Dear Camp Micah,
We ended last week at an Orthodox community in the Lower Galilee called Hoshaya. Part of the group was hosted by very welcoming families at Hoshaya while others stayed with relatives all over Israel. The whole group came together on Sunday morning and we proceeded to hike down a cliff (with no ropes!). Jordan Barr thought it would be a good idea to throw his water bottle off the cliff; It wasn’t. Next, we went to a goat farm where we milked mamma goats and made cheese. We also made some salads with some focaccia bread. Afterward, we went to yet another British Mandate museum. Riveting!
On Monday, we went on a Bio bee tour at Kibbutz Sde Eliyahu where we fed donkeys, ate dates, and saw, like, 4 bees in a box. Charlie Goldsmith finally had his first date!( get it)Then we travelled back to Jerusalem for the final leg of our trip (tear tear). We met a rabbi who had nine toes and talked to us about becoming bnei mitzvah. He was 4 years late.
The next day we went to the most famous holocaust museum, Yad Vashem. This took us back to our days in Poland and we learned about the roots of antisemitism. On a happier note, we volunteered at Abu Gosh Children’s Home where we re-painted walls. Sam Marram had so much paint on him that he blended in! After much osmosis of Holocaust information, both in Poland and in Israel, we had the chance to reflect artistically at the Kol Ha-ot center that night.
On Wednesday morning, we went to Ammunition Hill in Jerusalem where we re-enacted the battle during the 6 day war to win back Jerusalem by playing capture the flag using underground tunnels. Jordan Barr, yet again, made a smart decision to run through a bush of thorns. He’s still bleeding. Following that we volunteered at Pantry Packers where we packed lentils and rice assembly-line style for families in need. It was practically the Industrial Revolution. That night we met a cool reform rabbi who helped us reflect on our trip and open up about our Judaism.
Thursday was a big day–we all got re-bar/bat mitzvahed at a conservative temple in Jerusalem. Erica Kleeman had her very first bat mitzvah! Most of us gave speeches about anything meaningful to us. For brunch, we returned to our Jewish roots by eating pork and cheeseburgers. Just kidding, we had bagels and lox. Soon after, we went to an archeological dig where we unearthed 3000 year old artifacts from underground caves. George Patsouris found teeth! Jordan Barr struck again by finding a full, intact plate. Then we rode camels in the desert and had a Bedouin dinner. Bedtime was early because the next day, we would wake up at 3 a.m. to make it in time for the sunrise on Masada.
Little addition: tonight at the Western Wall, we ran into NBA stars DeMarcus Cousins, Omri Caspi, Iman Shumpert, and Chandler Parsons. Some of us got autographs and selfies!
It was quite an eventful week here in Israel, and we hope the first week of second session has been as amazing as ours. It’s bittersweet to know we’ll be back at camp soon, but we’re all looking forward to seeing everyone.
See y’all soon, and Shabbat shalom!
Love, Maya Metser, Enna Spivak, Caroline Safran, and the rest of Micah in Israel 2015

 

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