Traveling North

-In the morning we met with Col. Miri Eisen and heard about her role as spokesperson for Israel and the challenges of that role. 
-After we then boarded our bus to depart Tel Aviv but we had one last stop at Rabin Square to learn about Rabin's life and legacy. 
-Our next stop was the small town of Zichron Yaacov where we learned about the challenges of pre-state Israel.  
-We continued heading North to the city of Haifa where we met with the Mayor of this port city, Yona Yahav and learned about coexistence of Arab and Jew in this incredibly beautiful city that is too infrequently left off many tourist's itineraries. 
At the end of the day we found ourselves checked in to our small hotel in Tzfat and picked up to have dinner by our Israeli hosts. Our next update will be later tonight about our day in Tzfat, Rosh Pina and Hatzor. 

This morning we visited our Federation's PACT program in Ramla. More information about this program can be found HERE. After lunch we traveled back to Tel Aviv and visited Independence Hall where the State of Israel was declared and walked around the neighborhood of Neve Tzedek, one of the first neighborhoods Tel Aviv. Tonight we all went out in small groups or by couples to have an evening out. The lack of more lengthy updates and more pictures have only to do with our access to the internet and that we aren't in our hotel rooms but out exploring the city. 

ARRIVAL

We are all here and accounted for. Tonight we had our opening dinner and introductions.  Our keynote speaker, Paul Liptz inspired us and energized us for the week ahead.  Above are just a few pictures from the evening. More to come on Monday night.

HAVE A GREAT FLIGHT ! 

 Next Week in Jerusalem ! 

Our Itinerary

A copy of our Destination Israel travel itinerary is now available to share online with your family and friends. To view our journey CLICK HERE.

PHONES

Some of you have had problems connecting to the IsraelPhones website.

Click HERE for a direct Link.

Courtesy of Annabelle Meisler

Destination Israel Hotels

HILTON HOTEL, TEL AVIV
I
Independence Park
Tel Aviv, Israel 63405Tel: 972-3-520-2222
Fax: 972-3-527-2711
CLICK HERE FOR HILTON WEBSITE


RUTH RIMONIM HOTEL, TZFAT

Artist Colony
PO Box 1011
Tzfat, Israel
Tel: 972 4-699-4666
Fax: 972 4-692-0456
CLICK HERE FOR RIMONIM WEBSITE

THE DAVID CITADEL, JERUSALEM

7 King David Street
Jerusalem 94101
Tel: 972-2-621-1111
Fax: 972-2-621-1000
CLICK HERE FOR DAVID CITADEL WEBSITE

HILTON QUEEN OF SHEBA, EILAT

8 Antib Road, North Shore
Eilat, Israel 88121
Tel: 972-8-630-6666
Fax: 972-8-630-6677
CLICK HERE FOR QUEEN OF SHEBA WEBSITE

Virtual Wanderings Part I

Below are some websites you can explore before we depart in a few short weeks. Some of the below sites are strictly news while others explore Israeli life, business and culture. In the next weeks I will offer more places to explore "virtually" before our feet are on the ground. Enjoy.

www.jpost.com – News
www.haaretz.com- News
www.ynetnews.com- News
http://www.israel21c.net/ - This site goes beyond the headlines concerning politics and conflict and addresses everyday life, culture and business in Israel.
http://www.isrealli.org- What is going on in Israel beyond the headlines?
http://tour.jerusalem.muni.il/?lng=2 - A virtual interactive map of Jerusalem

http://www.jerusalemite.net/blog/ - An insiders guide to what is going on in Jerusalem.

It is hard to believe that Destination Israel: A Community Journey is less than 2 months away.

We plan to host our final pre-mission briefing on:

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009
4:00PM- 6:00PM

JEWISH FEDERATION OF PALM BEACH COUNTY
4601 COMMUNITY DRIVE
WEST PALM BEACH, FL 33417

At the briefing, we will review the logistics for the mission including the itinerary, transportation arrangements from the airport in Tel Aviv, hotel confirmations, what to pack, what to wear, weather, and much more. We will also answer any last minute questions that you may have.

Please bring the following materials with you to the briefing so that we can complete your file:

o Mission Application
o Photo page of the inside of your passport (Note: Passports must be valid for at least 6 months past the return date).

We also wanted to remind you that the tips for the guide and driver are approximately $100 per person. If you want, you can submit a check at the briefing, and we will take care of the tipping during the trip.

Please RSVP for the briefing by contacting Bonnie Finley at 561-242-6662 or at destinationisrael@jewishpalmbeach.org.

If you have any questions or concerns before then, please contact Scott Brockman by phone at 561-242-6645 or by e-mail at destinationisrael@jewishpalmbeach.org.

We look forward to seeing you on February 19th!

The Tzahar Region: Our Partners in Israel

The Tzahar Region: Our Partners in Israel

(The picture to the left from one of the many porches of the Rimon Inn in Tzfat, where we will be staying.)

The bond between American Jews and Israel is eternal and constantly evolving. Over the years, the Jewish Agency for Israel has paired Israeli cities with communities in the diaspora. The partnerships share human and financial resources to enhance and improve Israel, its people and Jewish communities throughout the United States.
Since 1994, the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County has been a partner in this effort to intensify our relationship with the Tzahar Region. Tzahar is comprised of Tzfat, the ancient home of Jewish mysticism (kabbalah) and artists; the scenic and growing immigrant town of Hatzor Haglilit; and Rosh Pina, the first Zionist settlement in the Galilee and a beneficiary of philanthropist Baron Edmund de Rothschild. These three cities are located in the picturesque northern part of Israel's Galilee area and are home to 31,000 Jews. The primary goals of the partnership are to invigorate economic development and tourism in Israel's rural areas, enhance educational programs and strengthen relationships between Israelis and American Jews.Federation develops and implements cutting edge programs with the people and institutions of the Tzahar Region. These programs are grouped under three categories that meet the program's goals: education, the "living bridge," which nurtures interpersonal relationships between the two areas' people, and tourism and economic development. These programs improve the lives of many Israelis and invigorate American Jews to rededicate themselves to Judaism and Israel. The Young Ambassador program brings together teens from the greater Palm Beaches and the Tzahar Region to study, develop as future leaders and enrich their Jewish identity. Other programs, such as Livnot U'lehibanot, bring American Jews to volunteer with the people and services of the Tzahar Region, as well as to study their heritage. Educators from the greater Palm Beaches and the Tzahar Region visit both communities to create new curricula for their students through the Educators Exchange. New programs include the Kabbalah and Mysticism Project in Tzfat, which will invigorate the local economy and enhance Tzfat’s status as an educational center to study all the forms of the mystical side of Judaism.The association between the two communities has created other benefits in addition to the programs funded directly through this partnership. For example, new opportunities are available for donors who feel a connection to the Tzahar Region. These donations include a $250,000 bequest to enhance the neonatal intensive care unit in Tzfat and a $1 million bequest to fund five capital projects, including a technological and pedagogical center in Hatzor Haglilit, an art and youth center at Rosh Pina, and a visitors center in Tzfat. Our area is one of the few in the nation that has partnered an American city, West Palm Beach, with a Federation's region in Israel. This alliance has resulted in several business missions to the region.Federation's partnership with the Tzahar Region and the social, educational and economic programs involved with the program are funded through Federation's Annual Campaign.Click here for more information about the activities involving the people of the Tzahar Region and the greater Palm Beaches.

Tel Aviv - Our First Stop

NYTimes
Seizing the Day in Tel Aviv
By HENRY ALFORD
THERE’S room for everyone in Tel Aviv.
I’m riding bikes along the beach with my friend James. James is 12, and moved to Tel Aviv from New York with his Israeli mother two years ago.
“That’s the separated beach,” James tells me matter-of-factly, pointing at a group of some 30 Orthodox men on the edge of a placid, gorgeous Mediterranean not far from the Hilton. I read a sign that states: “The Separated Beach. Bathing days for women: Sun, Tues, Thurs. Bathing days for men: Mon, Wed, Fri.” Then, pointing at a different group of men just 50 yards down the sand, James adds, “And that’s the gay beach.”
A couple of hours later, eager to see what other strange bedfellows I’ll find huddled on the edges of the water, I conduct an informal census: I walk the two miles or so of beach from the Orthodox section all the way down to Jaffa, the old Arab port of Tel Aviv. Just south of the gay section I find a stretch of sand-and-sun worshipers that I instantly dub the Ambiguous Male Friendship beach; just south of that I find the I Hate What I’m Wearing beach. I walk farther, and proceed to find concentrations of, variously, surfers, young families, volleyball players, Ethiopians, hippie drummers and irritable girlfriends.
I’d earlier been told by the illustrator and author Maira Kalman, who was born in Tel Aviv and still has an apartment there, that I’d find “old men in their underpants” on the beach in front of the Dan Hotel (“Old men in their underpants: what can be wrong with that?” she’d said with some excitement). So, in front of the Dan, I search for boudoir chic; I find only one such exhibitor, but many examples of dermal creping.
Down toward the southernmost part of the beach near Jaffa, the population turns increasingly Arab, and I see more and more head wraps on the women. On the beach’s edge, I sit on a park bench and fall into conversation with a warm, bearded 54-year-old gentleman who tells me he’s an imam and a muezzin. We discuss the auspiciousness of the date — the day before, on Independence Day, Israel had celebrated its 60th anniversary with a semi-terrifying dazzle of air force maneuvers over the water — and the man tells me: “Peace is good for us all. Jews, Christians, Muslims. ...”
Just then a young beachgoer zooms by us on his Vespa, his surfboard ingeniously strapped onto the side of the motorbike, so I add, “... and surfers.”
The man exults, “Everyone!”
Tel Aviv is a home at the end of the world. Celebrating its 100th year in 2009, the capital of Mediterranean cool has been getting more and more practice at being a host over the years, and it’s starting to show.

To contiune reading click this link- http://travel.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/travel/20telaviv.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

INFORMATION NEEDED
Thank you for providing us with your flight details and arrangements whether you booked on your own or through Nancy Gilbert. In an effort to make sure there is absolutely no confusion with arrival dates and times I am requesting at this time for you to fax me a copy of your tickets. If you are a couple one of your tickets will suffice.
With the information you will provide we can eliminate any mistakes with transfers etc upon your arrival.
If you still haven’t booked your tickets for whatever reason (ex. Insurance) please call me with an update so I can either assist you or have Nancy Gilbert do so.

Please Fax a copy of your ticket this week to (561) 681- 3545.

Dear Destination Israel Particpants,

We are writing to you regarding the most recent Israeli actions to defend itself by attacking Hamas.Since its disengagement from Gaza in 2005, Hamas has rained more than 6,000 rockets and mortar shells from Gaza on Israel. This created an intolerable situation for the residents of the southern part of the country. As President-Elect Obama said, “If someone was sending rockets into my house where my two daughters sleep at night, I would do everything to stop that, and I would expect Israel to do the same thing.” Enough is enough.
Israel has not only the right, but the duty to protect its citizens. Israel cannot be expected to tolerate such assaults and has shown extraordinary restraint, publicly calling on many occasions for Hamas to stop its attacks.
Hamas has demonstrated a total disregard, not only for Israeli life, but even more so for Palestinian civilians. Using innocent people as shields, Hamas fires from schools, churches, hospitals and community centers, creating a scenario where civilians inevitably will be harmed. These casualties, tragic though they may be, are a direct result of the cynicism of Hamas leadership.
There have been calls in the international community for Israel to withdraw and end its attack on Gaza. There is, in some quarters, including in Europe (fortunately not by the current or incoming administration or by congressional leadership in either party in our country), the notion that Israel needs to end its offensive without any assurance there have been real changes on the ground. Israel has taken the position that there must be a permanent end to shelling of its territory and the accumulation of weapons smuggled in from Egypt.
We need to be totally supportive and understanding of Israel’s difficult, but necessary decision. The weakening of Hamas in Gaza might lead to an opening that could eventually lead to negotiation, something that Hamas opposes vehemently.
In times of challenge, it is important that we as a community come together in support of Israel.

There will be a rally on behalf of Israel on:
Sunday, January 11, 2009 at 12:30 p.m.
at the Kaplan Jewish Community Center
3151 N. Military Trail
West Palm Beach, FL 33409
Tel. (561) 689-7700
Guest speakers include Congressman Ron Klein, Congressman Robert Wexler and the Deputy Counsel General of IsraelPlease join us at the rally to demonstrate our community’s solidarity with the people of Israel. We hope that peace with security will be secured not only for Israel, but for all people of goodwill and peaceful intent in the region.
Sincerely,
Arthur S. Loring, President

Jeffrey L. Klein, Chief Executive Officer

Update on Gaza Situation

Dear Destination Israel Participants,
As promised, I will stay in touch with you frequently prior to our trip together in March, providing you with any new or relevant information that may be helpful to you. I understand and share the concern that many of you are feeling with regard to the present situation in Gaza and its implications for travel to Israel. At this time the conflict is limited to a small geographic area 26 miles of the border of Gaza. This area of Israel is currently not on our planned itinerary and will not be added even when the hostilities cease.
In the coming days our office will be monitoring the overall security situation through our partners at the Jewish Agency for Israel. The Federation, of course, would not allow any departure of any group to Israel unless we felt that we could provide our extraordinarily high standard for safety and security. Please feel free to call me at anytime to allay any further concerns.
I hope you will join me in keeping Israel and its citizens in your thoughts and prayers. We can only hope that they soon finish the task at hand with wisdom and strength.

Shalom,
Scott Brockman