PRELIMINARY ITINERARY
DAY ONE: Sunday, January 25, 2009
DEPART THE U.S.A.
Overnight: Flight
DAY TWO: Monday, January 26, 2009 ARRIVAL
5:10 PM
Arrive at Ben Gurion International Airport.
For group flight: welcome and assistance with arrival formalities and transfer to Jerusalem and check in
2:00-6:00 PM
For independent travelers, check into the hotel.
6:00-7:30 PM
For early arrivers, optional walking tour into Jerusalem. Guided walk through the streets of Jerusalem using the writings of Jerusalem's poet laureate, Yehuda Amichai.
8:00 PM
Festive welcome dinner with JCC Association leadership, (at hotel)
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY THREE: Tuesday, January 27, 2009
THE ISRAEL DIASPORA PARTNERSHIP
Breakfast at the hotel.
8:15 AM
"Sustaining our Ties": A Dialogue with Zeev Bielski, chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, (at hotel).
Depart for the Mandel Leadership Institute.
"The Israel Community Center Association and Jewish Community Centers Association: Building Jewish Community in Israel and North America", with Avinoam Armoni, chairman of the Israel Community Center Association, (at Mandel Leadership Institute).
"Creating the Parameters" with the faculty of the Mandel Institute.
12:00 PM
Depart in groups for visits to Matnasim (Community Centers) to meet with directors, volunteers, and staff, with lunch.
6:00 PM
Dinner on your own and free evening.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY FOUR: Wednesday, January 28, 2009 A VISION FOR ISRAEL
Breakfast at the hotel.
8:15 AM
Depart in groups for parallel track options
Track I - Social Awareness and Development
Possible facilitator:
Nava Barak, chair of Elem; Ronit Heyd of Shatil etc.
Possibilities include:
- Maagalei Zedek (Tav Hevrati - a non for profit that awards a Social Justice Seal to restaurants treating staff justly, and campaign for handicap access
- Elem (non-profit organization for youth in distress)
- Working with foreign workers and refugees in Israel
Track II - Education - Unique Projects in Cooperation
Possible facilitator:
Nir Barkat, philanthropist and Jerusalem City Councilman ; Alice Shalvi, former principal of Pelech and founder of Israel Women's Network etc.)
Possibilities include :
-visit to Keshet School, a unique school in the Israeli education system for orthodox and secular pupils who learn together on equal footing, and meet with staff, parents, and pupils.
-visit the Max Rayne School in Jerusalem, known as Jerusalem's bi-lingual school for Jewish and Arab children, jointly administered by two principals, one Jewish and one Arab, and all classes are taught by both a Jewish and an Arab teacher.
Track III - Hi Tech
Possible facilitator:
John Medved, venture capitalist or Erel Margalit
Possibilities include :
-visit to Malha Hi Tech Park or Har Hotzvim Hi Tech Park or to Hebrew University to meet with researchers or industrialists involved in cutting edge developments in hi tech or science.
Track IV - Israeli Culture
Possible facilitators:
Yosef Sider, film director; Orna Silberman, teacher and art specialist
Possibilities include :
-Visit to Ma'ale School of Television, Film and the Arts to meet with staff and students whose art is inspired by their link to their Jewish heritage, and promotes discussion of Jewish issues in the media and works to bridge the gap between the religious and secular worlds in Israeli society.
-Visit to Beztalel Academy of Art and Design Jerusalem, founded 100 years since ago, and is recognized as Israel's leading arts program working in a wide variety of the arts ranging from crafts, such as the design of ceramics, glass, accessories and jewelry, which preserve ancient techniques together with state of the art techniques as well as plastic art.
-Visit with independent artists or Judaic specialists
12:00 PM
Entire Group meets up
Lunch followed by "Contemporary Israel and the Written Word," with Gadi Taub, author and historian and one of Israel's young thinkers and visionaries.
2:30 PM
Track Options - Depart in groups
Track I - Yad Vashem
A guided visit through the newly renovated Yad Vashem complex, the historical museum is a memorial to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, including the Children's Memorial and concluding Memorial Service.
Track II - Exploring the Bible: City of David
Using biblical texts, relive the stories of Abraham and Malkizedek, David and Batsheva, King Solomon and others, while exploring one of the most exciting biblical sites in Israel today, followed by a guided visit to the Davidson Archaeological Park - Southern Wall Excavations.
Track III - An Interfaith Journey through the Old City
Including dialogues with Jewish, Christian and Muslim clerics and a behind the scenes walk through the Old City alleyways.
Track IV - Israeli Arts and Culture
Delve into the world of Israeli Arts and Culture while meeting with an artist and exploring the private collections of Israeli art at the Israel Museum.
Entire Group
6:30-8:00 PM
JCC Association Reception with Israeli guests
8:15 PM
Free time and dinner on your own.
9:30 PM
Optional Kotel (Rabbinic) tunnels tour
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY FIVE: Thursday, January 29, 2009
THE NEGEV
Breakfast at the hotel.
8:15 AM
Depart for the south, "The Security Situation in Southern Israel: A Kaleidoscope of Challenges," a program relating to Israel's relationship to Egypt and the Palestinians.
Lunch
"Israel's Bedouins," meet with representatives of the Bedouin population to discuss some of the issues facing the Bedouin community in the Negev and some of the new and revolutionary initiatives that have been undertaken by some of the Bedouin women.
"Zionism and Pioneering in 2009," meet with members of Project Ayalim in the Negev, students who have chosen to settle in the periphery of the country, (the Negev and the Galilee), and volunteer in social welfare and justice programs while completing their university studies.
7:00 PM
Nighttime event in the Negev Wilderness , includes dinner .
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY SIX: Friday, January 30, 2009
SPIRITUALITY AND SHABBAT
Breakfast at the hotel - late wake up
10:00 AM
"My Shabbat," parallel small group encounters with Israelis who have their celebration of Shabbat in common, but do so in different ways.
12:00 PM
Lunch on your own and free time to shop, relax and prepare for Shabbat.
3:00 PM
Pre Kabbala t Shabbat program at the Davidson Archeological Park in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City.
Optional Shabbat services at local synagogues.
7:30 PM
Shabbat dinner at the hotel.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY SEVEN: Shabbat, January 31, 2009
SHABBAT IN JERUSALEM
Breakfast at the hotel.
Optional:
Shabbat morning services at local synagogues; or
Tower of David and Jaffa Gate tour; or
Shaarei Hesed and Saker Park tour; or
Haneviim and Meah Shearim tour; or
morning on your own.
11:30 AM
Shabbat Kiddush (at hotel)
Shabbat walk through hidden alleyways to Mt. Zion, including the Temple Mount Overlook and King David's Tomb.
4:00 PM
" Vision that Celebrates our Diversity", a conversation with Donniel Hartman, (at hotel).
Havdallah
Dinner on your own.
Cultural event in Jerusalem.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY EIGHT: Sunday, February 1, 2009
VISION AND POLITICS
Breakfast at the hotel.
8:30 AM
When a Vision and Reality Meet: Dialogue with David Horovitz, and Editor of the Jerusalem Post, (at hotel).
10:00 AM
"The Geopolitics of Jerusalem," guided drive through the city of Jerusalem exploring some of the political and diplomatic complexities of recent years, including Har Homa, Gilo, and the new "Security Fence" in the Jerusalem area.
Tel Aviv Celebrates 100 years
12:00 PM
Drive to Tel Aviv.
Lunch on your own.
2:30 PM
Depart in parallel groups.
Track I - The White City
Tel Aviv's Bauhaus UNESCO Heritage area
Track II - From the Footsteps of the Pioneers to the Footsteps of Yitzhak Rabin
A guided walking tour of Neve Zedek and the newer Tel Aviv neighborhoods.
Track III - Tel Aviv Celebrates 100
Track IV - Ethnicity and the Marketplace (Markets)
A walking tour through some of the different food and clothing markets in the city to explore the colorful mosaic of personalities and produce in the city.
5:00 PM
Free time
6:30 PM
Wrap up discussion followed by farewell dinner in Tel Aviv.
Return to Jerusalem or on individual midnight flights to the USA.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
DAY EIGHT: Monday, February 2, 2009 DEPARTURE
Breakfast at the hotel.
7:00 AM
Depart for Ben Gurion International Airport.
10:40 AM
Departure on flight to the USA arriving the same day.
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