SH-21-320's blog

By now most, if not all of you have spoken with your travelers, safely arrived on this side of the Atlantic, if a bit delayed.

We appreciate the patience of those of you who were waiting in the arrivals area. Wish the airport had been more efficient! Those of you with travelers with missed flights and flight delays have all been contacted; our volunteer staff on the ground has done a phenomenal job of getting everyone to their destinations in spite of interesting airline-imposed challenges. Your travelers will return tired, for sure, but filled with an experience beyond compare.

It's hard to believe that their time in Israel is almost over, but our travelers are making the very best use of every moment.

Last night they joined the throngs of tourists, locals and other Taglit groups traversing the Ben Yehudah Pedestrian Mall. They filled their evening with shopping and eating and marveling at the masses of people. So many of the participants knew that this was THE place to be for a Taglit-Birthright Israel group on a Saturday night and they were determined to be part of the action.

Though Friday is a short day in Israel, our group manages to fill it with one of the most powerful days of their trip. This morning the group went to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Heroes and Martyrs' Memorial http://www.yadvashem.org/. It was an intense experience for everyone.

The whole group began with a walking tour of the outside grounds, with a terrific guide who engaged them experientially. Those who were comfortable toured the inside of the museum, styled like a mountain top which they enter at the dark base and ascend to light and freedom.

To be honest, the sun was out today and it will ALSO be out tomorrow.

Our travelers spent a truly beautiful day in Tel Aviv, walking the streets of Old Jaffa and along the beach on the Mediterranean Sea.

The morning dawned on yet another glorious day for our travelers, who have been blessed with wonderful weather thus far in their journey.

Just sharing a few images from our wait at the EL AL terminal at JFK last week. Enjoy!

Rabbi Elyse Winick

Each day our travelers feel a little closer to one another. It's part of the magic of this trip, helping them to build community on their terms. It helps that they are a truly sweet group and given the opportunity, are open to all sorts of new things.

The mystics found inspiration in the mountaintop view from Tsfat. Tsfat is the home of Kabbalah, but it is also the home of Jewish Law. Both Rabbi Isaac Luria, one of the early teachers of Kabbalah, and Rabbi Yosef Caro, editor of the Shulhan Arukh, a major Jewish legal tome, lived and worked in Tsfat. Even today, the hillside neighborhoods of Tsfat inspire spirituality and creativity and our travelers enjoyed their visit there today immensely. http://www.safed.co.il/

Shavua Tov! We hope you had a wonderful Shabbat. Our travelers certainly did, catching up on their rest, enjoying spirited Shabbat services (including Torah reading by our staff!), delicious meals and time to get to know one another.

After Havdalah on Saturday night, marking the conclusion of Shabbat, our travelers returned to Jerusalem proper, exploring the neighborhoods of modern Jerusalem (did you know there is a windmill in downtown Jerusalem?) and enjoying a sound and light show which tells Jerusalem's history.

First, an apology -- this was posted yesterday, but didn't upload. We should be all set from here forward!

Our travelers had a smooth flight and arrival at Ben Gurion International airport, where they were met by the Israeli members of the staff and their cohort of soldier-participants.

Lior Baruch has staffed each of our past trips for participants with Asperger's Syndrome and is a veteran of the Tikvah Program Staff at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.