Birthright Trip to Israel Blog - Chabad of Peachtree City

Blog III: Jerusalem- The Old City, the Gravesite of King David and the Western Wall

Monday, December 9, 2013 - 10:36 PM

Today we toured the old city of Jerusalem. This part of the city is surrounded with a wall, that, according to Jewish tradition, has been walled since the days of Joshua, who brought the Jewish people into Israel. It is simply a thing of awe to recognize this. When a city possesses a wall, it means that everyone inside it is united in a real way. Interestingly, this coming Friday is a national fast day (from dawn till nightfall), commemorating the time when this very wall was surrounded by the enemies of the Jewish people, which led to the destruction of both Temples...

Please see the picture, and it should be obvious to see five or six different types of stone and rocks. This is because the wall continued to be built after it was destroyed. The final version of stone that stands as the wall today is approximately 450 years old, constructed during the Ottoman Empire. Present in the layers of visible stone here, though, is parts of this wall that is over two thousand years old!

Pic of Wall 12-10-2013.jpg

After entering the Old City we toured its streets. We visited the gravesite of King David. Yup, that King David... The thought of this boggles the mind! We walked for a while through the very ancient streets of our eternal capital. Some of these streets are over three-thousand years old - literally! We stood outside a wall build during the times of Isaiah the prophet in order to protect the city from king Sanneherib of Assyria! This construction is mentioned in the book of Isaiah chapter 22, and elsewhere. See here for more information: www.biblewalks.com/Sites/BroadWall.html

We then made our way to the Western Wall. Some of the participating Young Adults had never had a Bar and Bat Mitzvah. I led the ceremony for these seven students, and we then went to the Wall. We tied Tefillin on all the boys, and we all had our time to pray at Judaism's holiest of sites.

Here are some pictures taken with my phone late this afternoon:

Pic I of Western Wall 12-10-2013.jpg

Pic II of Western Wall 12-10-2013.jpg

Pic III of Western Wall 12-10-2013.jpg

Pic IV of Western Wall 12-10-2013.jpg

We reluctantly said farewell to Jerusalem this evening, and we headed for Tel Aviv. The participants went to party on the beach, and I had the great thrill of meeting our very own Monica Potashnik, who is currently visiting Israel. She also brought, to my delight, her mother-in-law, Raz's mothers, and Roz's sister, Nataly. It was so wonderful to have a piece of Chabad of Peachtree City right here, in Israel!

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MAYANOT ISRAEL- BIRTHRIGHT TRIPS TO ISRAEL, GO TO: www.mayanotisrael.com

Blog II: "Yad Vashem" and Mount Hertzel-the National Cemetery of the State of Israel

Sunday, December 8, 2013 - 9:51 PM

Today was a real emotional day for all of us. We visited "Yad Vashem" in the morning. This is Israel's Holocaust Memorial, and the world's headquarters for Holocaust studies and information.

We listened to a Holocaust survivor's firsthand description of her story. This is a woman who was torn from her mother at five. She has no idea what her parents, or her siblings, looked like. They were all gone. Kind people took her under her under their wing, and she is now here, with generations of Jewish children.

We then visited the museum, which provides a detailed picture of the events. It really shook the participants up.

Here is an actual sign which used to hang at the train station of the death camp, Treblinka. It hangs at Yad Vashem today

Treblinka Sign- Museum for 2nd Rabbi Yossi Israel Blog 12-08-13.jpg

After lunch, we visited Mount Hertzel, the National Cemetery of the state of Israel. We paid our respects to Hertzel, Begin, Shamir, Rabin, and others. We visited the memorial for all those civilians murdered in terrorist acts. We then spent time at the graves of two American boys, in their twenties, who took bullets and were killed, consequently saving others at the same time.

These are the true heroes.

Newly recruited Israeli soldiers at a ceremony in front of Hertzel's grave, on a foggy and rainy evening. (see photo below)

Hertzel- Rabbi Yossi Israel Blog 12-09-2013.jpg

Tomorrow we go to the Western Wall to pray, and we visit the Old City of Jerusalem. And then it's off to Tel Aviv.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MAYANOT ISRAEL- BIRTHRIGHT TRIPS TO ISRAEL, GO TO: www.mayanotisrael.com

First Five Days in Israel: Tiberias, Arbel Mountain, Tzfat, Golan Heights, Syria, the Border of Lebanon, and Jerusalem

Saturday, December 7, 2013 - 11:25 PM

Dear Friends of Chabad of Peachtree City,

We have been in Israel for five days already, first three in the Tiberias and the North, and yesterday, Friday, we arrived in Jerusalem to celebrate Shabbos. We had some Internet issues, so please forgive the delay.

Here is a birds eye view of the Kinneret, the Sea of Galilee, which is a fresh water lake, supplying most of Israel's fresh water. This lake, mentioned in the Torah, could be seen from all over the hotel we were at.

On Wednesday, the seventh day of Chanukah, we hiked up (and down - ouch!) the very difficult Arbel Mountain. There are natural caves on this mountain, in which the Hasmonian family were hiding from the Greeks. This family eventually became the "Macabees" who defeated the Greeks and made their way to the Holy Temple and facilitated the miracle of Chanukah.

It is unbelievable to have had the amazing privilege of, after twenty-two hundred years, walking in the footsteps of these heroes DURING CHANUKAH!!

Here are two pictures from this experience taken with my phone:

Later that day we visited the holy city of Tzfat. There is so much there, but I only took pictures of the amazing candle factory. In these two pictures, you can see the story of David and Goliath made from wax, as well as Noah's ark. We use our Havdalah candle which we purchased in this store.

On Thursday, we took a jeep ride to a spot which overlooks the Golan Heights and Syria. It is amazing to see how close these archenemies of the State of Israel are. To think how people in Israel continue to live like this is truly inspiring.

Here is a picture looking towards Syria. On the right far side is Mount Chermon (mentioned in the Torah), the closest to Syria, and Israel's only ski resort (it snowed on that very day!). Past that, to the left, is Syria.

Later we visited the most northern part of Israel, on the border of Lebanon. Our visit was to Kibbutz "Misgav Am", purchased and settled before 1948, when Israel was declared a state. This Kibbutz, and its people, are in direct target from the Hizbollah terrorists. Because this Kibbutz is on a hilltop, it is easier to see what terrorist activity could be brewing. In 2006, they did, indeed, attempt to infiltrate this Kibbutz. It was made sure these people would never try this again...

In this picture, the fence between the countries can be see. On the right is a very tall white pole, on which is attached a massive lamp and cameras.

On Friday we arrived in Jerusalem. This place is so alive, all in preparation for the Shabbos. Later in the afternoon, most of the city shuts down. It is so surreal.

Undoubtedly, the greatest and most important time was Friday night at the Western Wall. We prayed and danced, in the presence of thousands of others from every walk of life, from every religion and every color. Truly and amazing experience.

On Shabbos day, we had a question and answer session, and then on Saturday night we began the difficult task of preparing the students to visit Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust memorial. The lighten the mood, we visited the Ben Yehudah pedestrian mall, where I believe we purchased half of Israel...

Have a great week and all the best. - RYL

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MAYANOT ISRAEL- BIRTHRIGHT TRIPS TO ISRAEL, GO TO: www.mayanotisrael.com