Taglit Mayanot Day 2: Shabbat

I just got back from Israel and I am transcribing the journal from my trip day by day. To start at the beginning, click here!

December 29, 2012
Word of the day: Shavua Tov (שבוע טוב) = Have a good week

We had an early night yesterday and a late start today, which was excellent. Breakfast went from 8-10 AM and my husband and I got there at 9:30 AM so that we could eat before trying to get a group together for services. Eating salad for breakfast seems to be a thing here. Anyway, we were supposed to try to get a minyan starting at 10:00 AM for morning services, but we didn't even come close. It wound up just being me and my husband, our tour guide Ariel, and two other guys in our group. Our rabbi and the other group's rabbi didn't even show up, although even if they had, we still would have needed four more men for a minyan.

Sidenote: This is a chabad trip, so I don't count for a minyan. It is very discouraging to not count. We were separated by gender for the Maariv service last night, but they didn't use a mechitza. It almost seemed like they might as well use one if we weren't going to interact and we didn't count anyway. A few of us stuck around after for an extended service - five men and four women. It was belittling to hear the rabbis talk about needing five more for a minyan. What is the point of going if you don't contribute to the community's numbers? Despite all this, I showed up this morning anyway knowing that I wouldn't count.

After praying silently to ourselves, since we didn't have a minyan, we had lunch with the group, followed by free time. My husband and I walked down the path along the Galilee, which ends at a cemetery. It was a gorgeous cemetery on a hill with beautiful tombstones and music. At the top of the hill was a mountain of stones commemorating Herzl, the first Zionist. We asked Ariel about it and he said that there is a pile of stones further north that is harder to get to where people leave stones every year. The one we saw is made up of some of the stones from that site, which they have turned into a memorial now.

The moon on the Sea of Galilee

We walked back, took a nap, ate dinner, and had some group bonding activities. Tomorrow, eight soldiers will join our group for five days, so we talked about the army and mandatory service. Rabbi Berel led Havdalah services and we went out of a night in Tiberias. Marc and I had a nice dinner and drinks on the boardwalk. There was this awesome light show on the water - the spray water up in the air and then project onto it like a screen.

Side note: they don't have limes in Israel.

After dinner, we hooked back up with the group at the loudest bar in existence. It was like a frat party, which wasn't my thing, even when I was in college, but the night was fun anyway. It was amazing to see the mix of people walking around. The patriotism here is beyond anything I've experienced. To hear Ariel and others talk about the land, you can tell they really love it. Ariel was born in America and made Aliyah with his parents about 12 years ago, when he was 18. The more time we spend here, the more I can see us living here. The land is beautiful, the weather is great, the people are brave and eclectic, and it's nice to have such easy access to so much kosher food. Sababa!

Hear about my soldiers here!

Taglit Mayanot Day 1: Golan Hiking

Below is a transcription of the journal I kept during my Taglit Birthright trip. I went with Mayanot Israel from December 26, 2012 through January 8, 2013. To start at the beginning, click here!

December 28, 2012
Word of the day: Sababa (סבּבּה) = Awesome

I woke up this morning in Israel! Our hotel has a spectacular view of the Sea of Galilee and the Golan Heights. It is absolutely beautiful!

Waterfall in Zavitan

We went hiking in the Golan Heights this morning. You have to stick to the trail, which is marked by an electric fence, because the mountains are filled with land mines left behind by the Syrians when they retreated during the war of 1967. The mountains were formed by a volcanic eruption and from far away they look like huge boulders covered in a thin green blanket. If you believe Ariel, our tour guide, the black rocks of the mountains were formed by Dinah, Joseph's sister, by her tears when he went missing. The trail was muddy from recent rain, but the surroundings were gorgeous nonetheless. The kids on the trip were amazed by and scared of the wild cows and bulls that we passed. We also saw a waterfall before heading back to the bus for lunch.

We got schwarma and falafel for lunch. I could eat falafel every day! After lunch, we had a quick hike up Mt. Bental, where we saw Israeli army bunkers and learned about the Yom Kippur War (1973). Also from there, you can see Syria.

Syria

We headed back to the hotel early for Shabbat, a short Maariv service and dinner. For more about my first Shabbat in Israel, read on.

Taglit Mayanot: Arrival

From December 26, 2012 through January 8, 2013, my husband and I were in Israel with the Mayanot Israel Taglit Birthright program. I have transcribed my journal of the trip here. Enjoy!

December 27, 2012
Hebrew word of the day: Achim (אחים) = Brothers

Our flight out of JFK left on December 26 at 6:00 PM and we flew overnight to Kiev, Ukraine on Aerosvit airlines. It was a long flight that I was lucky enough to sleep most of the way through. Kiev was snowy and cold, as I expect it to be. We exited the plane old-school-style via stairs and took a shuttle bus to the airport terminal. There was only one woman checking tickets for everyone, so it took forever, and standing in line was awkward, since no one in the group really knows each other yet. The flight from Kiev to Tel Aviv was only a few hours, but felt so much longer!

Ben Gurion Airport

We landed in Israel at night and met our Israeli staff. After schnitzel and some quick ice breakers, we hopped on a bus to Tiberias in the Galilee. There are 40 of us in the group plus staff and I'm not sure I will be able to keep everyone's names straight.

So I don't forget, here is the staff:
Hallie, Mayanot 361 Group Leader
Shira, Israeli Group Social Coordinator
Ariel, Tour Guide (the best tour guide in the world)*
Berel, Mayanot 361 Rabbi/Spiritual Advisor
Moran, Security/Medic
Abi, Mayanot Coordinator
Yakov, Bus Driver (replaced by Avi on December 29)*

I can't believe we're actually in Israel!

*notes added post-trip

Read about Day 1 in Israel!