Journey to Israel with Anshe Emeth Memorial Temple

• Depart U.S.A to Israel.

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, with assistance from a Makor Educational Journeys representative.
• Travel to Tel Aviv-Jaffa.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Introduction to Tel Aviv-Jaffa from the outlook of the Jaffa Slope Park with a view of Tel-Aviv’s shoreline, the Promenade and hotels located along the beach.
• Walking tour of Jaffa, one of the most ancient cities in the world, including Biblical vignettes, the role of Jaffa as gateway to the Middle East, the great return of Jews to the Land of Israel beginning in 1881, and Jaffa as a microcosm of the challenges of two peoples endeavoring to live side-by-side.
• Welcome Dinner in Jaffa at a restaurant.

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Visit ANU – the new Museum of the Jewish People on the campus of Tel Aviv University for a special program: using the creativity of the present, explore the story of the Jewish People, with our past as a map toward the future.
• Walk along Rothschild Blvd, where Tel Aviv was founded and Israel’s Declaration of Independence was read, and today a global innovation hub, to see the Bauhaus architecture for which central Tel Aviv was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Free time to walk on the beach -the Tel Aviv Promenade– or head toward the commercial district, to take in the sights and sounds of one of the liveliest cities in the world, with lunch on own.
• Ascend the road to Jerusalem.
• Stop at Mount of Olives (or Mount Scopus) for an overview of the city.
• Check in to your hotel.
• Dinner at a Jerusalem restaurant.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Get a birds-eye view of the Old City of Jerusalem by following the “Ramparts Walk” along its 16th century walls — a glimpse at the weave of people and places that make Old and New Jerusalem.
• Visit the newly renovated Tower of David Museum, which tells the story of Jerusalem.
• Lunch on own in the Mamilla Pedestrian Mall.
• Guided visit to Yad Vashem World Holocaust Remembrance Center, the Jewish National Memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, including the Avenue of the Righteous, the Holocaust History Museum and the Children’s Memorial.
• Visit the new Memorial to Israel’s fallen and some of the new graves at the Mount Herzl National Cemetery, including those killed in the most recent war in Gaza.
• Continue with a guided walk through the alleyways of the neighborhood of Ein Karem, with its many unique art galleries.
• Return to the hotel.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Guided walking tour through one of West Jerusalem’s oldest neighborhoods, Yemin Moshe, Nahalat Shiva or the German Colony.
• Lunch on own in one of the restaurants on Emek Refaim Street or near Zion Square.
• Drive to the Goldman Promenade and connect with the Main Trip.

MAIN TRIP:

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, with assistance from a Makor Educational Journeys representative.
• Ascend to Jerusalem.
• Stop at the Goldman Promenade, overlooking the Old City for an opportunity to recite the traditional Shehecheyanu blessing upon arrival in Israel, followed by a short introduction to the city.
• Check in to your hotel.
• Free time for rest and relaxation.
• Israel 2026: Where are We? – Festive Opening Dinner at the hotel or at a Jerusalem restaurant (private room) with Jessica Steinberg of the Times of Israel internet news site.
• Optional: Late-night visit to a Jerusalem Challah Bakery or Cholent Tour.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Descend into the archaeology of the City of David for a guided visit through some of the newest excavations in Jerusalem, including the dry (or wet) water tunnel, the Siloam Pool and the drainage tunnel, which goes under the walls of the Old City to Robinson’s Arch.
• Continue exploring Jerusalem’s Old City, including a visit to the Jewish Quarter and the Western Wall, with lunch on your own.
• Stroll through Machane Yehudah Open Air Market as residents prepare for Shabbat.
• Return to the hotel for Shabbat preparation.
• Friday evening/Kabbalat Shabbat services.
• Festive Shabbat dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Optional services or free morning.
• Shabbat lunch at the hotel.
• Shabbat afternoon walking tour.
• Return to the hotel for rest and relaxation.
• Special program in conjunction with The Center for Shared Society, Shalom Hartman Institute.
• Havdalah.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Guided Geopolitical Drive with Ibrahim Ghazzawi across Jerusalem to explore the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians in the context of neighborhoods, former and current borders and the Seam Zone Barrier.
• Drive to Lod and visit the Chicago Jewish-Arab Community Center to understand the complexity of the city and what possibilities exist for joint community-building efforts.
• Continue to the office of the Abraham Initiatives for a conversation on the status of shared society in Israel in a post-October 7 reality.
• Lunch en route on own.
• Continue to Tel Aviv.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Israel’s International Food Scene, a Culinary Workshop in Tel Aviv, with dinner.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Poetry with Jewish educator, Rachel Korazim: “Living with the Other.”
• Depart for Rishon Letzion and volunteer at the Leket fields, from which agricultural produce is being distributed to those in need all around the country.
• Drive to the Western Negev and begin with a briefing overlooking Gaza.
• Continue to Sderot, a focal point of Israel’s long conflict with Hamas – drive through the town, stopping at the site of the former police station, which was demolished in the aftermath of the attack and replaced with a memorial.
• Lunch in Sderot.
• *Drive to the site of the Nova Festival, located next to Kibbutz Reim, where close to 400 people were killed and from which many were taken hostage on October 7, 2023.
• Meet with Yunis Alkamawi, a Bedouin Israeli who helped save people at the Nova Festival on October 7.
• Visit one of the Kibbutzim or Moshavim that was brutally attacked on October 7th.
• Return to Tel Aviv.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Visit the Orchard of Abraham’s Children in Jaffa, which is creating an alternative model of education, integrating Arab and Jewish children by teaching bilingualism, multiculturalism and equality as essential educational element, for a conversation with Sufi Muslim Ihab Balha, exploring religious identities and shared society in Jaffa.
• Guided tour in the Florentine neighborhood, Tel Aviv’s most bohemian and upbeat neighborhood and learn about contemporary Israeli culture through urban art: writing on the wall, graffiti, bumper stickers and even painted garbage bins.
• “Tasting tour” lunch in the Carmel Market, including some free time for last-minute shopping.
• Guided visit to the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation to learn about Israel as the ‘Start Up Nation’ and late President Shimon Peres’ vision for a ‘new Middle East’ with a focus on shared society.
• Return to the hotel for packing and late check out.
• Festive farewell dinner and wrap-up conversation at a Tel Aviv restaurant.
• Depart for Ben Gurion International Airport for return flight home.

• Arrive in USA.

L’hitra’ot/So long: Next Year in Jerusalem!

All program elements are subject to change, pending confirmations.