Benji 

Today (May 2nd) we started our day with eating breakfast at the kibbutz we were staying at for the final night in Israel. After we concluded breakfast, we headed back to the bus so we could drive to ein ovdat trail. After we walked to a waterfall at the end of the trail, we went back to the bus so we could visit the grave of Ben-Gurion and his wife Paula. We had a presentation given by Rachel and Reah about Ben-Gurion and his life story. When they finished, we played a fun game of bingo with Ben-Gurion themed spaces on the boards. When we were done with that, we headed to a nearby park to eat lunch. We then played around for a little while in the park. When that was finished we began our long drive back to the city of Jerusalem. When we arrived, we spent a while at an art installation. We were given a demonstration of an example of the art we were going to get to make. We then made our own interpretive art pieces depicting our Tiyul experiences. We then had a reflective conversation about our trip with everybody in the grade. We then headed back to the bus so we could have our final pizur dinner. We are now on our way out of Jerusalem and back to Tel Aviv where we will board the plane and head back home. 

Jeremy 

Today (May 2nd) we went on a hike. Which was very cool and we got to see a tree that lasted from 17 thousand years ago that was during the Ice Age. Another thing we did today was go to Ben Gurion’s memorial. We honered him and our whold grade sang Hatickvah. This part was very meaningfull to me and it was very special because everyone was filming us and it was special fot others too. We also went to the Ben Yehudah shook where we got to travel around and get some good food. I specifically loved my favriote place Gluless which is all gluten free and has amazing pita. I learned a lot from this Isreal trip because instead of going to Tel Aviv and Jersulam I went to the south of Isreal. This trip was very fun especially the bus rides where we sang songs and laughed throughout the whole ride. I grew friendships and made some throughout the trip. I got closer with people I dont usually talk to. I tried to volunteer and have a positive attitude on everything. At the beginning of the trip we wrote what our goals were on a post it and I achieved all of them.

Jackson

Today (May 2nd) we started our final day with a hike thorough a beautiful valley in the Negev with a final reflection in the middle. We then drove over to the grave of first Israeli prime minister David Ben-Gurion and his wife Paula Ben-Gurion and sang Hatikfah as a grade in front of the tombs. Following that, we walked a short distance to a park where we enjoyed a choice lunch of either pizza or falafel. Then, we had a 2.5 hour bus ride back to the holy city of Jerusalem. In Jerusalem we had a talk with an artist-rabbi who assisted us in creating collage projects based on our journey through the Holy Land. we had a final reflection circle, during which we talked about the parts of our experience that we enjoyed or that connected with us the most. For dinner, we got to experience the israeli shuk one last time. FInally, with melancholy feelings we drove to the airport.  Throughout this wonderful experience we have had many meaningful experiences that we now reflect upon as we end the trip. One such experience for me was getting to say mourners kaddish while inserting a note containing names of people in my family who have passed away that was given to me to bring to israel into the Western Wall.

We come to the end of our wonderful trip and as our last reflection we read the last blessing of the Amidah. Shalom which means peace, but also wholeness. The amidah was so fitting for our trip since Amida means standing and we were on out feet these two weeks. In our tradition we say “If i forget you oh Jerusalem, may my hand stop working”  Sadie Cohen interpreted this phrase as if we forget Jerusalem and israel we are not complet. My blessing for 7th grade tiyul is that we never forget Jerusalem, Israel and Tiyul 2023!

Eva

On Monday, May 1st, our day started with an early wake up in our Bedouin tent experience. From there, the class of 2023 drove even further into the Negev (Israeli desert). We began with climbing the mountain Masada via the ‘Roman Ramp,’ which was a path up the mountain created thousands of years ago by Romans, who besieged the mountain and the Jews on it. At the top, we prayed in one of what is believed to be one of the world's first synagogues, creating a new connection between us and our Jewish roots - through location. We also uncovered the story of the siege. The Jews had debated fighting back, surrendering, and running away from the Romans, but all ideas resulted in their genocide. To go out on their own terms, by their own hand without torment, the people atop Masada decided on a mass suicide of themselves. With that information locked away, our grade began the long hike down the mountain via a ‘snake path.’ The hike took over an hour with a lot of turns and steep (not to mention scary) sections, so we were obviously all in the best mood we’ve ever been on the way to our next destination. 

Our second stop was the infamous Dead Sea, but when we arrived, all we could think about after that hike was food. I was towards the back of the lunch line and they ran out of pita, which was unfortunate- but alas, life goes on. We then got ready to burn (go into the Dead Sea). For those who are unaware, the Dead Sea is a body of water with a high concentration of salt. This is because there is no water flowing into or out of the Dead Sea, so as the water evaporates in the desert heat, the salt concentration in the water grows higher. Because the water is so dense, we (humans) are able to float in the Dead Sea. But the heavily salted water also has a downside - the burn. Most people in the grade could not stay in the water due to the salt seeping into every wound they had. Me personally, I fought through the pain to experience the floating and  for the restorative qualities of the minerals (and I must say, my legs have never felt smoother.)

To end our day, we drove to a kibbutz for our last night on Tiyul. Most of us slept well for the long last day ahead, and had an amazing time in the desert of Israel - well, except for the sunburn.

Eden

Throughout the two week Tiyul, there were many amazing experiences we had, but one of my favorites was the Dead Sea. Before I left for Israel, I was very afraid to go in the sea. When we arrived at our destination, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go in our not. However, the teachers encouraged me to go in, even if it was only one minute. I listened to their advice and got in. I immediately fell in love. For those who are unaware, the Dead Sea is a highly concentrated salt water sea, which is the lowest place on earth. Since the density of the water is very high, everyone floats no matter their weight. My friends and I floated on the water and used the salt from the bottom of the sea to exfoliate our skin. I am extremely grateful I got to have this once in a lifetime opportunity, and hope I can go back soon.

Caleb

Yesterday we had an amazing day! We started our day bright and early waking up from our sleep in the Bedouin tents. Then we got ready and ate breakfast preparing to hike Masada. Before we left we bumped into some scary geese. They scared us away and onto the bus. When we got there we soon began to climb up the Roman Ramp to get to the top. At the top we explored and learned about the king’s palace. After some exploration at the top we began to descend down the mountain on the snake path. It was a long journey but a good hike. After our hike we headed to our next destination, The Dead Sea. We drove the bus to the Dead Sea and got ready to float. When we got there we had lunch and then it was time to float. When we got into the sea, the salt started piercing our feet and we were already burning. We got through the salt and started float. We were floating and screaming out of pain at the same time. We were in the sea for a little bit because everyone felt pain. After we got out we dried off and headed to the kibbutz. At the kibbutz we had dinner, played basketball, and reflected on our Tiyul. After we packed and prepared for the flight.

Lev

Yesterday we started our day off with hiking the Masada. It took about 15 minutes to hike up, while hiking it was really cool to see the views from all the way up. We all spent about an hour and a half on the top. Something we learned was that there were about 300 Jews living on the top, and 10,000 Romans were attacking them. The Jews had three options: fight, surrender, run. And the Jews decided to all kill each other. They did this because the knew that they could not win the fight, there was nowhere to run, and if they surrender they would still be killed. But a mother and her kids hid. Then we hiked down, which took about 45 minutes, and we were behind these really annoying kids so they were slowing us down so we had to pass them. When we had finished the hike we went to the Dead Sea. The dead see was amazing and painful. When we were all walking in it hurt our feet, but once we all got far enough we were all floating. Lot of us got out because we got water in our mouth, eyes, or if you had cuts it had hurt enough. We then had a quick pit stop at a mall, then went to the kibbutz where we will have our last night.