Day 4 in Israel- Kennes at Kibbutz Sde Boker

Yesterday, we had so much fun. I'm writing on Monday morning because we were all so tired from the fun activities that we fell right asleep last night. In the morning, we had breakfast in Ramat Rachel and Andrew led an interesting reflective Maagal Boker (morning circle) preparing us for the transition from travel days into Kennes. We then loaded the bus to head to Kibbutz Sde Boker. Halfway through the bus ride, we took a break at a rest stop. We met up with other Diller groups and had the opportunity to buy snacks and drinks. We got back on the bus, and one hour later we arrived at the kibbutz. 

Upon arrival, Nitzan, a member of Tzama gave us a tour of the campus. Tzama is a group of Israel Diller alumni who work on the logistics surrounding Kennes and Congress. With Nitzan we played games and visited David Ben Gurion's grave. We then had lunch and made our way to our rooms. Once settled, all Dillers met up by the auditorium. Each group made a 90 second introduction to present their communities. During our last workshop, Sandra and Hannah adapted the lyrics to Pitbull's song "Timber" which went off without a hitch! It was without a doubt the best 90-second intro and we had a blast. After presentations, we were split into color groups.

After our 90-second intros were all done, we joined our color groups. I am in the red group with Abby, which is a whole lot of fun! In those color groups, we have two junior counselors and one coordinator. Each group did ice breakers and played games until it was dinner time. While waiting for dinner to be ready, all Diller teens had the opportunity to meet and talk to each other. It was great to meet teens my age from so many different communities. After dinner we heard a speaker in the auditorium, Neal Lazarus, who spoke about the current Middle Eastern situation and what led to it. The speech was not only incredibly informative but also lively and full of jokes that everyone appreciated. When the speech ended, we had a few minutes of free time to freshen up before the "white tent". The white tent is a literal white tent with games, music, and snacks on the side. We had the opportunity to hang out with our new friends and keep making some more.  Tired from all the fun, we retired to bed at midnight excited to see our new friends again this morning! 

Day 4 in Israel- Jerusalem

Hi, this is Cat! For our first Shabbat, we had the luxury of sleeping in. We had the opportunity to join an Orthodox service and then enjoy a nice late breakfast. Leah Mass, the Diller International Director of Coordinators, came to our hotel Ramat Rachel to lead us in an alternative Shabbat service.

We then began our journey to the Western Wall. We started at Ramat Rachel with plenty of stops along the way. The stops included the beautiful campus of Hebrew Union College. We had a lively discussion about religious pluralism in Israel with Rabbi Chaim Shalom. Then, we stopped at a park and had an intense discussion about how we can better the state of Israel.  Then we had Seudah Shlishit in the Old City where we met up with several other cohorts like Pittsburgh, Boston, Montreal, and Toronto.

As the sun began to set we made our way to the Kotel. Our awesome tour guide Ori gave us a tour of the Old City, which included a little history lesson. We moved on through the city passing multiple historic sites. When we finally arrived to the Western Wall a shiver ran through my body. It was incredible how much of a variety there was between all of our emotions; some of us cried, some of us were speechless and in awe, and some of us did not feel anything. We made our way to pray and put our notes in the wall.

When we gathered back together we concluded the night with Havdalah. The 21 of us huddled while Ali held the Havdalah candle and led the group prayers. We sang at the top of our lungs and made sure that everyone could hear us. All of a sudden, Andrew started to run around our circle screaming, "SHAVUAH TOV SHAVUAH TOV, SHAVUAH TOV TO LINDSY!" and then Lindsy continued, "SHAVUAH TOV, SHAVUAH TOV, SHVUAH TOV TO ALI!" the Shavuah Tovs went on as we went across the every person in our group. Everyone at the Kotel thought we were crazy but it was an awesome experience that I will never forget.

Then we went for dinner and a little bit of shopping on Ben Yehudah Street.  Walking around today with our entire cohort was really amazing. Going to the Western Wall and praying was such an exhilarating experience.  I cannot wait for tomorrow which will bring a new experience.

Day 3 in Israel- Jerusalem

Today was a very impactful day, as we visited the heart wrenching Mount Herzl and Yad Vashem. We prepared for this intense day in our Maagal Laila on Thursday night when we discussed our own Jewish memories, both good and bad. 

We began our day on Haas Promenade overlooking the entire city of Jerusalem. Ori, our tour guide, lead us in a traditional shehecheyanu, the prayer one says when beginning something new. We then said Kiddush and left for Mount Herzl.

Mount Herzl is the site of Israel's national cemetery and other memorial and educational facilities, found on the west side of Jerusalem. It is named for Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern political Zionism. Herzl's tomb lies at the top of the hill. This was an important stop for us our collective narrative for the Israel Summer Seminar comes directly from Herzl's quotation, "If you will it, it is no dream."  We also learned about Michael Levine, a lone soldier who sacrificed his life for the State of Israel in 2006, Yitzchak Rabin, and Golda Meir.

After Har Herzl we went to Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust Memorial Museum. Our guided tour was very thorough and informative. While today was one of the tougher days we emerged with a greater sense of self and we all were able to crack some smiles when we hopped on the bus.

After our somber, informative morning, we headed to the wildly packed Machane Yehuda for lunch and some shopping. We had time to explore the market with its various aromas and vibrant hues. It was a sweet end to a bittersweet day. We can't wait for a wonderful and spiritual Shabbat in Jerusalem!

 

-Lexi

Day 2 in Israel- Tel Aviv and Jerusalem

Today, I was the first Moshe (leader of the day) for a full day of programing. Early in the morning I set the tone by welcoming my fellow Hebrews and She-brews in a Ma'agal Boker (morning circle). Filled with the enthusiasm of my fellow fellows, we all were ready to begin the most amazing day of programing ever.

 

Steadfast, we started a mind-boggling scavenger hunt at Rabin Square.  The scavenger hunt was called In Our Streets and it led us through the streets of Tel Aviv. We saw important spots like Dizengoff Street and Independence Hall. My team won, of course. The green team, with stomachs full of victorious chocolate, took away the gold.  From there we visited Shuk ha Carmel… that place was tight.  The majority of the clan ate our Pizur Lunch at Pasta Basta, a delicious pasta restaurant on the left hand side of the Shuk.

 

From there we went on to learn with Elliot of Bina, the Secular Yeshiva in Tel Aviv. Bina is located in South Tel Aviv adjacent to the Central Bus Station. Elliot, resident of Tel- Aviv, helped us challenge our ideals about immigration and immigrant rights. Inspired to overcome some of the setbacks set by misunderstood governmental policies, we began to shape our ideals towards helping the immigrants' social position and naturalization rights.

 

From there we visited the High School In Israel campus. We learned about a very elaborate program, which allows teens to explore Israel for six weeks while receiving a top notch education. We ended our amazing time with dinner at our beautiful hotel, followed by amazing and inspiring talk about the holocaust, preparing us for at Yad Vashem tomorrow. 

Day 1 in Israel- Tel Aviv

Our first day in Israel has been amazing! We landed at Ben Gurion airport and met Andrew, the JC Mentor who will be joining us throughout our trip, Ori, our tour guide for the first travel portion, and Leah, the Diller Coordinator mentor. After collecting our luggage and heading through customs we headed towards beautiful Tel Aviv. The view of the beach was absolutely breathtaking as the sun set on the Mediterranean Sea. 

 

When we arrived at our hotel, we quickly dropped off our bags in our rooms and heading to a yummy dinner. After dinner we had a quick ma'agal laila (night circle) because we are all tired. As an exciting surprise, I gave everyone a piece of Elite Milk Chocolate with Popping Candies. It was great to see everyone's surprise when the candies started to pop in their mouths. This serves as a symbol for the excitement and surprise that we have in store on our trip. Lindsy then led a discussion on our personal dreams for the trip to tie into our overall narrative. After we finished our ma'agal laila we said our goodnights and heading off to bed.

 

-Sammy R.

Update

We have arrived in New York and are on our way to our next flight!

Sent from my iPhone

....and we're off!!