Category Archive: Uncategorized

1. Last night in Israel

   August 5, 2021 1:22 am Leave a Comment

   We had a late last night for us (that’s why this is posted a tad late) we started our day with our final breakfast at the kibbutz. We all gathered by the bus and got in a circle to wish the best bus driver Happy Birthday. We did it camp style and Yossi was so overjoyed.  We then loaded everything on the bus to start our journey towards Jerusalem where is all began.

   Our first stop was a water activity, basically 3 natural pools, with refreshing cool water. We enjoyed a nice picnic style lunch with either a hamburger, schnitzel, or sausage. Then we had out long bus ride but luckily had a snack/coffee and bathroom break in the middle. We arrived to Prima Park in Jerusalem and some of us just had instant dejavú especially with us rooming on the same floor as the first week! We enjoyed one last hotel dinner and headed out to the Kotel Tunnels. With such an amazing tour guide Yossi (an amazing name) it was a real meaningful and cool experience.

   We arrived to the hotel and it was already late but we had to do some last night activities. Started with paper plate awards, and ended with warm and fuzzies. We all wrote nice notes to each other but we won’t be getting our envelope with them until the airport and we’re on our separate ways. Eventually after all that the PCR guy came and we all were able to get tested. We have a full day of schedule today so the trips not quite over but you could say there have been a handful of tears already. Truly for us all this has been such an amazing experience and we’re sad it has to come to an end. We’ll have one more blog for you all to come!

2. A day of conversation

   August 3, 2021 4:08 pm Leave a Comment

   We started the day with a typical breakfast, we left from Kibbutz Gadot and headed to an ecological village called Klil. We had delicious smoothies and learned about composting and how to slow down global warming.

   Afterwards, we went to Kibbutz Ga’aton which is known for their amazing dance company. We watched part of the dance rehearsal and spoke to two of the dancers. Asked lots of questions and learned a lot about the culture of dance especially in this kibbutz.

   After a lovely pizur lunch at a mall, we went to the Alma Center and talked with Ibrahim who works there. We discussed all about the Israel and Palestine conflict. Asked good questions and had a good discussion with him and learned about what the Alma center does. We then returned to the kibbutz for a lovely dinner and night of soccer!

3. A day of teamwork

   August 2, 2021 3:27 pm Leave a Comment

   We started the day off with our usual early breakfast in the kibbutz. Then we headed on the bus to go to a puzzle room in Tzfat. There, we had to prove that a man named Jonathan had rightful ownership of his apartment. We were successful and completed all 10 clues of the puzzle. 

   Our next activity was at Kibbutz Sasa to visit their ice cream factory. Their ice cream was thick and very delicious. We all got to choose two scoops from a variety of flavours. Next, at the same kibbutz, we had an improv workshop. Our group had a fun time dancing and acting to our heart’s content.

   Finally, as our last activity of the day, we had an evening boat ride at the Sea of Galilee accompanied by music. With our own personal dj Isaac. Not only was the view stunning, but we had a fun time dancing to familiar tunes on the boat before returning to shore. We ended our evening with dinner at the kibbutz which was delicious as usual.

4. Rafting day

   August 1, 2021 3:17 pm Leave a Comment

   We started our day with breakfast at the kibbutz and then got on the bus. We went to the overlook of the Sea of Galilee and took some photos. We did a fun activity to express the main water sources in Israel. Then we went to the overlook of Mount Betal and learned about the Syrian/Israeli relations. We then ate lunch, which was a choice between a burger place and an Asian place. We all loved it and we’re so full afterwards.

   Which was just great since we then went to the river and went rafting. We had 4 boats or 5 people and it was a lot of fun. There was some intense racing going on but it was all playful and a great workouts A couple people fell out of their rafts, but it was so much fun to splash around in the river.

   We ended our day with dinner at the kibbutz and an Israel version of Shabbat Unplugged a day late. We had a handful of acts and everyone really supported each other and it was a great end to an amazing day. It’s sad to think the trip is slowly coming to an end but we’ve all made amazing memories that will last a life time. And we will never forget all the cute cats we’ve seen especially one we named Shadow at the Kibbutz.

5. A relaxing day

   July 31, 2021 2:57 pm Leave a Comment

   We started our Shabbat off with an optional breakfast and a mandatory morning service. Thanks to Gabe Segar he recorded himself singing and playing the guitar to all the tunes. We all loved getting to sing and stumble through our favorite camp tunes. Our 2 friends Gili and Phoenix  even taught us two new songs.

   We then enjoyed a nice lunch at the kibbutz. Afterwards we had loads of free time until dinner where we swam in the pool, played some frisbee, enjoyed then petting zoo worked on art projects and of course ate some ice cream.

   After dinner, we participated in a drumming workshop with our new friend Guy. We learned about percussion instruments from all over the globe. After this workshop, most of us headed off to finish the night by watching Dirty Dancing. It’s crazy to think this was our last Shabbat but we’re looking forward for the last week to come and soak in all the fun.

6. Our final Friday night

   July 30, 2021 3:19 pm Leave a Comment

   This morning, we all got up extremely early to get ready for an archeological dig! It took up most of our morning and we found some awesome things, including coins and the handle of a pot. We wrapped our morning/early noon with a schnitzel sandwich  picnic  lunch.

   After lunch, we returned to the kibbutz for a relaxing second half of the day! We swam, played frisbee and got ready for our last Shabbat in Israel! We had a lovely camp style Kabbalat Shabbat on the lawn in front of our rooms! We said Kiddush and Motzi before we ate a delicious dinner. We then did a camp style Birkhat Hamazon, followed by some Rikud and Shira and a calm Shabbas night! Up until some of us decided to play an intense 4v4 soccer game. We’re looking forward to a relaxing Shabbat day tomorrow and a great last week ahead.

7. The views

   July 29, 2021 4:02 pm Leave a Comment

   We left Haifa early this morning to head to the ancient Crusader city of Akko where we saw both crusader and Ottoman architecture. We walked through the crusader fortress, crawled through tunnels, and climbed to the top of the city walls. We then had lunch and shopping time in the market before we left the old city.

   We then stopped in the new city to talk to an Arab man named Mohamed Fahili about his experience in Akko and how he had opened a Jewish-Arab community center. We all had lots of questions and it was an impactful experience.

   Back on the bus to head to Rosh Hanikra, where we took the cable cars down, saw the beautiful Grottos, learned about the geological formation and got to see the boarder of Lebanon. We went back on the bus for our 1 hr ride to Kibbutz Gadot where we will be spending our last Shabbat and mostly the remainder of our trip. The final stop Jerusalem where it all began just for 1 night.

8. Good food day

   July 28, 2021 4:14 pm Leave a Comment

   This morning, we took a trip to Beit Gefen, an organization in Haifa that explores Arab-Jewish relations in Israel. We talked about their art installments and then went on a food tasting tour. We were so stuffed by the end we barely had room for dessert! (Barely…)

   We then went to a scenic lookout over the top of Haifa before heading to our hike. We took pictures and really just took in the view of the beautiful city. At our hike, we got to walk over a swinging bridge which was as amazing as it was terrifying!

   We then headed to dinner at a Druze village called Isfia where we learned as much as we could about the secret religion before eating the most amazing food. We arrived back to the hotel and played some evening basketball. It was funny we were playing in the dark with a small light and then another group came and flipped a switch and all the lights came on, we all laughed and kept playing. Then to the rooms where we headed to bed after our long day.

9. Last day with the Israelis

   July 27, 2021 4:35 pm Leave a Comment

   We started the day with an early hotel breakfast. First stop was the graffiti tour. We walked around all of Tel Aviv and saw beautiful pieces of art. The kids found meaning in the works and even got an icecream stop.

   After the tour we continued with the LGBTQIA+ tour, we learned a lot about the history of the gay community and how things have changed from the past until now. We had a nice pizur lunch and headed back to the bus.

   Our last stop of the day was to Caesarea, we stopped by the theater, saw the beautiful view of the water, had “chariot” races, and saw the ancient latrine (toilets) finally back on the bus where our 5 Israelis came to say some goodbyes on the microphone. We arrived to our hotel in Haifa we all said our goodbyes, a few tears came out and we had our final group picture. Until tomorrow! 

10. Last full day in Tel Aviv

    July 26, 2021 4:25 pm Leave a Comment

    We started the morning off with a nice hotel breakfast and then for our surprise activity. It was an interactive city-wide scavenger hunt that we all couldn’t get enough of! We loved interacting with the undercover actors and eventually finding the “killer” that turned out to be one of our very own Israelis.

    We then headed over to The Bina center where we heard the story of a Sudanese genocide survivor and discussed quotes from Jewish formative documents. Next was dialogue in silence which is where we simulated deafness and had to learn how to effectively communicate and interact without our hearing. We used lots of gestures and body movements and it was a great experience for all.

    To end the evening we headed back for a late dinner before going out for free time on the Tel Aviv boardwalk!