August 4th! What an August 4th it has been! After a delightful breakfast here at our hotel, the No’ar Hadashianites began the day bright and early with a visit to one of the most incredible places in Jerusalem. The place in question was neither a historically significant archaelogical dig or a site of religious importance. It was, in fact, a place called Yad LaKashish, Lifeline for the Elderly, which provides Jerusalem’s needy elderly an opportunity to remain active, productive members of society.

Monday, August 2 began early in the morning for another No’ar Hadasher and I when we went for a run in the Kibbutz in which we were staying. We jogged through the small community; past the small houses distinguished from one another by hammocks, trampolines, and wind chimes; adults bicycling to work; and children playing. Although we were briefly lost, we arrived back to our Beit Mexico, a bright orange adobe hut, just in time to help wake everyone up by singing a rollicking rendition of “Happy Birthday”. Why?

Shabbat Shalom. This morning, we started our day by marking all the places that we’ve visited so far on maps of Israel. We’ve gone as far north as the Golan Heights and as far south as Mitztpe Ramon, where we are currently, in the Negev. Today we visited David Ben Gurion’s house in Kibbutz Sde Boker and his grave on the edge of a cliff overlooking the awe-inspiring mountains of the Negev. Ben Gurion was a proud believer in the power of the Negev and what hard work could accomplish.

On this lovely morning in Tel Aviv, a daring few awoke at approximately 7:25 with the intent of having some early morning fun on the beach of the Mediterranean that could be found directly across the street from our hotel. Those who went, splashed about in the waves, breathed in the salty morning air, and said a few prayers. After breakfast at the hotel, we made our way to the Palmach Museum, a place that featured the story of pre-IDF Jewish self defense.

   Today was probably one of the most highly anticipated days in the whole trip because we finally got to go to Gadna. For those of you who don't know, Gadna is where we spend the day as IDF soldiers learning how the Israeli Defense Force works and how it is different from all of the other military programs in the world. There were many memorable moments that came out of our day in the army and we won’t forget about them any time soon.

            Our trip has continued to be consistently amazing. We started the 20th at the ancient city of Caesarea, which was built by King Herod in honor of Caesar. One of the highlights of our visit was “gladiator fights” between trip participants in the ancient racetrack, with the cerulean waters of the Mediterranean crashing on the rocks nearby. It was also our bus driver Doron’s birthday, so we surprised him with cake and singing and a balloon hat made by our madrich Hanan.

Saturday morning was our first chance to sleep in, and we all awoke to a beautiful sunny morning, refreshed and ready for our first Shabbat in Israel!  After breakfast, we headed out on foot, groceries in hand, to the Hebrew Union College building where the Reconstructionist Minyan meets monthly for Shabbat morning services.  There, we joined a group of rabbis, rabbinical students, and other visitors for a service that felt very familiar to most of us.  The regulars were very welcoming and excited to engage with us over a delicious potluck lunch.

Our journey continues on July 14th. After an especially lengthy bus ride (the bus engine only  overheated twice), we arrived at a forest outside of Jerusalem where we were each given a tree to plant. Everyone was able to plant their tree, and many of us chose to name our trees. From “Rodney” all the way to “Cadillac”, the trees were given some pretty creative names.