B’nai Israel Boca Raton

• Departure from the United States.

Note: The first day’s itinerary may change depending on the flight arrival.

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, with assistance by a Makor Educational Journeys representative.
• Neot Kedumim, the Biblical Landscape Reserve, is a living museum of Israel’s “green archaeology” and an expression of the heritage tied to the Land and the People of Israel; try your hand at shepherding a small herd of sheep and goats to understand why many Biblical leaders, such as Moses and David, led animals before leading people.
• Proceed to Tel Aviv.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Late afternoon/early evening walking tour along the Tel Aviv Promenade to Jaffa.
• From the Four Corners of the Earth, a welcome program from the Jaffa overlook, taking in the Mediterranean and absorbing an understanding of Jaffa as the gateway to the Land of Israel for centuries, followed by a brief guided tour through the village of Jaffa, tracing its story from the days of the Bible and the prophet Jonah until now.
• Welcome dinner in a Jaffa restaurant.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Guided visit to the Ayalon Institute in Rehovot, a pre-state clandestine munitions factory, for a glimpse at the ingenuity and creativity of Israel’s pre-state armed forces.
• Return to Tel Aviv.
• From Hebrew City to Hebrew State: Walk the Tel Aviv “Independence Trail” that begins with the founding of Tel Aviv in 1909 and ends with the establishment of Israel in 1948, which may include the first homes of Tel Aviv built on sand dunes, the mosaic of Jaffa’s history created by Nahum Gutman, the monument commemorating Tel Aviv’s founders, the statue of the city’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff.
• From Declaration to Reality: visit Independence Hall (or the Independence Hall Visitors Center), site of the signing of Israel’s Declaration of Independence.
• Lunch on own.
• Visit the Palmach Museum, dedicated to the pre-state elite fighting force, for a glimpse at the determination and one of the significant driving forces behind the establishment of the State of Israel.
• Afternoon and evening at leisure.
• Optional:
  • Walking tour of the gentrified Neve Tzedek neighborhood, founded in 1887 and today a fashion and shopping center that retains a turn-of-the-century charm.
  • Ganei Yehoshua (Yarkon Park) offers a multitude of activities from walking trails in the Rock Garden enclosure or Tropical Garden; biking trails; the restored Seven Mills heritage site with historic flour mills that ran on the Yarkon stream’s power; paddle-boat rental station; hot-air balloon, and more. (Additional cost for activities)

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Short walk along Bialik Street with the homes of Israel’s legendary author Chaim Nachman Bialik and artist Reuven Rubin and Tel Aviv’s first City Hall, to hear some of the early stories of Tel Aviv and its colorful personalities.
• Visit the Nachalat Binyamin Arts and Crafts Market, where over 100 artists of all kinds share and sell their works of creativity and ingenuity.
• Proceed north along the Trans-Israel Highway.
• Guided visit through Caesarea, with its Roman Theater, Hippodrome and Palace, followed by a walk along the beach to the rennovated Crusader city.
• Continue to Zichron Yaakov.
• After a brief guided tour of the Zichron Yaakov Wine Road, “Derekh HaYayin“, which has been recreated to bring back to life the character of the Moshav’s early days, enjoy leisure time and lunch on own.
• Continue to the hotel and check in to the hotel.
• Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Stop at the Neot Mordecai factory outlet for Naot-Teva sandals.
• Ascend Meron for a short hike around the top of the mountain, taking in the views of the surrounding area, and an introduction to the mystics, who roamed these mountains and their impact on the Jewish people.
• Guided tour and leisure time in Safed, known since the 16^th century as a major center of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism, and for its old synagogues, narrow alleyways and artists’ studios.
• Lunch on own in Safed.
• Travel to the Manara Cliff.
• Ride the Manara cable car from the highest point on the cliff and enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view of the area, including Lebanon, the Western Galilee and the Golan.
• Return to the hotel.
• Dinner at the hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Nature walk through the Tel Dan Reserve, along the Dan River, concluding at Tel Dan itself, one of Israel’s most significant Biblical sites.
• Ascend the Golan Heights on jeeps/4×4 vehicles, to Mount Bental, overlooking Syria, to gain a better understanding of the geographical and political issues confronting Israel in her quest for regional peace.
• Lunch on own in Katzrin.
• Wine and Chocolate:
  • Adults: Wine tasting in a Golan Heights boutique winery
  • Youth: Chocolate–making workshop at DeKarina Chocolaterie
• Join a river adventure, comfortably rafting by and under riverside foliage down the beautifully clear Hatzbani stream, which merges downstream with the Banias to create the Jordan River.
• Dinner at the hotel with soldiers serving in the area (pending IDF confirmation).

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Short visit to the Kinneret Cemetery for a glimpse into the trials and triumphs of the early Zionist pioneers through the lives and poetry of Rachel, the poet, and Naomi Shemer, the songwriter of Yerushalayim Shel Zahav.
• Continue through the Great Rift Valley.
• Ascend to Jerusalem by way of the eastern gate and stop at Mount Scopus for an introduction to the city, beginning with the Shehecheyanu prayer, traditionally recited upon entering Jerusalem.
• Drive to Machane Yehudah open-air market as Jerusalemites prepare for Shabbat – with all of the colors, scents and people that create the unique atmosphere, with lunch on own.
• Enter the Old City through Jaffa Gate and walk along the Rooftops of the Marketplace for an introduction to the city and a glimpse at the weave of people and places that make up the Old City, including a view of the Temple Mount and Mount of Olives.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Musical Kabbalat Shabbat at the First Station.
• Festive Shabbat dinner at the hotel.

OR

• Travel to Tzur Hadassah.
• Friday night services and home hospitality Shabbat dinner with members of the Tzur Hadassah Shir Chadash (pending availability)

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Morning at leisure or at services.
• Lunch on own.
• Jerusalem: The Venice of God: Using the poetry and imagery of poet Yehuda Amichai, participate in a guided visit through the Jewish Quarter of the Old City, including the Kotel.
• Havdallah.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• The Memory of the Holocaust in Contemporary Israeli Society, with scholar Rachel Korazim, at the hotel.
  • Photo Safari in the vicinity of the hotel for kids
• Visit the Yad Vashem World Holocaust Remembrance Center, including the Avenue of the Righteous, the Holocaust History Museum and the Children’s Memorial, concluding with a special ceremony in the Valley of the Communities.
  • Alternative programming for kids either at the Biblical Zoo or on the grounds of Yad Vashem.
• Lunch on own en route.
• Proceed to Tel Maresha.
• Become an archaeologist for a day and take part in the ongoing digs at the caves of Beit Guvrin, where hundreds of underground caves date back to the time of the Phoenicians.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Join the B’nai Mitzvah at Robinson’s Arch as young people affirm their entry into Jewish adulthood and acceptance of the mitzvot.
• Guided exploration of the Jerusalem Archaeological Park bordering the southern wall of the Temple Mount and containing many remains from the First Temple and later periods.
  • Note: It is possible to prepare the B’nai Mitzvah to be the “guides.”
• Festive lunch at Between the Arches in the Old City.

Afternoon Options

Option I – Early morning tour of the Western Wall Tunnel, the extension of the retaining wall built 2,000 years ago by Herod the Great to support the massive Temple compound.

Option II – Explore the City of David, with its new finds, tunnels and passageways, concluding with a water walk through Hezekiah’s Tunnel.

• Enjoy time at leisure in the Cardo of the Jewish Quarter.
• Rest of the afternoon and evening at leisure.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Briefing: A Geopolitical Jerusalem Case Study.
  • Alternate activity for younger children
• Travel on the Jerusalem light rail along the road where the wall dividing Jerusalem from 1948-1967 once existed and which today traverses the city of Jerusalem through Secular, Orthodox and Arab neighborhoods, to Ammunition Hill.
• Guided visit through Ammunition Hill, the site of one of the most decisive battles for Jerusalem in the 1967 Six Day War and today an interactive educational center and memorial.
• Lunch on own in the Ramat Eshkol neighborhood.
• During a Hilltop Tour of Jerusalem, view some of the civilian neighborhoods that after the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967 became part of the “security belt”, as well as the Jerusalem Envelope Seam Zone Barrier for a discussion of Jerusalem geopolitics.
• Stop at Tel El Ful, where Jordanian King Hussein began building a palace before the Six Day War, for a towering view of Jerusalem and environs.
• Late afternoon meeting with Kids4Peace, an interfaith program which brings together Jewish, Christian and Muslim children from all over Jerusalem.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Proceed to the Dead Sea Basin.
• Ascend Masada via cable car for a guided visit through the site and an exploration of the symbolism and questions that arise from the Masada story and their implications for Jewish life today.
• Ride the cable car down and continue to Ein Bokek for an opportunity to float in the Dead Sea and swim in the hotel pool, followed by lunch.
• Hike up to and cool off in the refreshing pools and waterfalls in Nahal David (David’s Stream) at the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve, a unique ecosystem of springs, waterfalls and pools surrounded by lush greenery in a desolate desert setting.
• Proceed to Eretz Beresheit.
• Mount camels and travel a short distance to the “Tent of Avraham Avinu” at Eretz Beresheit, for an explanation and demonstration of ancient Biblical hospitality customs, many of which are preserved today in traditional Bedouin life.
• Return to Jerusalem.
• Dinner and evening on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Conclude the time in Israel with Kol HaOt educators who impart Jewish values, texts and history through a creative synthesis of the visual and performing arts. Make a personalized family/community map of the week’s experience, followed by a discussion on insights gained and takeaways for the future.
• Rest of the afternoon at leisure.
  • Optional self-guided visits to the Israel Museum, Bible Lands Museum, Begin Museum, Herzl Museum
• Concluding conversation.
• Farewell dinner at a Jerusalem restaurant.
• Depart for Ben Gurion Airport for return flight(s) home.

*Program is subject to change, pending confirmations.