Limmud is a Co-ed, experiential, 9-month study and Israel immersion program for the Southern Hemisphere. The program aims to develop 5 circles of “identity” including: Jewish, Zionist, Spiritual, Communal & Personal. Within this framework, participants spend time at Yeshiva/Midrasha, and experience Israel with a wide array of activities and educational modules, as well as a meaningful journey to Poland. Limmud culminates with a 3-month collaborative with our Mechina Olamit, together with Israelis, and participants from the Northern Hemisphere.
Shalom!
This past week on Taglit has been amazing! The chanichim had the privilege to enjoy different experiences of all sorts in one intensely packed week.
On Sunday they focused on multiculturalism. The buses drove to Haifa to see the Bahai Gardens and toured around the city. They proceeded to Usfiya where they had a traditional Druze lunch and toured around, experiencing social diversity and statehood. They ended the day in Tel Aviv where they met the group of Israeli peers joining them over the course of the week.
On Monday I got to join Bus 1. We toured around the Neighborhood of Neve Tzedek learning about the history of its residents from the old Tel Aviv to the new. We visited Rabbi Frankl’s house and the sight of the first Hakafot Shniyot that took place on Simchat Torah, The Suzanne Delal Square, and Shai Agnon’s home. We ate along with Bus 2 at the Ethiopian heritage center and restaurant Beta. We tasted the Ethiopian cuisine, experienced their culture through dance and stories they shared about the Ethiopian Jews and their trips through the desert to Jerusalem. After lunch Bus 2 got to see Neve Tzedek and Bus 1 got to choose to go on one of three tours that Bus 2 had done earlier in the day. The majority chose to go on a graffiti tour around the neighborhood of Florentine.
On Tuesday they all set out to Tel Azekah and learned about the story of David and Goliath while overlooking the actual battle ground. They then continued to Beit Guvrin where they “dug for a day” in the archeological site. They spent the night at Kfar Nokdim in Bedouin tents, singing around a campfire having a proper desert experience. They even got to take care and feed camels.
On Wednesday, they hiked through Ein Bokek and then cooled off floating around in the Dead Sea. They then drove to Jerusalem and went straight to the Kotel, and those who had never been were blindfolded and had a proper and very emotional unveiling of the Kotel.
Thursday was an emotionally packed day at Mount Herzl and Yad Vashem. They walked around Har Herzl hearing stories of soldiers who died fighting for our country, stories of those killed in terror attacks, and stories of the Ethiopians who passed during their journey to Israel. In Yad Vashem, I joined Bus 2 on their tour in Yad Vashem and their processing session. The chanichim expressed how they felt about the day they had. Some were sad and saw the sadness alongside a bright present and future, others saw beauty and took pride in the history of our nation and how far we have come. They spoke about the inspiration they took from all the names they saw that day, whether it be on a tombstone at Har Herzl, an old document in Yad Vashem, or a video-recorded testimony of a holocaust survivor.
Tomorrow we will head up to Kibbutz Ein HaNatziv and start the Kibbutz period of the program. The chanichim will get to experience first hand “the kibbutz life” by working on the kibbutz and integrating into the Ein HaNatziv community. They will have ulpan (Hebrew classes) and group dynamic activities to enforce what we put a huge emphasis on during this portion of the year - gibush, forming a group, togetherness, becoming Limmud.
On Friday they spent the day in The City of David, touring the archeological site, climbing through the tunnels and learning about the history of David and the City of Jerusalem. They then went to the shuk and got to experience the Friday atmosphere in Machane Yehudah. They spent Shabbat in Jerusalem, taking time to process the past 10 days. They discussed how they plan on taking all they’ve learned and using it to fuel themselves as individuals and as a group in the 10 months to come.
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