Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Images of Acco (Acre) [Jan. 9]
Images from our Monday, January 9 visit to the old city of Acco (Acre)
Monday, January 9, 2012
Day 2 Reflections Continued
We began the morning running ten minutes early, so we had time to head through the hills of Zichron Yakov, where Yael is from. She showed us her home, the park she plays with her nephews in, her favorite shoe store, the main square in her town and of course the synagogue. Zichron is a mix of people, it sounds like a blending of old and new, Jew and non-Jew, the kind of place where you are forced to be a part of the world. As we head down from Zichron, we pass the German Factory that makes gas masks, the irony here is obvious and we acknowledge it. We head to Atlit, a detention camp that was originally used by the British to detain Jews immigrating to Israel (before 1948) and later taken over by Israelis to house prisoners’ of war. It’s a reminder of the struggles and maybe it should be a sombering place, but to me its an inspiring place. Its inspiring that people wanted to come to Israel that much, that they believed and still do in this place so much. Heading out from Atlit we hear about the white book and the tension within the Israeli population during WW2 over fighting the British, to be allowed to immigrate to Israel and joining the British to fight the Germans. The history here is so palpable, everywhere there is the fusion, this juxtaposition of old and new.
We head to Acre, one of the few cities here with a large Jewish and Muslim population. We see the Bay of Haifa, the Templar’s fortress that the city used to protect itself during the Crusader period, we eat a delicious lunch of chicken shwarma and falafel and climb through the Templar tunnel. The drivers here are crazy. They don’t stop to let you cross and they park as they feel. I wonder what driving here would be like, I’d imagine nerve wracking. Then we drive to the Rosh Hanikra cliffs and take the cable cars down to the grottos. There is a storm raging so we don’t get that far into the grottos, but we do go out of the ledge above the water. The waves crash and about half the group gets soaked. Our guide Raz tells us this is the worst he’s ever seen the caves. We board the bus, gathering dry clothes to change into and begin the drive to our hotel, by the Sea of Galile, Kibbutz Nof Ginosar. So the first day ends and I’m wondering how it possible to feel so connected to a place your parents aren’t from and you’ve only been in for a day.
Xoxo,
Leah Kieff (University of Mary Washington)
Carrie Aefsky (George Mason University)
P.S. Mom I’m getting lots of compliments on the shoes.
Jaunuary 10, 2012
I woke up this morning to the sound of the wind ripping through the palm trees outside my window. I looked at my clock. 10:45 PM in the US. 4:45am in Israel. I knew it would be a long day, but jet-lag got the better of me. After waiting the extra two hours until I knew everyone else would be awake, I went down to the lobby of our first hotel, in Netanya (a town outside of Tel Aviv), and experienced a very different type of breakfast. Instead of muffins or bagels, there were several types of salads, fresh cheese, tomatoes, guacamole, and many types of fish. It was all delicious. After we had tried our fill, we departed for Atlit, the site of a British internment camp. Although we were in beautiful surroundings full of flowers and palm trees, we arrived to the site of the camp, where thousands of Jews were imprisoned when trying to migrate to Israel during and after WWII, where they had been promised a free state. The British, who occupied and controlled Palestine at the time, forced the Jews into the encampments, calling them illegal immigrants. These camps, although still using the same rules and layouts of the concentration camps during the Holocaust, were meant to just keep the Jews in one place, not to harm them in any way. Many of the people that were detained were survivors of the European concentration camps. When taken to the camp in Atlit, the Jews, most of who had just travelled by boat and by train, believed that they were once again going to be imprisoned and treated the same as they had been in Europe. Although they were separated (men on one side, women on the other) they were never harmed and were given three meals a day. The conditions they lived in, though, were far from ideal. Close to eighty people were squeezed into small barracks where they were locked in every night. I had never heard of the camp in Israel before, or that the Jews were detained while trying to reach the state where they believed they would find sanctuary. Learning about the horrible conditions of their travels to Israel, by boats which held up to thousands of people at a time (then being taken to further camps, after their experiences in the Holocaust) really made me realize what they had to go through in order to finally gain a place to call their own. I had never known what the Jews really had to go through in order to reach Israel. This experience today, and learning more about the determination of my people really made me connect to and respect what was done so that we may live in relative peace today.
--Kate Manstof, George Mason University
Boker Tov! Today was a lot of fun, we visited an old British prison for illegal Jewish immigrants and then we went to the city of Acre. The food was good, and it was really interesting walking through the narrow thousand year old tunnels even though it got a little tight when the ceiling started getting lower. After that we went north to the border to see the caves and that was really fun. The waves were really intense because it had been raining all day. I remained dry while others were not so lucky. We’re at the kibbutz now, and we’re all pretty tired. It’s been great so far though. Happy birthday, Dad!
-Aaron Isaacman, George Mason University
We head to Acre, one of the few cities here with a large Jewish and Muslim population. We see the Bay of Haifa, the Templar’s fortress that the city used to protect itself during the Crusader period, we eat a delicious lunch of chicken shwarma and falafel and climb through the Templar tunnel. The drivers here are crazy. They don’t stop to let you cross and they park as they feel. I wonder what driving here would be like, I’d imagine nerve wracking. Then we drive to the Rosh Hanikra cliffs and take the cable cars down to the grottos. There is a storm raging so we don’t get that far into the grottos, but we do go out of the ledge above the water. The waves crash and about half the group gets soaked. Our guide Raz tells us this is the worst he’s ever seen the caves. We board the bus, gathering dry clothes to change into and begin the drive to our hotel, by the Sea of Galile, Kibbutz Nof Ginosar. So the first day ends and I’m wondering how it possible to feel so connected to a place your parents aren’t from and you’ve only been in for a day.
Xoxo,
Leah Kieff (University of Mary Washington)
Carrie Aefsky (George Mason University)
P.S. Mom I’m getting lots of compliments on the shoes.
Jaunuary 10, 2012
I woke up this morning to the sound of the wind ripping through the palm trees outside my window. I looked at my clock. 10:45 PM in the US. 4:45am in Israel. I knew it would be a long day, but jet-lag got the better of me. After waiting the extra two hours until I knew everyone else would be awake, I went down to the lobby of our first hotel, in Netanya (a town outside of Tel Aviv), and experienced a very different type of breakfast. Instead of muffins or bagels, there were several types of salads, fresh cheese, tomatoes, guacamole, and many types of fish. It was all delicious. After we had tried our fill, we departed for Atlit, the site of a British internment camp. Although we were in beautiful surroundings full of flowers and palm trees, we arrived to the site of the camp, where thousands of Jews were imprisoned when trying to migrate to Israel during and after WWII, where they had been promised a free state. The British, who occupied and controlled Palestine at the time, forced the Jews into the encampments, calling them illegal immigrants. These camps, although still using the same rules and layouts of the concentration camps during the Holocaust, were meant to just keep the Jews in one place, not to harm them in any way. Many of the people that were detained were survivors of the European concentration camps. When taken to the camp in Atlit, the Jews, most of who had just travelled by boat and by train, believed that they were once again going to be imprisoned and treated the same as they had been in Europe. Although they were separated (men on one side, women on the other) they were never harmed and were given three meals a day. The conditions they lived in, though, were far from ideal. Close to eighty people were squeezed into small barracks where they were locked in every night. I had never heard of the camp in Israel before, or that the Jews were detained while trying to reach the state where they believed they would find sanctuary. Learning about the horrible conditions of their travels to Israel, by boats which held up to thousands of people at a time (then being taken to further camps, after their experiences in the Holocaust) really made me realize what they had to go through in order to finally gain a place to call their own. I had never known what the Jews really had to go through in order to reach Israel. This experience today, and learning more about the determination of my people really made me connect to and respect what was done so that we may live in relative peace today.
--Kate Manstof, George Mason University
Boker Tov! Today was a lot of fun, we visited an old British prison for illegal Jewish immigrants and then we went to the city of Acre. The food was good, and it was really interesting walking through the narrow thousand year old tunnels even though it got a little tight when the ceiling started getting lower. After that we went north to the border to see the caves and that was really fun. The waves were really intense because it had been raining all day. I remained dry while others were not so lucky. We’re at the kibbutz now, and we’re all pretty tired. It’s been great so far though. Happy birthday, Dad!
-Aaron Isaacman, George Mason University
Day 2 - Traveling Up North
Day 3 began at different times for each person in bus 979.
The flight from the day before meant that many of the group members had
difficulty sleeping through the whole night. I personally woke up at 2 AM
because my body thought it was 9pm the night before. But with the light of day
came a new appreciation of our location. Our hotel was literally a street away
from the Mediterranean sea. After a delicious and unique breakfast, the entire
group was ready to begin our birthright trip. With a lack of traffic, we were
able to traverse the beach-side road with relative ease. After the oohs and ahs
of the first few minutes of driving next to the sea wore down we were able to
learn a little about the area we were driving through. My first impression of
Israel in the daylight is that this is a magical place. The beauty and peace of
the area are awe-inspiring. Agriculture and houses are everywhere. After only
an hour of driving, I can tell already that this trip will be full of adventure, excitement, and beauty. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
– Daniel Singer, George Mason University
The flight from the day before meant that many of the group members had
difficulty sleeping through the whole night. I personally woke up at 2 AM
because my body thought it was 9pm the night before. But with the light of day
came a new appreciation of our location. Our hotel was literally a street away
from the Mediterranean sea. After a delicious and unique breakfast, the entire
group was ready to begin our birthright trip. With a lack of traffic, we were
able to traverse the beach-side road with relative ease. After the oohs and ahs
of the first few minutes of driving next to the sea wore down we were able to
learn a little about the area we were driving through. My first impression of
Israel in the daylight is that this is a magical place. The beauty and peace of
the area are awe-inspiring. Agriculture and houses are everywhere. After only
an hour of driving, I can tell already that this trip will be full of adventure, excitement, and beauty. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
– Daniel Singer, George Mason University
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Day 1 - Departure Day
Part 1 - At JFK
So we're here... And Shockingly we all somehow managed to be on time. So after a bit (or in our cases-hours) of waiting we gathered our things and began to process through El Al Security. And what a process it was.
Part 2 - Arriving in Israel
So we're on the bus. We've picked up our cell phones (well those who ordered them did) and we've exchanged money. Learning you get 365 shekels for $100 and we are ready to head to the hotel to shower and eat.
We met our tour guide, Raz, who is really funny, we'll see how long that lasts. We're running about an hour late thanks to Israeli Customs lines. We met Moti our bus driver and found out our bus has free wi-fi (This is amazing!!). We also met Yaniv who is our medic/security guard. The free stuff just keeps coming tonight as we got itineraries, maps and journals. We honestly think we're just happy to be off the plane as we were forgetting what life was like outside the plane. Guess being stuck for that long made us melodramatic.
So post-plane we have a few tips for future travelers -
1. Don't touch people's seats as you walk down the aisle. ("Dude, I was sleeping")
2. Don't lean your seat back all the way, it's just poor form.
3. Don't try to push past people when the aisle is clogged. "Excuse me" doesn't give me anywhere to go.
4. Wake up0 your neighbor for meals.
5. Just remember the golden rule.
xoxo,
Leah, University of Mary Washington '11
Carrie, George Mason University '13
So we're here... And Shockingly we all somehow managed to be on time. So after a bit (or in our cases-hours) of waiting we gathered our things and began to process through El Al Security. And what a process it was.
We had been warned to expect some rather extensive questioning from El Al staff, but we had no idea what we were in store for. Let's just say their reputation for strict security is well deserved. After processing through and laughing over that we naturally wanted to get in a last meal in America (if airport food can even count.) Dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings gave us a chance to bond, make new friends and try Benjamin's unique sandwich of cheddar, butter, mustard and pickles on french bread. We regrouped, circled up and did the mandatory ice-breaker. We learned some cool facts about our soon to be BFF's and got a taste of just how awesome Yael and Scott are. So now we're playing the name game, seeing who we know in common from home and waiting to board our ten hour flight - to begin our adventure.
So we're on the bus. We've picked up our cell phones (well those who ordered them did) and we've exchanged money. Learning you get 365 shekels for $100 and we are ready to head to the hotel to shower and eat.
We met our tour guide, Raz, who is really funny, we'll see how long that lasts. We're running about an hour late thanks to Israeli Customs lines. We met Moti our bus driver and found out our bus has free wi-fi (This is amazing!!). We also met Yaniv who is our medic/security guard. The free stuff just keeps coming tonight as we got itineraries, maps and journals. We honestly think we're just happy to be off the plane as we were forgetting what life was like outside the plane. Guess being stuck for that long made us melodramatic.
So post-plane we have a few tips for future travelers -
1. Don't touch people's seats as you walk down the aisle. ("Dude, I was sleeping")
2. Don't lean your seat back all the way, it's just poor form.
3. Don't try to push past people when the aisle is clogged. "Excuse me" doesn't give me anywhere to go.
4. Wake up0 your neighbor for meals.
5. Just remember the golden rule.
xoxo,
Leah, University of Mary Washington '11
Carrie, George Mason University '13
P.S. Mom - I'm safe, having fun and love you.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Some more pre-trip comments
As the trip date gets closer, I get more excited each and every day. I can't wait to see all the places that we are going to visit. I am so glad that I am embarking on this journey to Israel, not only with some friends, but with my sister. I hope to get more in touched with my Jewish heritage as I explore and take in the sights and sounds of Israel and everything around me. Not only am I excited to travel, but this will be my first time outside of the country. I can't believe that I am finally getting to go to a place that I've always wanted to go.
- Heather Silverstein, George Mason University
As the trip approaches, I'm very excited and nervous at the same time. I'm glad I get to share this experience with my sister and good friends. I'm looking forward to see all the sights of Israel and explore more of my Jewish heritage. I also want to learn more about Israel since I heard of the many experiences and wonders from my family and friends who have been there. I never been out of the country before so this is a new experience for me, but I'm thrilled that the first place I'm going to is Israel. I can't wait to start this journey and come back with many memorable stories and much knowledge of Israel.
- Ashley Silverstein, George Mason University
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Pre-Trip Thoughts
Student share their thoughts before our ten day trip to Israel.
As I think how our arrival date is quickly approaching, I am anticipating inspiration. I can’t wait to see the views, experience the culture, and learn more about the history of this beautiful country I’ve only heard and read about. I want to capture the soul of Israel, both the land and the people, with my camera as best as I can and I can’t wait for the challenge.
I can already feel a connection to Israel even though I have never been there and I am hoping to build it even stronger, starting with this trip. It’s going to be interesting to be in a country where the majority of the people are Jewish and I’m curious to see what that feels like. I’m also really thankful we’re all able to go on this trip; it’s an amazing gift. I can’t wait to start our journey!
As the trip rapidly approaches, I am thinking about all the sights we are going to see. I think that emotions will come into play as the sights before me unfold. Also, I must admit I am a bit anxious about all the traveling that we are going to be doing in such a short period of time, however I feel up to the challenge and excited all in all. This trip is going to be a completely new experience for me as I have never been out of the country before. I have wanted to go to Israel for as long as I can remember to connect to my Jewish heritage and finally it is happening!
- Leslie Steiger, George Mason University
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)