Day One
Welcome to Israel
Welcome home! Our driver will meet you as you leave Ben Gurion Airport and drive you to your hotel.
The Kotel – Western Wall
If Jerusalem is the heart of the Jewish People then the Temple Mount and its western retaining wall are its soul. After the Temple’s destruction 2,000 years ago, the Western Wall or Kotel is one of its last remaining walls. Although we only see a fraction of it exposed, it spans over a quarter of a mile and once stood 20 stories high! Although made of limestone, local tradition holds that it is made up of the tears and prayers of 2,000 years of Jews yearning for “Next year in Jerusalem.” According to Jewish thought the Temple Mount is the holiest place on earth and the entryway to the spiritual world.
Sleep Jerusalem
Day Two
Ramparts Repelling
We will walk from the Jaffa Gate on top of the old city’s walls recounting the words of King David;
“סֹ֣בּוּ צִ֖יוֹן וְהַקִּיפ֑וּהָ סִ֜פְר֗וּ מִגְדָּלֶֽיהָ שִׁ֚יתוּ לִבְּכֶ֨ם לְֽחֵילָ֗ה פַּסְּג֥וּ אַרְמְנוֹתֶ֑יהָ לְמַ֥עַן תְּ֜סַפְּר֗וּ לְד֣וֹר אַֽחֲרֽוֹן”
“Walk about Zion and encompass her, count her towers. Mark well in your hearts her ramparts, raise up her palaces, that you may tell it to subsequent generations.” Then we will test our emuna by strapping ourselves up and repelling down those walls.
City of David
Just outside of the Old City we will explore the ancient city where King David held his capital. Ir David, or the “City of David” as it is known in English, is the actual location of the biblical city of Jerusalem captured by King David over 3,000 years ago. Highlights include entering the secret tunnel leading to the Gihon Spring, walking through Hezekiah’s water tunnel, The Olei Regalim street from the Breichat Hashiloach up to “Wall Street” the ancient financial district and shopping area.
Southern Wall Excavations
At the Southwest corner of Har Habayit lies the excavated ruins of the Second Temple Period, downtown Jerusalem from 2,000 years ago! From here we will be able to recreate in our mind’s eye the sites and sounds of a bustling marketplace filled with cohanim and nevi’im, rabanim and olei regel. The archeological gardens are littered with the treasures of the Jewel in the Crown of Jerusalem…Bayit Sheni.
Jewish Quarter
The Jewish Quarter has had a Jewish presence almost continuously for 2,700 years! Home to nearly 3,300 residents, it combines history, religion, and archeology as well as shops and restaurants, yeshivas and synagogues. Although there is a modern neighborhood on top of these ancient ruins, the stones come to life and whisper the prophecy of Zachariah that “there will once again sit old men and women in the squares of Jerusalem, and the streets will be filled with playing children.”
Sleep Jerusalem
Day Three
Blacksmith Apprentice Workshop
It says in the Torah that Hashem refined the nation in the Iron Crucible of Egypt, melting the metal and removing its impurities. After a bit of time with Yossi you’ll really understand what that truly means. We will melt Iron in his workshop and craft it into jewelry, where we will make our own souvenirs with the iron of Eretz Yisroel. A constant reminder of the pasuk in Dvarim that tells us “For Hashem your G-d is bringing you into a good land…a land whose stones are iron.”
“כִּי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, מְבִיאֲךָ אֶל-אֶרֶץ טוֹבָה. אֶרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אֲבָנֶיהָ בַרְזֶל, וּמֵהֲרָרֶיהָ תַּחְצֹב נְחֹשֶׁת”
Shiloh
In the center of the hill country of Ephraim was discovered the first capital of Israel, from over 3,000 years ago! Walking through the excavations of Tel Shiloh is like walking through a time machine back to the period of the Shoftim when Eli HaCohen was Cohen Gadol and the Navi Shmuel was just a lad. Here the Mishkan stood for 369 years as the spiritual center of Am Yisrael and the resting place of the shekhina. One can almost smell the Ketoret as we stand at the entrance to the Mishkan where the righteous Chana taught us the proper way to daven.
ATVs in Nachal Shiloh
Every four amot in Eretz Yisrael is a mitzvah, and what quicker way to rack up the mitzvot than on all terrain vehicles? We will take ATVs through Nachal Shiloh in the central Shomron, into some of the most off the beaten track places. The Shomron in unsurpassed in beauty, especially in the winter season when the nachal flows and everything is green. As we pass the vineyards we will recall the words of the Navi Yirmiyahu
עוֹד אֶבְנֵךְ וְנִבְנֵית, בְּתוּלַת יִשְׂרָאֵל: עוֹד תַּעְדִּי תֻפַּיִךְ, וְיָצָאת בִּמְחוֹל מְשַׂחֲקִים. עוֹד תִּטְּעִי כְרָמִים בְּהָרֵי שֹׁמְרוֹן; נָטְעוּ נֹטְעִים, וְחִלֵּלו
“I will yet rebuild you and you will be rebuilt maiden of Israel: and you will adorn yourself with drums and go forth in the dance of the joyous. You will again plant vineyards in the mountains of Samaria, the planters will plant and redeem their fruit.”
Sleep Jerusalem
Day Four
Wilderness Survival & Foraging Workshop
Discover Israel’s world of wild edibles and tap into a culinary adventure that weaves ancient natural foods with primitive survival skills and culminates with a palate-pleasing meal that is healthy, tasty, and epically connective. From biblical spices to the wild ancestors of common vegetables we will pick, prepare, and feast in the lush hillsides of Jerusalem. Wrap up the event with freshly brewed tea and coffee while sitting together around a traditionally set firepit.
Biking in the Elah Valley
Explore the rugged beauty of the Ella Valley on two wheels, where exhilarating mountain biking adventures unfold. Navigate through the ancient Bar Kochva’s Cave, uncovering echoes of history etched into its rocky passages. Amidst the ride, encounter remarkable Talmudic-era ruins, connecting with the past while blazing your own trail.
Bar Kochva Tunnels
Almost 1,900 years ago the soldiers of Bar Kochva fought a guerrilla war against the Roman Empire. The ruins of a town from that period were discovered here with escape tunnels running underneath the ruins that we will explore on our hands and knees. This is not for the claustrophobic! You must bring flashlights and clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty.
Evening Recommendation – Shabbat at the Kotel
Friday night is a special time to be in Jerusalem. With the setting sun a new day begins – Shabbat.The Kotel in Jerusalem becomes a unifying place for the Jews as holiness of time and place intertwine. Soldiers and Hassids, tourists and locals, dance arm in arm together to welcome Sabbath with song and joy. This celebration has no parallel in the world and should not be missed.
Sleep Jerusalem
Day Five
Shabbat Menucha
Take a day to recover from a hectic week of travel and touring. As the Holy City takes a rest let’s take this opportunity to visit one of Jerusalem’s hundreds of shuls, stroll through one of the many parks Jerualem has to offer, or just rest up and re-JEW-venate as we recharge for next week. We got a lot of ground to cover motzei shabbos!
Evening Activity – Tower of David Night Spectacular
4,000 years of Jerusalem come alive as they are projected on the walls of the Tower of David. In this citadel, where once the palace of King Herod and the Maccabees stood, the history of the city will be projected in a beautiful swirl of sounds and images which will bring the stones almost literally to life.
Sleep Jerusalem
Day Six
Nachal Arugot National Park
One of the amazing wonders of Israel is that in the lowest place on Earth by the Dead Sea, there is a full blown oasis full of cold fresh waters flowing through the valleys and mountains, and waterfalls! This is the region in which David hid from King Saul, and it’s easy to imagine this this is the very place where he composed the words in Barchi Nafshi
“הַֽמְשַׁלֵּ֣חַ מַ֭עְיָנִים בַּנְּחָלִ֑ים בֵּ֥ין הָ֝רִ֗ים יְהַלֵּכֽוּן” – He sends sprigs into the valleys, they flow between the mountains. Besides the history, his water hike is one of the most beautiful nature hikes Israel has to offer.
Masada
In the year 30 BCE King Herod built here his desert fortress par excellence. Perched on a mesa 450 meters above the Dead Sea yet only 58 meters above sea level, surrounded by a four meter high double wall and steep cliffs, it was thought to be impregnable. Nearly 100 years after it was built the drama unfolded as one of the most famous battles in Israel; the last stand of the Jews in their Great Revolt against the Romans.
Dead Sea Float
Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be weightless? Here in the lowest place on earth we have the saltiest lake in the world. The water is so dense that it’s impossible to sink. The waters of the Dead Sea have been known throughout antiquity to have healing qualities, and a day at the Dead Sea has the power to rejuvenate the skin. The hypersalinity and high mineral content have been shown to be therapeutic for arthritis, psoriasis, eczema,and much much more.
Sleep Jerusalem
Day Seven
Caliber 3 Anti-terrorism Training
Established in 2003 by Colonel Sharon Gat, Caliber 3 has since become the leading counter terror and security training academy in Israel. The training includes a simulation of a terror attack in a Jerusalem marketplace, a demonstration with attack dogs, and a live fire sniper tournament. This activity is the closest one can come to being part of an elite counterterrorism team but still remain a civilian.
Gush Etzion Zipline
Get ready for the thrill of a lifetime! At a quarter of a mile long and more than 350 feet high, the Gush Etzion Zipline is the longest zipline in Israel. More amazing than the thrill of speeding over valleys and trees are the stunning views out into the Judean hills.
Hevron
3,800 years ago Avraham Avinu made the first land acquisition in Eretz Yisrael for Am Yisrael. Mearat HaMachpela has been a site of pilgrimage and prayer for the children of Avraham and Sara, and the city of Hevron is waiting with open arms.
Kever Rachel
Chazal tell us that Rachel was buried on the road by Beit Lechem so that those Jews going into exile would be consoled by the hope that her prayers guarantee our return. In the place where Binyamin was born and Rachel died, David Hamelech and the seeds of Moshiach will sprout. There is a special segula at Kever Rachel to daven for the Geula Shleima.
Sleep Jerusalem
