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INSIDE JEWISH INDIA JDC Entwine Insider Trip for Young Professionals August 13-22, 2017
India has a rich history of religious tolerance, and Jews have been able to freely practice their faith there for over 2,000 years. Nonetheless, India’s huge population, significant poverty, and limited government-run social services have created significant social challenges, leading the Jewish community to create together with JDC a community-based social welfare system.
During Inside Jewish India, the group will travel throughout the Mumbai region to gain a first-hand understanding of the community's history and current challenges, and take an active role in the programs initiated by JDC with the community to address various community needs. Participants will have the opportunity to learn first-hand about JDC’s rescue, relief and renewal work in India and worldwide, and engage in cultural exchange with and learn about the Jewish community in India, including the Bene Israel community, a geographically isolated, ancient Jewish community primarily based in Mumbai, which traces its roots back to 586 B.C.E.
Travel Day: Sunday, August 13: Transfer to Mumbai
3:10 PM Depart Los Angeles (LAX)
Day One: Monday, August 14: Arrive in Cochin
2:25 PM Arrive in New Delhi (DEL)
6:05 PM Depart New Delhi (DEL)
9:10 PM Arrive in Cochin (COK)
9:45 PM Transfer to Hotel
11:15 PM Check-In to Hotel & Light Snack
Holiday Inn No.33/1739-A, Junction, National Highway Bypass Phone: +91 484 419 9000 http://www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/us/en/cochin/coker/hoteldetail
Overnight in Cochin
Day Two: Tuesday, August 15: Introduction to Jewish Life in Cochin
8:30 AM Breakfast at the Hotel
9:30 AM Welcome to India! Introductions & Ice Breakers Facilitated by Trip Chair and Staff
Briefing with Salome Abraham, Deputy Manager - Programs for JDC India, Lucy Cohen, and Avram Ellner, JDC Entwine Jewish Service Corps Fellows, on Jewish Life in India
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JDC Entwine’s Global Jewish Service Corps (JSC) is a year-long professional opportunity for recent college graduates and young professionals to directly engage with JDC’s global mission and actively fulfil the value of Jewish responsibility. JSC Fellows create innovative programs that respond to specific Jewish community needs, gain an understanding of pressing Jewish and humanitarian challenges around the world, and explore Jewish values underlying their service. JDC offers placements in Israel, the overseas Diaspora Jewish communities, and countries where JDC has non- sectarian projects.
10:30 AM Depart Hotel for Sightseeing
11:15 AM Visit to Key Sites Including Chinese Fishing Nets and St. Francis Church
12:30 PM Visit Paradesi Synagogue & Meeting with Queenie Hallegua, Warden of the Synagogue
Queenie Hallegua is the daughter of Koder (the head of the community at one point in the past and one of the most illustrious families of Cochin) who was married to Sam Hallegua who was earlier the Warden of the Synagogue. The Koder house has been a host to Presidents, Prime Ministers, Viceroys, Ambassadors and other prominent dignitaries. This dwelling also finds a prominent place on INTACH's list of heritage sites, and a visit to Fort Cochin is considered incomplete without a visit to this historic monument. Built in 1598, the Paradesi Synagogue is the oldest active synagogue in the Commonwealth. Today, it is the only functioning synagogue in Cochin with daily services.
1:15 PM Lunch at Ginger Restaurant
2:30 PM Shopping & Free Time
3:30 PM Visit to the Dutch Palace
The Dutch Palace is situated in Mattancherry. The palace was originally built by the Portuguese, who later gifted it to Veera Kerala Varma, the Maharaja of Cochin. Initially the palace was known as the Mattancherry Palace of Cochin. However, after the Dutch renovated it in the year 1663, it came to be known as the Dutch Palace of Cochin. Presently, the palace has been converted into a museum, where one can find paintings and murals signifying the rich tradition of the Hindus.
4:00 PM Depart for Kalaripayyatu Training Center
4:30 PM Let’s Chat: Group Reflection Session
6:00 PM Kalaripayyatu Performance
Kalaripattu is Indian martial arts which originated in the south of India and is one of the oldest fighting systems in existence, which, historically, dates back to the middle ages.
7:00 PM Depart for Dinner
8:00 PM Traditional Dinner at Hotel Sarovaram
Overnight in Kochi
Day Three: Wednesday, August 16: Exploring the Jewish History of Cochin
8:30 AM Breakfast at the Hotel
9:00 AM Depart for Parur Town
10:00 AM Visit the Parur Synagogue
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This synagogue was built in a distinctive architectural style in the year 1616. It is perhaps the most striking of the Cochini community’s Synagogue.
10:45 AM Visit to the Local Market of Cochin
12:00 PM Visit to the Chennamangalam Synagogue
This synagogue dates from the mid-19th century. Its close proximity to a Hindu temple, a church and a mosque depicts coexistence and harmony between different religions. The synagogue is currently a museum.
12:30 PM Backwater Boat Tour of Chennamangalam Town
2:00 PM Lunch at Cherai Beach Resort
3:30 PM Let’s Chat: Group Reflection Session
5:00 PM Traditional Bollywood Dance Lesson
5:45 PM Depart for Airport
7:30 PM Dinner at Airport Hotel
10:00 PM Depart Cochin (COK)
11:45 PM Arrive in Mumbai (BOM)
1:00 AM Check In to Hotel Fariyas
Hotel Fariyas 25, Off Arthur Bunder Road, Apollo Bandar, Colaba https://www.fariyas.com/
Overnight in Mumbai
Day Four: Thursday, August 17: Introduction to Jewish life in Mumbai
8:00 AM Breakfast at the Hotel
9:00 AM Depart Hotel
History & Insight into the Community: Visit to Key Mumbai Sites & Jewish Landmarks
We’ll witness the Indian Jewish community’s impact in Mumbai and explore its famous sites, including the Sassoon Library, Magen David Synagogue, Gateway of India, Dhobi Ghat and Mani Bhavan, the Mumbai home of Mahatma Gandhi from 1917-1934.
1:00 PM Lunch at Ganga Vihar 2:30 PM Introduction to JDC’s Role in India: Briefing with Elijah Jacob, Director for JDC India
3:30 PM Caring for the Community: Home Visits to Needy Families in Sub-Groups Accompanied by JDC India Staff
Group 1: Visit Ruby Daniel at Lower Parel with Nissim Pingle Group 2: Visit Sophie Pabrekar at Rasol Building with Salome Abraham Group 3: Visit Alhannan Chordekar at Agripada with David Kumar
5:30 PM Let’s Chat: Group Reflection Session DRAFT ITINERARY - SUBJECT TO CHANGE
8:30 PM Dinner at Thackers Restaurant
Overnight in Mumbai
Day Five: Friday, August 18: Life in the Periphery: Visit the Konkan Villages
Alibag and the surrounding villages of Revdanda, Panvel, Pen, Nandgaon, and Navgaon, are located about 22 miles southwest from Mumbai in the Konkan Region. Around 175 B.C.E., a boat of Jews fleeing persecution was shipwrecked on the west coast on India, a few kilometres from Alibag. Legend says that the seven Jewish couples who survived founded a Jewish community that was sustained throughout the century.
7:00 AM Breakfast at the Hotel
7:30 AM Depart Hotel
9:30 AM Rickshaw Ride
10:00 AM Sustaining Memory & Community: Service Project at the Navgaon Memorial Cemetery
Around 175 B.C.E., a boat of Jews fleeing persecution was shipwrecked on the west coast on India, a few kilometres from Alibag. The Navgoan Cemetery where the victims of the shipwreck were buried in massive graves, still standing today. The survivors of this shipwreck are the ancestors of the Bene Israel Jewish Community.
11:30 AM Sustaining a Small Community: Visit to the Magen Aboth Synagogue
1:00 PM Lunch at Raddison Blu Resort
1:45 PM Depart for Mumbai
3:00 PM Catamaran Ride to Mumbai
4:30 PM Return to Hotel; Relax & Freshen Up
5:30 PM Kabbalat Shabbat with the Community
7:30 PM Dinner at Chetna Restaurant with Local Peers
Overnight in Mumbai
Day Six: Saturday, August 19: Shabbat in Mumbai
8:00 AM Breakfast at the Hotel
9:00 AM Shabbat Morning Services at Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue or Free Time
11:30 AM Lunch at the Synagogue with the Community
12:30 PM Heritage Walking Tour & Insight into the Baghdadi Jewish Community or Free Time
The Sassoon family was an Indian family of Iraqi Jewish descent and international renown, based in Mumbai, India. The family descended from the famous Ibn Shoshans, one of the richest families of DRAFT ITINERARY - SUBJECT TO CHANGE medieval Spain. From the late-18th century, the Sassoons were one of the wealthiest families in the world, with a merchant empire spanning the continent of Asia. David Sassoon, born in 1792, was a leader in the Mumbai Jewish community after immigrating to India from Baghdad. He built the international business called David S. Sassoon, with the policy of staffing it with people brought over from Baghdad. They filled the functions of the various branches of his business in India, Burma, Malay, and East Asia and in each branch, he maintained a rabbi. His philanthropy was legendary across Asia, and included the building of schools, orphanages, hospitals and museums. On his death, tributes to him were made from across the continent, by Muslims, Christians, Parsees, Jews and Hindus.
3:00 PM Visit to the Prince of Wales Museum, Jahangir Art Gallery or Free Time
6:00 PM Let’s Chat: Group Reflection Session at the Hotel
7:00 PM Havdalah Ceremony with Local Peers
8:00 PM Dinner with Local Peers at Relish Restaurant
Overnight in Mumbai
Day Seven: Sunday, August 20: Hindu Culture in Mumbai & Introduction to Gabriel Project Mumbai
8:30 AM Breakfast at the Hotel
9:30 AM Visit Banganga Tank
The Banganga Tank refers to an ancient water tank that forms part of the Walkeshwar Temple Complex in Malabar Hill area of Mumbai in India revered by Hinduism.
11:15 AM Visit to the Hanging Gardens
The Hanging Gardens, also known as Pherozeshah Mehta Gardens, are terraced gardens perched at the top of Malabar Hill.
12:30 PM Visit Iskon Temple
1:30 PM Lunch at JCC
2:30 PM Activity at JCC with Children from the Mumbai Slums
JDC works in partnership with Gabriel Project Mumbai (GPM) to bring young Jewish adults to help break the cycle of poverty and hunger by volunteering in food distribution and literacy programs among the children of the Mumbai slums. The JDC Entwine Global Multi-Week Jewish Service Corps (JSC) offers young Jews the opportunity to directly engage with JDC’s global mission and serve with the GPM.
Established in 1999, the Evelyn Peters Jewish Community Center (EPJCC) was named in honour of JDC- India’s former Country Director and today hosts activities for the entire community, including: Hebrew classes; weekend retreats; the Kol India, a community publication; youth leadership seminars; and several community-wide Jewish holiday celebrations.
4:30 PM Return to Hotel; Relax & Freshen Up
6:00 PM Free Time to Shop for Souvenirs in Colaba
8:30 PM Dinner at Samrat Restaurant
Overnight in Mumbai DRAFT ITINERARY - SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Day Eight: Monday, August 21: Caring for the Elderly
7:30 AM Hotel Check-Out
Breakfast at the Hotel
8:00 AM Depart Hotel
9:30 AM Caring for the Elderly: Visit to Bayiti Old Age Home in Panvel & Meeting with the Elderly Residents
12:00 PM Lunch at Bayiti
1:00 PM Return to Mumbai
3:00 PM Bringing it Home: Closing Group Discussion & Reflection Session
5:30 PM Festive Closing Dinner at Tirtullia Restaurant in Dadar
7:30 PM Depart for Airport
9:30 PM Depart Mumbai (BOM)
Travel Day: Tuesday, August 22: Arrival to Los Angeles
7:25 AM Arrive in Los Angeles (LAX)