Day Three: Another Day in the Golan.

Hey there! Eric Tapper here to recant the wondrous journey of our third touring day in Israel (fourth of the trip). After breakfast in Thai Village, we hopped aboard our chariot driven by the skilled Moshe (I did not think buses could make such tight turns) and drove to the Tel Dan Nature Reserve. We were surrounded by greenery that painted a lush background for the beautiful azure water rushing by us as we walked. Yoni informed us of the importance of the land at various checkpoints throughout the reserve. We then made our way to Mount Bental in the Golan Heights. Here sat a former Israeli bunker that was as dark and grey as the sun was blazing hot. Our soldier Yair told us that modern living quarters are not really all that different. At this vantage point, we were able to look out on where Israel ends and Syria begins. A surreal moment in which I made the connection of having only looked at the Arab land on a map and then it being no more than a few miles in front of me. There was an eerie realness to be in such close proximity to a place that up to this point, for me, has only been substantiated by the American media. To add to the drama of situation, I was facing a rather difficult decision. I had packed a lunch of a makeshift sandwich comprised of Thai Village's breakfast spread while before me was a falafel shop. "Which should I eat?" I asked myself. Unable to find solace in either option, I went for both. On to the kayaking! Or rafting, more accurately. The 995 fleet had four to six members in each of its vessels as we navigated the treacherous tributary of the Jordan River. Why treacherous? Was it the violent water? No, the water was quite calm. Was it the jagged rocks jutting out helter skelter? Nein! The trip was mostly smooth sailing. It was... the children. Armed with water guns and a passion for splashing passerby's. Greg and I navigated our boat artfully so, and long story short, we were dripping with finesse by the time our expedition came to a close. In addition to our now-chiseled triceps, the zip line directly into the river was a solid reward for our efforts. Needless to say, I slept like a baby and am now well rested as we are currently making our way to the ancient city of Jerusalem. Stay tuned! -Eric

Day Two: Up North- The Golan Heights and Tzfat

Yesterday . . . we did a lot. After waking up and eating breakfast (true to what I have been assured, Israeli breakfast, even at Thai Village, includes fresh salad as a major component. Also cheeses and eggs and rolls and chocolate milk in a bag). Pretty much on time we got on the bus and moved out of the valley partway up to the Golan Heights to Mitzpeh Gadot, where we got to see a memorial to Israeli soldiers who died fighting in the area and an abandoned Syrian bunker overlooking the Galilee. Yoni told us about the area, especially in terms of modern Zionism up to the Six Day War and Yom Kippur War. After that we drove up to onto the Golan Heights themselves (and saw a good number of cows and a few horses in the fields we passed along the way. We arrived at Chan El Al, where team building sessions were lead by Yaakov for the guys and his wife Leah for the girls. I can't speak for what the guys did - I'm pretty sure some of their activities varied - but Leah gave us various challenges and encouraged us to work as a team, with different leaders for each activity. Some were physical, some were mental puzzles (she taught us that lots of times solving a problem is %90 planning and %10 execution) and included rolling our entire group over on a barrel, getting our hand on and swinging over a dip on a rope (she called this the Tarzan challenge), walking one girl on a series of planks held off the ground, among a few others. After discussing what we learned, we went in for a delicious lunch including many more salads, chummus and babaganoush, potatoes, rice, and chicken - and wonderful tangerines. That done, we drove down and through the Galilee, passing the Kinneret, or the Sea of Galilee, along the way to Tzefat, or Safed. This city, Yoni told us, was one of the four holy cities of Israel and the highest city in Israel; it has also been a center of Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism, since the Middle Ages, and today also boasts an artists' colony. The first thing we did when we got there was visit Sheva Chaya, a local artist who paints and does glassblowing art connected to Kabbalah. She spoke a little bit about her life, and how she came to love Israel and become interested in her Judaism and Kabbalah, and she demonstrated glassblowing, making a small drinking or shot glass with L'chaim!' written on it in Hebrew. Then we moved onto the main area of Tzfat, where Yoni told us more about the rise of Kabbalah in the area and we got to visit the synagogue of the Ari, a primary Kabbalist of Tzfat (which has a beautiful ark brought from Europe which had to bend at the ceiling because the measurements had been wrong. Then we got to visit the shops, stalls, and galleries along the way, which old and displayed beautiful and diverse pieces of art and functional Judaica. I got to try Lachuch, a Yemenite Jewish dish vaguely akin to pizza but much more interesting and delicious, sold from a shop that opened onto the street. All too soon (or so it felt), we had to go back to the bus and back to Thai village, where we concluded our day and got ready for today, which, presumably, you'll hear more about tomorrow. -Tamar

Day One: Welcome to the Motherland

After an exhausting 12 hour flight to Israel, we finally touched ground in Israel. Though sleep- deprived and slowly adjusting to the new time schedule, we exchanged our money, received our Israeli cell phones, and boarded the tour bus. We were introduced to Yair, a former paratrooper in the IDF, but now serving as the Security Guard/medic. Our first destination- Caesarea. The newer area features grand mansions and views of the Mediterranean Sea. The bus took us to the ancient section of Caesarea. Yoni, aka John from Brooklyn, also the tour guide for this trip, first showed the Rutgers students a stone theater constructed by the Romans in 66 BCE. Through the greatly preserved ruins, we could easily see the coliseum-like style, that theater-goers would flock to view lighthearted shows and comedy acts. The next stop was a recently excavated amphitheater that originally served as an arena for chariot races. It was later converted into a battleground for gladiator fights. Sitting in the ampitheater, we could see Herod's palace, which overlooks the Mediterranean Sea. The final stop in Caesarea was the Buthusian exhibit, where Yoni explained that Caesarea was originally built as a port city. Over time, the Nile River deposited mounds of sand and the Russians built a damn that prevented the sand from entering. We boarded the bus and departed to Zichron Yaa'acov, the first town established after the first wave of aliyot. We were able to explore this small village and have lunch. We sampled the local cuisine of shwarma and falafel sandwiches, and cooled down from the heat with a gelatto. The food was yummy and was a great introduction to the Israeli culture. At the conclusion of lunch, our group boarded the bus to check-in at the hotel for dinner. After a tiring afternoon in the heat,we took well-deserved naps during the entire ride to the hotel! Over and out until next time, Steph R and Mollie K!

Jerusalem and Day of Reflection

On the 25 of May, we spent the day exploring the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem. We perused the market streets in search of Hamsas, mezuzot, and Chanukiot. We came out with some really excellent finds! While it got hotter, we strolled through the Old City, and saw some really inspirational sites. We saw the South Wall of the Temple Mount where the ancient Temple stood over 3000 years ago. After that, we were given the chance to visit the Kotel, one of the holiest sites in Judaism. It was a really spiritual experience for many people. Many of us wrote prayers that we placed within the cracks of the wall. After that, we headed to a traditional Israeli market, to enjoy the food of the land. Some of us ate Schwarma, falafel, or pastries. Then, we visited a site that overlooked the West Bank, and there we discussed the implications of the area and its people. After a long day, we headed back to the hotel for a night in. Our Israeli soldiers prepared a game of "Israeli Jeopardy" for us. We competed as three branches of the IDF: Airforce, Navy, and Infantry. The infantry unit came out victorious!!

Today, May 26, we started our day at Yad Vashem, the national Israeli Holocaust Museum. It was a deeply moving and profound exhibit that inspired a lot of emotion for everyone in the group. After a quick lunch, we headed to Har (Mount) Herzel, the national Israeli military cemetary. We visited the graves of famous Israelis such as: Theodore Herzel, Yitzach Rabin, Golda Meir, and others. After we visited a few graves of soldiers who gave their lives for the advencement of the Jewish State such as Michael Levin and Yonatan Netanyahu. Before setting out for Tel Aviv, we said our tearful goodbyes to our eight Israeli soldiers. In Tel Aviv, we had a nice variety of dinner options on Jaffa street. Anything from Shwarma to pizza was available; and the ice cream was only 8 shekels! We ended the evening by seeing a play performed by blind and deaf actors, detailing their struggles and dreams. Overall, it was a humbling and reflective day.


Kimberly Syvarth, Rutgers 2013
Sabrina Rackow, George Mason Dec 2011
Jonathan Levin, Rutgers 2013
Sofia Kremer, Rutgers 2012

to the south

yesterday, we went to tzfat or safed - there's no standard spelling - it was very beautiful, with a great view of the surrounding countryside. we visited two synagogues, then went shopping. after shopping, we worked with livnot u'lhibanot - to build and to rebuild - an israeli group a bit like habitat for humanity. we did some weeding in a park in tzfat, where there was an old fortress dating back at least to the romans. after tzfaat, we went to bet she'arim, where there are caves where jews were buried during the roman period, and we learned about the revolts against the roman and the greeks. finally we went to a bedouin camp, where we rode camels a short distance, then enjoyed traditional bedouin hospitality and coffee. the bedouins drink three cups of coffee with their guests, one to honor the guest, one for protection, and one for fun. we took a night walk into the negev desert where we meditated a bit, then came back and discussed faith and religious experience in the desert. we slept at the bedouin camp after a night of singing and fun around a campfire.
today we got up very early to go to masada. we saw an infantry brigade, the young pioneers, walking through the desert on a long hike to masada, where we climbed the roman ramp with the soldiers. we viewed and learned about the ruins at masada, then went to the dead sea for lunch and relaxation. after that we went to ein gedi, a freshwater spring, where we haad fun in the water. after ein gedi, we went to jerusalem, where we had a short shehechiyanu ceremony before going to the hotel. we spent the night out in jerusalem, in a pedestrian mall. we had a lot of fun, especially tonight.
sammie - george mason
dov - rutgers

SUMMER 2011!!

Driving to the airport some of us were nervous but once we met each other on the plane, everyone shared the same feelings and were welcoming. Although the plane was an 11 hours long, it went by pretty fast; we talked, napped, and watched movies.
Our first shabbat was nice because it was nice relaxing from being rushed into Israel for our first times. We stayed at the Kibbutz in Machaniam. We noticed instead of squirrels, Israel has cats and dogs running around. Everyone we have met so far is really nice and understanding that we do not speak Hebrew. Many people are connecting to their Judaism and others are still finding themselves. We all manage to coordinate and find time to spend our spare time together.

Today we went on a nature walk in Tel Dan. It was fascinating. We learned about Syria and Lebanon, and how the conflicts arise between the close borders. We saw exotic birds and how essential the conversion of swamps were into agricultural land. The soldiers joined us they are very nice and open to any questions; they will be joining us for a few more days, and we love them already. Traveling up the Golan Heights really put things into perspective for us and how important the IDF is... it is not just being apart of an army, but having a special identity and pride for your country to maintain its significance. We have all gotten really close and it is only the third day. So far, birthright is an amazing experience and I cannot wait to see what else comes this week.