Next Stop Tel-Aviv

Having had a lovely time getting adjusted to Israel and the program at Nes Harim, the MBIers departed early this morning for a new adventure and a day in Tel-Aviv. All the buses took part in various aspects of the day I will describe below, though they did it in their own order.

First the MBIers headed to Old Yafo(Jaffa) and Neve Tzedek to see the early foundations of Jaffa and Tel-Aviv. Jaffa is an ancient port city that has had historically a large Arab population and is just south of Tel-Aviv. Walking around the old city there, the MBIers learned about the history of the city and Tel-Aviv as they headed over to Neve Tzedek. Neve Tzedek was the first Jewish neighborhood built outside Jaffa, over twenty years before Tel-Aviv was founded. Learning the history of Israel's modern and biggest city helps put perspective on the growth of Israel into the state it is today.

While in Yafo(Jaffa) the MBIers had a chance to stop at the Shuk HaPishpishim(Flea market) to try to find some deals and souveneirs to take back home. They soon learned that to get a good deal in the shuk(market) you have to haggle and negotiate. Hopefully by the end of the trip they will be pros at shopping at the shuk(market).

After walking and seeing some Tel-Aviv/Jaffa's history, the MBIers headed to Kikar Rabin(Rabin Square) where they found themselves more in the heart of the city and in another place of great importance of recent history. There they had a tekes(ceremony) to learn about and commemorate the memory of Rabin and his importance to Israel and the peace process. It was a moving ceremony that concluded with singing Shir La Shalom(The Song for Peace, which was the song folded up in his pocket at his last speech at this square now in his name.) and Hatikvah.

Later the group went to Independence Hall where they got to see and learn first-hand about the creation of Israel. It was in this hall that David Ben-Gurion presented the Declaration of Independence of the state of Israel 60 years ago and marked the official beginning of the modern state of Israel. It was another part of an incredible day where significant aspects of Israel's history was explored and seen first-hand. Part of seeing the hall is to actually go in the room where the Declaration was signed and to attempt to take in the incredible moment that it must have been over 60 years ago.

They headed to the next place the MBIers will rest their heads at night, Nordiya, which is between Tel-Aviv and Netanya. There they had dinner and a more relaxed evening involving group processing of the day as well as check-ins to see how the MBIers were doing. With so much to take in on one day, the MBIers were glad to have some time to slow down and talk more about their experiences.

Tomorrow will be another busy day with the MBIers headed to Zichron Yaakov and preparing for their first Shabbat in Israel. Part of their time in the next couple days will also be time to update them about the Prisoner Exchange with Lebanon that took place and what it means for Israel in addition to their regular updates about the news in Israel. What a day!

The adventure continues

With the second full day of MBI underway, the MBIers took part in a diverse day of activities lead with the help of the JNF/KKL. As part of a rotation of activities the MBIers took turns in their groups taking part in the following activities. One of the stops was to take part in an archaelogical dig. Israel, being full of rich history and artificats, got to see first-hand how archaelogical digs work and even got a chance to be involved hands on with the search. No major discoveries were made but time will only tell how they helped.

While one group was taking part in the dig, another group was on a hike that involved going through ruins that date back to the Bar Kokhba rebellion. The ruins date back to around 135 CE and as such hiking through them is amazing not only to see ruins that old, but also to hear about the revolt and what it meant in Jewish history. The hike also involved going through some caves that also were used during the rebellion.

Lastly the groups also went to Tel Azaka. This is the famous place that is said to be where the battle took place between David and Goliath. The MBIers got hike around the area and were entertained by skits that the tour guides and madrichim(counselors) put on for them.

These activities took up the greater part of the day and they finally returned to Nes Harim in the late afternoon. After eating dinner they had a peula(activity) ran by their madrichim, enjoyed some time to catch up with their new and old friends and were off to bed to prepare for another great day ahead.

Tomorrow the group will be leaving the familiar surroundings of Nes Harim, but will be glad to know they will return their a few more times during the trip. The programming tomorrow is a day filled with exploring Tel-Aviv and Yafo(Jaffa). From going to the shuk, Kikar Rabin(Rabin Square), and Independence Hall, it will be a full glimpse into Israel's biggest city by looking at the old and the new. At night they will be staying at Nordiya, which is a nice hostel near Netanya which will welcome the MBIers to a pleasant new part of Israel.

A quick reminder. If you have not sent in your Visitor's Request form please do so as soon as possible.

First Full Day of MBI!

The MBIers awoke today to face their first full day of MBI. They set off in the morning for the Sataf hike which is in the same region of Israel that they staying, which is outside of Jerusalem. The hike itself goes through an old Arab Village that was evacuated during the Independence war. As such it is both an beautiful place to hike through but has a clear historical relevance to the creation of the state. The hike also includes reaching a small spring which of course adds to the hike's beauty. The hike itself was not too strenuous and was a fun and informative hike for the MBIers lead, as usual, with the guidance of our very knowledgable Israeli tour guides.

In the afternoon the MBIers returned to Nes Harim where the day continued with peulot(activities) divided up by bus group. While the group was split into their 4 buses last night, they also have smaller bus groups that they were split into. Each bus has two groups and two madrichim(counselors) for their group. In doing so, it enables the MBIers to have activities in smaller groups as well as have madrichim(counselors) that they will get to know better and have someone they feel more comfortable to ask questions or talk to about anything.

In these smaller groups they had an educational activity starting to look more at the meaning of being on MBI both in the context of MBI being our 8th machaneh(summer camp) and being in Israel. A lot of good discussions and information was shared and the bonding of the smaller groups seems to be off to a good start. The madrichim also performed a Hatzagah(skit) before dinner that combined comedy and education and will be a recurring and hopefully appealing part of the day for the MBIers. A few good laughs were definitely had with more to come.

After dinner at Nes Harim, a great big fun Welcome to Israel activity took place. All the MBIers took part in the various aspects of the evening that was geared towards getting them to know some of the important cultural references they will come to learn as well as just plain fun. Activities included competitions such as making Israel out of various food items, a hebrew word relay-race and a "shoko b sakeet" drinking contest. Shoko is Israeli chocolate milk and sakeet(bag) is the how it comes for purchase. Many past participants clamor for the delicious chocolate milk so undoubtably the MBIers will be on the lookout for it as the summer continues.

Overall a fun mix of activities and then off to bed for the MBIers to prepare for day 2 of MBI. Tomorrow will see them taking part in a JNF day that has many components including an archaelogical dig and hiking through a cave. The excitement, fun, and learning will continue tomorrow!

MBI has arrived!

As some of you have already heard from you MBIer, the MBIers arrived safely to Israel to start the magical summer ahead of them. After a travel day that amazingly almost went off without a hitch, the Americans landed first in the mid-afternoon where they were greeted by the excited tzevet(staff). They took luggage their luggage to the buses awaiting them to take them to their first stop, the campsite of Nes Harim, which is located outside Jerusalem, near Bet Shemesh. The site is a lovely JNF/KKL campsite that has nice, air-conditioned cabins for the MBIers to stay in. Being in a beautiful forest, which includes the Habonim forest, it is a perfect setting to start off the summer in the camp setting they are used to being.

After having a chance to put their stuff down, they headed to the dining hall to have dinner while in the meantime the Canadians were landing in Tel-Aviv at Ben-Gurion airport. When the MBIers finished eating they headed to the to the Haas Promenade where they proceeded to meet the Canadian flight who had also arrived safely and boarded a bus with all their stuff and headed straight for the Promenade. The promenade is both a picturesque spot to view Jerusalem lit up at night and a site filled with history and meaning for Israel. Hidden under the Prominade is an aqueduct built by Herod the Great. It was also no-man's land between the creation of the State of Israel and the reunification of Jerusalem among the other interesting parts of its character.(For more information click here)

At the Promenade, with the united group of 136 MBIers and over 20 tzevet members, they proceeded to look out at the beauty of Jerusalem and the Old City. They also had and opening tekes(ceremony) to welcome them to Israel and MBI Yud Zayin. The tzevet sang the song Ein Li Eretz Acheret(There is no other land for me), heard some selected readings, and Leon gave a rousing speech to welcome them and to start putting the magnitude of the trip and their location in perspective.

The view from the Promenade.

Afterwards they came back to Nes Harim where they got to settle into their rooms where they will be for the next few days. The MBIers were split into their buses to start getting to know their smaller group and the madrichim(counselors) leading them. As I write they are all in bed, hopefully get some well deserved sleep.

Tomorrow should be a busy day with a hike in the morning, peulot(fun/educational activities) in the afternoon, and a night of fun together.

At the side of blog in the links you will notice I have added another link. It is a map website that allows you to search for any place in Israel so you can see better where the MBIers are at any point of the trip. Also unfortunately our website is down for maintenance. Once it is back up and running I will let you know.

More exciting news tomorrow!

Toronto Flight

The Toronto flight is on its way! So far so good for the start of MBI Yud Zayin 2008!

1 Flight in the air one to go

Today so far has gone exceptionally smooth. Almost all the flights were on time or early and only one lost bag that hopefully is on its way to Israel. The ELAL flight from New York did for some reason sit on the tarmac for 2 and a half hours but they are on their way. All signs are that the Toronto flight is on track. I will post again once that is confirmed.
Michael

Almost Flight day!

Dear MBI Families,

As many of you are putting together the final preparations for MBI a few last things of note. First off a couple of you many have noticed that our acceptance site is down. Our web guy is working on it but it may take a couple days to get the site back up. In the meantime if you wanted to access either the packing list or the expanded itinerary I have posted them here.

For the Expanded Itinerary click on the link or copy and paste the address: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dhpg3npt_12c5t2dsgs.

For the Packing List click on the link or copy and paste the address: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dhpg3npt_13g23r2qdx

Additionally for those curious about a mailing address during MBI please send any mail or packages to the below address.

Participant Name MBI
c/o Shira Moshkovitz
The Israel Experience
North American Division
Kiryat Moriah
3 Ha'askan St.
P.O.B 92
Jerusalem 91000

We are set on our side on for what we will hope will be a smooth travel day. The weather in New York is supposed to be mostly Sunny and the forecast in Toronto is supposed to be clear by evening. I of course will be reachable all day at 917-822-2330 should any issues arise in your MBIers flight day. I also will post updates to the blog once the Israel flights have successfully take off.

I look forward to seeing many of you tomorrow and I wish everyone a safe journey as you will be greeted in Israel by our wonderful and capable tzevet(staff). Here's to the start of a great trip!

Michael