you've ever moved countries, started over somewhere new, struggled to find where you belong, or wondered what life in Israel is really like beyond the headlines, this episode is for you.

👇 Have you ever had a moment where you realized somewhere had become home?

Let us know in the comments.

00:00 Introduction

01:00 Meet Lin

02:06 Growing Up in Eastern Russia

03:21 Why Her Mother Chose Israel

04:29 Making Aliyah at 8 Years Old

06:35 Starting School in Israel

08:11 First Impressions of Israel

09:16 Leaving Her Old Life Behind

10:45 The Challenge of Trusting New People

11:32 Family Struggles and Starting Over

14:13 Feeling More Israeli Than Russian

14:29 Choosing Israel After Family Leaves

15:09 Life as a Lone Soldier in Israel

16:17 Finding Home in the Israeli Navy

17:23 Building a Life on Her Own

18:19 Why Israel Feels Like Home

19:23 Advice for Parents Making Aliyah With Children

23:02 Building a Career in Israel's Tech Industry

25:03 Getting Paid to Play Games

28:17 Relocating to Germany

29:18 Leaving Tech for Therapy

32:25 Rebuilding Yourself After Hardship

33:58 What Life Might Have Been Like in Russia

36:11 October 7 and Returning to Israel

38:26 Final Thoughts

Aliyah Chronicles shares the stories of people who have built lives in Israel. Through conversations with immigrants, entrepreneurs, soldiers, artists, creators, and everyday people, we explore what it really means to make Aliyah, adapt to a new culture, and create a life in Israel.

🌐 Website: AliyahChronicles.com

📱 Instagram: @AliyahChroniclesPod

📱 Facebook: Aliyah Chronicles

📱 X: @AliyahChronicle

Aliyah • Making Aliyah • Moving to Israel • Life in Israel • Russian Aliyah • Aliyah from Russia • Lone Soldier • Israeli Navy • IDF Service • Growing Up in Israel • Immigration Stories • Hebrew Learning • Israeli Culture • Jewish Identity • Living in Israel • Olim • Personal Growth • Starting Over • Expat Life • Israel Podcast • Returning to Israel • Building a Life in Israel