Day 1 of community week: water hike, pizza and meeting youth from Kiryat Shmona

Contributed by Ilan Vitemberg (chaperone/substitute educator)

Today was the first Community Week day.  It was a rich, full, and at times, challenging day. We started the day at the Dado Overlook above Metula.  At this point you are standing at the very tip of Etzba Hagalil ("The Finger of the Galilee" Israel's most Northern point.)  You can almost touch the Lebanese border from three different sides. 

The San Francisco contingent of the leadership team (which was comprised of Aaron, Ilana and Lauren) started the day with a circle in which each fellow talked about the first night at home hospitality.  It looked like everyone was really pleased and excited.  We learned that few of the teens ended up meeting, by chance, at a Frozen Yogurt place (with their hosts, of course) on the first night. Northern Israel is a small place...

After a few introductory games, we proceeded to a walk in the Hazbanni river.  A few teens chose to dip in the water and splash around. Lunch was shnitzel, couscous and vegetables and then a text study (led by myslef and Idan, the Israeli coordinator) about what it means to be a host, and what it means to be a guest.  It was 2 o'clock in the afternoon, after lunch, so I incorporated some movements/fun activities to bring up the post-food energy. The fellows were very tired but still dug deep and participated in a meaningful discussion.  

We then walked to "Hafuch Al Hafuch" - a center for youth at risk in Kiriat Shmona. Even though it was hot, and the teens were tired from a long day, they were very engaged and asked a lot of questions of the folks who work at the center.  The leadership team prepared pizza dough and the teens played games with the youth at the place, and prepared delicious pizzas in the oven in the yard as well.  We concluded today with a "Maagal Laila" in which we debriefed the day and established personal and communal goals for ourselves as individuals and as a group.  

Not everything went perfectly smoothly: because of the excitement and the energy of the first day, it was challenging for the leaders of the day to maintain quiet and to facilitate their meetings.  However, this served as a great opportunity for growth. The teens came up with very specific steps to improve their activities (including a communal "Lets Get Quiet" code that they taught the Israelis).  I'm looking forward to see how they implement it tomorrow.  

2 for 1: The Shabbat blog (written after Shabbat) and The Beginning of Community week

Contributed by Maya Cardenas-Berkowitz - July 9th (no pictures for this post out of respect for Shabbat custom)

There was Orthodox prayer service in the early morning open to everyone who wished to participate. Our first full day at Kennes began with an extensive kosher breakfast catering to the diversity within each of the thirteen communities and encouraging cultural exchange. We checked in with our San Francisco Cohort and were presented with six Shabbat Morning Experiences - Traditional Minyan, G-d Talk, Yoga, Reform Service, Biblio-Drama, and Nature. Many challenged themselves in their choice by selecting an option that was new to them* and others connected deeply to what they already enjoyed. With our color groups, a mix of fellows from each international cohort, we participated in Shnayim Ochazin (text study) and studied Parshat Korach. The coordinator posed challenging questions on dictatorship, the qualities of a leader, and majoritarian rule. We discussed the biblical significance of actions as well as the contemporary interpretations. By lunchtime, we had made friends and continued to mingle with other Dillers. We gathered for our Shabbat walk to the Old City of Jerusalem. Our first stop was overlooking the entire city where our new tour guide, Ori, introduced us to the history of Israel and the present-day Israel-Palestine conflict. For our third meal, we had a light snack picnic-style in the park, Gan ha’Pa'amon. We visited the neighborhood of Yemin Moshe, named for the famous architecture who built outside the gates of the Old City and sit alongside the former boundary with Jordan. The reality in the Old City greatly contrasted with the progressive movement, Women of the Wall, which we had been acquainted with the previous day. At the Kotel, men and women prayed in segregated sections and some placed notes within the wall. We went on to see the remains of the Temple and the new co-ed portion of the wall, which derives from a compromise between Israel and the women who fought for it to be egalitarian. As the end of Shabbat fell upon us, we greeted the new week with Havdalah rituals such lighting the candle and snuffing it in the grape juice - it was a marvelous sizzle. In Diller style, we wished each other well, danced with great ruach, and 'rode the pony.’ After taking photos and inhaling the beauty of the Wall, we treaded on to Ben Yahuda Street to visit with family and friends and share the company of other Dillers. There was an abundance of souvenirs and delicious food. The long night came to an end and we were back to Kibbutz Ramat Rachel. *singular to be gender inclusive

Contributed by Gavi Emunah - July 11th

      An early morning breakfast greeted us at Ramat Rachel Hotel, and with only 5 hours of sleep under our belts, we all took a final survey reflecting on our experiences at Kennes. We packed all of our baggage into a bus, and departed for Mount Herzl. About 5 minutes later we stepped off the bus and a wave of heat assaulted our faces. We then continued into a nice air conditioned building and spent the next hour or so experiencing a multimedia multi-directional tour of Herzl's life. After a quick stop for icecafe, we were introduced to our Israeli-British tour guide that walked us through Mount Herzl, switching seamlessly between jokes and history lessons. 

After the tour, a footsore group of fellows then boarded the bus again, and we continued on to a desert team building program. From 1:00 - 4:00 pm we jumped from a couple activities; we herded goats and sheep, we played a question game, and tried to build arches with random piles of stones. Needless to say, Yonim and I thrived as shepherds. 

Everyone was thrilled to be reunited with our Israeli brothers and sisters, but physical needs had to be met, but after a quick bathroom and snack break, we were back on the road, making our way north mile by beautiful mile. Finally the bus stopped in Kiriyat Shmonah, and we were blissfully reunited with our Israeli partners. 

After a lovely welcoming ceremony, very similar to when they came to SF, we split ways, for now. 

Sunday in Israel - the last day of Kennes

Contributed by Oksana Chubrikova

We started our day with an activity called Journey of a People, where we learned about the Jewish Diaspora and how our Jewish identity is shaped by it.

Then we departed for our bus tours that taught us about our communal identity and different aspects of Israeli society. The bus I went on focused on the similarities and differences of different religions in Jerusalem and we learned about the meaning of a holy place that is shared by all of these religions.

After dinner we reviewed the ways we "just jewed it" during Kennes in our closing ceremony.

Then, we had an exciting Jewish communities festival filled with music, dancing, and a variety of stations from the different Diller communities. We split off into local cohorts and ended with meaningful ma'agalei laila (closing circles).

Overall, Kennes was an empowering experience that allowed us to make connections with Jewish teens from all over the world and understand the impact of the Jewish Diaspora and our personal Jewish identities in this world.

Extra:
Sofia Friedman shared the following photos and reflection from her bus tour:

"I went on "On the Seam." We went to the West Bank and met with the IDF ex Colonel who was in charge of designing and building the security fence, then went to the concrete wall section, visited Rachel's Tomb, and then met with someone who opposed the walls construction"

Ascent from the Desert - Day 3 in Israel

Contributed by Ilana Basman

This day in Israel started out much like the past two. We got up bright and early to eat breakfast at a Kibbutz in the Negev (Sde Boker). From there, we took off on our way to Jerusalem and Kennes: the big conference where Dillers from outside of Israel meet for the first time, all together! 

But on the way, we halted to a stop not knowing what was going on. We soon discovered that our bus got a flat tire. But that wouldn't get in the way of our Kennes experience. After getting a new bus, we then continued to Jerusalem and stopped to meet with a representative of the organization, Women of the Wall. 

They spoke to us about their mission and how their organization came about. We learned about the rules at the Western Wall and why women and men don't pray together. After a thoughtful discussion we made our way to Kennes. 

Once at Kennes we finally had falafel for lunch and met different Diller fellows from all over the world. We had opening ceremonies and got to meet all the amazing people who organize all the Diller events. Afterwards, we split into our color groups with two fellows from each cohort. We played some ice breaker games and got to know different fellows. We then continued with Shabbat, dressing up in white, and choosing a style of service we wanted to participate in. Afterwards we had an amazing shabbat dinner and continued onto ma'agal layla! We closed out the night with an oneg shabbat and went to bed. Layla tov!

Apparently after they showered (or not?), and were ready for the White Parade

The Ladies and White + Phil: our Alumni Intern/Bringer of Chill

Vicki, Sophia, Sofia and Ilana all welcome Shabbat

Brothers in Arms

A closer look at the desert - day 2 of the ISS

Contributed by Jonathan Altman

Our day started with short drive to Ein Ovdat natural reserve. We started to hike, until we made it a nice shady tree where our guide taught us about how animals survive the desert. 

We continued on until we reached a waterfall where we took some nice pics. We finished our hike with a steep uphill to a cave and a lookout where the bus was.




We then went to the Hashanti Desert House, a home that helps at risk youth get a second chance. The impressive facilities showed how much the program invests in helping these kids mature and succeed. We then drove to a new lookout point for lunch.

After lunch we went to Adama dance studio where we did a series of dances and trust exercises as a group. 

We proceeded to go to a final lookout point where we would go repelling. After an explanation of desert geology from our guide, we were strapped in and one by one we repelled down a 10 meter cliff. It was quite exhilarating.

We returned to Sde Boker for dinner and a daily closing circle.

Cohort 19's first full day in Israel

Contributed by Noam Tadelis

On our first day in Israel, we woke up and had a lovely breakfast in the Avia hotel in Tel Aviv. We then got on our bus, met our first tour guide, Ilan, and our medic, Shai, and drove to visit Ben Gurion's tomb. There we talked about his life and his accomplishments, as well as some history of Israel. 

From there we went to Cafe Ringelblum, a cafe that helps at-risk teens in their neighborhood to learn gainful employment skills. We talked to a social worker over our meal and had a very informative time. 

After the cafe we had free time at the Beer Sheva mall, enjoying some of our first ice cafes in Aroma. Driving to a Bedouin village, we then got a talk by Mariam, owner of Daughter of the Desert (a cream and oil cosmetics company). She told us her inspirational story and we learned a lot from her. 

Wrapping up the day we went to our hostel in Sde Boker, had dinner with the Pittsburgh cohort, and spent our first Israeli Maagal Laila in Israel!

SF Dillers - an update from the road....er, air!?

Bonjour! We have arrived in Paris after our 10 hour flight! Everything has run pretty seamlessly (baruch hashem!) Goodbyes were bittersweet--we are going to miss all our families very much but so excited for what's to come in the land of milk and honey! Gabi lead us in SF alongside Elana making sure we have a smooth flight and airport experience. With our tzedakah folded into airplanes and our prayers, we were off into security--which was a breeze by the way; no long lines...surprising, right?? After having some down time buying our favorite American goods for the daunting flight ahead, we counted off and boarded our double decker plane. A lot of us were freaking out wanting to go on the 2nd level, however, our prestigious Diller statuses didn't warrant us that privilege. However our disappointment for exploring the unknown upstairs quickly faded once we were seated in the far, far, far back of the plane. Basically had the own section to ourselves. I had the privilege of sitting in the very last row of the entire plane (talk about VIP!) What an experience that was... hearing the toilet flush every 3 minutes was music to my ears. 

Some of us slept for the entirety of our 10 hour journey (Sofia Friedman and Sophia Felson), others did yoga poses/stretches up and down the aisles (Gabi Finestone), others even kicked people out of their seats to take over the entire row to sleep (May'aan Epstein), and finally others read their summer reading...John Steinbeck thank you for keeping us entertained! Some of us were actually having so much fun we actually got shushed (at least we think) by the flight attendant. It was all in French and what we gathered from her expressive hand gestures and tone of voice was to keep it down (but who really knows). Now I am currently sitting in the Charles De Gaulle airport; 1 laudereé macaroon, 1 baguette, and 1 almost rip off of a currency exchange later, watching Yonim sleep barefoot on the floor, Jonathan also doing this same except he's wearing shoes, Aaron and Matthew playing PS4, and finally Sofia and Gabi (once again) doing yoga. Our 5 hours here in Paris are ticking away slowly, slowly---slowly. For the most part, it does not seem as if it's 6:14am(SF time) being up since we landed at 1:15am. We should be boarding in an hour so for our relatively short flight to the holy land! 

Au Voua (i'm not sure how to spell that) + Shalom!

We love you and miss you all so so much! (

More photos to come! :)

xo, 

Sydney Soofer

           +

Diller Cohort 19

PS. Mom and Dad-- don't worry I haven't lost my passport yet :)