St. Paul Jewish Federation

• Depart USA for Israel

• Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport, with assistance from a Makor Educational Journeys representative.
• Travel north to Sovev Kinneret, St. Paul Jewish Federation’s P2G Partnership region.
• Welcome dinner at hotel with P2G representatives.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Jeep tour in the Golan Heights, including an enroute geopolitical briefing for a look at the complex relationships that have formed in the Middle East, Europe and the United States in the wake of the Syrian Civil War.
• Look out at Syria from strategic Bental and meet Lt. Col. (ret.) Eyal Dror, who commanded “Operation Good Neighbor,” which provides humanitarian aid to Syrians in need.
• Continue with programming, including visit to new immigrant absorption center, in Partnership region with P2G staff, including lunch.
• Return to hotel.
• Boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, followed by a lakeside dinner at Decks Restaurant.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Full day of programming in Partnership region with P2G staff, including lunch.
• Dinner at a restaurant in the region.

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Travel south to Jerusalem.
• Shehekheyanu/Welcome ceremony overlooking the Old City of Jerusalem.
• Visit the bustling Machane Yehuda Market and take in a slice of local life, rubbing elbows with Jerusalemites shopping for Shabbat.
• Check-in to hotel in Jerusalem.
• Free time to relax and prepare for Shabbat.
• Friday evening/Kabbalat Shabbat program – TBD with our rabbis and cantors.
• Festive Shabbat dinner at hotel.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Optional Shabbat morning services or morning at leisure.
• Traditional Shabbat lunch at hotel.
• “The Poet and the Windmill” – Guided walk to the Montefiore Windmill and Yemin Moshe, using the Poetry of Yehudah Amichai as a guide to explore the first neighborhood built outside the Old City’s walls.

Afternoon Options

• First timers: Old City Ramble – Guided walking tour of the Old City of Jerusalem to explore its multi-cultural character, while winding through its alleys from the Jaffa Gate to the rooftops of the marketplaces, then down to the Western Wall and on to the roof of the Austrian Hospice for a bird’s eye view of the Muslim and Christian Quarters, Temple Mount and Mount of Olives.
• Returnees: West Jerusalem Ramble – Set out from hotel for a walk across West Jerusalem to explore the multi-ethnic mosaic of the city through its synagogues, churches and ethnically diverse neighborhoods, including Rechavia, Nachlaot, the Machane Yehuda Market (stalls closed on Shabbat), the Street of the Prophets and the Russian Compound.
• Independent option: The New Israel Museum – Visit the newly renovated Israel Museum, its model of Jerusalem during the days of the Second Temple and the Dead Sea Scrolls, followed by an opportunity to visit the Jewish Life and Living, Archaeology, Israeli Art and Design exhibits and much more.

• Free time for rest and relaxation.
• Havdalah overlooking the Old City.
• Dinner on your own, recommendations and directions to be provided.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Meeting with MK Gilad Kariv about Religious Pluralism in Israel at hotel.
• Specially arranged visit to Supreme Court Building to learn about Israel’s legal system which functions without a written constitution, hear about the status of the courts against the background of attempt at judicial reform and view its fascinating architecture.
• Lunch on own
• Guided tour of the Jewish Quarter, followed by free time to shop and explore on own.
• Visit the Western Wall with time for prayer and contemplation.
• Return to hotel.
• Dinner at Touro Restaurant.
• Israelis and Palestinians: A Glimpse into a Complex History with Haviv Rettig-Gur, political correspondent and Senior Analyst at The Times of Israel, at the restaurant.

• Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
• Geopolitical tour of Jerusalem, beginning with a drive along the former pre-67 cease-fire lines and continuing across the city from north to south to examine several key geopolitical issues impacting on the city, including borders, building and settlement (Jewish and Arab) and the Seam Zone Barrier and facts on the ground security.

Possible visit to Walaje, to meet with local residents to discuss their challenges as Palestinians living in a village divided between Jerusalem and Area C in the West Bank.

• Visit the new Shorashim – Roots dialogue Center in the Etzion Bloc, which brings Palestinians and Settlers together for dialogue and reconciliation, including meeting co-existence activists Belal Arar, a Palestinian from nearby Beit Umar and Rabbi Shaul Yudelman, a settler from Alon Shvut.
• Lunch on own
• Travel to Jaffa-Tel Aviv.
• Walking tour in Old Jaffa, the ancient port city on Tel Aviv’s southern flank, where artwork has been installed in its alleys. View modern Tel Aviv from the top of ancient Tel Jaffa.
• Check-in to hotel in Tel Aviv.
• Visit the Batae Center for Ethiopian Jewish Heritage for a multi-sensory experience with Ethiopian Israeli community activist Ashager Arraro, including a taste of traditional Ethiopian cooking and dinner.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Literary exploration of Tel Aviv as the First Hebrew City and the View of Other in Jewish and Arab poetry with Rachel Korazim (in her home).
• Learn about innovation in the service of social justice at Tikkun Olam Makers, an Israeli, turned global initiative which creates affordable solutions for people living with disabilities.
• Guided walk along Rothschild Boulevard to hear about the founding of Tel Aviv and to see the Bauhaus architecture for which UNESCO declared central Tel Aviv a World Heritage Site, together with some other major works of art dedicated to the history of Jaffa-Tel Aviv.
• Lunch on own and opportunity to explore the Nahalat Binyamin Crafts Fair and check out great street food in the nearby Carmel Market.
• Guided tour of the Israeli Museum at the Yitzhak Rabin Center for a critical look at Israeli society as seen through the life and times of Yitzhak Rabin.
• Apéritif: Tour and tasting at the Milk and Honey Distillery in Jaffa.
• Return to hotel.
• Free evening with dinner on own.

• Breakfast at the hotel.
• Briefing on the current Israeli political landscape with Aluf Ben, Editor in Chief of Haaretz.
• Guided tour of the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation in Jaffa to learn about Israel as the Start-Up Nation and late President Shimon Peres’ vision for a new Middle East.
• Graffiti tour in the upbeat Florentine neighborhood to see Tel Aviv’s remarkable street art and hear about its social commentary.
• Tasting tour lunch in the lively Levinsky Market to sample traditional delicacies and discover its fusion with the new Tel Aviv culinary scene.
• Visit ANU – the new Museum of the Jewish People on the campus of Tel Aviv University for a special mission program: using the creativity of the present, explore the story of the Jewish People, with our past as a map toward the future.
• Return to hotel.
• Late check-out.
• Farewell dinner with Fishman Scholars – Location TBD.
• Transfer to Ben Gurion International Airport for U.S. bound flight.

“Next Year in Jerusalem!”