Month: April 2017

This will be a relatively quick post, as we have an early morning tomorrow and time on the bus to add more stories and photos. Our morning began in Ramat Gan, helping in a center for the blind. We got to sit with them in small groups and to help them assemble screws for an electrical device (sorry I can’t be more specific about the actual task) and to chat with the blind individuals. We all got to practice our Hebrew as we heard their stories and after an hour, we were singing songs with them. And after an hour of repetitive manual work, the group also realized the value of education and vowed to stay in school.

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Our next stop was Machon Ayalon, the Ayalon Institute, next to Rechovot. This was the site of kibbutz which housed an underground ammunition factory before the War of Independence. Below you see how the washing machine hid one entrance to the factory, and then we got to go down into the factory and see models of how the bullets were manufactured. They literally had to steal the machinery from Poland in 1938 and smuggle it into Palestine. The insight that the Hagana had at this time to do this is absolutely remarkable, and can certainly be one of the reasons that Israel is a state today. (along with warm beer…ask your students about that!)

 

From Machon Ayalon, we went to Yafo (Jaffa) for lunch and some shopping, followed by a walking tour of the old city of Yafo. (see group photo below). We returned to the hotel to get ready for an early dinner and a Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day) ceremony in Petach Tikvah at a local school. Rabbi Tsipi was invited to speak in front of the whole community- we were very honored to be included in the ceremony (even if it was all in Hebrew and a little hard to follow). It was extremely moving to see the community come together and remember the names and faces that have been lost in defending Israel over the years. Tomorrow we head up to Ma’alot, the town in the north where Tsipi is from, and where we will connect with local teens for Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut (Independence Day).

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Boker Tov Tel Aviv!

We awoke yesterday morning to this beautiful view- Yafo (Jaffa) to the south, the hotels of Tel Aviv and the port to the North. The weather was just perfect and after a few hours of sleep, everyone was ready to see Israel for the first time as a group. We boarded the bus and our driver, Eli, took us to Independence Hall, on Rothchild Street in Tel Aviv. Here we heard the story of Israel’s declaring independence 69 years ago, in this very room. The docent shared pictures, stories, maps and the actual Declaration of Independence. While facing the picture of Theodore Herzl, the founder of Zionism, we listened to the recording of David Ben Gurion declaring Israel a state.

After Independence Hall, we continued on a walking tour of Neve Tzedek, the first neighborhood in Tel Aviv outside of Yafo.

 

It was hard to focus on the tour through Neve Tzedek, as there were planes practicing for the Air Show in honor of Yom Ha’atzmaut. Every time our guide, Ehud, began to tell a story, the planes would interrupt with a fantastic display of flight. At our last stop of the tour, we hearing a wonderful story about Shai Agnon, only to discover we were standing in front of Lael’s aunt’s house! She pulled up on her scooter while we were standing there (completely unplanned)  and surprised Lael, as well as all of us in the group!

We continued our walking tour to Shuk HaCarmel (Carmel Market) and Nahalat Binyamin (weekly art festival). Each student was given 40 shekel for lunch as their first taste of Israeli food. Lots of delicious food was enjoyed (a few of them ended up with a plethora of bread thanks to an overly pushy vendor in the market), and fun was had by all. I enjoyed hummus and pita while writing the weekly Kol Tehiyah entry. (see photo below) With purchases in hand, we then all got on the bus and headed back to Hotel Devorah to prepare for Shabbat.

                

 

Everyone put on their Shabbat clothes, and as the sun set, we walked down the street to the sea and created our own Kabbalat Shabbat together. With Rabbi Tsipi in the lead, we sang the familiar tunes we know so well from Tehiyah while overlooking the shore of Tel Aviv.  Click here for a short video of L’cha Dodi. Some people passing by joined us in song, others smiled and wished us Shabbat Shalom. (Ironically, the man who sat next to Sammy on the plane walked by during our service!) After welcoming Shabbat, we enjoyed a delicious Shabbat dinner at the hotel, followed by an evening of playing on the beach. What a great first day in Israel!

We woke up on Shabbat morning and headed to Kehillah Sinai– a small, progressive synagogue in the heart of Tel Aviv to experience services at an Israeli synagogue. The sanctuary was small, and we filled it up, along with another Jewish Day School from Florida. Some of the tunes were familiar to what we know, others less so. Luckily, the woman who gave the d’var Torah had made aliyah, and spoke perfect English.  This week’s parsha (Tazria/Metzora) can be a difficult parsha to understand, but she connected it beautifully to lashon hara (the evil tongue/gossip)  and the importance of watching what we are saying.  She gave us a copy of both her drash and the Normal Rockwell picture (The Gossip) which she used as an illustration of how easy it is for gossip to get passed on and how hurtful it can be. We will keep these words in mind as we move into the week ahead.

After services, we walked back to the hotel for lunch and had a short program on Jewish identity. We then enjoyed the rest of the day at the Tel Aviv beach, swimming and relaxing. After dinner, we walked to the beach for Havdallah and ice cream. To her great surprise, Shir’s family surprised her with a Bat Mitzvah party in our hotel! We met her family from Israel and enjoyed a DJ party with food, music and a slideshow. What a memorable way to end our Shabbat in Tel Aviv. Laila Tov for now…we have an early wake up tomorrow!

We have arrived in Israel!

The group gathered to leave from SFO Wednesday evening and everything went smoothly! Twenty students travelled together, and were reunited with seven of their classmates here in Tel Aviv. We had the privilege of being the FIRST Tehiyah class to fly non-stop from San Francisco…what a treat! We had an on-time arrival into Tel Aviv and were reunited with the classmates who spent Passover in Israel, plus Rabbi Tsipi and Keren Asayag. The group is excited to begin their adventures in Tel Aviv tomorrow, and to welcome Shabbat on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea.

If you have family who is planning to meet up with us, please make sure they call Rabbi Tsipi BEFORE Shabbat in Israel so that we can arrange to see them on Saturday afternoon between 2:00-4:00 at the Devorah Hotel.

More soon!

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This is it! The last two days at school before Tehiyah’s 8th grade class of 2017 travels to the airport Wednesday night to board our direct (YEAH!) flight from San Francisco to Israel. We are all excited, and a bit nervous too. We know there are many adventures ahead of us and memories to be made.

Please join us on Tuesday morning, April 25 at Modeh Ani for T’fillat HaDerech (Traveller’s Prayer) short ceremony. Parents will be asked to join us on stage to hold the tallit under which we will be standing for the blessing. On Tuesday, we will also have a special program for the students put on by Ilan Vitenberg of Jewish Learning Works to prepare us for our journey ahead. There are no 8th grade classes on Wednesday, April 26th.

We look forward to seeing all the traveler’s at the United Group Check in (Terminal 3, between gates 2 and 3) on Wednesday, April 26 at 6:15pm.

N’siyah Tovah- Safe Journey!

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