Travel days:
Hey Guys! After a walking tour of Jerusalem’s old city on Shabbat afternoon our group walked over to the Kotel to experience Havdallah. There are always many people praying at the wall but at havdallah there are hundreds of people gathered together to say goodbye to Shabbat. We met with the Diller group from Boston and did havdallah together as one group. After that we spent time at Ben Yehuda street, an area with many shops and restaurants. After a delicious schwarma, we walked around the street doing a little shopping but mostly just soaking in the Jerusalem night life. The next morning we woke up and went to Yad Vashem, Israel’s largest holocaust museum. The museum was filled with a lot of interesting information that was supplemented by stories told to us by our guide. After the museum itself, we went to the children’s memorial. The next stop was Har Herzl, Israel’s military cemetery which also contains the graves of many political leaders. Among those who we saw were Yitzhak Rabin, Golda Meir and of course Theodore Herzl. After a very serious and somber morning we lightened it up a bit at the Dead Sea. Many of us covered ourselves in mud and washed it off in the Dead Sea. It was very fun just floating around weightless in the water. Next up was a sulfur bath, which did not smell nearly as bad as I expected, and then a dip in a freshwater swimming pool. To close out the day we went to the Masada Guest house where we ate a good dinner and rested up for the next day.- Aaron Schimmel
As darkness began to dissipate in the skies above and steep desert rock filled the earth below, a group of twenty teens embarked on a journey to witness the sun shine in a way they have never seen it before. What began as a long treacherous journey resulted in the most honorable of achievements, making it to the top of Masada. 700 steps of pain, sweat, and complaints was endured but it was all worth it when we began to see the red peek of the everlasting sun rising above the Jewish homeland. The history of Masada itself is a reminder that we should always trek on especially if it is for something we believe in. The martyrdome that occurred in Masada sets the example of what Israel shall never do in the future, lose their homes and their lives.
Later in the day we dumped our heads in the fresh waters of En Gedi and embraced the relaxed atmosphere of this fine oasis. The cold water served to relieve the beating sun that shone.
- Aviv Oren
Monday evening we kicked off community week at a local park when our bus full of American fellows was greeted by 20 energetic Israeli fellows. After copious hugs, and a couple of games, we made our way to Shlomo's home in northern Tel Aviv where our Israeli buddy's parents greeted us and took us to their homes.
Tuesday morning all forty of us met up at the very first train station in tel aviv and went on to explore Tel aviv's first Jewish Community. The history themed day continued at Independence Hall, followed by a scavenger hunt around the city. We enjoyed falafel and spent time with some of last year's tel aviv fellows. We then went to the place Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated and discussed our visions and dreams about both personal and global issues. The night concluded with easily the most incredible surprise a tourist could ask for: the israelis took us to the roof of the azrieli building giving us a breathtaking view of Tel Aviv at night from fifty floors up. The city looked (and truly is) magical.
- Chava Friedman
With Kennes and congress just around the corner, be sure to keep checking out our Facebook page for pictures: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Los-Angeles-Diller-Teen-Fellows-Program/590721644273869?ref=hl
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