Poland

3/28

Sorry for the lack of Poland posts, I'm working on it. It's been very busy since we got back.

3/28

Today I led services with my friends Tessa and Kayla. We decided that we wanted to reflect on our week in Poland but we also didn't want to make a sad Holocaust service. We lit candles all around the room and told personal stories before the mourners Kaddish. After we finished the prayers, we went outside to do an activity to represent all of our thoughts and feelings reflecting on the week and also how it brought all of us closer. We told everyone to wear a white shirt that they didn't mind getting dirty and we pulled out some paint and everyone put handprints on each other. Then we all put handprints on a canvas that we had gotten (with plans to cut it up at a later point and give everyone a piece).  

After we finished our activity we all went and cleaned up for lunch. After lunch I went to the Tel with Kayla and we sat up there until dinner just talking and taking in the view. 

After dinner we led Havdallah. My friends Jordan and Mashell led a game. The goal? To hug everyone :D. It was so much fun! 

Poland Prep

             Wow this turned out to be a lot longer than I thought this post would be.

3/21

In preparation for Poland, we have been having many prep sessions for what we will be doing and seeing and possibly feeling.

I guess I’ve never really felt a strong “personal” connection to the Holocaust seeing as I didn’t have a grandparent who was in Europe at that time and until very recently, I wasn’t sure if I had had any family at all who had been in the Holocaust. But at the same time, I have always had a sort of fascination for the events of this time period, of wanting to know what happened to all these millions of people, and not just on a mass scale, but the stories of individuals and families a well. When I see pictures and videos, I get upset, and a little angry even. You have to stop and think, who were these people, what were their names? What was their favorite food or subject in school? What was their life like? And what did they do to deserve such a terrible fate?

Today we visited Yad Vashem. If you don’t know what that is, it is a Holocaust memorial site. As we were waiting for our guides to come, we sat on some steps overlooking an amazing view of the Judean hills. Just sitting there made me realize that that view, of those hills, in the state of Israel is a site that 6 million Jews never got to see. Once out guides were ready. We split into our bus groups and headed towards the museum. Before my group went in, we stopped at a very important site to learn something. I’ve only been to Yad Vashem once before so I was unaware that each tree planted there had a plaque with a name on it. These plaques name The Righteous of the Nations. These were people who were non-Jews, just everyday people living in Europe at the time who risked their lives to save Jews. Some saved maybe one person, others saved thousands.

Once in the museum there were a few things that stood out to me, the same things that I had remembered from my first visit:

The pile of shoes and the circular room with the binders of victims names and the well which reflects the pictures.

I believe those things stood out to me because I had remembered seeing them but there were also things that I did not remember. For example, the shape of the museum and its possible meanings. If you have been there before, you might remember that it is a triangular tunnel in which the walls move in wards as you walk towards the middle and widen again as you reach the end. This shape helps emphasize the dark parts of the war and the light which is now Israel. The video at the end also struck me. It was horrible to watch but needed to help realize that this was real, its not just a movie.

We came back, had lunch, did a little Poland history program/ itinerary. Our Oneg Shabbat tonight was watching The Pianist. I’d never seen it before, actually I’ve never really seen any Holocaust movie before so it was a little hard to watch at parts.

Parents Week

3/18- Safad Tiyul
Today was a full day (15 hours actually) Tiyul with the parents! Each Jewish History class got its own bus. We started off the day with a nice long drive to a Crusader Fortress by the Kineret (Sea of Galili). From the top you could see Jordan which was actually very close. Our parents got to learn the way we do and even participate a bit. After having a lesson on the Crusaders we moved into the fortress (actually, we stormed it, swords and all.). Then we spent a little more time talking about what happened to the Jews during that time before getting back on the busses to go to lunch on a nearby Kibbutz. After lunch we drove to Safad. We went into three different synagogues, each one with a different story. Then we got plenty of free time to do some shopping. For dinner, we hopped back on the busses and went to a farm that had a restaurant.

3/19
We had another Tiyul with the parents. We had Hebrew in the morning then met them at the Israel Museum to see an exhibit on Jewish life in the diaspora. There was some pretty neat stuff there but my favorite has to be the wall which had hanukia’s from all over the world. Then we came back to the Kibbutz and general studies while the parents went and did their own thing. Tonight we had the farewell banquet for the parents and got to eat some of the best food we’ve gotten on the Kibbutz.

Tel Aviv

3/13
Finally, a long weekend for some sleeping! I got to leave Thursday night after I was done with class. We ate dinner at Tzuba then headed off to Tel Aviv for the weekend. We didn’t get there too late so me and daddy of course did a little exploring of around our hotel. We walked down to the beach for a little bit and were watching a thunderstorm that was happening in the distance over the water.
3/14
After getting a solid 10 hours of sleep, we had a very leisurely morning. We got up and wandered down to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. Let me just say, those waffles were so yummy. Maybe it’s just because I haven’t had any in months but they were superb. And the fruit! There were so many to choose from. I got to eat peaches and kiwi all in one sitting! After eating a very filling breakfast, we hopped in a cab and headed to the Carmel Market where we ran into a bunch of people from my trip. It smelled so good in there and it was packed! Then we walked to Sabazi Street and got some really good (Osney Haman) and the “best” gelato (and ran into some more people I knew). Then we walked down Rothschild Street for a little bit before heading back to the hotel for a nice mid afternoon nap J. Then it was dinner at Herbert Samuels and some delicious food.
3/15
Just another sleep-in day, yay! We took our time in the morning (a little too much time) then breakfast at Gilly’s (a little restaurant at the seaport) and drove to Jaffa, but not without running into Tessa first! Once we got to Jaffa I finally got to use my camera (the big one that they brought). We were porobably in Jaffa for a few minutes max before we ran into more of my friends hahah. We explored there for a little bit and got some cool views before going back to the hotel for some rest time/nap on the beach. After we all woke up we went out for dinner then we went to the Zombie Parade! Originally we were just going to meet up with one of my friends there but we ended up running into Sam, Ophir, Tessa, Tova, Sadie, and Aliya! It was so much fun! The people dressed up got so into character. We walked with the mob for a while until we reached Max Brenners but we decided it was a little too crowded so settled for ice cream next door (at like 11 at night :D). Then we decided to walk back to the hotels. That was a bad idea. It took us about 45 minutes to navigate back there through some zig zaging back roads and such.
Quote of the night:
"One hat no make full costume. One earing no make full costume."

3/16
This was our last day in Tel Aviv. Instead of meeting the group for a Purim parade in Holon, we slept in nice and late. We had a nice relaxing day and finished it off by having dinner on the beach before driving back to the Kibbutz.
I slept a lot this weekend but that’s not bad, just trying to catch up a little. Also making the goal of the week to get un-sick before we go to Poland (yes, i'm still sick somehow, but at least my voice is almost completely back!).