Krav Maga: Martial Arts Mission to Israel

• Departure from the United States.

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, with assistance from a Makor Educational Journeys representative.
• Meet your Makor tour educator and proceed to Latrun.
• Guided visit through the Armored Corps Memorial at Latrun for an understanding of the special nature of the Jewish army, including a meeting with IDF soldiers.
• Proceed to Tel Aviv.
• Introduction, Welcome, and Opening Ceremony at the Jaffa Promontory.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Creating National Pride the ‘Gentle’ Way with Judo: Opening dinner and introduction to the program.

• Training session on the beach.
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Travel to Rehovot.
• Drive to the Ayalon Institute in Rehovot, a clandestine munitions factory from the War of Independence, for a look into some of the ingenuity used to create the State of Israel.
• Return to Tel Aviv.
• The Taglit-Birthright State of Mind Innovation Center encapsulates the reasons why Israel is known as the “startup nation” by allowing the visitor to learn about the new advancements Israeli startups are making in different fields.
• Lunch on own, while exploring the Levinsky or Carmel open-air market.
• Meet/train with Tzevet Lochamim, a non-profit interdisciplinary pre-army combat leadership training academy led by special forces cadre and combat training experts that focuses on all the necessary attributes to be a warrior in the most elite units of the Israeli army.
• Dinner on own.

• Training session on the beach.
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Hiking and sandboarding in the Makhtesh HaGadol (the Large Crater).
• Lunch with the Culinary Queens of Yerucham or Sderot, local women who welcome you into their home as they cook the traditional food of their ethnic origin.
• Travel to the Black Arrow Overlook into Gaza, focusing on a view of the Sejaia neighborhood, for a briefing on the present state of affairs between Israel and the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
• Conduct a martial arts workshop for children in Sderot or the kibbutzim/moshavim that lie close to the Gaza Strip.
• Return to Tel Aviv.
• Dinner on own.

• Training session on the beach.
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Check-out of the hotel.
• Proceed to the Wingate Institute, Israel’s National Centre for Physical Education and Sport.
• Training session with the faculty and students of the Wingate Martial Arts Instructors course.
• Visit Caesarea, where both the Romans and Crusaders built large and significant cities, and explore the vast reconstructions and artistic interpretations of original archaeology.
• Lunch on own.
• Stop in Nazareth to visit the Church of the Annunciation.
• Meet with Danny Hakim, two-time world Karate silver medalist and philanthropist, who is both the Founder and Chairman of Budo for Peace, the translation of his vision to create a society in which socially constructed rivals can conquer their cultural, social and political differences through the universal language of sport.
• Wine tasting at the Tabor Winery.
• Check in to the hotel.
• Dinner at the hotel.

• Training session on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Drive across the Golan Plateau to Bental for an overlook into Syria and up-to-date security briefing on the delicate relationships in the Middle East region.
• Hand-to-hand combat session with soldiers and veterans from elite IDF units.
• Lunch on own.
• Visit the Christian Holy sites on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Stops may include:
  • The Mount of Beatitudes, site of the Sermon on the Mount
  • Tabgha, site of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish
  • Capernaum, site of Jesus’ teachings
• Travel to Jerusalem and check in to the hotel.
• Dinner on own.
• Attend the Jerusalem Night Spectacular sound and light show at the David Citadel Museum, followed by a night walk along the rooftops of the Old City.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Tai Chi session with Dani Kahn at ToraDojo. “Tora” is the Japanese word for “tiger”, and “Dojo” means “school of martial arts” or “gates of learning”, which is also indicative of the system’s Jewish orientation (as in Torah).
• Travel to the Old City.
• Descend to the City of David for a guided visit through some of the newest archaeological finds in Jerusalem, including the 2000-year old drainage tunnel, which connects the City of David to Robinson’s Arch.
• Stop at the Western Wall, a section of the retaining wall that encircled the Temple Court in ancient times and only remnant of the Temple compound built by Herod the Great.
• Lunch and time on own in the Jewish Quarter.
• Shabbat dinner at the hotel.

• 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.
• Training session at the southern end of Masada.
• Descend Masada 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) of the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve, a unique ecosystem of springs, waterfalls and pools surrounded by lush greenery in a desolate desert setting.
• Havdallah in the desert.
• Krav Maga session in Ma’aleh Adumim with Moshe Katz, whose philosophy is that the nation of Israel was born in a struggle between Jacob and an angel in the form of a man; modern Krav Maga is but a continuation of this ancient struggle as the people of Israel are still fighting for survival.
• Return to Jerusalem.
• Dinner on own.
• Guided visit through the Western Wall Tunnel.

• Training session overlooking the Old City Walls.
• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Visit Yad Vashem World Holocaust Remembrance Center with a guided visit through the Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations, the Holocaust History Musuem and the Children’s Memorial.
• Guided tour and lunch on own in the open-air Machane Yehuda
• Tour of Christian Jerusalem Holy sites that may include:
  • Mount of Olives overlook
  • Basilica of the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane
  • The Holy Sepulchre
  • The Garden Tomb
• Martial arts training session with El HaLev, (“To the Heart”), an NGO dedicated to empowering vulnerable populations through martial arts and self-defense training.
• Dinner on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel
• Special guided visit to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, stands as a symbol of both Jewish sovereignty and dedication to democracy.
• Proceed on the Jerusalem light rail to Ammunition Hill where the wall dividing Jerusalem from 1948-1967 once existed.
• Guided visit at Ammunition Hill, the site of one of the most decisive battles for Jerusalem in the 1967 Six Day War.
• Adjacent to Ammunition Hill is the Jerusalem Ropes Course that includes 3 different stations of varying difficulty, focused on unique themes related to the history of the location and the soldiers who fought there to liberate Jerusalem.
• Lunch and leisure time.
• Farewell dinner TBA.
• Depart for Ben Gurion Airport for return flight to the United States.

*Program is subject to change, pending confirmations.