(haipo) -Shiran Barzon, 37, left her home in Shlomi at the beginning of the Iron Swords War, taking only three days' worth of clothes with her. She never imagined that a year and three months later, she would still find herself living in a hotel in Haifa, not knowing when she would return home. "We are still living in the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the center of the Carmel, along with about 20 other families," says Shiran. "In the meantime, we are being talked about the possibility of returning to our homes either in early March or April. My home in Shlomi was not damaged and I can return to it, but I am debating whether to return now, in the middle of the school year, or wait for the end of the storm, because I have two daughters who attend the David Yellin School. What is certain is that we intend to return to Shlomi, and we will not remain permanently in Haifa."
Has the education system in Shlomi resumed operations?
"Currently, the education system in Shlomi is not functioning. The students are being evacuated to schools in Acre. I imagine that when we return to Shlomi, there will be transportation to Acre and perhaps also to schools in Haifa."
Do your daughters want to return to their homes?
"My little daughter is 6 years old, studying in first grade. She doesn't really remember the friends she had in Shlomi and would like to stay in Haifa and continue studying at the David Yellin School. The older daughter, of course, remembers her friends and wants to return home."
What's it like to live in a hotel for so long?
"We've gotten used to this situation. I've found my corner, but I see that the other families have a very hard time. Of course, I miss my privacy."
How do you all get along in such a small room?
"We only sleep in the hotel. Throughout the day we are busy with all kinds of activities and sometimes even use the lobby. We only come to the room when we go to bed in the evening."
Have any residents already returned to Shlomi?
"Not yet. They will start returning starting in March, from what I know."
Did you imagine it would take so long to get home?
"I had no idea. We left the house with 3 days' worth of clothes, and we weren't the only ones, all the evacuees were like that. We were sure it wouldn't take long before we got home."
Do you love Haifa?
"Everything here is available, but there is no parking."
It sounds like you've been going through a difficult time.
"To deal with a period like this, you have to do internal work. For me, it was a period of spiritual growth. You deal with things you never thought you would have to deal with, or that you had the ability to deal with. You have to look at things differently. This minimalism also helps. If I were looking from the outside, I wouldn't understand how I got through it either."

"When there are hostages, you can't complain about overcrowded living"
Another evacuee who also came from Shlomi and still lives in Haifa is Carmit Ben Haim, who works as a folk dance instructor and photographer, and among the other challenges she faced was maintaining her business while she was so far from home.
Do you already know when you're coming home?
"We were told about 28/02/25 as the date for returning home, but it is not yet final. The problem is that the educational institutions are not prepared, as they were temporarily built in other places. Currently, it is not possible to hold classes in Shlomi and Kiryat Shmona. Mayors, please give us another month to get organized. The question is, what will happen to the children who started attending schools in Haifa this year?"
What will happen to your children?
"My son is studying at the Atid Hotel Management School in Haifa. He is taking his matriculation exams there in a major that our school doesn't have. He is in the 11th grade, and until he finishes the 12th grade we will have to stay in Haifa. My other son is a student at the Technion, so he will be able to stay here by himself."
How will you stay in Haifa for another year and a half?
"Today I'm at a hotel. I've started looking for an apartment. We hope that our council leader will be able to postpone the return. The uncertainty is for the entire country. In the meantime, I don't want to decide anything, because I don't know exactly when we'll return home. It's problematic to sign a contract for an apartment and then back out."

How are you doing at the hotel?
"We used to stay at the Colony Hotel, then we moved to the Crowne Plaza. It's very hard to deal with the lack of privacy. We lived in an apartment with two floors. Luckily, the hotel rooms are large, to accommodate the amount of amplification equipment I have as a dancer. The sink is for both washing dishes and doing laundry. The entire room is used to store our belongings, as is the car. Every time we go to Shlomi and bring more things from there. But we didn't come to be pampered. When there are hostages, we don't want to feel pampered. We have to be thankful that what happened in the Gaza Envelope didn't happen to us. The first few days at the hotel were a shock, you don't understand how your life has changed. Suddenly you start calling a hotel room 'home.' Reality is stronger than we are. We're lucky that the hotel employees do everything possible to make us feel at home."
When you left my house, did you think you wouldn't be back home for such a long time?
"In 2006, during the Second Lebanon War, we evacuated from our home, and there was no organized evacuation. In retrospect, the residents of Shlomi were evacuated to a tent city, but I didn't know about it. I turned to Kiryat Haim, west of my parents' house. I thought about going to my sister's and ended up at my aunt's house in Kfar Saba. So when I left Shlomi, I thought it would probably be for a month. The truth is, when they evacuated us when the Iron Sword War broke out, I hoped it would take longer and that the goal was not to return to 7/10. For years we knew what danger there was, we knew there were tunnels and that we were very close to the border. There were a few who managed to cross the border over the years. We were in a state of repression."
"We feel like we're returning to the same scenario. What's the problem with opening the tunnels, what's the problem with bringing the terrorists and the weapons back in? I really appreciate what's been done, but this is an enemy that doesn't rest."
Are you satisfied with the state's support for evacuees?
"I think that in terms of support, it's very nice what they did for us, especially if you compare it to 2006. They took care of our evacuation and tried to take our needs into account. I'm self-employed and my business was affected. One of my businesses somehow manages to function, even though part of the business is in a very problematic state. It's a state of uncertainty that continues."
What was your impression of Haifa?
"My husband was born in Haifa and we lived in Haifa in the past, so not much has changed except for a few new neighborhoods. Haifa hasn't changed. I've danced here in Haifa over the years, so I know the city. There are evacuees who arrived in the big city and suddenly there are traffic lights and congestion, and for them it's a drastic change. We feel at home."
Have you learned to deal with the situation?
"I continue with a project that helps evacuees and soldiers with second-hand household equipment. I did a dance called "Great Hero," with poetry by C. Hyman, to raise awareness of the importance of the return of my friend Ohad Ben Ami, who is still kidnapped in Gaza and whose condition is unknown. Every time I am a guest at other dances, we dance the dance and commemorate Ohad and all the other abductees."