10-Day Journey through and the With Rabbi Ariel Edery and Beth Shalom of Cary, NC June 30-July 9, 2017

Whether this is your first or tenth visit, take a fresh look at an ancient land with this groundbreaking tour of Israel and the West Bank. With a unique approach that accesses contemporary issues through personal storytelling and relationship-building, the tour features a diverse array of guides and speakers—Israeli and Palestinian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim, conservative, moderate and progressive. Enjoy the lively cosmopolitan seaside of Tel Aviv, discover quaint towns that dot the hillsides of the Galilee, see firsthand villages and settlements in the West Bank, and connect with the sacred sites of Jerusalem. With time for discussion, fun, and exploration on your own, join us for this once-in-a-lifetime journey that will investigate the complexity of the region, embrace agents of change working for peace, and celebrate the hospitality and vibrant cultures of the local communities.

Day 1, Friday, June 30, 2017: Arrive • Arrive at Ben Gurion airport on a group flight. Meet your guide and ascend to Jerusalem. • Be welcomed to the Holy City from the spectacular vantage point of the Haas Promenade, also known as the Tayelet. • Check into the hotel and freshen up for Shabbat. • Have an early pre-services dinner at the hotel. • Attend a liberal egalitarian Shabbat service. • Get some much-needed sleep. Hotel: Jerusalem [D]

Day 2, Saturday, July 1, 2017: Masada and the Dead Sea • Head south to Masada, Herod’s mountaintop fortress with its breathtaking views of the Judean Desert and the Dead Sea. • Then take a dip in the mineral-rich waters of the Dead Sea—the lowest point on earth. • Upon returning to Jerusalem and having the chance to freshen up, check out the art on the shuttered gates of the Machane Yehuda Shuk. Artists have spray-painted dozens of shutters with bold depictions of fanciful animals, biblical scenes and portraits of pioneering personalities of the past. • Have dinner together at Machaneyehuda. Hotel: Jerusalem [B, D]

Day 3, Sunday, July 2, 2017: Jerusalem’s Old City - Holy Sites of Jews, Muslims, and Christians • Ascend to the Temple Mount/Al-Haram al-Sharif and tour the precinct. • Then visit the Davidson Center Jerusalem Archaeological Park and see their Virtual Reconstruction Model. • Continue to the Kotel (Western Wall) plaza and learn about the current state of affairs to create an egalitarian section. • Head into the hidden strata of the Western Wall (revealed through underground tunnels), which tell the story of ancient Jerusalem and of generations of longing for it. • Learn about the Christian “Stations of the Cross” along the Via Dolorosa and visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, identified as the place of both the crucifixion and the tomb of Jesus. • Weave through the shops and alleyways of the Arab shuk (market) in the Old City, where you can practice your haggling skills. Hotel: Jerusalem [B]

Day 4, Monday, July 3, 2017: Trauma, Loss, and National Identity • Pay a sobering visit to Yad Vashem, the Israeli Holocaust Museum. • Lunch on your own in Ein Karem. • Tour the “City of David” with an archaeologist. Our guide will present the historical meaning of the archaeological finds in this area, and also explain how these ancient ruins are seen with different eyes by different groups of Israelis, and also how this impacts the current Arab population in the city." • Return to the hotel to hear from two representatives the Parents Circle-Families Forum, an organization of bereaved Israelis and Palestinians who have lost loved ones to the conflict and who have come together to work for peace. Hotel: Jerusalem [B]

Day 5, Tuesday, July 4, 2017: , Hebron, and - Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank • One of the most unique parts of our tour: We will visit the sites that are at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, guided by both our group's Israeli guide and an additional Palestinian guide working jointly, so we get a dual narrative to better understand what life is like in the West Bank/Judea-Samaria. • Entering Bethlehem from Jerusalem, encounter the Separation Barrier from both sides. • Meet and hear from Jewish settlers, and from local Palestinians, and IDF soldiers in Hebron. • Visit the ancient burial site of the biblical Patriarchs and Matriarchs. • On our way back to Jerusalem, stop at the Tent of Nations to meet inspiring peacemakers and their work to build bridges between different peoples, and their connections to this land. • Optional: Spend the evening at the Israel Museum (entrance fee and return taxi at your own expense.) Hotel: Jerusalem [B, L]

Day 6, Wednesday, July 5, 2017: IDF Base and Akko • Check out and depart Jerusalem. • Spend the morning on touring an IDF base and having an open dialogue with soldiers. • Continue north to the Old City of Akko (Acre), a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There tour the ancient seaport’s walls and the Templar Tunnel running under the citadel, as well as the www.mejditours.com 2 Jezzar Pasha Mosque, built over former Muslim and Christian prayer houses by Akko’s Ottoman governor in the late 18th century. • Meet Mohammed Fahili, Director of the Sir Charles Clore Jewish-Arab Center in Akko. • End the day in Haifa. • Have a group dinner at Elkheir Druze Cuisine Restaurant. Hotel: Haifa [B, D]

Day 7, Thursday, July 6, 2017: Haifa and Caesarea • Start with a visit the Baha’i Gardens to learn about the Baha’i faith. • Experience the authentic atmosphere and culture of the Israeli Arab fishermen's village of Jisr az Zarqa including a home-cooked lunch in the village. • Through a young leaders project in Jisr az Zarqa, local youth have learned English and trained as guides. These young people will share insights from their life experience, culture, and community’s history (including its link to Baron Edmond James de Rothschild). • Spend the remainder of the day in the Herodian port city of Caesarea, whose extensive sandstone ruins overlook the peaceful blue waters of the Mediterranean. See the theater and hippodrome as well as baths and an aqueduct, and learn about the area’s Crusader history and the old Bosnian Muslim community that lived there. Close the tour by learning about and singing Hannah Senesh and her famous poem/song Halikha LeKesariya ("A Walk to Caesarea"), commonly known as Eli, Eli. • Continue on to Tel Aviv and check into the hotel. Hotel: Tel Aviv [B, L]

Day 8, Friday, July 7, 2017: Tel Aviv-Jaffa • Take a walking tour of Jaffa. Highlights include the Old Clock Tower, the Arab-Hebrew Theater, the Farkash Gallery of Vintage Jewish and Israeli Posters and Fine Art, the Wishing Bridge, and religious and historical sites. • Browse through antiques, trendy hip shops, and funky kitsch packed into the Jaffa Flea Market. • Then eat your way through the Carmel Market, meeting vendors, and savoring the best of local produce. • Make your way to the Nachalat Binyamin for the weekly arts and crafts fair. • Bring in Shabbat with Kabbalat Shabbat by the Beach at the Tel Aviv Port with 800-1000 other people. Organized by Beit Tefilah Israeli, a young and fast-growing, liberal, independent, egalitarian and inclusive community in urban Tel Aviv, this is a unique and memorable experience. • Enjoy Shabbat dinner together. Hotel: Tel Aviv [B, samples in the shuk, D]

Day 9, Saturday, July 8, 2017: Tel Aviv • Spend the morning learning about gay rights in Israel while visiting the Tel Aviv’s Gay Center. At Gay Center, meet with a representative of IGY (Israeli Gay Youth). Then see a monument dedicated to the gay victims of the Holocaust, Sheinken Street including Sheinkin Park (once the site of “the closet,” a temporary structure set up one Friday in the late 1990s to allow people to “come out of the closet.”) and Orna and Ella (as featured in The Bubble). End at the

www.mejditours.com 3 Tel Aviv youth club of the Israeli Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Association (HaAguda), the site of a 2009 shooting that left two people dead. • Take the remainder of the afternoon and evening free to enjoy Tel Aviv on your own. • Have the option of opting into a Segway tour (at your own expense). Hotel: Tel Aviv [B]

Day 10, Sunday, July 9, 2017: South Tel Aviv • Check out of the hotel. • Welcome to Start-up Nation! Israel is home to more than 1,000 startups, the largest concentration outside of the Silicon Valley. Spend the morning meeting innovators and entrepreneurs in the heart of Tel Aviv. • Eat your way through Shuk Levinsky. • Take a graffiti tour of the Florentine neighborhood of South Tel Aviv. • Have a group reflection and processing session. • Cap off the tour with an early farewell group dinner. • Transfer to the airport. [B, samples in the shuk, D]

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