My Birthright Israel Trip
At the age of 19 during my winter break I participated in the program Birthright. Birthright is a program that anyone who is Jewish, between the ages of 18-32, and has never been to Israel can go on a 10-day free trip. The 10-day trip is entirely organized by Birthright and includes airfare, lodging, meals, transportation, and a tour guide.
I applied for the specific Birthright group that my college along with three other colleges in the area had reserved spots in. There were 40 spots on the trip, and once everyone from the four schools had signed up the remaining spots were filled with other students from the New York City area.
I arrived Monday morning January 6th at the Newark Airport in New Jersey. I met up with the chaperones, whom I already knew, because they both worked with the Jewish Clubs at my school and the three other schools. I didn’t know anyone going on the trip, but most people were in the same situation as me, so it was easy to quickly meet people. After going through lots of security we finally departed for Israel at 1:15 pm.
We arrive in Israel the next day at 6:50 am in Israel time. Even though we were all extremely jet lagged and had barely slept, we had no time to rest. Our Israel tour guide, Mark, met us immediately at the airport and we started the day. We visited several scenic sites including a view of Haifa and the Galilee where we took lots of pictures and learned about Israel. We didn’t check in to the hotel until dinner time.
The next day we were up bright and early again. I got to experience my first Israeli breakfast, which consisted of a fresh cheese platter, fresh vegetables, eggs, toast, and lots of sweet pastries. I soon learned in Israel that at every meal there had a cheese platter and fresh vegetables. They also had lots of sweet pastries and even cake at breakfast. We left the hotel around 8 am and headed off to the Golan and the Golan Heights. Later in the afternoon, we stopped by an Israel Olive plantation where we got to sample some amazing Olive Oils and Olive skin products. The night ended with us visiting the hot springs, which was a huge hot tub made out of natural water.
On Thursday we traveled to Haifa, which is an old ancient city filled with history. We visited a mikveh, which is a place where Jewish women go after their period and are cleansed. It is also used for conversions. It is another way of connecting to god. The mikveh we visited was in a beautiful building. It was interesting learning about this practice of Judaism that I had never heard of.
Afterwards, we had some time to walk around Haifa. It was here that I tried my first falafel in Israel. Falafel is extremely popular in Israel and also delicious. It usually either comes in pita bread or a wrap and you can add a bunch of different vegetables and sauces to it.
We didn’t get to stay in Haifa long though, because soon after we had to leave for Jerusalem. We arrived at the hotel in Jerusalem, had dinner, and got ready for a night out. The next day in Jerusalem was also another very exciting day. After we enjoyed breakfast, we met a group of 8 Israeli soldiers, who would be joining us for the next few days.
Our first stop in Jerusalem was the Western Wall. The Western Wall is where Jews connect with G-d. The wall itself is huge and you can feel the power of it. There were lots of people praying there and also crying. It is one of the Jews’ closest places to G-D. I put my sister’s note she had written to G-d on the wall along with mine. There were lots of notes shoved in the wall from years and years ago. It was amazing how they were all there. Many people on the trip with me got emotional during this visit. I didn’t start crying but I felt the connection of the wall to G-d and the power of it.
The next stop along our trip was the marketplace, where we would experience everyone doing last-minute shopping before it closed at 3 pm for Shabbat. The marketplace was very crowded and had lots of fresh vegetables, pastries, and breads. We then went back to the hotel where we got ready for Shabbat. Our bus driver left for the weekend to go home to be with his family for Shabbat. Once everyone was ready we walked from our hotel back to the Western Wall. There we experienced lots of Jewish dancing and singing to bring in Shabbat. There were a bunch of other Birthright groups there too. We all joined in with the singing and dancing and it was lots of fun.
As we were walking back from Jerusalem to our hotel it was amazing to see how empty the streets were because nobody is allowed to drive on Shabbat. This is something you would only see in Israel.
The next day, we finally were able to sleep in. Everything was still closed because Shabbat doesn’t end until Saturday night so we stayed at the hotel and enjoyed a guest speaker who talked to us about the political situation today in Israel. We then concluded Shabbat and walked to another shopping area in Jerusalem.
On Sunday we walked to the Holocaust Museum. I had learned about the Holocaust a lot at Hebrew School and from a class, I took in High School. The Holocaust Museum was full of artifacts and our museum guide was very informative. I learned a lot more about the Holocaust and our museum guide told some great stories. There is also this room that is all dark and as you walk through it you hear the voices of different people from the holocaust. It made me feel really connected to the holocaust and sad at the same time.
Our bus drive finally joined us again Sunday afternoon and took us to the Negev where we stayed at a nature education school. The rooms we stayed in were designed like camp cabins. We all made sure to go to sleep early that night because the next day we had to wake up at 5 am to hike the Masada to see the sunrise. The hike was only a few miles, so I thought it wouldn’t be bad, but it was all stairs, making it more difficult. Once I made it to the top though, getting to see the beautiful view and the sunrise made it worth it.
The adventure didn’t end though because once we hiked back down the mountain and we headed to the Dead Sea. I had been looking forward to visiting the Dead Sea the whole trip, so I was extremely excited, but also a little nervous. The Dead Sea is one of the greatest natural wonders of the world and is only in Israel. The sea is so full of salt that everyone floats in it. It is impossible to sink.
When we got there I walked into the sea slowly because I was a little nervous, but once I got deep enough I laid back and was suddenly floating. It was one of the strangest feelings, but also felt extremely nice. It felt like you were on a floating tube but instead on water.
After we all got dressed and dried off we left for the Bedouin Tent. The Bedouin’s live in tents all year long and cook all their own food. As soon as we got settled into a tent with mattresses that we would be sleeping on, we went to experience a Bedouin dinner. We sat on cushions on the floor and in group of fours around a table. The food consisted of flatbreads with rice and chicken and a bunch of sauces. The food was delicious and there was lots of it.
This was the last night the Israeli soldiers would be with us so they planned a special game for us. The game involved a bunch of silly tasks and we were in two teams competing against each other. The game wasn’t super competitive, but it was super fun and silly. Afterward, we went outside and enjoyed singing Jewish songs around the campfire.
The next morning we got to ride camels in the desert. I was also super excited for this. Each camel had two saddles, one between each hump. I got on the camel with another girl from the trip, but we each had to make sure that we got on at the exact same time. All the camels were attached to the same rope and the guy who lead the camels grabbed the rope at the beginning and lead them through the dessert while we were on them. It was a nice ride, but the camels were pretty slow.
We then headed back to Jerusalem to go to the MEGA event. The MEGA event was an event where all the programs to visit Israel got together. There were Jews from all over the world including Argentina, Brazil, and Canada. When we first got there we had time to mingle and visit a bunch of different tables to learn about other programs in Israel. The tables had a variety of programs available in Israel including studying abroad, internships, jobs, and volunteering. I learned about a lot of future opportunities.
We then all went into the theater where we heard the prime minister of Israel speak and heard a bunch of different Israeli artists. There was lots of music and dancing. There was a great after-party too that had even more music and dancing. It was great seeing so many Jews from all over the world all having fun together. That same night we headed to Tel Aviv.
On our last day in Israel, we got to explore the city of Tel Aviv, which is one of the major cities in Israel. We first visited the Independence Hall where we learned of the declaration of Israel. We then visited the Tel Aviv marketplace and had some time to look around. When we returned to the hotel we had a closing dinner and closing ceremony reflecting on the trip. Of course, since we were in Tel Aviv, which is known for having great clubs and bars, we had to go out one last time. So after we wrapped up the trip we all got dressed and headed out one last time.
The next day we had to wake up at 5 am to take a bus to the airport. We said our goodbyes to those few who were staying in Israel a few more days, and we were secretly jealous of them. We then tiredly and reluctantly got on the bus. Participating in the program Birthright and getting to travel to Israel was an amazing experience. I got to meet an awesome group of new friends and also embrace my heritage.
