Hi everyone,

Just a short update on the rest of this weeks activities. As mentioned before, the seminar theme was partnership through the years of the British Mandate period in Palestine. The various aspects looked at included The Arab Riots of 1929 and 1936-1939; the British Commissions and White Papers in 1937 and 1939; limitations placed on Jewish Immigration; the resulting illegal immigration (Aliya Bet and the “Bricha”); as well as the various Jewish defence forces of the Hagana, Lechi and Etzel and their merging to create the IDF, together with the many dilemmas faced by the fledging state such as the King David Hotel Bombing and the Altalena.

On Tuesday night, the chavura group ran a peula on the King David Hotel Bombing. On Wednesday night, the participants on Habo U (a program for Habo madrichim in partnership with Haifa University) ran programming for all the Boneh participants. On Wednesday morning, the shnatties picked Butternut Squash and Oranges with Table To Table in Rehovot.

Today the shnatties had a tour of the Atlit illegal immigration camp which was the detention centre set up by the British to contain all the illegal immigrants coming over mainly by ships from Europe from 1939-1948. It was a very interesting parallel experience, and the tour involved seeing the physical barracks and disinfection rooms combined with high tech audiovisual shows, telling the stories of some of the immigrants or the volunteers who were helping on the boats. It is a very special date, as today 60 years ago was when the United Nations had the partition vote which was the precursor to the establishment and Declaration of Independence in Israel. This led to the 2^nd part of the excursion, which was to the Independence Hall in Tel Aviv, where the 1^st mayor of Tel Aviv Meri Dizengoff lived and where the Independence was declared. The tour included a short audiovisual presentation, listening to parts of the actual UN vote and the actual declaration, together with more background and anecdotal stories from this very important event in history. Currently the shnatties are having their weekly processing with madrichim, and this weekend they have their final free weekend until the winter chofesh period.

In the next few days, an itinerary and contact details will be sent to families via email regarding the journey to Poland in approximately 2 weeks.

Shabbat Shalom

Hi everyone,
To start off backwards, this afternoon the shnatties have been informed officially that their Kaveret location will be Holon.
Last week I neglected to mention that the guest speakers were from the Parents Circle - Families Forum (www.theparentscircle.com). The Parents Circle is a grassroots forum of bereaved Israeli and Palestinian families which meets and promotes reconciliation. The talk was fascinating and very touching to hear personal stories of parents who have lost their children.
On Wednesday, the excursion was to the Museum of the First Aliya in Zichron Yaacov. The museum has recently been renovated and has many short videos throughout, describing the hardships of a family who left Rumania to fulfill their Zionist Dream in the 1880's. It was a very interesting tour and complimented the seminars nicely. We were also lucky to be in Zichron, which for a few days turned into the rainiest place in Israel, and we were witness to the most immense downpour!
The seminars looked at different stories of the 2nd and 3rd Aliya, and events which were taking place in Israel at the time, such as the birth of kibbutzim and the foundations of the State of Israel; together with the story of the beginning of the Youth Movements worldwide – and specifically Habonim in the UK and North America.
Over Friday and Saturday, the first Pre-Poland Journey Preparation Seminar took place. The seminar was an introductory one, and highlights include the "Shteitel" Night on Friday, where everyone was given a character for the shteitel wedding, and we watched Fiddler on the Roof while eating some traditional Kugel. Also, the Family Tree Activity, in which many shnatties ended up on the phone with their parents finding out about their family history, and sharing the most interesting thing that they discovered from their past (and from all accounts there were some very surprising things to be found!).
This weeks seminar theme is Partnership looking specifically at the British Mandate Period in Palestine, leading up to the Establishment of the State of Israel. On Sunday the guest speakers were Rabbi's for Human Rights (www.rhr.israel.net) who are a fascinating group of Rabbi's who consider themselves to be the rabbinical voice of conscious in Israel, focusing on human rights from a Jewish standpoint. Hadracha (leadership) looked Counseling and Duty of. The excursion on Thursday is to both the Illegal Immigrants Camp in Atlit, and the Hall of Independence in Tel Aviv. This weekend is a free weekend.

Hi guys!
Last week the Shnatties enjoyed an excellent tiyul in the South of Israel. On Monday, they had a short hike in British Park, situated in the Ella Valley, just near Netiv HaLamed Hey. This gave them a chance to enjoy the beautiful surroundings where they have been situated in for the first portion of the program. Lunch was eaten down at Golda (Meir) Park, just south of BeerSheva, before continuing further south to Mitspe Ramon youth hostel. Debs and Dan C from the movement work tzevet, are currently in Israel for a seminar, and joined the shnatties for the afternoon. Mitspe Ramon overlooks the Ramon crater, which is the largest of the 3 craters in the Negev desert. That night a fun activity involving stargazing was run, and everyone experienced the true depths of cold that the desert night provides!!!
The next day, the hiking was to Saharonim Spring, the lowest point of the Crater, which is also the only water source, and also contains remains of the ancient "spice trail" - a trade route used by the Nabateans some thousands of years ago. Afterwards, the shnatties travelled down to the Eilat youth hostel where they spent the next 2 nights. That night they had an exciting scavenger hunt around Eilat, where they had to collect ingredients to help concoct a potion in order to save Amir, one of the HDNA madrichim!
On Wednesday, the hardest hike of the tiyul was to the top of Mt Shlomo. It was a triumphant climb, where from the very top you can see Egypt (Sinai), Jordan and Saudia Arabia - the only known spot in Israel where you can see 4 countries (including Israel of course!). It was a long and hard hike, and that evening the shnatties had a free night to chill out around Eilat.
Thursday morning was spent at the beautiful Eilat beaches, before travelling back to Netivaleh. Overall a great time was had by all, and it was a wonderful and rejuvenating break to the Boneh routine.The weekend was a free weekend for all, and Boneh resumed classes yesterday.
This weeks seminar theme is on the 2nd and 3rd Aliyot to Israel, where the stories of the chalutzim (pioneers) of the State of Israel will be explored in depth. On Sunday the 3 Aleph level Hebrew classes had an excursion to the Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem. Tomorrow, an excursion to Zichron Yaacov will take place. Thursday is a free day with no programming, as there is the first intensive pre-Poland preparation seminar taking place on Netivaleh over Friday and Saturday.

Hi everyone,
This past week has been a fairly standard one on Boneh, with the seminar theme focusing on Modern Enlightenment and the Realm of Choice. The seminars are moving into much more modern times, and hopefully much of the background the shnatties have been looking at over the past month has laid a good foundation for these seminars and themes.

Through looking at the French & Russian Revolutions, the Bund, the Pale of Settlement, and the story of Moses Mendelsohn, the seminars sought to explain how emancipation led to the active participation of Jews in civil society across Europe. As a result, many Jews who earlier were practically locked out of the rest of society, turned to Jewish political movements (ie Zionism), or revolutionary movements or were able to emigrate to countries of better opportunities.

The chavura group this week had the theme of the Russian Revolution, and used an interesting method of a somewhat dodgeball-style activity. This week the shnatties picked Jerusalem Artichokes with Table to Table. Hadracha class this week looked at a basic introduction to Youth Psychology and general Youth Development.

Today the siyur (excursion) was to the settlement of Gedera (just south of Rehovot), to the museum on the history of Gedera and the Biluim. The Biluim, being the pioneers from Bilu - the first activist Zionist movement. The siyur comprised of both a tour in the museum, but also in the outdoor, surrounding buildings of the settlement. This siyur was an introduction to the upcoming seminar which moves into 1st, 2nd and 3rd Aliya and the Modern Zionist era.

Next week (aside from Sunday which is a regular day), the shnatties will be on a 4 day hiking trip, mainly in the south of Israel. More information on this will follow in the next few days.

Hi again,
This week on Boneh the focus was on the period that lasts from the destruction of the 2nd Temple in Jerusalem, to the beginning of the Emancipation. This is a very large period of time, most of which is commonly referred to as the Great Exile, and it marks the beginnings of the Diaspora.
On Sunday, a giant board game was played which aimed to give all the shnatties an overview of what was going on with the Jewish Nation throughout the Exile period; to understand and examine the decisions made by Jews to ensure their survival; and to start thinking about the complexities of survival in the face of persecution. A look was taken at the transition from Beit Hamikdash (the Temple) to the formation of the Synagogue in the Diaspora. A further look was taken at the concept of Messiah, and how that has shaped the Jewish people throughout the exile period.
On Tuesday, an in-depth look at Spanish Jewry started with the viewing of a video on Torquemada, the chief inquisitor in Spain. This was followed by a long discussion and overview of the Golden Age of Spain, followed by the Inquisition and subsequent Expulsion. Many fascinating facts were discovered throughout the discussion, as it was a topic that was new to many of the shnatties. That evening, a chavura group ran a peula on the Spanish Inquisition, which involved a lot of candy and chocolates, and some very amusing skits!
The siyur this week was to the Diaspora Museum in Tel Aviv, which focuses on the question of how Judaism was able to persevere throughout such a lengthy period in Exile. The highlight was definitely the Synagogue displays where many synagogues from around the world from different time frames have been recreated in miniature. Afterwards, we traveled to Yavne, which is where the spiritual centre for Jews was created by Yochanan Ben Zakkai, which entirely shaped the way we look at Judaism up until today. All that remains of the original settlement which stretched back to Biblical Times is a small hill (tel) which is fairly dilapidated, but has great views of the area. We then had a short walk through the town to the Synagogue where Rabban Gamliel is considered to be buried. There we had a discussion focusing particularly on the Pesach Hagaddah and the influence Gamliel had in its creation.
This week, the shnatties picked Beetroots at Kvutsat Shiller, a Kibbutz near Rehovot, with the charitable organisation Table To Table, which aims to collect fresh and healthy food for distribution to those in need. (More information at www.tabletotable.org.il )
This Friday & Saturday is a weekend seminar focusing on the legacy of Yitzhak Rabin z"l, together with all Habonim Dror Long Term Program Participants. The seminar will finish with the annual Rabin memorial ceremony, held at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv.
Shabbat Shalom