Israel Trip of Congregation Beth Israel Ner Tamid | Nov. 2024

Activities:

• Welcome to Israel! - VIP fast-track assistance and airport transfers are available, contact us for further information.

• Check-in to your hotel - (please note: check in time is after 3:00 PM)

• 3:00 PM Welcome cocktail reception at the hotel - Introduction to the trip, get to know your group members and staff.

• She'echeyanu and welcome to Israel - The Mount of Olives offers a panoramic lookout over the city. There are countless Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions about Mt. Olives, including that from here the Messiah will come, and from here the dead will be resurrected in the vision of the End of Days. Enjoy a beautiful lookout of the Holy Basin, the old and new city of Jerusalem.

• Opening program at Kol Haot - Now is your opportunity to share our expectations from our Israel journey. We will meet a local artist that will share some inspirational ideas through their unique art. With the "Kol HaOt" team, we will explore the personal meaning of Israel using colors and symbols to give ourselves and our fellow participants a visual picture of what this journey means to us.

• Welcome group dinner at a local restaurant

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel - Every morning you'll enjoy a delicious buffet Israel breakfast at the hotel's dining room.

• Tour of Jerusalem Old City - We will begin with a magnificent lookout over the Old and New City. a great intro to the places we going to visit on our tour. Continue with a multicultural tour of Jerusalem’s Old City with a focus on the Jewish Heritage sites. Meet the people and places that make this place so unique. In the Jewish Quarter, uncover the layers of Jewish history from the time of the First Temple until the present day. In the Christian Quarter, visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and from a great lookout view the important Muslim sites on the Temple Mount. Throughout the tour explore the complexity of a city that is holy to the three major religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

• Meet with the Jerusalem Scribe - Kalman Gavriel Delmoor is a traditional Scribe with a modern lens. Through his unique perspectives and expertise in the ancient craft, Kalman brings the Torah to life in his art. Discover the fusion of artwork and tradition below. Meet Kalman, see him work, and learn about his mission.

• Lunch break at the Old City - (meal not included)

• Proceed back to the hotel, relax and prepare for Shabbat

• Musical Kabbalat Shabbat as a community - Meet with Rabbi Tamar Applebaum at Kehilat Zion before brining in the Shabbat with the community. (depending on availability)

• Shabbat Friday night dinner as a community - At the hotel, with local community, or in a private space within walking distance.

• Optional: guest speaker / evening program - (not included, TBD)

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Join a local community for Shabbat morning services

• Picnic lunch in a park

• Shabbat leisure time - relax and explore on your own - Optional: visit the Israel Museum and the Shrine of the Book (on own, not included)

• Jerusalem through Israeli poetry (optional tour) - Magical and mysterious Jerusalem has always attracted writers, poets, and intellectuals, who in their words made it Jerusalem on Gold. Walking tour of Yemin Moshe and Mishkenot Sha'ananim neighborhoods through the eyes and poetry of Yehuda Amichai and others. (afternoon optional tour with your guide)

• Havdala ceremony - Shabbat farewell

• Free evening - experience Jerusalem's weekend night life

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• A visit to Yad Vashem - Tour of the museum at Yad Vashem, Israel’s National Memorial to the Holocaust. Tour this memorial to the darkest moment in the world and Jewish history, its children’s memorial, and the Museum of Holocaust Art. Yad Vashem is an unforgettable place of tribute and remembrance. You'll be guided by a member of the Yad Vashem staff.

• Ein Kerem - lunch and artistic tour - After a meaningful morning, step into another world while you visit this quaint neighborhood of Ein Karem. Tucked into the hills of Jerusalem is the biblical Ein Kerem, whose name means "the spring in the vineyard." Eat lunch at a local social-business followed by a tour of the local art studios and key sites.

• Try your own hands in ancient crafts workshop - In an ancient stone house, situated a creative space where they teach various ancient crafts such as basket weaving, wool weaving, embroidery and more.

• Evening program - people will choose between two options

• Track 1: Culinary tasting tour in Machane Yehuda Market - In the heart of Jerusalem sits this bustling, multi-ethnic market bursting with life, art, and flavor. A tasting tour through Machane Yehuda Market is an adventure for your taste buds! Enjoy the hustle and bustle with all the rich fragrances, colors, and sounds this iconic Jerusalem market offers.

• Track 2: Mea Shearim 'Shtisel' Tour - A taste of the Ultra-Orthodox world-walk the streets of the ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods, get to know the people, the food, and feel the vibrations of this life. On a busy Thursday night, when people are preparing for Shabbat, gain a more complex appreciation for the people by listening to their music, visiting various institutions, seeing unique leisure, fashion, and art this world encompasses, and, of course by eating freshly baked challah.

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Tour of Masada National Park - Ascend the mountain by a cable car to explore Masada, a scene of the epic stand by Jewish rebels at the end of the Great Revolt against Rome nearly 2,000 years ago. The new museum at the Visitor Center reveals the secrets of the daily life of the rebels, the story of the excavations, and how the site became one of Israel’s most important symbols.

• Dead Sea Resort for swim and lunch - Israel’s Dead Sea is the lowest point on earth, a stunning, other-worldly landscape of shimmering blue water ringed by bare, orange and yellow hills. The waters of the Dead Sea hold a potent solution of minerals and salts that have strong healing properties. Together with its ethereal beauty, these health-giving minerals make the Dead Sea’s beaches and spas popular vacation spots for Israelis and tourists alike. At one of the local hotels, have lunch and 'float' in the Dead Sea.

• Meet Arik Weiss at his studio - See his fascinating art work, learn about the symbolism behind his work, and have an open conversation with the artist.

• Proceed back to Jerusalem & free evening

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel & check-out

• Travel to the Galilee and tour Tzippori ancient Jewish village - Tzippori was once the capital of the Galilee, the seat of the Sanhedrin and the place where the Mishna was completed. At Tzippori, view the ruins and ancient mosaic floor to see how native species have been part of the national iconography for centuries. Imagine yourself in the seat of the early commentators and add your own commentary on the anceint text, in a Havruta learning. (the subject and sources will be prepared in advance)

• Rish Lakish - light lunch, olive picking and olive oil tastings - Olive picking followed by a visit to Rish Lakish, a family-owned olive oil press. Meet the family, see the process of making olive oil, and eat a delicious lunch using products of the press and garden.

• Jezre’el Valley Winery - In a land of some 300 boutique wineries, it took a high-tech entrepreneur, an organic landscape architect and a branding designer to come up with a new concept for their wine venture. Meet with Jacob Ner David a successful serial entrepreneur in technology based start-ups who made a dream come true and continues to infuse out-of-the box thinking into the DNA of the winery.

• Travel to the hotel & check-in

• Dinner at the hotel's lobby restaurant - (meal not included)

• North

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Tour of the Old City of Tzfat and artists' quarter - Spend the morning in Tzfat which sits at a higher altitude than any other city in Israel and has been known since the 16th century as a major center of Kabbala, Jewish mysticism. Tzfat’s mystical aura adds to its special status as one of Israel’s four holy cities, along with Jerusalem, Tiberias, and Hebron. The old synagogues, narrow alleyways and artists’ studios add to the hilltop city’s unmistakable charm. Meet with a local artist and hear about the Kabbalistic deep meaning behind his work.

• Lookout over the border with Lebanon and a Geo-political brief with a guest speaker - Lookout over the Israel-Lebanese border and hear about the geopolitics of the area with Lieutenant Colonel (Res.) Sarit Zehavi, CEO and founder of Alma, a non-profit independent research and education center specializing in Israel’s security challenges on its northern border.

• Authentic Druze home hospitality and meal - Together with your hosts in their private home, enjoy delicious home made Galilean dishes, learn about Druze culture and history from your hosts.

• Optional evening program: The Object Theater (Zikit) - a multicultural visual theater play - The Zikit Theater has a distinctive artistic style, including a puppet theater, objects, and silhouettes, special backdrops, movement, music, and more. Media and content are intertwined, and the use of visual means is unconventional and unpredictable. The messages and stimuli that the viewers receive from the stage evoke personal interpretations and emotions, and they become partners in the play. The use of visual language and the little use of text, allow speakers of all different languages ​​to enjoy the show equally. The ‘Zikit’ team consists of professional theater people, Jews and Arabs, living in the Galilee who represent the human mosaic in the area. The theater has participated in international festivals and won many awards. (activity not included)

• Proceed back to the hotel and dinner in the hotel's lobby cafe is available - (dinner not included)

• North

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel & check-out

• Akko historical highlights tour - Walk through 4,000 years of history in this ancient city and UNESCO World Heritage site. The ancient city of Akko, situated on the Mediterranean coast, is one of the oldest ports in the world, and a city shared by Jews and Muslims. Walk narrow streets past towering ramparts, deep moats, green domes, venerable synagogues, slender Muslim minarets, and secret passageways. Discover the subterranean city built beneath Akko in the Middle Ages by the Crusaders. Learn about the city’s ancient history, as well as its important role in Israel’s modern history.

• Stop at the unique Tunisian Synagogue - The Or Torah Tunisian synagogue in Akko is unique even in a land of synagogues. Built by a community of Tunisian Jews from Djerba, it offers four stories of glorious mosaics and stained-glass windows both inside and out, showing a varied range of stories, plants, and animals. (pending on availability)

• Group lunch at a local restaurant

• Travel to Tel Aviv along the coast

• Afternoon tour of Old Jaffa - Jaffa is one of the most ancient port cities in Israel and the Mediterranean basin. Today Jaffa is a mixed city, where Jews and Arabs live alongside each other. Tel Aviv, Jaffa's younger sister, was established centuries later, in the year 1909, but the two were united into one municipality in 1949, yet each part kept its unique feel and atmosphere. Jaffa has been regenerated in recent years with the old narrow streets and courtyards becoming a highly popular part of Tel Aviv’s urban tapestry.

• Check-in to the hotel & enjoy a free evening

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• The backyard of Tel Aviv tour with BINA - BINA means “Wisdom” in Hebrew. It is also a Hebrew acronym from a poem by Israel’s national poet, Chaim Nachman Bialik, for: Home for the Creation of a Nation’s Soul, meaning a nation which embodies the Jewish values; pluralism, social justice, social solidarity, democracy and peace. BINA is an Israeli-born movement at the intersection of Jewish education and social activism. BINA works to advance democracy, pluralism and justice in Israel and the Jewish world through limud (study), ma’ase (action) and kehilla (community), emphasizing Jewish culture and values of tikkun olam (repairing the world). We will tour in south Tel Aviv and include a limud about activism and justice in Judaism.

• Free time at Nahalat Binyamin Arts and Crafts Market and the Carmel Market - Explore on your own this amazing open-air market in the heart of Tel-Aviv that has become synonymous with quality Israeli crafts and folk art. The market is comprised of over 100 stands representing specialty crafts and folk art in virtually every medium imaginable: wood, stone, sand, glass, ceramics, and various metals with most if not all containing materials or themes found only in Israel. For lunch try some great Israeli street food in the Carmel Market.

• Break and free time to experience Tel Aviv on your own

• Musical Kabbalat Shabbat - melodies from around the world - Make the transition to Shabbat with Daniel Hoffman. specializes in klezmer and other Eastern European music, as well as new music based on folk and jazz. After graduating from the Manhattan School of Music, he co-founded the San Francisco-based new music ensemble Davka, which has toured extensively and released 5 CDs of original music, four on John Zorn’s Tzadik label. He created The Klez-X (formerly the SF Klezmer Experience) as the pit band for the musical Shlemiel the First at the American Conservatory Theater. The Klez-X has also performed widely and recorded 3 CDs including many new compositions and modernist settings of Yiddish poetry. Daniel has also written silent film scores for live performance for the 1920 German Expressionist film The Golem, and for the 1925 Soviet comedy, Jewish Luck.

• Shabbat dinner as a community

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Optional: participate in the morning Shabbat services - At the hotel as a community or join a local congregation.

• Special Shabbat Brunch - In private setting indulge in a Jewish Shabbat Brunch. Enjoy the variety of classic ethnic foods that are part of the Shabbat day meal. These dishes are brought directly from the homes in which the food was cooked for families that share their heritage and flavors.

• Break and time to relax

• Afternoon walking tour - learn about the foundation of Tel Aviv and explore the architecture and public art

• Neve Tzedek - This is the first Jewish neighborhood to be built outside of Jaffa and currently one of the most beautiful and desired locations in Tel Aviv. It was built by some of the dignitaries of the old Jewish community of Jaffa in 1887. Looking to head out of the ever-growing and over-crowded Jaffa, they built, what was considered back then, modern and comfortable housing. In recent years, after a period of neglect, the neighborhood was restored and has become a trendy fun beautiful part of the city and a good place to try some Israeli Gelato!

• Independence Trail - Inspired by the Freedom Trail in Boston, the new Independence Trail follows several stops of Tel Aviv’s heritage sites learning about the history of this great city along the way. The trail begins at the intersection of tree-lined Rothschild Boulevard and Herzl Street, home to Tel Aviv’s first kiosk. The trail ends across the street at Independence Hall, where on May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion read aloud the Declaration of Independence as Israel was declared an independent Jewish state. Along Rothchild Blvd., you will also discover the development of the city through the architecture styles. As you might know, Tel Aviv has more Bauhaus buildings that any other city in the world, so many that it is designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

• Havdallah followed by Israeli street food dinner

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at your hotel

• Easy morning and time on own

• - OR - Explore the local Street Art - Guided tour of the colorful neighborhood of Florentine, Tel Aviv’s most bohemian and upbeat neighborhood and learn about contemporary Israeli culture through the writing on the wall, graffiti, bumper stickers and even painted garbage bins. In recent years Tel Aviv has become Israel's capital of urban art.

• Check-out from the hotel

• Closure tour of our Israel journey through a visit to the ANU Museum of the Jewish People - In June 2021, after ten years of planning and construction, the largest Jewish museum in the world opened its doors. You’re invited to join a fascinating journey that portrays the story of the Jewish people through the generations and up to the present time. The Museum represents all parts of the Jewish people and highlights the creative works and cultural riches of a variety of communities in different periods of history. This story is about all of us and each and every one of us is part of it. The tour will focus on art and culture, and will be guided by a local guide followed by time to explore on your own.

• OR alternatively we can end the tour with a visit to the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation

• Farewell group lunch and closing session

• Group transfer to Ben Gurion Airport - Fly back home.

• We look forward to hosting you again in our beautiful country