Day 5 - Saturday, May 12th

No one can tell you what to expect before coming on birthright. It’s not something that can be described or covered in an informative meeting. I remember walking into Hillel for the first meeting three weeks before leaving. Faces swirled around me; some recognizable, others foreign and new, but all sharing the same feelings as me I’m sure. This is something you have to live for yourself. Even as I write these words down, they stand only as symbols, as markers of more lucid experiences. I had heard testimony from friends describing birthright as something indescribable, something that you have to live for yourself.

I was skeptical of the impact that it would have. How could I just take someone’s word that this gift would have such an impact on my life? It’s like trying to explain to another person how good a piece of pizza from that place down the street is. You don’t taste that piece of pizza through the words of a friend; you taste it for yourself and then make your own opinions. Just like this simple analogy, birthright is very much a visceral and internal experience that must be lived in order to understand it.

Yesterday marked an important step in my understanding of my Jewish heritage. Having my Bar Mitzvah in Israel was a culmination of the feelings and emotions that I have had in these few short days. I stood before old friends and new friends expressing these thoughts in a way I never thought possible.

I sat in my striped hotel room chair with emancipator playing quietly on my iPod, staring into the heart of Jerusalem seeking inspiration for my speech. Remembering the silent chills and warm touch of the Western Wall I began writing down what was in my heart. I remembered this feeling before, but not like this. The afternoon glow blanketing the Holy city awoke words in my head, which quickly made their way from pen to paper.

Writing then is a lot like the moments I have experienced so far in Israel. They came without warning. I expected nothing because there was no way to know what to expect. I suppose in the most simple terms what I am trying to say is that Israel holds different meaning for each individual. For me it has been about discovering what it means to me to be Jewish as well as what it means to make decisions based upon the heart. Everything I have done here has been a shared yet individual experience filled with some of the happiest moments I can remember. I know that I will make the most of the time left here in Israel and will hold these memories being made for as long as I live.  

Sam Mikalonis, and the Bus 990 Crew

Ending the B'nai Mitzvah ceremony under the Chupah

Its not a celebration unless someones is lifted on a chair

Posing at the Mamila outdoor strip mall

Being silly outside of Migdal David

Day 4 - Friday, May 11th

Shalom Parents and Friends!

Friday morning started with an early breakfast and what we thought would be a two hour bus ride to Jerusalem. Everyone was so excite to get to the city after learning so much about Kibutz life all day long yesterday! Unfortunately, in “bus time” that is twice as long as we are usually told… So after a very, very, long bus ride we finally got into the city of Jerusalem. Our first stop was at the Tower of David in the heart of the city. We climbed to the top of the tower and heard the history of old Jerusalem versus the new side. We were all amazed by the beautiful view of the city from the top of the tower! We met up with our friends from MSU on the other Hillel bus and said the shehechiyanu prayer to welcome us to Jerusalem for the first time. It felt really good to finally be here in this holy city! After that we visited the Kotel (Western Wall). Seeing other Jewish people praying for themselves, their families, and others at the western wall and taking part in it myself was a very emotional and eye opening experience for me. I could really see how important this spot was for Jewish people all over the world for over 2,000 years. We then checked into the Rimonim Hotel in Jerusalem where we celebrated Shabbat with many other birthright groups. We stood outside to hear the traditional siren that they set off to alarm the city of Jerusalem that shabbat has begun. It was interesting because we found out that many people stand outside and wait to hear the siren and then begin their Shabbat traditions. To me this siren really shows the strong connection between all the Jewish people in Jerusalem. That evening we lit candles together said prayers, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner. During the Oneg, we learned how cute everyone was as a child, celebrated the birthdays on the trip, and tried various Israeli snacks. The first day in Jerusalem was so great, we can’t wait to relax for the rest of Shabbat and learn so much more about the history of the city!

Lyz Sandler and the rest of bus 990

A group shot at the Western Wall

Enjoying the view at Migdal David

Personal prayer at the Kotel (Western Wall)

A different perspective of the Kotel

Day 3 - Thursday, May 10th

Shalom

The second morning began with a familiar 7:30 wake up call. Leon (my Israeli roommate) woke me up by telling me, "you have quite a talent, you’re snoring was so loud my ear plugs didn't even work!" After another egg breakfast we were off to the mountain town of Zefat. We began by visiting two ancient synagogues. They were far different than any other synagogue I've ever seen, one having three arks. After the synagogues we had some free time to do a little, as the ladies like to say, SHOPPPINGGG!! I bought an Omri Casspi Maccabi Tel-Aviv jersey (which I just found out is two sizes too small). After free time we walked up a staircase comparable to the stairs from the Rocky movies. After Zefat we visited Kebutz Yifat. Half of us split up and visited Kebutz Ramat David. There we learned about the history of Israeli pioneers and saw how a functioning Kebutz works. After Yifat we were off to Kebutz Hanaton. There we did some team building exercises and talked about our goals as Jewish people. We ended our day celebrating today’s Jewish holiday, Lag B'Omer, with a falafel dinner and a bonfire. Around the bonfire we banged drums and sang and danced. It was a great day and tomorrow we are off to Jerusalem, it's going to be great! 

Make it a great day,

Matt Marks and the Bus 990 Crew

Touring the synagogues of Zefat

A little break during our synagogue tour

Enjoying a Drum Circle at Kebutz Hanaton

More Drum Circle FUN around the fire

Day 2 - Wednesday, May 9th

The first morning arrived with my Israeli roommate clapping his hands to wake us up. It was 7:35 in the morning and we had to be ready for breakfast in ten minutes. The first thing he said in his Israeli accent was, “You know you are the loudest snorer I have ever heard in my entire life!” After a breakfast of eggs and bread we boarded the bus to Tel Dan. Tel Dan is on the tip of the ‘thumb’ of Israel overlooking the Israel-Lebanon border. We hiked on a path that took us over rivers and arrived at the site of some ancient ruins from biblical times. After Tel Dan we arrived at Golan Heights. There we learned about the Israeli-Syrian Border Conflict and got to voyage into the tunnels of the bunker. We learned that if Syria decided to attack Israel again the Golan Heights would be ready with drafted soldiers in roughly 36 hours. After Golan Heights we stopped for lunch where I had a falafel pita sandwich. After lunch we had a brief stop at a memorial for those who lost their lives in some of Israel’s major wars. Then we traveled to the Jordan River where we rafted down and then zip lined into the water! After a lovely dinner we had a great group discussion about Jewish values. This place is awesome and I am absolutely exhausted back at the Kibbutz. Had I been back in East Lansing right now I would just be sitting down to lunch…it’s time for bed!!

Say hi to my mother for me,

Matt Marks & The Bus 990 Crew

Striking a pose while learning about the history of Tal Dan

Taking in the scenery at the top of Mt. Bental in the Golan Heights 

Some casual rafting down the Mighty Jordan

Mentally preparing for some Zip Lining!

Zip Lining into the Mighty Jordan

Day One:
After ten and a half teasing hours on the plane, bus 989 arrived in Tel Aviv, Israel. Following the plane ride, we made our way to Caesara for breakfast on the beach. We heard interesting stories about the reasoning behind why Israeli's were not allowed to go to the circus, and saw an amazing ancient theatre. Every Israeli celebritiy dies to perform at the theatere on the Caesarea beach. After breakfast at the beach, our tour guide, Muki, introduced us to the village and let us roam the city for lunch and shopping on our own. Recollecting at the bus, we rode to the Kibbutz to make our way into our rooms and settle in to our rooms for the next few days.We had time to relax and organize our rooms before dinner. We then did some fun orientation games in order to get to know our fellow group members and break the ice to end the night.

Day Two:
It all started with a hike. Israel's highest mountain, Mt. Meron, brought rocky and tree stump covered paths for the crew to travel across. A couple group team bonding games were played as we made our way through the heat. The views consisted of mountains on top of mountains. Even Israel's neighbor Syria could be seen from one point. Heading into the village, we went to a synagogue and experienced a sauna heat packed group of Israli's swaying flags and dancing. Next, we followed the cobblestone pathway to the glass blower. Watching her as she told her unique story of life and showed us how she makes her pomegranate glass holdings. Continuing, we made our way down several flights of stairs to work on taking trash to a dumpster from a bomb shelter. In order to do this, every person lined up where we passed the trash from person to person down to the dumpster. A nice Israli lady offered us pretzels as we jammed on the grass to some guitar. After helping out the community we went back into the village and visited a synagogue. At this point the tour guide told a historic story about a bomb hitting the temple and cracking it. Despite the bombing, luckily, no one got hurt. Next, we witnessed some candle making where one of the group members received two candles twisted together for her upcoming birthday. There was every animal imagined displayed as wax, along with Noahs arc and even the simple duck. The adventure packed day was continued with some wandering and shopping for lunch. Hopping back into the bus, we went into the beatiful and industrialized town we've been to yet, Tiberias. In Tiberias we did some shopping and caught a little dinner before ending our night.

Day 1 - Tuesday, May 8th

Greetings from Israel Parents:

After two long flights and spending over a day traveling we are all safe and sound at the kibbutz. On our way from the airport to the kibbutz we stopped at an Aqueduct and it was truly amazing. This was our first stop on the trip and right away we all felt at home. Tonight we are all very exhausted but incredibly excited about kayaking in the Jordan River tomorrow. We are all getting along famously and can’t wait to get the trip under way. Felix and Sam are great trip leaders and we couldn’t be happier, and tired. We can’t wait to tell you about our day tomorrow but for now we need some sleep. Miss you all.

Best,

Marc & The Bus 990 crew.  

A warm welcome to the Holy Land

Touring the Aqueducts of Cizaria 

Getting a crash course on the biblical history of Israel

East Lansing to New Orleans with TEVA

I recently traveled back from an Alternative Spring Break trip to New Orleans, Louisiana. We drove 17 hours down south in a car full of people I did not really know. I was equal parts nervous and excited, not knowing what to expect. Little did I know this was going to be an experience of a lifetime. As a dietetics major, I was ecstatic to work where our food comes from and integrate what I learned into my daily life. The first day of volunteering, we worked on an urban farm called Hollygrove Market. Not only did I enjoy the experience weeding, composting and gardening, but I learned so much to bring back and share. I learned about sustainability on a much deeper level and desired to practice what volunteering taught me. I plan to implement these concepts into my daily life. Not only did I learn about food at the garden, but the church we stayed at had wonderful chefs who prepared us gourmet meals using vegetables from Hollygrove Market. The chefs made us homemade Jambalaya the first night. I had never tasted anything like this! It was very awakening to see that they too were implementing composting and the use of fresh vegetables into their meals for everyone staying with us. The second day of work was a little more challenging. We volunteered at ARNO (Animal Rescue New Orleans). As an animal lover, I knew this was going to be difficult because I would want to adopt all the cute animals. At ARNO, they maintained a great environment for the animals, keeping them safe, healthy and clean. We sanitized the cages, food and water bowls and walked and played with the dogs. I saw how much work really goes into keeping the animals well nourished and happy. It was very sad to see how afraid of people some of the animals were. I’m used to seeing little kids run away from big dogs, but at ARNO it was the other way around. As we finished up there, we ran to the French Quarters of New Orleans and explored the city. This was my first time in NOLA and there was so much to see! From beignets, to magicians on the street, to live music everywhere, to the southern culture: the city was bumping! It was very cool to see all the love everyone had for this city. I too felt the love that night when we got to see the Grammy-winning band, Rebirth live. The brassy band lifted everyone’s spirits and helped us all connect to something important to New Orleans and ourselves- music. Music helped us introduce ourselves from the car ride on. We all learned a little from each other by our eclectic music libraries. Thanks to our friend Tony from the Magellan Community Garden, we also got to see George Clinton live at the House of Blues. This whole trip was an unbelievable experience with amazing people who were full of an undefined energy. We are all so fortunate to have been able to connect and relate so well to each other. This was my first spring break out of town in college and I look forward to experiencing new adventures for years to come. 

~Shayna Danto