Since we last wrote, we've been busy, busy, busy...

On Thursday, we spent the day near (and in) the Dead Sea, including a gorgeous morning hike at Nachal Arugot. We returned to Jerusalem just in time for dinner, which was followed by some free time on Ben Yehuda Street.

On Friday, we looked at collective memory and identity in the State of Israel. In the morning, we were at Yad Vashem, where students participated in two separate tracks--one for those who had never been in the new museum, and a separate experience for those who had already been there.

We also spent some time at Har Herzl, Israel's military cemetery, where our madricha guided us around several sections, including the graves of Theodor Herzl, Hannah Senesh, and a few soldiers who were just buried this past week. We also met a woman whose son died in the Second Lebanon War, and she shared her son's story with the group.

With these experiences in mind, we began our final Shabbat on the program. We divided up and went to four different synagogues last night and two different synagogues this morning to get a better sense of the davening experiences available in Jerusalem. Our meals were filled with singing, and students spent this afternoon playing frisbee, basketball, SET, and just hanging out.

We are getting ready to head to our Final Banquet right now. When we return to the youth hostel, we all have to pack, and some of us might catch a few hours of sleep before we leave around 4:30 a.m.

We look forward to seeing you in Chicago tomorrow.

Shavua tov.

Tuesday: A Day of Surprises and Adventures

Tuesday was filled with surprises and adventures as we explored some fascinating areas of Tel Aviv. We began our tour in the neighborhoods of Neve Tzedek/Neve Shalom, where we learned about the founding of this specific area and Tel Aviv as a whole. Students role-played a conversation among Tel Aviv's founders regarding whether their new city should be religiously Jewish or culturally Jewish, which led to an incredible discussion of whether this is a Jewish city or an Israeli city. (The answer, by the way, is Yes.) Many of our misconceptions about the cultural and economic capital of Israel were debunked; as it turns out, Tel Aviv has more than 5,000 synagogues and plenty of religious activity coexisting with nightclubs, ballets, other fine arts, and the stock exchange.While leaving this neighborhood, we saw a crew filming something--it turned out that the show being filmed there is similar to Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

After lunch, we went to Hechal Atzmaut, the Hall of Independence, which is where the State of Israel was declared on May 14, 1948. We were reminded that this building was first Meir Dizengoff's home in the new Hebrew city of Ahuzat Bayit (which became Tel Aviv), then an art museum, before it became the place where David Ben-Gurion read the Scroll of Independence on that historic day. (For those who remember our Yom Haatzmaut celebration at CJHS this past spring, when we reenacted the Declaration, it was exciting to once again be in this room that we recreated in the CJHS gym. The setting looked pretty familiar!)

We also had a big surprise when one of our students got a special phone call: she's an aunt!

We then had time to wander around Nachalat Binyamin, the artists' colony, where many students and staff found lovely gifts for friends, family, and themselves. We walked to dinner and then, already a bit exhausted, we headed toward our evening program.

Our evening was to be at Na Laga'at, the only blind-deaf theatre program in the world. Just as our bus arrived at the theatre, Leora, our madricha, announced a special surprise for the group. "Direct from Gaza," she said, and all eyes turned to the front as Didi, our beloved madrich/guard/medic boarded the bus. Pandemonium ensued; we have never seen the kids get off the bus so quickly, as they hurried to hug Didi. After a week of basically not sleeping, Didi said, he was granted 24 hours of leave to visit his grandmother, who lives near the theatre, so he was thrilled to surprise us as well. He was only able to stay with us for about a half-hour; though the time was short, it was exciting for everyone to reconnect with our friend.

We walked into Na Laga'at and sat down at their cafe, Kapish, which is run by deaf waiters, so everyone has to communicate in sign language. (They also have a restaurant called Blackout, which is run by blind waiters and gives diners the experience of eating in total darkness.) Following tea, cake, and a Hebrew Sign Language lesson at Kapish, we entered the theatre for Lo Al Lechem L'vado (Not on Bread Alone), a performance done entirely by actors who are both deaf and blind. The show was extraordinary.

Exhausted, we returned to Jerusalem late on Tuesday night.

Wednesday was a whirlwind. We started with a lecture from Chicago native Gil Hoffman, who is the chief political correspondent for the Jerusalem Post. He spoke with us about his journalistic interactions with political figures and his perspective on the current situation. We then spent much of the day focusing on democracy and law in the State of Israel, with visits to the Supreme Court, the Knesset, and the Menachem Begin Center, where we had a tour and then participated in a Knesset simulation activity.

Tonight, we had a low-key evening; many students spent time with friends and family, and others just hung out at our youth hostel.

On Thursday, we are spending our day around the Dead Sea, with a great hike planned, as well as an exploration of Qumran, the place where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found.

As we shiver in our warm clothing and fleeces in 40-50 degree weather here, we hear that it's ridiculously cold and snowy in Chicago. We are thinking of you and will see you all very soon.

Desert Survival Experience

On Sunday morning, we met at our designated locations in Tel Aviv, Modi'in, and Jerusalem following our free Shabbat, and we headed toward the Negev Desert. Upon arrival, we met the guides for our 24-hour Desert Survival Experience and began our first hike. We divided into three small groups to cook lunch together in a competitive atmosphere. We cleaned up lunch and spent the next couple of hours hiking through the Negev until we reached our campsite, where tents were already up, sleeping bags and mattress pads awaited us, and our guides had prepared a delicious, hearty meal. We had an evening activity in which each person had private, personal space in the desert to reflect and contemplate the vastness of our surroundings. We roasted marshmallows and sang songs around a bonfire. Some students headed to tents, while others preferred to sleep under the stars.

This morning, we arose bright and early at 5:45 a.m. in order to begin and complete our hike before the hottest part of the day. The conclusion of today's hike was an exciting rappelling experience. Our guides provided a closure activity for our Desert Survival Experience; we headed to the bus and a delicious lunch in Ein Gedi.

We arrived in Jerusalem by mid-afternoon, giving everyone time to take much-needed showers and get some rest. Tonight, we heard a lecture given by a scholar and specialist in Middle Eastern studies and Arabic from Ben-Gurion University, who presented historical information, including the origins of Hezbollah and Hamas.

This evening, a doctor came to Beit Shmuel to meet with a number of students who had a variety of ailments. Rest assured that we are taking good care of everyone! Tomorrow, we have a full day planned in Tel Aviv. Look for the next post on Wednesday night, as we will not return to Jerusalem until very late on Tuesday.

Our Friends in Kiryat Gat

Today was dedicated to the partnership between CJHS students and teens in Kiryat Gat. Our day began, as usual, with tefillah, which concluded with an open conversation--conducted in Hebrew and English by students and staff on both sides--about tefillah at CJHS and within Conservative Judaism.

We spent much of the morning on an intense hike through the Jerusalem mountains, as we traced some of the steps taken in 1948 by soldiers in the War of Independence. After we reached the top of the mountain's trail, we roughed it down stone, dirt, and other obstacles to reach the bottom of the hill. Throughout the trek, we heard the students from both schools conversing together in both English and Hebrew, discussing topics ranging from politics to history, from getting a driver's license to the situation in Gaza. The hike concluded with the opportunity to make our own lunches, as the students mixed and baked pita bread over an open fire and roasted bananas, apples, and other items to supplement the hummus, salads, corn, and pickles that were provided for us.

After lunch, all of the students traveled to Rishon L'Zion, where we collaborated on a Tikkun Olam project. We went to a drop-off center for large amounts of clothing, and students sorted jeans and jackets--currently the agency's greatest need--from a veritable mountain of clothing.

We took a brief stop at the Har'el Mall for dinner before returning to Kibbutz Tzuba for closing activities. In the lobby of the kibbutz hotel, we had an impromptu singing session before the CJHS students received small gifts from our Kiryat Gat friends and everyone exchanged phone numbers and email addresses. We even had time to sing a bit more together!

Our Kiryat Gat friends left for their ride home, and we look forward to seeing them in Chicago in three months!

Our evening concluded with a class meeting. The staff shared information about the free Shabbat, which begins tomorrow morning, and the Outdoor Desert Experience we will have on Sunday and Monday.

Please be aware that the blog will not be updated until Monday night, and we may not have reliable cell phone service in the desert on Sunday and Monday.

As our students travel through much of Israel to spend time with friends and family for Shabbat, we'd like to take this time to wish Mr. Rose's family mazal tov on the birth of a new daughter, Gvt. Cohen a refuah shelema (a complete recovery), and to all of you, a Shabbat Shalom.

Goodbyes and Hellos

Our day began with a couple of farewells:

Farewell to Kibbutz Hannaton, as we departed for the South this morning.

Farewell to Dr. Schaffner, who we dropped off in Tel Aviv in anticipation of his flight back to the States early tomorrow morning.



Our main destination for the day was Neot Kedumim, a Biblical preserve which features every plant and many of the animals in the Bible, Mishnah, and Talmud. Here, we were just finishing our lunch when a bus arrived with our new and old friends from Kiryat Gat. This is the beginning of two days of intense meetings and workshops between students from the two schools. We spent the afternoon together at Neot Kedumim, taking part in leadership and bonding activities that included making za'atar and herding sheep.



In the evening, we arrived at Kibbutz Tzuba, our home for the next couple of days. We had dinner together and participated in a great program planned by the Kiryat Gat staff, in which we explored Jewish identity among Israeli and Diaspora Jews and then had an intense discussion of the military operation in Gaza.



Tomorrow, our 50+ (combined) students will hike and complete a Tikkun Olam project together in Rishon L'Zion.



Caroline Musin

Claudia Linda

Rabbi Ruven Barkan

Up North

When we last wrote, we had just heard about the ground forces entering Gaza. This became a very personal experience for us, as our madrich (counselor) had to leave our group to join his army unit on Saturday night.

Sunday morning, we left Jerusalem and headed to the North, with a stop at Givat Haviva for a different perspective on the Israeli/Palestinian issues than we had experienced in the previous week. Our day ended with our arrival at Kibbutz Hannaton (just in time for dinner!). Following dinner, we had a lengthy and emotional sharing experience with each person in the program commenting on the current news and discussing reactions to being in Israel at this particular time.

This morning, we headed to Mt. Arbel, where we rode donkeys. When we reached the top of the mountain, we had a magnificent view of the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee). From there, we had a rather strenuous hike down the mountain. Our next stop was Tzfat, where we were delighted to welcome Rabbi Barkan to our group! Our activities in Tzfat included hearing a kabbalist artist talk about his experience with Kabbalah and how it influences his artwork. After a bit of time shopping, we participated in singing and dancing with some spirited residents of Tzfat.

Tonight, we are back at Hannaton watching a movie, The Syrian Bride, which will prepare students for our Druze experience tomorrow.

We are excited to send congratulations and best wishes on the birth of Ms. Gitlin's baby!

Shavua tov!

Do your kids help make Shabbat dinner at your home? If not, know that they are more than capable! Friday's theme was Tikkun Olam, and we spent the morning at Ichlu Re'im Soup Kitchen. Our students and staff peeled and chopped potatoes, chopped onions, inspected rice, chopped salad vegetables, cleaned fridges, shlepped boxes, mopped floors, set up tables, and more, all to help prepare Shabbat dinner for some of Jerusalem's neediest residents.

We stopped next at Machaneh Yehuda, the outdoor shuk in Jerusalem, where students explored the fun of bargaining while purchasing lunch and goodies for a group oneg. Following Machaneh Yehuda, we had time to prepare for Shabbat.

Rested, showered, and in our loveliest clothing, we began Shabbat with a student-led program to put us in the mindset for a day of rest. We davened together at Beit Shmuel and enjoyed a delicious dinner. After dinner, another group of students led the class in a bonding activity.

This morning, we walked to Ma'ayanot, a Conservative congregation in Talpiot. Members of the congregation hosted our students and staff for Shabbat lunch following tefillot. We davened mincha there and then returned to Beit Shmuel.

Following havdalah, we had dinner and participated in a drummers' circle, an extraordinary experience of energy and sound which will make more sense when you see your children's pictures.

Tomorrow morning, we leave Jerusalem for several days in the North. We want to reassure you that our entire itinerary has been and will continue to be cleared by the security authorities in Israel on a daily basis and will be modified as needed. We do not know whether we will have access to internet in the North, so our blog may be on hiatus for a few days.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call any of us on the staff (keeping in mind the time difference).

Shavua tov!

Caroline Musin
Claudia Linda
Ted Schaffner

We have great news--it has stopped raining, and the sun has come out! (However, it's still a brisk 40 degrees.)

To continue our discussion of the three religions of Jerusalem, our day began with an exploration of the importance of the city to Muslims and included an update on the situation in Gaza. We then took a bus tour of the city focusing on the impact of geography on Israel's security issues.

We received security clearance to visit Gush Etzion this afternoon, where we learned about the origins and history of the area through a film at Kibbutz Kfar Etzion. Afterward, we met with a man who lives in Efrat who spoke about his perspective on peace and security for the State of Israel, with a special emphasis on settlements.

Tomorrow morning, we will help prepare Shabbat dinner at a soup kitchen, and then we'll go to the shuk to prepare for our own Shabbat festivities, which we began planning tonight.

Our next update will be after Shabbat. Until then, Shabbat Shalom!