Recap of Birthright

Today is Shabbat, a day of rest in Israel. If I were abiding by the rules of Shabbat, I would not be typing on my computer right now but....clearly I am not observant. The Birthright program, however, observes Shabbat as a whole, which means we cannot drive on a bus, do anything that involves money, etc.


So I'm using this time to reflect and go back and recap some of the adventures....The first weekend was also Shabbat, and we were able to spend it on a kibbutz in the North (Hakuk). It reminded me so much of my time on Kibbutz Gaaton two years ago, and made me very nostalgic for that kind of simple, communal, agriculturally-focused life. The first night we were there was a gathering of people in neighboring communities to play music together and sell art.


While in the North, we visited the beautiful, old, religious and artistic community of Tzfat, with which I remember falling in love on my own Birthright trip 7 years ago. It is touristy but some relics of genuine life, people making their living out of their crafts, exist. We met with an artist named Daniel Friedman who explained Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism through his art, which he integrated with geometry and symbolism.


We made our way to Har Bental in the Golan Heights, a former army-post now turned into a tourist site. It is on the border with Syria. In 1973, it was used as a base in the Yom Kippur War, and we were able to walk in the bunkers--extremely small, claustrophobic tunnels. We actually heard some explosions from the direction of Syria, strangely close and real evidence of their current civil war.


We made our way to my favorite city of Tel Aviv, where we walked Rothschild Blvd, went out one evening, on Hamelech George/Dizengoff, and swam in the Sea--I forgot how warm the Mediterranean is--so liberating and wonderful. We also met our Israeli soldiers joining us for half the trip. They are such sweet, passionate, wonderful people. We really got a wonderful group, and were instantly integrated.


Next we made our way to the Negev, where we hiking Massada at 4am (which I felt was surprisingly fast and less difficult than I remembered--I was up in about 20 minutes!). If you're reading this blog and don't know what Massada is, it is a mountain where the Jewish people lived thousands of years ago (the amazing architecture, bathhouses, cisterns, etc, build by King Herod (died at the end of the BCE era). The Roman army surrounded the mountain, and the Jews knew they would either be killed or forced into slavery. A mass suicide occurred on the mountain, with one woman and child escaping to tell the story (so legend has it). Most tour groups climb Massada at sunrise, partly because it's an experience to wake up for a 4am hike and climb as swiftly as possible, and mainly because the sun is brutal by about 7am. When we got to the top, our participants put on short plays about the story.


We spent the night in the Bedouin tents traditional of Birthright and other tour groups. It's a bit silly, to be honest, because these are not truly authentic, and Bedouin people no longer live in tents, without internet, etc. However, it's an experience I guess. :) I slept surprisingly well for sleeping en mass in a tent of 40 people. With beetles.


We finally made our way to Jerusalem, which catches us up to now!


Overall, staffing has been an amazing experience. I didn't imagine it would be this much hard work and little sleep (averaged 5 hours/night probably!) I met some incredible people though, and I hope to remain in touch!