Trekking through Israel: Motza Ilit

   Motza Ilit sits in the shadows of the Jerusalem hills and is home to the Beit Havraah Arza, the vacation retreat for some of the greatest figures of modern Israeli history. The "Camp David of Israel" gave leaders and their families - as well as many simpler workers - a chance to relax, breathe and organize their thoughts in this socialist-style simple hotel, then run as a rest home for the Histadrut labor union's members.

   Such men as David Ben Gurion and Moshe Dayan walked the paths of Arza and planted trees on the grounds.

To read more about Motza Ilit, check out the IsraelExperts Blog.

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IsraelExperts is a fully-licensed Israel tour operator; our head office is in Israel. Comprised of experienced Israel destination professionals, logistics experts, informal educators and accredited tour guides, IsraelExperts works with major organizations around the world in the field of Israel-Diaspora relations and Israel education, and offers you its ability to provide quality innovative programs. You can find us on line at http://www.israelexperts.com/ or contact us for more information.

Tu B’Shvat- Digging through ancient dirt to plant new roots at the Temple Mount Antiquities Salvage Operation

  

   When I was studying my first year in Israel, before I made aliya, we were required to volunteer once a week somewhere in Israel. I and a group of my friends chose to volunteer at the Temple Mount Antiquities Salvage Operation that sorted through the soil that had been removed from the Temple Mount during the excavations for Solomon's Stables.

   There was a lot of controversy over the method of dirt disposal and the process of the excavation as discussed in this article, http://www.echad.info/sifting/media/jpost14-4-05.html and a group got together and started sifting through the ruins to recover some of the artifacts that had been thrown out, including ancient coins, pieces of jewelry and many other items dating back thousands of years.

   On Tu B’Shvat, 2005 I had my most meaningful Israel Tu B’Shvat experience while volunteering.

   On the hill, over looking the Old City from just under the Hebrew University campus, where the dig was taking place at Emek Tzurim National Park, a man was planting olive trees. One of the dig volunteers went over and asked him if we could help.

   We spent that afternoon digging through dirt as we normally did, but this time it was not just to recover old artifacts. It was to plant new roots.

   While Tu B’Shvat celebrates the birthday of the trees that are planted throughout the entire year, there is something truly meaningful about being able to plant on Tu B’Shvat, looking over the city of Jerusalem, settling new roots into the ancient soil.

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IsraelExperts is a fully-licensed Israel tour operator; our head office is in Israel. Comprised of experienced Israel destination professionals, logistics experts, informal educators and accredited tour guides, IsraelExperts works with major organizations around the world in the field of Israel-Diaspora relations and Israel education, and offers you its ability to provide quality innovative programs. You can find us on line at http://www.israelexperts.com/ or contact us for more information.

Is Thanksgiving celebrated in Israel?

Over 110,000 Americans have come on aliya since 1948. Many Americans, like me, still celebrate Thanksgiving—even here.

During Thanksgiving, we look back at the history of the holiday to realize just how connected the holiday is to many people who come to Israel. The Puritans were a group of Protestants who identified very closely with the Israelites of the bible. They viewed their journey to the new land similarly to the exodus from Egypt. England was Egypt, the King of England was Pharaoh, the Atlantic Ocean their desert and Red Sea, and the Puritans were the Israelites, entering into a new covenant with God in a new Promised Land. There was even a proposal at that time to make Hebrew the national language of the new colonies.

Jochaim Gans was the first documented Jew in the British New World. In 1585 he was the chief metallurgist in Sir Walter Raleigh's expedition to establish an English settlement in the place they called "Newfoundland of Virginia" and worked in the first settlement on Roanoke Island (not the second—where all inhabitants disappeared). Bricks and copper nuggets smelt by him are the only remains that have been found of the first English Settlement.

There is also the connection of giving thanks. According to the Rabbis, Jews are supposed to thank G-d at least 100 times a day, through different blessings. The meal of Thanksgiving is thus appropriate as a celebration of thanks for all that we have—a beautiful country to share and cherish, and to visit or live in as we choose.

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IsraelExperts is a fully-licensed Israel tour operator; our head office is in Israel. Comprised of experienced Israel destination professionals, logistics experts, informal educators and accredited tour guides, IsraelExperts works with major organizations around the world in the field of Israel-Diaspora relations and Israel education, and offers you its ability to provide quality innovative programs. You can find us on line at www.israelexperts.com or contact us at education@israelexperts.com for more information.

Hiking the Burma Road and looking at the connections between the Diaspora, Israel and all of her people.

When Shmuel and I decided to do the Burma Road hike which is a 30 minute drive from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, we realized we had three choices – hike, jeep trek, or even a bus tour.  We decided to go on foot for part of it with a group, and tagged along quietly to see what there was to be seen.

We started at the Harel Outpost, the building that served as HQ for Palmach and Machal command for part of the war of Independence. The guide explained the message from David Ben Gurion, known as the "order of the day", given on the eve of the breaking of the siege of Jerusalem. The message: "Jerusalem at any Cost". Ben Gurion went on to order the troops to break through to Jerusalem with the understanding that it was inconceivable that the new State of Israel would be left without Jerusalem as its capital city.

Just north of the building, we walked over to a topographic model of Burma Road, overlooking the Latrun Tank Museum, the Latrun Monastery and the village of Neve Shalom. We could see the models of the young soldiers on the hill in the distance, marching through the wheat fields.  We took a closer look at the mosaic and dynamic of life, living and community in Israel. The Monastery, the army base and the Jewish / Muslim village of Neve Shalom, all situated on the same hillside area.

As we walked down the path on the Burma Road, we stopped to view the pictures of Machal volunteers and Palmach soldiers along the route and took a look at the faces of the young soldiers, many of whom were teens, just having arrived as survivors of the destruction of European Jewry, now taking on the role of defenders of Jerusalem. Young men and women in the pictures along the route, some of whom looked just like we in our group did.

We saw the orchards along the route. Olive groves, planted pine trees, apricots, etc. Suddenly, at the bottom of the hill as we continued east on the road, we came upon taller palm trees, with a dried up brook (nahal) in the middle. It was the site of the abandoned Arab village of Ein Sussin, one of hundreds of villages abandoned during the War of Independence (termed "Nakba" or catastrophe by Palestinians), where we discussed the issue of who these people were, what happened to their village, and the roots of the Palestinian refugee issue.

We finished with coffee on the fire and marshmallows while listening to Palmach stories. Our guide pulled out her guitar and we sang folk songs of early Israel. The theme was "Jerusalem at any Cost" and the centrality of Jerusalem (City of Peace) to the Jewish experience and the Jewish People. We discussed the issue of volunteers from abroad (Machal Unit in the IDF) who came to take part in the battle for sovereignty and independence in the Land of Israel.  The relationship between Jewish People in the Diaspora and Jews in Israel is one that is all about Jewish Peoplehood,  our national identity(s). This partnership between Israel and the Jewish Diaspora has been in place since the very beginning. 

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IsraelExperts is a fully-licensed Israel tour operator; our head office is in Israel. Comprised of experienced Israel destination professionals, logistics experts, informal educators and accredited tour guides, IsraelExperts works with major organizations around the world in the field of Israel-Diaspora relations and Israel education, and offers you its ability to provide quality innovative programs. You can find us on line at www.israelexperts.com or email us at info@israelexperts.com for more information.

Eilat: The Red Canyon- It's not just in Utah

Next to Eilat is a trail that leads through a red canyon-- literally the stone that arches up on either side of us as we walked through the canyon is red. Smooth to the touch, the layers of history are clear to the naked eye in the layers of the rock.

The hike takes about 45 minutes and is normally perfect in the spring or fall. The weather is comfortable with just a little bit of a breeze through the rocks- something normally lacking in the desert. It is necessary to bring water, but the crevice can be reached by car.

The trip to the Red Canyon from Eilat is also interesting. The Egyptian boarder is on your left and Israel stretches to the right, divided only by a road.

Good for children and adults, the Red Canyon is a beautiful hike through the desert.

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IsraelExperts is a fully-licensed Israel tour operator; our head office is in Israel. Comprised of experienced Israel destination professionals, logistics experts, informal educators and accredited tour guides, IsraelExperts works with major organizations around the world in the field of Israel-Diaspora relations and Israel education, and offers you its ability to provide quality innovative programs. You can find IsraelExperts on line at www.israelexperts.com or email us at education@israelexperts.com for more information.

Rosh Chodesh- (New Month) /New Moon- Cheshvan

When I look out of the window of my house in the Castel neighborhood in Mevaseret, it's starting to look like fall. It's not the fall of colored leaves or dying trees. It's the fall of a new beginning. Now that the holidays are over, the pomegranates have reached their peak. The oranges are just starting to take shape and the flowers, which have gotten their first rain of the season, are finally starting to bloom. The greenery that has hidden all summer is starting to peak out of the branches as it prepares for the rainy season. The new year has truly started.

Cheshvan, which some people consider the second month of the Jewish year, is sometimes called Marcheshvan. There are two different etymological explanations for the name. The word Marcheshvan is taken from "eighth moon/month" -- the eighth month of the Jewish year (if you count from Nisan, the beginning of Passover as many do for counting the months). The "mar" -- bitter -- at the beginning of the word may have been added because there are no holidays in Marcheshvan.

So we have the second month of the year, starting in the middle of the entire year, depending on how you count. It's a lot like IsraelExperts. We have been running trips for 12 years but are only now starting a blog-- to bring more knowledge of Israel to you-- our friends and readers. We'll look at places in Israel, traditions, customs and holidays as the year rolls by and we invite you to learn with us. We hope you will enjoy and learn from our blogs, and use them to work with us to build the best trips to Israel that you will ever participate in.
Welcome to the IsraelExperts blog.

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IsraelExperts is a fully-licensed Israel tour operator; our head office is in Israel. Comprised of experienced Israel destination professionals, logistics experts, informal educators and accredited tour guides, IsraelExperts works with major organizations around the world in the field of Israel-Diaspora relations and Israel education, and offers you its ability to provide quality innovative programs. You can find IsraelExperts on line at www.israelexperts.com or email us at education@israelexperts.com for more information.