Last Lasting Views -- a Celebration in Jerusalem

On the last full day for all the Holy Trekkers, a bat mitzvah celebration filled with joy and pride beyond words for a small family....

 

.....and a big one.

Lasting Views - Panoramic Israel



They say a picture is worth 1000 words - below are some panoramic views from our trip.

(Click on any picture to view it in full-screen mode.)



The ruins at Caesarea



The Baha'i Gardens and Port at Haifa

Jeeping thru the Golan Heights

The fresh water springs at Gan Hashlosha Nature Reserve

 

The old city of Jerusalem (as seen from Mt. Scopus)

 

Walking the Walls of the Old City (with Harold Citron)

The Western Wall Plaza (a.k.a. The Kotel)

 

The mountain-top fortress of Herod's Masada at sunrise

Model of Ancient Jerusalem outside the Israel Museum

A Soldier's Story

With apologies to Harold, who posted a beautiful and thoughtful blog below that he thought would be the last word, I have to add one more that may be the last – until Mark or someone else posts something else.  After all, we are Jews.  Nobody expects us to stop talking….

Today we visited the National Military Cemetery on Mount Herzl for insight into the lives of those who are buried there, including Theodor Herzl, Golda Meir, and Yitzhak Rabin, all of whose graves we visited.  Enlightening as those discussions were, none had as big of an impact as the story of an American buried there, Michael Levin.  His story has been documented in a short film on his life called “A Hero in Heaven” so thankfully you don’t need to rely on me to accurately recount the facts.  Here is some of what I remember, though, from the emotional talk delivered at Michael's grave by our wonderful guide Rachel Smith from Da’at.

Michael grew up in the Philadelphia area in a loving Jewish home, and like many of our kids, was active in a Jewish youth group and camp, in his case USY and Camp Ramah in the Berkshires.  In 2001 he came to Israel for two months as part of a high school program, and after graduating high school attended USY’s year-long program in Israel.  On his first day, Michael announced that he was going to make aliyah and move to Israel as soon as the year would end.  The directors tried to temper his enthusiasm and urged patience, but sure enough when the year was up, Michael kept his word. 

He tried desperately to enlist in the military but as an American citizen, his papers simply wouldn’t arrive.  The equivalent of a bouncer kicked him out of the recruitment building several times when he showed up without papers until finally, he managed to climb in through an open window and get the interview he needed.  The officer, having heard countless excuses from young men and women looking to avoid service, was obviously enamored with Michael and pushed through the paperwork.  Michael became a paratrooper.

Michael was home visiting his family in 2006 when the war broke out with Hezbollah.  Against the strong urging of his friends and family, he immediately rushed back to Israel.  His superior officers had a communications position lined up for him out of harm’s way in Israel, but he pushed hard for them to send him in to Lebanon.  They ultimately agreed.  Seven days later, he was killed in combat.

Michael’s parents flew to Israel for the funeral.  With everything happening, they weren’t sure if they would have a minyan at the grave.  When they arrived at the cemetery, there was a crowd in front of more than a thousand people.  They assumed there was a ceremony for a famous leader or dignitary.  They quickly learned that the crowd was there for Michael, as his story had spread quickly and so many wanted to pay tribute.

One of the great things about the Mount Herzl cemetery is that all the military graves are the same size.  Regardless of rank and stature, anyone who dies in the service of Israel is given the same treatment in death.   We confirmed this when Rachel took us past the same size grave of Yoni Netanyahu, older brother of the current Prime Minister, a national hero who died leading the Israeli forces in the Entebbe hostage crisis.

Every direction in which we turned over the past two weeks, we witnessed incredible pride in this country.  So many have worked so hard and sacrificed so much to bring us where we are today.  Just as we saw physically how the Kotel is, in fact, a small part of the massive walls that surrounded the Holy Temple, we saw firsthand how the struggles of our people in modern times are just a small part of the long history of sacrifice we have endured for centuries.  I think we all are grateful to have had the opportunity to be exposed to these truths firsthand, and see not only how we sacrificed as with the story of Michael Levin, but how we endured.  The fact that we were able to do so among friends, with our Rabbi, a fantastic guide and driver, and the great comforts and graciousness we experienced along the way, is a blessing we’ll be able to draw on forever.

-- Ron Klempner

It's a Small Wall, After All

First, we thought it was unusual to run into our Temple Israel member Marc Seidenberg's brother Keith in Jaffa.  Until we ran into him again a week later at the top of Masada.  And then a third time at the Israel Museum today....

The shabbat before we left, Rabbi Stecker presided over the Auf Ruf for Temple Israel members Karen Lewkowitz and Monte Miller.  They honeymooned in Israel.  What are the chances we would run into them?  Pretty good.... I spotted them at the Kotel. 

Temple Israel trustee Madeline Gould told us she would be arriving in Israel toward the end of our trip, but we didn't expect to find her there.  Somehow she found us amidst the wild Friday afternoon balagan at Machaneh Yehudah market.

Many of us stumbled on connections not only from our Temple Israel family, but from our earlier lives as well.  Rochelle wrote earlier about meeting Marty Davis, one of the leaders of our twin synagogue in Ashkelon, whom she remembered as the Director of her camp Tel Yehuda in the 1970's.  At kiddush following shabbat services at the fabulous Shira Chadasha synagogue in Jerusalem, we found Rabbi Stecker's colleague, Rabbi Perry Rank of the conservative Midway Jewish Center in Syosset. The Citrons got a big hug from old friends in the Kfar Blum dining hall in the Upper Galilee. My favorite may have been the delight on Abe Kanfer's face when he realized that the pleasant young man from New Jersey he was chatting with at the Kotel was the son of one of his best friends at the Yeshiva of Flatbush, Alan Fuchs.

It truly is a small wall, after all.

-- Ron Klempner

A Win With Our Twin



Coming on the heels of our visits the days before to Masada, the Dead Sea and Yad Vashem, our visit on Wednesday to visit Kehillat Netzach, our sister congregation in Ashkelon, was expected to be light and low key.  We had no idea what a warm and meaningful experience we were about to have. 

We were greeted by several of their Temple leaders, along with their Argentinian born Rabbi Gustavo Suraski.  I thought we would be meeting many Israeli born congregants, but it turns out that Kehillat Netzach is largely composed of North and South Americans; including Marty Davis, who was the Camp Director at Young Judaea’s Tel Yehudah sleepaway camp when I was a camper! 

Rabbi Suraski called up my daughter Leah for a sweet ceremony in honor of her bat mitzvah and presented her with a lovely framed certificate from our “twinned” synagogue in Israel, as well as a limited edition set of commemorative stamps issued in 2010 to mark the 150^th year since the birth of Theodore Herzl (we later visited his grave on Friday).  Our whole congregation was moved by the presentation (especially me, it was mamash sababa -- though there was no siddur from the Men's Club....). 

They then brought us to visit one of their five kindergarten classes made up of 35 children.  They must have known that, for some of us, this was the extent of our Hebrew communication skills.  We had a blast singing and dancing with the adorable, well-behaved four and five-year olds whom we partnered with.  The teacher was amazing, and had all the children and adults quickly learning the hand movements that went with the music.  This could just as easily have been our own Beth HaGan....

Or so we thought until we left the kindergarten class to tour the bomb shelter that the children run to in case of a terrorist attack.  Ashkelon is not far from the Gaza Strip.  Kehillat Netzach has five bomb shelters and, as a result, it was the only shul in Ashkelon to stay open during the last war.  This despite the fact that of the 200 synagogues in Asheklon, the conservative Kehillat Netzach is the only one that is not orthodox.  

We delivered the 50 sets of toothbrushes and toothpastes for the Israeli soldiers in the Ashkelon community, which were generously donated by our vice president Rob Panzer.  (Thanks Rob, they were very much appreciated.)  In turn, they presented each family with a book of art work from the children and some Ashkelon souvenirs.  We all agreed that this was time well spent and we look forward to visits from our sister congregation to Great Neck.

--Rochelle Klempner





Some Final Thoughts from Israel

On the last full night of our trip to Israel I'm hoping to get the last word in. Kind of a bookend to my first entry back at the beginning of the trip.

The travel organization Da'at bills itself as an educational one. To that end I think that all of us 'Holy Trekkers' have added to our base of knowledge; whether it was history, religion, geography, politics, language, or food.

For myself, it was the realization that what makes Israel so special to Jews is the people. Whether it was meeting a group of fellow Jewish travelers from Finland (again and again and again) to the many Israelis living out their lives - from kindergarteners in Ashkalon to Tzi-Hal soldiers on tour, to the many friends and neighbors who continued to pop up seemingly out of nowhere for another round of Jewish geography, it was the daily, even mundane encounters that made this journey so special.

Second realization: while our own trek is coming to an end, even that idea falls short. As my family prepares to return to the states, a few cousins will be landing for a trip to study and travel through Israel. Their time will overlap with the Klempner family for a few days at least and even then, our story is not finished. One of the longer discussions held amongst the grown ups was how we could help prepare the groundwork for future trips of travelers from Temple Israel to the land of Israel.

Those Trekkers will add their stories to the ones that have come before. One thing you do realize after spending time here is just how large and grand the tapestry of stories of our people are woven here. While it is unlikely that lines of 'Jonah and the forgotten backpack' will be added to the story of the prophet in the Tanach, or that the arguing between various siblings on the tour (to remain nameless) will rise to the level of strife seen between some of our Biblical patriarchs and matriarchs, these stories are important nonetheless.

My final thought is one of anatomy. During our tour we were privileged to have Amanda Putter as a living map of Israel. Our highly knowledgeable tour guide Rachel made one small error. When marking Jerusalem, she pointed to Amanda's 'pupik' (navel). The truth is, Jerusalem is closer to the heart, pumping Jews throughout Israel and even to the extremities in far away lands.

My rabbi from the shul where I grew up used to end some of his speeches with a blessing. While I do not remember it fully it went something like this: "May you experience peace and joy in your life, and may we meet once again on the streets of Jerusalem."

Shalom

-- Harold Citron

I'll Have a Falafel with a Side of Attitude, Be'vakasha

After visiting our sister shul in Ashkelon (a mere 20 miles north of the Gaza strip), we stopped for lunch in the suburban town of Modi'in, halfway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.  Looking for an authentic spot to dine, the majority of our group headed toward the nearest Falafel/Schwarma restaurant.

There, we were greeted with some very authentic Israeli food, and some very stereotypical local hospitality.  Ordering the schnitzel platter in a "yeladim" size for my 7 year old daughter, and 2 schnitzel plates for my older sons, the Rabbi assisted with our ordering to ensure it was conveyed correctly.  But when I paid, all 3 schnitzels were the same cost - apparently there was no such thing as "kid size", even though it was pictured prominently above the grill.  I think that's known as the "Alef-Bet-and-Switch"!

Meanwhile, in the immortal words of Abe, every local "Tom, Dick, and Chaim" pushed right past our group, ordered their lunches, and were given their food immediately.

27 minutes after placing my initial order (and 10 local lunchers later), I reminded the man behind the counter that I was still waiting for our lunch.  Reluctantly, he began his preparations, and minutes later my falafel balls and the kids schnitzel were being prepared.

Truly a "taste of the local culture", far from the tourist traps of the bigger cities.

P.S.  It was the best falafel I had in Israel!!

-- Mark Putter

Amanda the Explorer

Today I went digging at the Beit Guvrin Caves. The place was 2000 years old. I used tools called a pick axe and a trowel. I found a lot of pottery, and a huge bone, and a snail shell. I passed up buckets with dirt and rocks so we could dump the buckets onto screens, and then shake the screens to look for more pottery and bones and shells that we missed before.

Then I went spelunking. I went down a lot of small holes, and then we actually got to pick a piece of pottery to keep. It was so much fun!

-- Amanda Putter

Sunrise at Masada

At 2:30 a.m. on Monday morning, six brave men (Mark, Alex, Jonah, Ron, Rabbi Stecker and myself) started a trek for Masada. The cab picked us up and we headed out. We caught up on our sleep in the cab, except Rabbi Stecker, who kept the driver awake and alert with conversation. We arrived at the mountain at 3:50, 20 minutes before we were supposed to.

We went to the ticket booth to show our vouchers and get our tickets to climb. That's when our adventure really started. A man there told us that we could start hiking up an hour before sunrise, which we heard was 5:13am. The problem was that we were misinformed and sunrise was actually at 6:13am, meaning we arrived an hour early (and missed an hour of sleep).

We relaxed at the bus station near the gate and talked about the stars, and stories of Masada. Soon, we were accompanied by a group of soldiers and a group of rowdy college kids. We waited for the opening of the trail for 20 more minutes, and then started our ascent up the Snake Path. It was very dark, so we used the flashlight app on Rabbi Stecker's iPhone to see the path (and the cliff). It was a long and strenuous 50 minute journey to the top, consisting of large steps and steep paths, but we finally made it to the top 15 minutes before sunrise.

We all pulled out our phones and cameras to capture the special moment. Finally, we saw the sun peek over the horizon with colorful beams of light surrounding it, and we all knew that our difficult trek was well worth it.

After sunrise, we went to a place by Herod's Western Palace which had ben used as a Torah study area, and we performed a morning Shacharit service where many of us led a prayer - we did most of the prayers except the ones that required a minyan (even though we were joined by a man who wrapped himself with Tefillin, and a few chirping birdies).  It was a great way to gather together and celebrate our successful adventure.

-- Josh Putter

Mud and Salt

Today we all went to the Dead Sea. It was so much fun. We couldn't stop floating.  It was so strange.  We put mud all over ourselves then entered the Dead Sea to rinse off the mud. When we were done our skin felt so soft. I was surprised that none of my bleeding mosquito bites burned .
There were piles of salt in the water and on the sand.

Later at night when I tasted the salt on the table at dinner, I thought it tasted like the Dead Sea.

-- Barrett Kanfer

Another Note in the Wall

The Western Wall - the epicenter of the Jewish Universe.  The direction in which every Jewish prayer is sent, be it from Great Neck or from the Old City of Jerusalem.  Last night, and then again today, we had the opportunity to experience this first-hand, with hundreds and thousands of other worldwide travellers who have made the journey to the holiest of all Jewish sites.

As is the custom for many, prayers in the form of notes are written and inserted into the cracks and crevices of the wall, and a direct connection is made between the individual and the sacred, as close as we can come today to the Temple Mount.

Thousands of tiny pieces of paper, inserted into the gaps between King Herod's massive stones.  Will each prayer be answered?  While that question remains, there is no doubt that as they are placed inside the wall, each prayer has been delivered, and has been heard.

-- Mark Putter

Why was this Shabbat Not Like Every Other Shabbat?

There are many special things about this group trip to Israel. Shabbat is one of them. This is because just like when we ask on Passover, "Why is this night different from any other", why was this Shabbat different from any other?

Well, the answer is... This shabbat is different because we are in Israel. We will all have memories but for me the highlights were the fun chef, the crazy games and songs, and the great food. Thankfully we had a private room or we might have frightened a couple of guests at the hotel with our jolly good time. There was a ton of food from the gefilta fish, to the veal chop, and so much dessert. There were also tons of games like air shooting freeze tag and find that song. There were also fun songs sung from crazy Sprout Lake originals to the good old Shabbat tunes. In the end I would have to say this is one of the most fun, memorable, amazing experiences I have ever had (coming in close second with camp.)

--Emily Citron

...Postus Interruptus...

...Excuse our brief "blog break" as we recover from our wonderful Shabbat and day-after trip to the Holy Land...more blogs to come!!

Magical Mystical Tour

We began our day in Safed, one of the holiest and prettiest cities situated in the mountains of the Holy Land (and that's saying a lot).  Safed is the birthplace of Jewish Mysticism (Kabbalah). The Rabbi credited with the Kabbalah and its spirituality was know as Ari, The Lion.  His synagogue is located here and is still active.

Above is the synagogue of Rabbi Yosef Cairo, the author of the Shulchan Aruch, the rule book of Jewish laws and minhagim   Above, our own spiritual leader, Rabbi Stecker  was explaining some concepts of the Kabalah and some of the Sephardic customs that were depicted in the synagogue's design.

Many of the residents of Safed, are transplanted Jews who have discovered their inner spirituality. There are Chabadniks, Lubavitch and just plain old Balei Tshuva.  Being caught up in the holiness of the city, Skyler and I were recruited to put on Tefillin this morning. I am proud to say that it was Skyler's initiative that got me to join in.

After a rafting trip down the Jordan River we embarked on a Jeep trip to the Golan Heights. Our guide had just returned from a one month reserve stint in a tank division nearby. We were informed of the strategic importance of this area as it pertains to military position and the valuable resources it contains and protects from its vantage point. It is now an area with flourishing plantings and cattle surrounded by natural beauty and remnants of its battle scarred history. We pulled up to some plum trees and ate our spoils of tour.

Our day encompassed spirituality, hiking, rafting and an up close look at a strategic military battleground.  Today was like many days rolled in to one. It was the Magical Mystical Tour equivalent of the miracle of Hannukah.  



-- Abe Kanfer

Girls Rule!

Today in Israel, girls ruled even more than we normally do. Everyone went rafting down the Jordan River, and Amanda, Barrett, Emily, my mom and I were in the same raft.  With our strong paddlers, everyone leaning in rhythm, and singing our fancy tunes, we were unstoppable. We were in sync with the river.  We lost sight of the rest of the crew because we were so far ahead, and finished first out of all the rafts.  Later, we went on a jumpy Jeep ride through the Golan Heights.  The girls were together and unstoppable again!  We were the first Jeep and we had so much fun, whether it was watching cows or singing songs! Go Girls!

-- Leah Klempner

Welcome Home

This morning, we walked along the narrow paths and steep stairways of Safed, the highest town in Israel, and one of the four holy cities of the Talmud (along with Jerusalem, Hebron, and Tiberias).  The ancient city is known for its Kabbalist synagogues (including Itzhak Luria's synagogue below)

Safed is also known for its Artists Quarter, where small shops display paintings and works by local and world-renowned artists.  It was here that we came upon a small store named YomTov.com.  Walking in, the owner/artist (flipping back his peyes) told us he was from Florida, and his wife was from Safed.  "One day, I decided to move to Israel," he told us, "and I met my wife here, also an artist.  My work is the 'trippier' stuff on this wall, and my wife has the more artistic works behind me.  That's how we got here - so where are you from?"  "Great Neck, NY," we replied.

And with that, he gave us a great big, warm smile and said, "Welcome Home!"

-- Mark Putter

The Flip Side to Mark's Peaceful Co-existence

It's disarming, to say the least, and without any pun intended, to visit a popular and beautiful attraction, only to exit the site a block away from a chain link fence, an armed guard, and a border that is completely closed.  Yet that is exactly what you'd find about 50 yards to the left of Rochelle and Jonah in the photo below.

What an incredible contrast: the cable car at Rosh Hanikra took us down to explore the natural grottos and experience the crashing Mediterranean waves against the caves. The street exit up top laid bare for us the bitter conflict still raging with Lebanon.

Thankfully, the contrast on this day leaned heavily toward adventure.  At Caesarea, we staged our own chariot races in the Hippodrome, and in the theater (not an amphitheater) also staged the next number for the Temple Israel Players (DVD release may come shortly).  We sloshed through the 2,000 year old underground water tunnels at Park Alona -- way more cooler in every way than any water park.  And from Mount Carmel, we took in the spectacular views of Haifa -- a city famous for the peaceful co-existence Mark writes about in his blog below below....

-- Ron Klempner

Ramadan, Partying, and Peaceful Co-Existence

On Tuesday night, our family ventured out along the shore toward Jaffa for dinner.  For some reason unknown to us at the time, the traffic in Tel Aviv at 7:15pm was as bad as any gridlocked NYC Time Square evening.  Our taxi driver took us away from the sea, circled around some of the downtown buildings, and left us off across the busy street, telling us it would be quicker for us to cross to the other side and walk 5 minutes through a parking lot to our restaurant.

As we ventured through the parking lot and along the sidewalk, the beach was filled with revellers, partying, and impromptu barbeque pits everywhere.  Small children were running half-naked along the sand, chased by women in burkas while the men cooked and kneeled on the ground praying.  Yet somehow, amidst all the chaos and the strewn-about cups and cans, there was an acceptance that all was as-expected, nothing out of the ordinary.

What we later found out was that Tuesday night was Eid el-Fitr, marking the end of Ramadan (the 30-day month of Muslim Fasting).  A two-to-three day festival was beginning, marked by wild celebrations in the street, cooking of lamb, and camping out.  What struck me the most was that in Tel Aviv, the Muslim community could celebrate alongside the Israeli community, without incident and without issue. 

Peaceful co-existence between Islam and Judaism in the heart of Tel Aviv - what is the world coming to?!?!

-- Mark Putter

Here, There and Everywhere

Sometimes you travel thousands of miles only to find an experience you could have enjoyed from around your corner.  Other times, you travel thousands of miles only to find an experience that, well, you can only find thousands of miles away.  We experienced a little of both today.

For one thing, this is the first time I have ever blogged.  I’ve never before tweeted and I don’t Facebook, so this is my first active social media experience.  I didn’t need to fly all the way to Israel to join this revolution, but I did.

Also on the subject of finding something 6,000 miles away that you could have experienced at home, we found ourselves lunching in Jaffa next to a lovely American family.  The dad and I started to chat, and he told me he was from New Jersey.  I told him where I was from, and he mentioned that he had a brother who lives in Great Neck.  And just like that, we found ourselves in Israel with a family of Seidenbergs – not Marc, Carol and their kids from Temple Israel, but Marc's brother Keith, who provided us with our first great small world story of the trip.  Of all the places in the world, and all the cafes in Israel, at all times of the day, we were sitting having lunch in Jaffa next to the brother of our Temple Israel friend.  The picture is below – he looks just like his brother.

 

Thankfully, on several occasions, we were reminded today that there are some experiences that can only be enjoyed right here.  For example, as much as we try to comprehend the enormous struggle we endured to establish this state, it never quite hits home the way it did as when we visited the Ayalon Institute in Rehovot this morning.  To the normal eye in the 1940’s, Ayalon was just a kibbutz on a hill.  But staircases running underneath the laundry room and bakery took 46 covert workers to the one place that manufactured all the bullets used in the War for Independence.  We descended into the perfectly preserved underground factory, hidden even from the regular kibbutz workers, referred to as “giraffes” – they had a perfect view of everything happening above ground, but had no idea what was going on below their feet.  My son Jonah kept saying how incredible it was that over just a few years, 5 million bullets could be secretly manufactured one-by-one by 46 people -- 45 plus the one converted giraffe that had wandered into the laundry room to wash a diaper when it was accidentally left unlocked.

Speaking of Jonah, two final thoughts:

First, only here at the port of Jaffa could we stand at the spot where a different Jonah set sail for what was supposed to be Ninevah.  This sensation is truly unique.

And second, Jonah from Great Neck North High School was able to explain to me the concept of a League of Nations mandate, something he had recently learned in history class.  This helped me understand and appreciate the drama that was re-enacted for us at our afternoon visit to Independence Hall, the site of David Ben-Gurion’s monumental proclamation of the State of Israel in May 1948.  We sat in that very room as a recording played parts of Ben-Gurion’s speech, the sh’hechianu blessing delivered in a shaking voice by the rabbi present at the ceremony, and the orchestra’s actual rendition of Hatikvah.  This, for me, was the highlight of our first full day.  I’ve stood countless times for the playing of Hatikvah, but never like this.  For an experience like this, I really needed to travel the 6,000 miles.

Last, last thing:  Happy, Happy Anniversary to the Steckers, on behalf of all the Holy Trekkers.

-        -- Ron Klempner

Word of the Day

Stufficated. The day we arrived in Israel, we ate so much at dinner that I invented a new word Stufficated. It means you are so stuffed from eating that you can't breathe.

- Barrett Kanfer

Sababa! The Food of Tel Aviv

Today, we ate our way from the Port of Old Jaffa for lunch, to the open-air Carmel Market.  Below, some of us partake of some candy, some baklava and pastries, and don't foget all the falafel accoutrements!

The Whole Mishpocha

Just finished our first group dinner.  Great food. A wonderful opportunity to schmooze and get to know one another. The Mediterranean Sea in the background added some exotic  flavor to our meal.

Can't wait until the tour gets rolling.

First Night Musings

Looking out from my hotel room at the Tel Aviv Crown Plaza. I'm amazed at the distance my family and I have travelled in the past 48 hours (it really may have been only 24 hours but with the jet lag and israeli beer, the hours are starting to blur together).

In the song Rak Po sung by the Israeli hip-hop group Hadag Nahash there are lyrics about Israelis trying to live a life that is split between the world and the village (you can find the song, complete with translated lyrics on YouTube).  The merging of the two was evident from the moment we entered the international terminal at JFK. The first reaction one has as you approach the El Al counter is - where did all these Jews come from?  While physical accessories such as kippot and Tzitzit are noticeable just from the physical appearance and can highlight distance as much as kinship, there I something heartwarming to find out that you will be sharing your flight with the Rosh Edah (division leader) from your children's division at Camp Ramah and makes you realize why this trip will not be like all other trips.

It has been 31 years since my last visit to Israel and one memory from that excursion stands out - that of a shachreit minyan taking place as dawn breaks over the horizon. At age 13 I wasn't familiar enough to take part in the davening. But age and experience has given me the tools to now take my place in the prayer quorum. However life isn't as neat as rose colored memories. Instead of a window view of the majesty of a sunrise at 30,000 feet I found myself crammed in between the galley and the rest rooms as the flashlight app on my iPhone became the ner-Tamid for our 'pick-up' minyan.

While I could try to wax poetic about how Israel has grown and developed over the past three decades it was the people that made the most impact. As Great Neck residents we joke about how we live in a ghetto. But that reality pales in comparison from the moment you land in Ben Gurion airport. Hebrew is the lingua Franca. Not just in signs and announcements, but abbas and imas shouting at their yeladim and mishpocha greeting each other with hugs. Cab drivers, bus drivers and even the local bar tenders are all members of the tribe. Ten steps out onto the beach and you hear shouting and trash talking all done in Ivrit on the beach volleyball courts. And when you watch with one eye as local teenage boys attempt to make passes at the local teenage girls, one thinks the thought, "hmmm I wonder if there's a good shidduch to be made?" The reality is, that as sung in Rak Po, Israel is 'The Jewish Village' writ large.

-- Harold Citron

Arrival!

For some, the travel was uneventful, and even luxurious - for others, leaving the "unholy land" of the Delta JFK terminal at 2:30am was not as originally planned.  But by 5:00pm on Monday (Israel time), we were all checked into the Crown Plaza along the beautiful shores of the Mediterranean Sea, ready to begin our adventure (see the view of the sea from our balconies)!

Anticipation

In less than 24 hour, all 18 of the "intrepid travellers" will either be in the air, or on the ground in Israel, preparing to meet for a Monday night dinner at our hotel in Tel Aviv.  All the packing, purchasing, and preparing are nearly complete (how will we ever get all the bags to be under 50 lbs?), and all that is left is the anticipation of our trip of a lifetime.  We are all extremely excited to be able to make this pilgrimage together with the Rabbi and other close friends from our Temple.

For those who will be following us as we blog our way through Israel, the cast of 18 characters is listed below (as you will read stories from-and-about many of us along the way):

The Citron Family: Barbara (mom), Harold (dad), Emily and Ethan
The Kanfer Family: Debi (mom), Abe (dad), Skyler and Barrett
The Klempner Family: Rochelle (mom), Ron (dad), Jonah and Leah
The Putter Family: Ellen (mom), Mark (dad), Alex, Josh and Amanda
...and don't forget Rabbi Howard Stecker!

We hope to keep you updated in words and pictures throughout the trip - see you on the other side!