Taglit-Birthright Summer 2015 Travelogue
On Wednesday, May 27, 2015, 40 people between the ages of 22 to 26 from Miami’s Jewish community met at Newark Airport for the trip of a lifetime—a 10-day Taglit-Birthright Israel trip. Here is a log of their experiences from a few of the participants.
May 27-28: Newark, Golan Heights
We met everyone at the Miami International Airport to fly to Newark together.
When we finally arrived in Israel, tired from travel, we were all so excited to be there. Some for their first time, others for their fifth or even tenth visit. We got on the bus, our new home away from Miami, and started our journey to our first stop on Birthright. We stayed the night at the Field School in the Golan Heights which was our jumping off point for touring Tzfat, Mount Bental and hiking in northern Israel.
May 29: Tzfat
Today we had a wonderful time getting to connect with each other and a spiritual space in the holy city of Tzfat.
We had a walking tour and roamed the streets of the Old City, exploring the narrow streets and haggling for bargains. We learned about the rituals of the mikveh and got to hear the story of people who follow mikveh purity laws. We got to see the world-famous Safed candle factory and learned from Gavriela. We were one of many Taglit-Birthright groups in Tzfat and many of us ran into friends on other trips! Even thousands of miles away, everyone knows each other.
Sunday, May 31: Golan Heights, Pardes-Channa Karkur
After a great night of music, drinks and laughs, we woke up, packed and departed the Golan Field School. Today we started our day off by heading to Mount Bental, where we saw a breathtaking view of the Golan Heights. This included Egypt, Lebanon and Syria all around us. We learned about the conflict surrounding the whole region. When walking back towards the bus, we made a quick detour and snuck through the bunker, which has been used for safety for many years for any emergency situation.
Next we headed to Olea Essence, a beautiful olive oil factory. We learned how olive oil is made and how chemists in the factory produce cosmetics out of the byproducts to refrain from harming the environment. We toured through the factory and sampled various products, including body wash, creams, masks, lip balms, and of course the delicious varieties of olive oils. Everyone mutually agreed that the garlic infused oil was the tastiest! We also learned the difference between green and black olives (ripeness) and went on a shopping binge in their gift shop.
On the ride towards our next destination, a hot spring, we drove past the northern side of the Sea of Galilee and saw Jesus' birthplace and the surrounding Christian churches.
The area around the springs was beautiful. Situated on the Sea of Galilee, there was a beautiful view of the mountains, palm trees and three different pools to choose from. Two of them are hot mineral baths, one indoor and outdoor. The other pool was a regular cold swimming pool. The mineral bath was nice, the water was really warm and salty. Afterwards, we all grabbed some food. We had pizza, falafel, shawarma, salad, or McDonald's to choose from. (I had the falafel and stuffed it with everything—delicious—and indulged in a passion fruit icee.)
Once back on the bus, everyone fell into a food coma while we drove to our next destination- time to get down and dirty.
We arrived on a farm where we picked enough radishes to feed a thousand families! It felt great to help out to those in need. Once done with that, we made our way towards an Ethiopian community school in Pardes-Channa Karkur, where some of the students performed a dance for us and we played soccer with others. It was fun and felt rewarding.
Afterwards, we got back on the bus and were en route to Jerusalem! Once arriving to the city we immediately noticed how distinct it was- every building was made of the same material! It looked very uniform and beautiful.
Wednesday, June 3: Jerusalem, Masada, The Dead Sea
We all awoke from a short sleep or dragged ourselves down to the bus, with darkness spread throughout the landscape—with the hope that we could catch some shut eye before the hike. It was a 20 minute bus ride to Masada, and the excitement of making the climb was high, so we drifted through the desert with the sleepless energy driving us forward onto the mountain. We stepped out onto the sand and looked over to the mountain we were to climb. We waited, and then we walked. We were told the climb down would be harder than the climb up, and it was. We hiked our way to the top, doing our best to manage our breath as we climbed higher and higher. We could still see the moon just above the mountain top, while the sun slowly climbed its way above the horizon. By the time we made it to the top the sun was just shedding its first waves of light across the landscape, bursting fiery red and orange directly to where we stood. The sea was shaded a dark orange, lying across the ground far below us with a deep silence of stillness.
Different Taglit groups were dispersed across the mountaintop, and we all awoke in unison with the sun. We made our way to different locations, while our tour guide explained to us the history that took place on top of where we stood thousands of years later—empty pools that once were swam like we do today; empty baths covered with beautiful mosaic styles to signify richness and express beauty deserving of royalty; the suicides that occurred that were declared to be done with dignity and honor; the pain and triumph of it all told to us at the crack of dawn within the bounds of our safety and wonderment. Our tour guide took us to a ledge and directed us to yell “Shalom!” so another supposed group would hear and yell back—and the response came through the sound of our own voices echoing through the desert. We sat and waiting, in the drying heat of the sun, taking pictures and laughing and smiling with each other and to each other. Eventually we made our way down the mountain, with our legs trembling more and more with each step—the excitement of breakfast carrying us onward, while we talked and laughed through passing of time down the historical mountain.
We arrived to the Dead Sea, anticipating the much talked about body of water of promised suspension. We made our way through a store, dressed or undressed quickly in a bathroom, and then made our way out to a beach of sorts where we covered ourselves in mud. Darkened by the mud, some of us looking like Navy SEALS out on a mission, standing in the sand with the high sun sitting above us. We were told the sea may burn, and it did. There were shards of salt beneath the water that poked at our feet as we walked into the water. It was weird first getting in, because you expect based on past experience to sink despite being told you’re going to float, and sure enough, once we rolled over on to our backs we began to float gracefully across the surface of the water. The sensation of floating was strange and seemingly magical. The salt began to burn for some of us so we made our way out to rinse off and then got back in. The mud our faces had thickened and dried, so we washed it off carefully so not to get salt in our eyes. We grabbed each other’s hands to make a train so we could drift through the sea as a small group. We laughed and drifted through the water, trying not to splash each other, and falling into the weightlessness of ourselves drifting along. We got out and washed ourselves, feeling cleansed and refreshed from our spa in the sea that settles just below the mountain from which we just came.
Thursday, June 4
After spending the night in the Bedouin Tents and eating a traditional Bedouin meal while learning about the culture, we left for Yerucham.
We arrived in Yerucham after a fun visit at a nearby organic cactus farm in the Negev. I’d never tasted a cactus fruit, let alone a cactus leaf before – but both were very tasty! In Yerucham, Miami’s partnership community in Israel, we first visited the student village and learned about student life. We had a fun night with a delicious Israeli poyke (where it’s basically a bunch of things thrown in the pot to stew) at the lake in Yerucham.
Friday June 5: Yerucham and Tel Aviv
The day began with us leaving Yerucham for our last hike. The hike was small but delivered wonderful views from the mountaintop. Mark, our tour guide, gave us a brief explanation on how the valley we were viewing came to be. That followed with a song about travelers heading to Yerucham.
Our first stop was a sad stop. It was time for us to say goodbye to our Israeli friends who joined the trip. Everyone was happy to have met the Israelis and to have heard their stories.
Next, we headed for Tel Aviv. Our first stop in the city was a traditional market that sold everything from fruits and vegetables to T-shirts and knickknacks. The artists were also in the market showing off their custom made crafts like mezuzahs and hamsas.
After the market, we arrived at the hotel. Once showered and rested, we had our final Shabbat dinner together. This included bar and bat mitzvahs for some members of our trip. We shared stories, gave each other Shabbat-o-grams, and of course danced the horah.
Saturday, June 6
After Shabbat ended, we did one final activity of the night. We discussed the meaning of the Hatikvah and what it meant to us. We learned about how the song came to be the national anthem and discussed what it means to Israel now.
Sunday, June 7
We spent our last day as a group in Israel exploring Tel Aviv. The day began at Independence Hall where we learned about the historic and important moment for Jews around the world: the declaration of Israel’s statehood. Then we visited Kikar Rabin (Rabin Square), named for the assassinated Israeli leader Yitzhak Rabin. After that we walked to Jaffa and ate lunch. Exploring Jaffa and learning about the old city in that area was very interesting. I can’t wait to come back to Israel again.
The bus dropped us off at the airport and after lots of hugs our journey home began. What an amazing experience! I love Israel and am excited for the next chance that I will have to go back. Thank you Miami Jewish community and thank you Federation for bringing and connecting me to my magical and historical homeland.
