Hello to Freedom and New Perspectives

The first of three HUC tiyulim (trips) took us to the North to learn more about the “New Jew” – emigrants from the first and second aliyah period before the founding of the modern state of Israel (1880-1914). It was a great trip, not perfect because Amy was too sick to join us, but a much needed break from J’lem. First, a reflection on our class – while I know it’s still early in the year I think we’re a pretty amazing group of people. Not to say that everyone’s friends with each other but that’s not the goal – the goal is respect and camaraderie. The year-in-Israel experience breeds a camp environment with all the good and bad of living and breathing each other 24/7. This first tiyul was a true test of our maturity and willingness to roll with the punches and I think we passed – no need for a class meeting or group therapy. Ok, back to the actual tiyul.

We left very early Sunday morning, only a few hours after the gates closed on Yom Kippur and everyone still hung over from gorging at break-the-fast. I quickly became a proud member of bus #2 (our madrichot bought martzipan rugela to win us over) comprised of our amazing tour educator, Gadi (brother-in-law of my friend Ari Geller and son-in-law to Rabbi Gellar) and our amazing history teacher and source for all things British, Dave Mendelson. The initial drive North was sprinkled with history tidbits, Israeli factoids, international sports updates and much needed cat-naps. Our first stop was Rosh Pina, one of the first settlements from the first aliya period beginning in the early 1880s. The original moshava still exists and is absolutely beautiful! The surrounding town of Rosh Pina is known for its B&B’s, restaurants and wineries so I hope to have an opportunity to spend more time in the area. Our first stop also brought our first multi-media presentation of the trip. This will have to be a separate blog entry but I am quickly becoming a multi-media connoisseur – every single site in Israel has an accompanying presentation, I’m not exaggerating! One of my theories it that during the second intifada while tourism was lagging, Israelis had plenty of time to update every tour site. It’s really unbelievable! Ok, distracted again.

After Rosh Pina we had lunch on a tributary of the Jordan River and then went rafting. 6 people per raft and only 2 paddles; it was actually a lot of fun when we weren’t ramming into the banks of the river which were actually tree roots and prickly shrubbery (I have wounds). I did learn that cotton fields, in Israel, are irrigated with purified waste water much of which was splashed in my face during our rafting trip. Needless to say, I was more than thrilled to take a long, hot shower once we arrived at Karei Deshe – our amazing hostel on the shores of the Kinneret. The room was spacious and clean and yes, the shower was hot! I helped lead ma’ariv services that evening on the beach and it think it went well.

Day 2, we were up early and off to Tel Dan – not really a direct relation to the theme of the “New Jew” but the director of HUC’s Archeology School agreed to meet us there and explain this very significant site. Established by the Northern Israelite Tribe of Dan where they actually built their own Temple Mount outside of Jerusalem during the Second Temple period. Archeologists also found a stone with an inscription referring to David’s Kingdom and it is the only mention of King David outside of the torah. Tel Dan is also a beautiful nature preserve with waterfalls and wildlife. We took a short walk through the main area but again, it’s a place to visit in the future. Then we were off to a Golan lookout point at Har Bental which also has preserved military bunkers that we were able to walk through. It was a spectacular view of Syria and Lebanon.

Continuing the Golan experience we met a resident who’s one of the official English speaking spokespersons defending the right of the Golan settlements to exist. Of course it began with a propaganda movie and then some amazing lobbying by the spokesperson. I definitely had a DC reaction to the presentation – while I disagreed with much of the message, the delivery was great, textbook lobbying 101 and I hope this person gets paid a lot to be such an impassioned lobbyist. We then debriefed in small groups before FINALLY heading back to the hostel for a BBQ dinner and singing on the beach. We were joined by an Israeli folk band consisting of a guitar player and an accordion. Good times had by all.

Day 3, I decided to eat breakfast outside on the beach. Our days were so jam-packed that we never returned to the hostel during daylight. I soaked up every second of those 30 minutes on the water, much needed serenity. First stop on our final day was Tel Chai, the Masada of the North where the pioneers would rather die than surrender. They are memorialized throughout the North and in the towns name: Kiriyat Shmona. We then went to Metualla – Israel’s Northern most city and looked over to Lebanon. I felt perfectly safe standing on the border even though Israel is on “high alert” and I think living in DC over the past 8 years has helped me relate (on a very small level) to Israel’s security issues. You can’t hide from terrorism and violence; you must continue living your life, go out and play basketball. Then we were off to meet with a psychotherapist who deals with trauma and the effects of PTSD which is a major problem in the North. After lunch we stopped briefly at the kibbutz where Naot shoes are made. We only had 20 minutes to shop and amazingly I didn’t buy anything – too much pressure – but I tried on many pairs! Our final visit was to the Kinneret Cemetery where people related to the first and second aliyah are buried. We had mincha and watched the sunset on the Golan, I know I’m not in the US but it was truly purple mountains majesty. By this point in the day, our bus driver was more than cranky and basically paced during the entire mincha service because we were running behind schedule. Israeli bus drivers are only allowed to work 12 hours at one time. I think this is a very good law but he was threatening to not drive us back to J’lem or just leave us on the road in Jericho. Thankfully, we made it home (with only 4 minutes to spare) safe and sound.

Back in J’lem, Amy and I have been enjoying break during sukkot. We’ve explored many interesting neighborhoods and taken lots of pictures of sukkot on people’s balconies and in their yards. And yesterday we spent the day in Tel Aviv. Today, we’re off to the Old City for more exploring.