Israel on Valentine’s Day

   My husband and I celebrate the Israeli version of Valentine’s Day by going to the beach, having picnics and doing other “summer” activities. This is because the equivalent of Valentine’s Day in Israel falls on Tu’B’Av- usually around the middle of August.

   February 14^th is just like any other day of the year in Israel. There are not a lot of flowers bought. Red and white chocolate hearts do not show up in many stores. It leaves those of us who want a romantic Valentine’s Day looking for something special to do.

   This year Shmuel surprised me on Shabbat. When we first started dating, we used to take my laptop and sit 
down on the Tayelet and watch movies together, with Jerusalem in the background. 


To read more about the Tayelet, 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 athttp://www.israelexperts.com/ or contact us for more information.

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.

Photo history of snow in Jerusalem

   Jerusalem on average gets heavy snowfalls every 7 years. It is one of the most beautiful sites to see. The city stretches out, covered briefly with a thin layer of white. The streets are quiet, except for the laughter of children who are experiencing snow-- many for the first time.

Snow by the Dome of the Rock 2003



   The largest snow storm in Jerusalem in the century prior to the founding of the State of Israel was in 1920, according to the British Handbook of Palestine. It states that snow was not uncommon during the winters, though that is not the case today.

Children play in the snow in Jerusalem 1921.

   In 1967, a late snowfall covered the city, keeping all but 500 of the thousands of Christian pilgrims away from services at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher on Easter weekend. The full news story can be read here.

   The last snowfall in Jerusalem occurred in 2008. So far, no snow has fallen year.

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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.

Air Force Memorial

Last week I joined a synagogue group on their journey from Tel Aviv towards Jerusalem. Instead of taking the main highway, the guide instead took the back road, winding through the hills that looked like something out of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, and eventually pulled into the Air Force Memorial, as a special surprise for one of the enthusiastic youngsters who had been talking excitedly about planes throughout the entire trip.

We wound up the hill, away from the quiet road, and then got out and walked into a memorial garden. Set up like a maze, the site marked the location of an Israeli airplane crash in 1948.

The Israel expert pointed out the first memorial to the group—remains of the inside of the plane formed into a small sculpture. He shared different amazing stories of the pilots’ wars. As we wandered through the forested maze we stopped to look at the names carved on each stone - all four sides, pointing up towards the sky. The stone felt cold under my hand, as I felt the names of those who had died in war and in air accidents since the founding of the country.

When we found our way out of the maze of trees, we saw a guard tower stretching up towards the sky. The entire experience was amazing and very meaningful, and the quiet surroundings made me feel like I was suspended in air, as I looked out over the view of the Jerusalem Hills.

This memorial is very beautiful and should not be missed.

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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 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.