Hey Everybody,
It's been over a week since I first landed back in New Jersey. It's crazy how fast one falls back into the rhythm of life. I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing.
On the last night of the trip, we discussed as a group what the highlights of the trip were. A friend of mine, Ben, made a very interesting comment. He said that Sderot was one of the most "real" places he's ever been.
That comment struck a chord in me that I hadn't felt before. Ben was absolutely right. I doubt I've seen anything as "real" either.
You may asking yourself, what does this mean? To be "real"? Isn't everything "real"? How can one thing be more "real" then any other thing?
In order to best explain this, one needs to know about Sderot.
Some history: Sderot is the one of the largest cities in the Negev. The Negev is the southern part of Israel, and mostly a huge desert. The most interesting aspect of Sderot is it's proximity to the Gaza Strip.
Sderot is one kilometer away from the Gaza Strip. At one point during our tour, we stood on top of a hill that overlooked the Gaza Strip. As you may or may not know, the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel is one of the most heavily fortified in the world. Sderot is the nearest city to the Gaza Strip.
Now why is this important?
Over the past decade, terrorists from the Gaza Strip have aimed rockets and missiles into Sderot. Hundreds upon hundreds of attacks have hit this city of 20,000. At any given time, a missile or rocket can hit. There is a 15 second alarm that alerts the city of any impeding attack.
There have been reports of up to 20 rockets hitting Sderot in a SINGLE DAY.
Every single house has an adjoining bomb shelter. The tour guide told us that he has certain ways of getting to the grocery just in case the alarm sounds off. The amount of time that it took you to read up to here is about triple (or quadruple) the amount of time the people have in Sderot to find a bomb shelter.
The rockets and missiles hit indiscriminately. They have hit schools, houses, and hospitals. At one point during the tour, we were taken to a park where children can play. In order to protect the kids, the whole play area are huge bomb shelters that are painted as caterpillars.
Our tour guide also mentioned that up to 80% of the children there suffer from PTSD. This, is quite understandable. I couldn't imagine growing up in a city that gets attacked as frequently as Sderot.
We were taken to the police station of Sderot. They collect everything that is fired from the Gaza Strip, and put it on display. We learned that different terrorist groups color their missiles differently. Green is one terrorist group, yellow is another.
Apparently, four days prior to us visiting, an alarm had gone off. This meant that we were in an active war zone. Try going to bed after that!
My friend Ben put it so delicately. This was one of the most "real" things that he ever experienced. I agree with him fully.
That's it for now,
Z
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Western Wall
Hey Everybody,
During my trip to Israel, we spent three full nights in Jerusalem. The three nights that we stayed were Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The reason that this is important is that the holiest day of the week for Jewish people is the Sabbath, or Saturday.
We went to the Western Wall twice on Friday. The first time was during the afternoon. When we first got there, I wasn't sure what my reaction would be. I was raised Jewish, but did the 13 and out plan.
The 13 and out plan is pretty simple. From around age 6 or 7. (depending on the family) you get put into Hebrew school. There, you learn the history of Judaism, as well as basic Hebrew. At the age of 13 (roughly) you have a bar or bat mitzvah (depending on gender). This ceremony makes you a "man" or "woman" of the community and gives you higher respect. That being said, most people stop going to temple and/or being religious after their ceremony.
I had a very emotional reaction to the Wall. I haven't felt anything as powerful in an extremely long time. To Jews, the Western Wall is one of the (if not the) most powerful and important places in the world. There was a certain energy and spirituality that I had never felt before. I realized that it didn't matter how I raised. The important thing was to see and actually touch this monument to the Jewish people. Millions of people had died for this wall. It was very touching to be there.
The wall is open 24/7. The majority of people at the wall are Ultra-Orthodox Jews. These are the people who curl their hair and can be found all over Williamsburg in Brooklyn. These people study Judaism. There is a huge controversy in Israel with Ultra-Orthodox Jews.
The Ultra-Orthodox do not have to join the Israeli Army. They also don't pay any taxes, and most are pretty poor. They spend their lives studying Judaism and praying. The overwhelming majority of people in Israel are not Ultra-Orthodox, and are angry that their taxes go to helping these people. The issue is more interesting because Israel is a Jewish State. How can the government not support people who are studying the history and importance of Judaism?
The wall is split by sex. About 75% to 80% of the wall is the males, and the remainder for the females. Off to the left side of the wall, there is a tunnel with hundreds of bibles which one can take to pray with. There were old men standing next to teenagers, taken over by the spirit of the prayers. I sat for about 15 minutes to just hear the Hebrew that was spoken.
Once sundown happens, it becomes Shabbat. We went back to the wall after sundown. It was a totally different environment. There was a dramatic increase in the amount of people who were at the wall. During the afternoon, there were probably no more then 500 people. By the time we got there for Shabbat, the number had increased to around 10 to 12 THOUSAND people.
Men were dancing in circles, and they encouraged others to join them. One of the coolest things I've ever done was join a circle with about 100 army troops. It hit me that if I was born in Israel, these people would be my peer group. (I'm going to do a post about the Army in the future). All of them had M16's, and we were dancing in circles. It was a bittersweet moment.
According to our tour guide, the people at the Western Wall spend the night there. Alcohol gets served, and the men get trashed.
It was one of the top 5 experiences of my life, and I'm glad I was part of it.
I believe that if you have the opportunity to be at the Western Wall for Shabbat, you should go. It doesn't matter if you're Jewish, Christian, Muslim, or any other religion. The power that is felt there is nothing like I've ever felt before.
Another post soon,
Z
During my trip to Israel, we spent three full nights in Jerusalem. The three nights that we stayed were Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The reason that this is important is that the holiest day of the week for Jewish people is the Sabbath, or Saturday.
We went to the Western Wall twice on Friday. The first time was during the afternoon. When we first got there, I wasn't sure what my reaction would be. I was raised Jewish, but did the 13 and out plan.
The 13 and out plan is pretty simple. From around age 6 or 7. (depending on the family) you get put into Hebrew school. There, you learn the history of Judaism, as well as basic Hebrew. At the age of 13 (roughly) you have a bar or bat mitzvah (depending on gender). This ceremony makes you a "man" or "woman" of the community and gives you higher respect. That being said, most people stop going to temple and/or being religious after their ceremony.
I had a very emotional reaction to the Wall. I haven't felt anything as powerful in an extremely long time. To Jews, the Western Wall is one of the (if not the) most powerful and important places in the world. There was a certain energy and spirituality that I had never felt before. I realized that it didn't matter how I raised. The important thing was to see and actually touch this monument to the Jewish people. Millions of people had died for this wall. It was very touching to be there.
The wall is open 24/7. The majority of people at the wall are Ultra-Orthodox Jews. These are the people who curl their hair and can be found all over Williamsburg in Brooklyn. These people study Judaism. There is a huge controversy in Israel with Ultra-Orthodox Jews.
The Ultra-Orthodox do not have to join the Israeli Army. They also don't pay any taxes, and most are pretty poor. They spend their lives studying Judaism and praying. The overwhelming majority of people in Israel are not Ultra-Orthodox, and are angry that their taxes go to helping these people. The issue is more interesting because Israel is a Jewish State. How can the government not support people who are studying the history and importance of Judaism?
The wall is split by sex. About 75% to 80% of the wall is the males, and the remainder for the females. Off to the left side of the wall, there is a tunnel with hundreds of bibles which one can take to pray with. There were old men standing next to teenagers, taken over by the spirit of the prayers. I sat for about 15 minutes to just hear the Hebrew that was spoken.
Once sundown happens, it becomes Shabbat. We went back to the wall after sundown. It was a totally different environment. There was a dramatic increase in the amount of people who were at the wall. During the afternoon, there were probably no more then 500 people. By the time we got there for Shabbat, the number had increased to around 10 to 12 THOUSAND people.
Men were dancing in circles, and they encouraged others to join them. One of the coolest things I've ever done was join a circle with about 100 army troops. It hit me that if I was born in Israel, these people would be my peer group. (I'm going to do a post about the Army in the future). All of them had M16's, and we were dancing in circles. It was a bittersweet moment.
According to our tour guide, the people at the Western Wall spend the night there. Alcohol gets served, and the men get trashed.
It was one of the top 5 experiences of my life, and I'm glad I was part of it.
I believe that if you have the opportunity to be at the Western Wall for Shabbat, you should go. It doesn't matter if you're Jewish, Christian, Muslim, or any other religion. The power that is felt there is nothing like I've ever felt before.
Another post soon,
Z
Friday, February 25, 2011
People On My Trip
Hey Everybody,
I would like to start my blog posts of Israel about the other 39 people who I shared this adventure with.
The reason I bring this up is because I had many reservations about the people who I was going to be traveling with. I (wrongly) assumed that I was going to be traveling with 39 others who had a sense of entitlement.
Granted, this thought process wasn't totally ignorant. I have had many friends who have traveled on this same trip, and constantly complained about the others who they had met.
There were two major differences between my trip choice and my friends' choices of trip. Originally, I was going to do birthright with a good friend of mine who is into hiking. Unfortunately, she pulled out of the trip, and I was left by myself to do a trip that was totally out of my element. This being said, most people who I knew growing up would never want to hike.
The other major difference between the trips my friends' had gone on and mine was the fact that they had all gone on trips from the 18-22 year old range, while my trip had an age range of 22-26. Prior to the trip, I didn't realize how big of a difference that is. Instead of being the oldest on the trip, I was the third youngest. It made a world of difference.
The people on my trip totally changed my perspective of what being a young adult Jew is. Most of the people on my trip lived in the New York City area. The professions that people had ranged from every spectrum of life. There were bankers, entrepreneurs, accountants, artists, photographers, reporters, grad students, med students, musicians, actors, teachers, consultants, non-profit workers, and the list went on and on.
Being one of the youngest on the trip, it constantly dawned on me that these people were a snapshot of what my life is to become over the next few years. My mind was blown by the different paths people took. The one thing that brought us all together was our religion and our trip.
My idea of what a young Jew is was totally shattered. I was dumbstruck and embarrassed that I came into the trip expecting horrible people. I made great friends who I expect to stay in touch with for the rest of my life.
The fact is, we were a special group. All of us understood what it meant to be part of something larger, and we all accomplished that goal.
That's it for now,
Z
I would like to start my blog posts of Israel about the other 39 people who I shared this adventure with.
The reason I bring this up is because I had many reservations about the people who I was going to be traveling with. I (wrongly) assumed that I was going to be traveling with 39 others who had a sense of entitlement.
Granted, this thought process wasn't totally ignorant. I have had many friends who have traveled on this same trip, and constantly complained about the others who they had met.
There were two major differences between my trip choice and my friends' choices of trip. Originally, I was going to do birthright with a good friend of mine who is into hiking. Unfortunately, she pulled out of the trip, and I was left by myself to do a trip that was totally out of my element. This being said, most people who I knew growing up would never want to hike.
The other major difference between the trips my friends' had gone on and mine was the fact that they had all gone on trips from the 18-22 year old range, while my trip had an age range of 22-26. Prior to the trip, I didn't realize how big of a difference that is. Instead of being the oldest on the trip, I was the third youngest. It made a world of difference.
The people on my trip totally changed my perspective of what being a young adult Jew is. Most of the people on my trip lived in the New York City area. The professions that people had ranged from every spectrum of life. There were bankers, entrepreneurs, accountants, artists, photographers, reporters, grad students, med students, musicians, actors, teachers, consultants, non-profit workers, and the list went on and on.
Being one of the youngest on the trip, it constantly dawned on me that these people were a snapshot of what my life is to become over the next few years. My mind was blown by the different paths people took. The one thing that brought us all together was our religion and our trip.
My idea of what a young Jew is was totally shattered. I was dumbstruck and embarrassed that I came into the trip expecting horrible people. I made great friends who I expect to stay in touch with for the rest of my life.
The fact is, we were a special group. All of us understood what it meant to be part of something larger, and we all accomplished that goal.
That's it for now,
Z
ISRAEL
Hey Everybody,
After a (too) long hiatus from writing as well as traveling, my latest adventure is now complete. Over the past 11 days I adventured throughout the land of Israel. I was able to travel in the middle east because of a free trip that is given to all Jews between the ages of 18 and 26. Unfortunately, I had very limited internet access, so for the following blog posts, they are going to be aimed at various aspects of Israel. This is going to be different from my European posts that were in chronological order.
Please enjoy the following accounts, and if you are in between the ages of 18-26 and are Jewish, do yourself a favor and sign up for the trip. I left the US being cautiously optimistic about my adventure, and came back as a changed person.
Love you all,
Z
After a (too) long hiatus from writing as well as traveling, my latest adventure is now complete. Over the past 11 days I adventured throughout the land of Israel. I was able to travel in the middle east because of a free trip that is given to all Jews between the ages of 18 and 26. Unfortunately, I had very limited internet access, so for the following blog posts, they are going to be aimed at various aspects of Israel. This is going to be different from my European posts that were in chronological order.
Please enjoy the following accounts, and if you are in between the ages of 18-26 and are Jewish, do yourself a favor and sign up for the trip. I left the US being cautiously optimistic about my adventure, and came back as a changed person.
Love you all,
Z
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