Temple B’nai Shalom Adventure in ISRAEL-December 2024

Activities:

• Depart the United States at 6:45pm on an overnight flight to Israel

• Skskak

Activities:

• VIP Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport at 2:00pm - After collecting your luggage you will meet your tour guide in the airport, go to your bus, and set off for Tel Aviv.

• Transfer to the hotel in Tel Aviv - Check in, refresh, and relax

• Shehechiyanu on the beach - Gather with your guide to meet and say Shehechiyanu to bless the beginning of your journey together in Israel!
  
  With Shehechiyanu each participant will receive a small bag for collecting artifacts of the trip. Some of the treasures that will go in your bag will be given to you, others you will add yourselves.

• Opening Celebratory Dinner at Ha'Achim - Haachim, located on Ibn Gvirol offers a spin on the middle eastern cuisine by modernizing classic dishes.

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Tour 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.

• Peres Center for Peace and Innovation - The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation is a leading non-profit and non-governmental organization focused on developing and implementing unique and cutting-edge programs. The center presents the incredible story of Israel, the "innovation nation", and showcases the diverse fields and people behind Israeli innovation.

• Time for lunch in the Carmel Market - Continue to Carmel Market (Shuk HaCarmel), the largest market in Tel Aviv. Touring the market reveals the taste of the ages of Tel-Aviv in the youthful atmosphere of the city's central market. The Polish, the Persian, and the Yemeni... in this case, it is not the start of a joke, but the fascinating culinary traditions that mix in this place. The established market that was founded over 90 years ago, can now reveal its secrets, stories, and legends to you.

• Independence Trail - Inspired by the Freedom Trail in Boston, the new Independence Trail leads to 10 of Tel Aviv’s heritage sites teaching visitors 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.

• Dinner with your family - Take some time as a family to talk about your impressions of Israel so far and what you would like to do together to make the most of your trip. Reservations will be made, dinner not included

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Dig for a Day at Beit Guvrin - Explore Beit Guvrin National Park where you will be able to take part in an archeological dig. The caves of Beit Guvrin hold a rich trove of artifacts that visitors like you have uncovered over the years. Don’t forget to check out the amazing Bell Caves too.

• Lunch at Iza Pziza Goat Farm - In Moshav Tal Shahar at the foot of the Jerusalem Mountains and the heart of the agricultural fields is a family goat farm called "Iza Pziza" which includes a small herd, a dairy and a visitors' center with a cheese shop. Eat a meal or just taste cheese, do a cheese-making workshop and meet the goats.

• Return to Tel Aviv with free time until Kabbalat Shabbat

• During your free time you can check out Nahalat Binyamin Arts and Crafts Market - Visit Nachalat Binyamin, an 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.

• Kabbalat Shabbat as a group

• Shabbat Dinner at the hotel

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• 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.

• Lunch

• Visit the Ayalon Institute - The Ayalon Institute is a clandestine ammunitions factory built in 1945 by the Haganah. In just three weeks, preparations for the factory were completed and it was code named the Ayalon Institute. Above ground, it appeared to be no more than a kibbutz. However, located eight meters below ground, this was the country's largest bullet factory. It has been said that the bullets manufactured at the Ayalon Institute played a crucial role in the success of the War of Independence.

• Return to the hotel to rest

• Havdalah with the group

• Dinner and evening on your own

• Tel Aviv

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel - Check out of the hotel

• Art Experience at Ein Hod Artists - Ein Hod is an artists' village on a hill, at the foot of Mount Carmel overlooking the Mediterranean coast, the town of Atlit, and an ancient 12th-century crusader fortress. After the War of Independence, the area was abandoned and left in ruin. In the fifties, a group of artists led by the acclaimed Dada artist Marcel Janco decided that Ein Hod would be a place where they could work, build studios and workshops, and form a creative environment for art and art education. Meet the artists and get hands-on with an arts workshop.

• Continue to Akko

• Hummus lunch in Akko

• Tour of Ancient Akko in Modern Times - 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.

• On to Rosh Hanikra- time permitting - Travel to Rosh Hanikra ("Head of the Grottos"), with the stunning chalk-white cliffs at Israel’s northernmost coastal border. Enjoy the view of the Mediterranean coastline stretched out before you, then take the cable car down beneath the cliffs to the grottos below and tour the system of underground marine caves eroded by pounding waves over thousands of years.

• Drive to your hotel and check in

• Dinner at the hotel

• North

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Depart the hotel for the Golan Heights

• Jeep ride in the Golan Heights - Take a geo-political tour of the Golan with an expert. While traversing the rich landscape, learn about the history, flora, and fauna of the area. Stop for a lookout over the border with Syria from Mt. Bental to get a better understanding of the geography and strategic role this region has for the State of Israel. Your local guide touches on the nuances of living so close to the Syrian border and what that has meant for Israel as it relates to security and humanitarian issues.

• Stop at Mount Bental - Drive to Mount Bental for a geopolitical discussion overlooking the Israeli-Syrian border. The Golan Heights are a geological and biogeographical region and is a plateau formed by a volcanic action.

• Pizza lunch

• Wine tasting for adults at Pelter Winery - The Pelter Winery was established in 2005 and is a study in Terroir. Taste the wines made from grapes grown on the rich Golan soil and hear the story of the winery. Together with the wine, enjoy a lunch of local cheese.

• Chocolate Workshop for kids - DeKarina Chocolate workshop on Kibbutz Ein Zivan in the Golan Heights: Taste some of the finest chocolate in Israel and then make some of your own to take home.

• Experience the ancient village of Katzrin dressed in ancient clothing! - Dressed in biblical attire, our 1500 year old villager will lead you through the dirt paths of his ancient home. Whether a water carrier, a shepherdess or a musician, your guide knows all the village hot spots, and is thrilled to share them with you! The ruins of the ancient Jewish village of Katzrin are located in the central Golan.

• Druze Cooking Workshop and dinner - Together with your hosts in their private home, prepare traditional Druze Galilean dishes and then enjoy the feast you create. Learn about Druze culture and history from your hosts and from the food you eat.

• North

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Depart the north on your way to Jerusalem

• Family Hike on the Israel National Trail - The Israel trail traverses the length of Israel and was established as a National Trail in 1995.

• Stop for an exciting visit at Kibbutz Magal - Visit the kibbutz's olive and almond agricultural and production center, as well as Netafim, the world-renowned agricultural lead in irrigation methods.

• Lunch at Kibbutz Magal

• Continue to Yad Vashem

• B'nai Mitzvah Twinning Program at Yad Vashem - Israel’s national Holocaust museum presents a profoundly Jewish memorial of the Shoah. From its dramatic structure to its powerful exhibits, such as the labyrinthine Valley of the Communities and the chilling Children’s Memorial, Yad Vashem is an unforgettable place of tribute and remembrance.

• Check into the hotel

• New Year's Eve Dinner at Hatzot - Hatzot is a part of Jerusalem’s history. Two brothers, Abraham and Michael Ajami founded this landmark family restaurant in 1970. Legend has it that Meurav Yerushalmi - the favorite Israeli mixed grill dish - was born at Hatzot Restaurant.

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• City of David - Visit the excavation of the City of David where King David captured a Jebusite citadel to build his capital. The city was well fortified with its own water source and Jerusalem was a perfect site for the new kind of national state that David envisaged.

• The Western Wall Tunnels - Explore what’s under the Muslim Quarter through the Kotel Tunnels Tour. The Western Wall is impressive, but its greatness is truly discovered when you descend underground to the Western Wall Tunnels. The tunnels run along approximately 488 meters (1601ft) of the Western Wall, giving visitors a taste of the challenge that stood before Herod the Great during the biggest of all his immense building projects - the expansion of the Temple Mount.

• Muslim & Christian Quarters including hummus lunch - Explore the maze of the Muslim and Christian quarters, meeting people who have lived in the Old City for generations, practicing their crafts and raising their families. Browse the famous Arab shuk (market) in the Muslim quarter. Its many stalls sell spices, pastries, pottery, sheepskin, embroidered clothes and so much more.

• Machane Yehuda Market Treasure Hunt - 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.

• Dinner at Cafe Shalva - Shalva is a Jerusalem based organization that provides services to children with special needs and their families. Graduates of Shalva work at the café, and the café’s profits go back to the center to support its programs.

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Join together at the Southern Wall for your B'nai Mitzvah ceremony

• B'nai Mitzvah Celebration at Eretz Beresheet - Genesis Land is situated in the heart of the Judean desert, on the way to the Dead Sea, in the land where the Patriarchs lived. A magical place, it enables visitors to experience life as it was in biblical times. Ride by camel to desert hospitality in the style of Abraham and Sarah and enjoy a delicious desert meal.

• Return to Jerusalem

• Free evening on Ben Yehuda Street

• Tower of David Night Spectacular - Amidst the archaeological remains in the David Citadel courtyard, the story of Jerusalem unfolds through virtual reality images. The Night Spectacular uses trompe l'oeil technology – the stones of the walls and structures fade into the scenes and the viewers are part of a multi-sensory experience.

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Early departure for Masada

• Masada National Park - Ascend Masada to tour King Herod’s private fortress which, following the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 BCE, became a base for a small band of Jewish zealots in revolt against the Romans. Although the rebels held their own, they were eventually overcome by siege, and according to historian Josephus, chose mass suicide over surrender. Masada has come to symbolize the fierce determination of the people of Israel, but its tragic history also raises questions about the price of freedom.

• 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.

• Return to the hotel to get ready for Shabbat

• Kabbalat Shabbat at Kehillat Har El

• Final Shabbat Dinner in a private setting - Celebrate Shabbat and the end of your trip by sharing your memory bags and your highlights of the trip.

• Jerusalem

Activities:

• Breakfast at the hotel

• Transfer to the airport

• VIP Departure