Pesach and Yam L'Yam

Hi everyone! I have not blogged in a while because we have been so busy here in Israel! I cannot believe I have been here for three months already. I recently spent Passover in Israel and went on Yam L’Yam (Sea to Sea) hike.

For Pesach, I was at a random host family for two nights. EIE set up my arrangements for this and I was at this family with my friend Michelle. Our host Shirley was sixteen years old and a part of the Reform movement in Israel. The seder was with about 20 other people that were mostly family of Shirley. The seder was all in Hebrew and was about four hours long, but besides that was pretty similar to what I was used to. It was very interesting to really get the “Israeli experience,” especially during Pesach. This year, “Next Year in Jerusalem” really came true for me. The day after the seder, Michelle, Shirley, and I just hung out, played Israel Monopoly, and went to the movies. It was sad to be away from our EIE family over these two days, but the next morning we were reunited. We were picked up in a bus and began Yam L’Yam.

Yam L’Yam is a five-day hike from the Kineret (Sea of Galilee) to the Mediterranean Sea. We hiked 55 miles over these five days and really got to see the land of Israel in a completely different way than usual. We camped out in tents, cooked our own food in small groups, and did everything in nature. It was amazing! Our group bonded a lot and worked together very well. On the second day, we climbed the second tallest mountain in Israel, Mount Meron. It was challenging, outstanding, and very rewarding. It took us the entire day to reach the peak, but the view was incredible. The next few days consisted of hiking down the mountain. Literally everywhere we hiked was absolutely gorgeous (pictures to come later). On the last day of the hike we biked down the remainder of the mountain and reached the Mediterranean Sea! At this point, we forgot about all the challenges and were very rewarded by the beautiful water.

Throughout the semester, we have been learning about Am Yisrael (people of Israel) and Torah, but Yam L’Yam really connected us to Eretz Yisrael (land of Israel).  Israel really is an outstanding country and I love it so much.

I hope everyone had a great Spring Break, Passover, Easter, etc. Thanks for reading!

 ,להתראות

Sadie 

Eilat

Gadna

Riding a camel!

After climbing Masada

An Amazing Adventure

After 10 long and fun days traveling the holy land, I am back at Kibbutz Tzuba. In these ten days I woke up at 3am to climb Masada, hiked at Ein Gedi, relaxed at the Dead Sea, spent 5 days in the Israeli Army, and had some beach time in Eilat. After this long journey, we have already returned to our regular school days.

First, was Masada. After a bus ride at 3am, we arrived at the base of Masada, where we could only barely see the outline of the mountain we were about to climb. As we started our ascend, the sun slowly began to peak from the mountain in Jordan and we could see the Dead Sea. After a long hike up the “snake path,” we made it just in time to the top for the sunrise. It was truly an amazing experience. But this would not be enough for our group. It was 7am and we had already hiked a mountain, and we still had a Jewish History class ahead of us. This history class was one of my favorites so far. At the end of the trip, we all stood at one end of the mountain, with the desert surrounding us, and all screamed “Am Yisrael Chi” (the people of Israel live). Our voices echoed throughout the desert. It was another very powerful experience. We had a very steep hike down Masada, then a couple minute walk to the Masada Youth Hostel.  We were all very excited to have lunch, as we already had had a very long day. After lunch we went repelling down a 50-foot mountain (picture to come soon). We finally had time to relax and shower back at the hostel. The next day, we woke up for a hike at Ein Gedi. It was alongside a stream and lead to a waterfall. Once we reached the waterfall, we all had the opportunity to swim in it. It was a great bonding experience for us all. We then had a relaxing Shabbat.

On Saturday afternoon, we were on our way to the Bedouin tents. The Bedouins are a nomadic people that live in tents and have a large value on hospitality. We had an amazing dinner, sitting on the floor together, with large plates for everyone to share. It was a great last dinner before going to the army. For the rest of the night we just hung out, had a campfire, showered, etc. That night, we slept in a large tent with mattresses on the ground. The next morning we learned about the Bedouin culture and rode camels! My friend Gali and I named our camel Marsha and we had a fun ride. After that, we loaded the buses and headed to Sde Boker (the army base).

The bus ride was filled with many anxious teenagers that didn’t know what to do with their “last few moments of freedom.” As we pulled up to the army base, the bus driver started playing “You’re Going to the Army” and “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” on the bus stereo. During the songs, my friend and I made a video showing how happy and excited we were on this bus so we could look at it during Gadna. As we got off the bus, we immediately were taken to our Mamem (the commander of the entire group). She gave us a little introduction, and then we split into our Tzevets (groups) and met of Mefakedet (commander). Over five long days, we ran almost everywhere, slept in tents, ate not the most appetizing meals, bonded with our tzevet, stood in many “chets” (a Hebrew letter that is a formation in the army), did many pushups, learned how to run from a grenade, how the Israeli army works, how to hold and shoot a M-16, Kravmaga (Israeli self-defense method), and much more. I loved having this experience even though it was hard at times. At the end of Gadna, we talked to our commanders and they told us their names, ages, etc. My commander’s name was Tirtza and was only nineteen years old! I have a lot of respect for all the Israelis in the army especially after being in the army for just five days.

After leaving the army base, we had a long bus ride to Eilat. Eilat is in the south of Israel and is on the Red Sea. While in Eilat, we snorkeled, relaxed on the beach, walked and shopped on the board walk, etc. It was very nice to relax after non-stop days in the army. We returned to Kibbutz Tzuba around 10:30 that night, got new roommates, and unpacked our stuff. The next day we returned to our normal schedule.

Thanks for reading! If you want to hear more please let me know! 

,להתראות

Sadie

Preparing for a Journey

This post was written before my trip, but I was not able to post it until now.

Hello again!

So it has been about a week since my last post, and again I cannot believe how fast this is going by.  This past week has been pretty “normal.” And when I say “normal,” it is obviously not so normal that I am going to school in Israel. With that said, the next couple weeks are going to be very crazy (fun) and busy.

Today we had a half-day tiyul (field trip) to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. We saw the Dead Sea Scrolls, Second Temple Model, and of course the Ahava sculpture (picture to come soon). The weather was perfect for a Jewish History class outside. When we returned to Kibbutz Tzuba, we had lunch then general studies classes.

We have also begun to pack up our rooms because we are switching rooms soon and are about to embark on a 12-day trip. I am very sad to switch rooms because I love my roommates and I feel like we are all starting to settle in. On the bright side, I will hopefully get another set of amazing roommates and/or get to know other people better. At 3AM on Thursday, we will wake up to climb Masada for the sunrise. I am sure it will be an amazing experience after we get over the drowsiness. We will then have Jewish History class on Masada. After that, we will go to the Dead Sea, Ein Gedi, Gadna, and Eilat. Gadna is a five day basic training program for the Israeli Army (IDF) that all Israelis take part in during High School so they can learn what it is like in the army (if you don’t know, all Israelis must join the army at age eighteen). We will be taking part of the same training program that the Israelis have and will be at the base with other Israelis. It will be a very intense and challenging program. I am both nervous and excited for it, but mostly excited. After leaving the army base, we will head to Eilat which one of the most southern cities in Israel. While in Eilat, we will snorkel, hang out at the beach, and RELAX. I am clearly very excited for this break after Gadna and many long tiring (and fun) school days.

If for whatever reason you would like my address, it is:

Sadie Hurwitz

NFTY EIE High School in Israel

Kibbutz Tzuba

M.P. Judean Hills 90870

Israel

I hope you all are doing well, and thanks again for reading my blog!

L’hitraot,

Sadie