Our Final Days of the Trip...

JANUARY 1st and 2nd, 2011


Our final days as a group had arrived and we were more than happy to be spending them in the amazing city of Tel Aviv. We were able to take our time and fully explore our surroundings. On Saturday, we all walked to the beach in order to have a wrap up session as the trip was winding down. We discussed our original expectations of the trip and how it turned out in reality. We also discussed how we were going to bring this amazing opportunity back home with us to Pittsburgh and how we could potentially grow it for future J'Burghers as well. It turned into another great brainstorming session with some very exciting ideas to implement.


Our evening ended with a lovely dinner as a group at a restaurant on the water.

Beth, Carolyn, Steve, Evan, Erin, Rachel and Becca at dinner!

On Sunday, many of us took the opportunity to travel to Jaffa. Jaffa is part of the old city of Tel Aviv and is full of restaurants and shopping. It was the most beautiful day outside and we enjoyed walking around and eating even more falafel. (You can never really have enough.)

Sara, Rachel, Hara, Evan, Beth, Kiki, Erin, Becca and Jesse enjoying the Tel Aviv sun in Jaffa. 

Rachel and Evan

Our last activity for the trip was quite exciting for a group from Pittsburgh. We traveled a short way to Mike's Place, which is an American sports bar right in the middle of Tel Aviv. We had to make sure to catch the Steelers/Browns game in style. It was very relieving to see the Steelers win too...I don't think we would have had very many happy participants if that didn't happen. :)

After the game we headed back to the hotel for half of our group's final night in Israel. The next morning, 8 out of the 15 of us headed back to the States. The people that were left continued on their own adventures. Five continued on to Eilat and from there made their way to Egypt to see the Pyramids while the last two did some diving in Petra and hung out in Eilat as well.

Everyone made it home safely and has returned to their lives here in Pittsburgh. It's quite amazing to see that this trip happened and is now behind us. We all looked forward to it for quite some time and we must work on making sure what we saw and learned has a presence here in the Pittsburgh Jewish community. Please make sure to check this blog periodically for more exciting updates about what the J'Burgh group is doing now that we've returned!

Sorry for the delay...

Hi all!


First off, so sorry for the delay in posting about the last few days of the J'Burgh Israel Trip. Things definitely got a little hectic and we also had limited internet access. 


So without further ado, here's what went down on our last few days in Israel...


Thursday, December 31st, 2010


Our day started at 9am once again and we were off to explore more of Jerusalem with our tour guide, Peter. Peter gave us a one of a kind experience that morning. We drove outside of Jerusalem and right into the West Bank. The first thing we did was stop at a very special kibbutz where we were shown a movie about how it was started way back before Israel was a state. Being in the West Bank, it had its trials and tribulations and fell quite a few times. The important thing is that it kept rebuilding itself from nothing. The founders and the people living on this particular Kibbutz stood for everything they believed in and kept fighting, no matter how high the stakes were.

After the movie was shown, the screen opened up to a whole separate room where the actual bunker is shown. This is where many of the Kibbutz members stayed in when the Kibbutz was under attack.

After the visit to the Kibbutz we stopped at a very special place that definitely managed to put smiles on all of our faces after the heavy topic of the Kibbutz. As we were driving along the road there was a small little building on the side where we pulled up next to. This little building is a very special place where members of the nearby communities run through donations and their own free time. It's a place where the Israeli Soldiers can come and go as they please and a snack, a cup of coffee, or even just have a nice place to relax for a short while. The place is called "A Warm Corner" in English and it is exactly that. The people inside are all volunteers that take pride in what they are doing. It is so easy to see how much it is loved based on the fact that the walls are covered in memorabilia soldiers who have stopped by and enjoyed this special little place. 

A group of us with some soldiers who stopped by at "The Warm Corner". (When there are 5 cameras taking one picture people tend to look in every direction!)

 Volunteers behind the counter and many badges on the wall that were left behind by thankful soldiers.

A recently donated foosball table for the soldiers to enjoy in their down time. 

Just a few of the hats that have been given over the years from the soldiers.

Our last stop before heading to Tel Aviv was a rather special one. Peter, who made Aliyah with his family in 1990, took us to his home in the West Bank Settlement of Efrat. We were invited into his living room to continue the discussion on Israel and its borders. It was also very interesting to see a settlement in the West Bank and how very large it actually was. Peter was very informational and we enjoyed having him as a tour guide very much.

After a nice lunch in Efrat, we got back on the bus and headed towards Tel Aviv. Once we arrived, we had plenty of time to explore our surroundings (our hotel was basically right on the beach!). Since it was New Years, we wanted to do something special for the group and one of our Israeli friends that was a part of the young adults from Karmiel invited us to come to his apartment in Tel Aviv for dinner. We were all very excited to see Uri again and be able to celebrate New Years all together as a group. 

Jesse, Hara, Erin, Kiki and Rachel at Uri's place in Tel Aviv!

Jesse and Justin bought the all the girls roses and handed them out during dinner! So sweet boys...

For New Years itself, many of us stuck together and rang in 2011 on the beach right by our hotel. It was a lovely evening and definitely one that will not soon be forgotten. 

Departing Karmiel and off to Jerusalem (Dec. 30th)...

We woke up early on Thursday and said goodbye to our wonderful and generous host families and headed to Jerusalem. Even though we had to say bye to our new friends, we know we'll be seeing them again in the future. We all met at the bus stop at 8:30 and we were off to Jerusalem. The trip was pretty long so it was a great time for all of us tired Pittsburghers to catch some Zzzs. 


Once we arrived, we picked up our tour guide Peter for some educational and fun touring around the holy and ancient city. The first stop was the popular photo spot where you can see where the new city and the old city meet. Far to your right you can just make out Jordan, in front of you the Dome of the Rock and Hebrew University, and to your far left you can see Arab neighborhoods.

a view from the lookout.

Our whole group in Jerusalem!

Peter, our tour guide, showing us a map of the city.

After some free time in the Old City, Peter took us through a crowded market place in the Christian quarter to stand where the 4 quarters of the city meet. With a view of the Western Wall behind us, Peter taught us about the 1948 and 1967 borders and how they have changed over the years. He had informative maps to help bring his words alive. 

The Western Wall from above...

Praying at the Western Wall.

A beautiful picture of the old city...

Next Peter lead us through the security at the Kotel for us to have a few moments there as well. It's always interesting to see how much smaller the women's side is in comparison to the men's. It's a very moving experience for every Jew to place their hand on the wall, close their eyes, and have a quiet moment to themselves. 


Once we were finished at the wall, we traveled over to the offices of PresenTense Magazine. PresenTense is an international grassroots effort to inspire and enable socially-minded pioneering amongst the Jewish People. The magazine is made possible by a network of volunteers around the world. J'Burgh was lucky enough to have been featured in the magazine this past fall with quotes from participant, Beth Goldstein. You can check out the article here: http://www.presentense.org/magazine/community-pittsburgh!


It was then time to check into out Jerusalem home for the evening. Our evening was complete with free time to check out the shops and restaurants on Ben Yehuda Street. Everyone had a great time and was exhausted by the end of the day. It's still hard to believe we were done with the Karmiel portion of the trip.






Until next time...

Wednesday (Dec. 29th) in Israel…

Wednesday, our last full day in Karmiel, was definitely a good one. We started our day with a visit to Kishorit. Although Sophia described the village in detail on one of yesterday’s posts, I wanted to make sure you got to see some pictures as well. And in case you forgot, here are a few more words about this incredible and unique place…

Kishorit is a village for adult special needs people where they live and work and create lives for themselves. Out tour started off with a video about various members and their families speaking about growing up as a person who didn’t fit in or in their parent’s case, feeling lost about where their child would one day fit into the world. It then went onto describe Kishorit and all it has done for not only the people who now live there but also their families. There are various options for the people who live there to create a livelihood. Whether it be by making toys in the factory (where there are now clients all over the world) or helping out with the award winning dogs they raise or even with the goats (which Pittsburgh donated 200 of the 500 goats to). The members also have a choice when it comes to the way they want to live. They can live in an apartment by themselves, with a roommate or even a partner.

While walking around and interacting with some of the members, it is so easy to see how happy these people are at Kishorit and how revolutionary of a concept and the program really is. What a cool and amazing thing for our group to see and potentially be a part of when we return home to Pittsburgh. Many, if not all, were so touched and inspired by Kishorit that they have already begun to brainstorm ideas about how we can help and stay connected with this amazing place.

Some of the children's toys made in Kishorit.

Inside the toy factory.

Beth and Carolyn with their purchases from the toy factory gift shop!

The outside of the factory.

Um, the cutest pup ever! This is the area where they keep the dogs (some are award winning!)

Pups! (and Carolyn and Sara)

Some of the lovely goats. They were actually kind of fun :)

A member on a horse.

Once the afternoon rolled around we were sure in for quite a treat. There is a P2K bike trail that Pittsburgh had helped to build and we were lucky enough to bike on it. This wasn’t just any biking either, this was more like mountain biking. We got off to a pretty rocky (haha) start but once we got used to being back on a bike, we were off! There are many trails on the path and we tended to take the easier ones for obvious reasons. There were beautiful views of Karmiel that we often stopped to take in.

Our bikes!

The map of the P2K bike trail.

We're all ready!

We had to practice a bit before we went on the trail...

And we're off...

Once our bike riding adventure came to an end, we stopped at a lovely place in the woods for lunch. This wasn’t just any lunch either. One of the young Karmielians that hosted 2 of our group members was waiting for us with ingredients to cook our own feast. The cool thing is that he owns his own catering business so he actually knows what he’s doing! We worked as a group for well over an hour to prepare the most delicious meal ever for everyone. It was a great effort but was well worth it in the end.

Shir, Sophia and Becca choppin' away...

Cookin' away over the camp fire.

Beth and Evan peeling the peppers.

Rich and Shir!

Makin' dessert!

Nice looking pita, Hara!

The amazing looking spread...

Be careful with those knives boys...

Our evening ended with a summary meeting with all the people involved with the partnership. We opened the discussion up to the big question of what we do now and how do we continue with the amazing bonds that have now been made. Our brainstorming session was quite successful and we are all very excited about moving forward. We also HAVE to get this group of young Israeli’s from Karmiel to Pittsburgh. This is a must! After dinner and our discussion we were entertained by a very special performance by Robbie Gringras. He did a one man show (with help from his friend Adam on the guitar) about why he made Aaliyah from England and built his family here many years ago. He was very entertaining and it was a great way to end an amazing day.

Robbie and Adam performing for us!

And we’re off again! (Dec. 28th)

Tuesday was a very exciting day for the J’Burgh Israel group. It was the day we got to get a full on taste of what Karmiel has to offer as not only a great place to live but also to work. Our first stop was at a local graphic design studio where the young entrepreneur designs and prints his work for clients all over the world. He loves Karmiel and what it has to offer him and his small business. While there, a young woman spoke to us as well about her project of bringing locally grown food to the Galilee. While doing this, perhaps the Jews and Arabs could ultimately work together to provide such a common goal: food. It’s a dream of hers to have a farmer’s market in the area for people to have the option of buying locally and actually knowing exactly where their food is coming from. Our final stop on our small business tour of Karmiel was at a furniture store (with lots of fun decorating options!) that imports their merchandise from all over the Middle East. It’s now a very successful business that has made its home in Karmiel for over 8 years.

all the girls on the couch of the furniture store!

After our tour of the small businesses of Karmiel we were in for quite a treat. We headed to Hararit Community Village for a very unique concert performed at the home of Shir Sofer (whose name translates to “Song Writer”). He lives in a village where the residents are involved in meditation and he and his family live in a beautiful home overlooking Karmiel that is like nothing else we’ve ever seen. His specialties involve playing just about every musical instrument and helping to use his talents within the mediation community.

After enjoying some cookies, tea and coffee, we were invited downstairs to hear him play and sing. We were just about blown away at first when he began singing using 2 voices! He had studied with Monks to learn this skill and we sat there in awe. He also played many of his instruments from around the world. At one point, he invited us to close our eyes while he played the Tibetan Bowls. The entire experience was moving and it was so interesting to see this man do what he loves and be able to make a living from it here in the Galilee.

look at all the instruments!

Shir playing one of his many instruments.

Um, did you know you can literally play the saw? Shir showed us and you definitely can...

That's pretty much the nicest collection of gongs I've ever seen.

Before our day was over, we also visited a place where olives are harvested and made into olive oil. What was so unique about this place in particular is that it is made my Jews. We learned that 90% of Israel's olive oil production is made by the Arabs. The afternoon was left for a delicious lunch and time to spend with our host families in and around the area. Our amazing day was topped off with bowling and pizza at a local place. (This makes us very excited about J’Burgh and PSL bowling league that starts on January 10^th right after we get back!)

Lots o olive oil.

Pretty much the best picture ever of the entire group. 

Check out Justin's sweet bowling shoes.

Carolyn used the granny roll technique and managed to win somehow. 

As you can see, we are really learning about Karmiel and getting a feel for what this region is all about and exactly how Pittsburgh is connected. It’s thrilling to see all the possibilities for future connections and oh are we excited!

Our trip to Israel: How we are making an impact on the region, and the impact the region is making on our group

Here's a little guest blog spot from our very own J'Burgh Director, David Katz.

Over the course of the past few months our group has spent time learning about the city of Karmiel and the partnership that they have with Pittsburgh. While we sat in a room hearing about this partnership, it's something you can't fully understand without seeing the relationships that exist firsthand, and building your own. 


For the past 6 days our group members have been living with young adults in Karmiel. We are learning that the issues they face are very similar to those facing young Jewish adults living in the states. We have toured the regions businesses and spent time volunteering in a neighborhood that houses residents of a lower socioeconomic status. The project we have been working on was started 4 years ago during the 2006 2nd Lebanon war. The residents of this neighborhood were forced to spend long periods of time living together in bomb shelters. During this time, feuds arose between neighbors due to a lack of communication. While these residents, primarily immigrants from Russia and Ethiopia, had been living next to each other for years they had not truly created the necessary lines of communication to build a community. Following the war, the City of Karmiel, with support from the JDC, Partnership 2000, and the Jewish Agency for Israel created a new program meant to build bridges between the residents. Programs were set up for the residents to interact with each other, including a cooking club, language courses, and beautification of the neighborhood.  For me personally, this is the 3rd time I have been with a group to volunteer here.  Each time we’ve focused on painting walls, bomb shelters, and gardening.  With this current group we spent 2 full days painting. By bringing a group to the neighborhood to paint we are enhancing the quality of life for the residents and empowering them to take part in the upkeep of their surroundings. Each new section that is cleaned up continues to be cared for by the residents, as they don’t wish to see it fall back into disrepair. By painting walls outside of a housing complex, our group is not only beautifying the surrounding area, but also creating a new feeling of responsibility amongst the residents living there. This concept serves as an excellent metaphor for our trip as a whole. By painting walls in Karmiel our participants are enhancing their understanding of the Partnership 2000 program and exploring their relationship to Israel and the region. 


For the participants, this trip is not just a chance to get out of the cold winter weather in Pittsburgh. For participants, this trip is a chance to begin developing what being a community leader means to them. Each member of our group is learning invaluable leadership skills and gaining tremendous educational opportunities on the complexities of life in Israel. We’ve visited an Arab Israeli village and met with a young Arab women who lives there, learned about the politics of the Middle East from renowned scholar Neil Lazarus, and toured small industries throughout the Galilee. Tomorrow we will head to Jerusalem for an in-depth look at how this city plays into the ongoing peace process between Israel and her Palestinian neighbors. On Friday we will visit the settlement of Efrat as we continue to explore the issue of the settlements and the role they play in life here. As a whole, we have already made a tremendous impact on Karmiel, Misgav and Partnership 2000, and the State of Israel is making a tremendous impact on our group as well.  While we are halfway through our trip, we are only in the beginning stages of figuring out how we continue to grow and share our experiences here with our friends, families, and the greater J’Burgh community.  What comes next will truly measure the success of this amazing experience we are all sharing here in Israel and we can’t wait to continue sharing it with all of you as well!

our second day of volunteering (12.27)

This day started out the same way as the day before. We went over to the apartment complex in the center of Karmiel to finish up our painting. We really just had some touching up to do. It was also a beautiful afternoon (like 70 degrees!) so we were able to enjoy the sunshine as well. We were very lucky to have a group of residents come over and enjoy lunch with us!

After finishing up with painting, we headed over to a local park in Karmiel to discuss our visit thus far. We sat by a beautiful waterfall and enjoyed everyone's company in lovely Karmiel.

Shir, Justin, Rachel, Evan and Hara on the grass in the beautiful park in Karmiel.

Everyone. 

After a great little break in the park we traveled to the Karmiel Children's Village. This was so exciting for all of us because we had a special mission to complete. As blogged about before we left, 8 suitcases were filled to the brim with children's clothing and toys compliments of the Hebrew school at Rodef Shalom. A few of us stopped by to pick them up before we left for Israel. They were dispersed between us and brought so we would be able to personally give them to the children at the children's village here in Karmiel. We felt quite honored being able to personally deliver these special things to these children.

When we first arrived, we were given a tour of the village's very own pettting zoo and layout of the place. We then broke up into groups and were able to take a tour of the Mishpachtonim where these very special families live. The concept is that there are families (some still have young kids while others are just couples) who live in these houses with 12 children who are not their own. These children are still in contact with their biological families but are not able to live with them full time for various reasons. The "father" normally has a full time job while the "mother's" full time job is to take care of these children and provide them with a loving, caring and stable family unit. 

The outside of one of the Mishpachtonim.

You must have many sinks with 12 kids...

The kid's little buckets in the bathroom.

The second hand shop where the suitcases were unloaded.
You can see one of them on the left.

There's another one of the bags we brought!

Being there was quite an experience and it was an honor bringing those suitcases from Pittsburgh to Karmiel. The village was such an amazing place to visit and our J'Burgh trip participants can't wait to become more involved in it when we return back home. Possibilities are really endless. 

After leaving there, we had a free evening with our host families to enjoy the area for dinner and just hang out and get to know each other even better. One of the most exciting parts of this trip is definitely the AMAZING host families we are staying with. They have been beyond welcoming and we all feel we are walking away from this experience with an extended family here in Karmiel.