SNEC Young Emissaries Reunion Mission
June 25-July 4, 2007 - Tentative Itinerary

DAY 1: MONDAY, JUNE 25 - Depart JFK at 11:00 am on El Al, Flight LY022

DAY 2: TUESDAY, JUNE 26 - Arrive at Ben Gurion Intl Airport at 5:10 am
7:30 am Short tour of Neot Kedumim, the Biblical Landscape Reserve in Israel, a living museum of Israel’s “green archeology;” a unique endeavor to recreate the physical setting of the Bible in all its depth and detail. Tour followed by breakfast.
10:30 Depart for Atlit – reconstructed detention camp where immigrants to Palestine were incarcerated during the British Mandate. Family activities at Atlit.
2:00 pm – Lunch in the area. If time allows, possible stop at Tzippori and special activity for the children with Youth Counselor. Depart for Kibbutz Lavie and check in at guest house. BBQ dinner at Kibbutz Lavie. OVERNIGHT: Lavie Guest House

DAY 3: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27 – 8:00 am depart for Safed, pronounced Tzfat in Hebrew. It sits at a higher altitude than any city in Israel and has been known since the 16th century as a major center of Kabbala. The old synagogues, narrow alleyways and artists’ studios add to the hilltop city’s unmistakable charm.
Before departing Safed, there will be time for shopping.
Arrive at Agamon Hahula at 11:30, an artificial lake in the valley of the River Jordan in northern Israel. In recent years it has become the winter stopping point for many tens of thousands of migrating cranes and other birds from northern Europe and Siberia. The Lake is an official Nature Reserve and tourist attraction of growing importance. There are 11km of paths and you can walk, take a bus, rent a bike or electric golf cart. Guides are there to help you see the many birds and tell you about them.
Lunch at 1:00 pm in the area. At 2:30 you’ll have the opportunity to float down the Jordan River in a kayak or raft!
Return to Lavie Guest House at 4:30. Activity for children followed by departure for dinner at Bat Ya’ar Ranch and reunion with Young Emissaries.

DAY 4: THURSDAY, JUNE 28 – Breakfast followed by departure to Partnership 2000 region – Afula/Gilboa. We will spend the day touring the area and meeting up with Young Emissaries who have served in our communities and their families. We will also visit Kibbutz Merhavia and meet with Olim from Ethiopia. There will be plenty of activities for both the children and adults. Lunch will be in the area. We will visit Kfar Yechezkel and tour Israel’s first completely robotized, automatic cow milking shed. This is “understandable” hi-tech in an agricultural setting that will not only amaze you but also reveals another milestone of proud Zionist history.
 Dinner and home hospitality with Young Emissary families and others based on common interests will take place in the region.
 Overnight: Lavie Guest House

DAY 5: FRIDAY, JUNE 29 – Breakfast and check out
 Depart for Beit She’an, one of Israel’s most spectacular archaeological sites, with recently uncovered remains of a major Roman city, including a 10,000-seat theater as well as mosaics, ancient streets, public buildings and more.
 Depart for Jerusalem and view the city of King David from Mt. Scopus. We will recite the Shehecheyanu, the blessing of thanksgiving, upon reaching the city. We will continue into the Old City and its Jewish Quarter and discover the stories, traditions, and legends behind the stones in the ancient city of Jerusalem with an historical, cultural and archeological tour. Also, we will visit the Herodian Mansion and the Tower of David Museum which retells the history of this magnificent city.
 We will visit the new Davidson Visitors’ Center in the Southern Wall Archaeological Gardens and enjoy a modern, interactive virtual presentation. Through the film and its exhibits, the Visitor’s Center explains the archaeology of Jersualem covering the First Temple, Second Temple, Byzantine, Islamic and the Crusades periods. For a different perspective on the history of Jerusalem, we will head underneath the Old City’s chaotic maze of buildings to the Western Wall Tunnel. The extension of the retaining wall was built 2,000 years ago by Herod the Great to support the massive compound where the Temple stood. The recently
 
SNEC Young Emissaries Reunion Mission
June 25-July 4, 2007 - Tentative Itinerary
Page 2

excavated tunnel is one of the city’s most phenomenal sites. We will have lunch in the Old City. We will have a late afternoon check in at our hotel and prepare for Shabbat.
Candle lighting is at approximately 7:09 pm. We will have Shabbat dinner at the hotel in a private room. Overnight: Mt. Zion Hotel, Jerusalem

DAY 6: SATURDAY, JUNE 30 – Breakfast
 Spending Shabbat in Jerusalem presents you with the unique opportunity to join the morning prayers and Torah reading at any of the city’s richly varied synagogues. To help guide you through Jerusalem’s brilliant mosaic of traditions and ethnicities, a select list of batei Knesset, houses of worship, will be available at the Hospitality Desk.
 Optional tour of the Old City with Jerry Fischer. Shabbat lunch at the hotel. We will take part in a Havdallah ceremony at approximately 8:31 pm before partaking of dinner on our own. Overnight: Mt. Zion Hotel, Jerusalem

DAY 7: SUNDAY, JULY 1 – Early Breakfast before departing for Masada. We will ascend Masada and tour King Herod’s historic hilltop fortress, where a small band of Jewish zealots took refuge after the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in 70 BCE, resisting a prolonged siege by the Roman army.
 We will swim and have lunch at the Hod Hotel which is on the Dead Sea, 1,300 feet below sea level, the lowest point on earth. You can make this a high point of your trip by venturing into the waters for a “float,” swimming suspended by the high concentrations of salts and minerals. From floating in the Dead Sea, we will bounce across the desert in a safari vehicle/jeep. We will learn about the mysteries of this arid land and view the wildlife and vegetation unique to the region that has always served as a place of refuge and reflection. We will return to Jerusalem and have dinner at a restaurant.
Overnight: Mt. Zion Hotel, Jerusalem

DAY 8: MONDAY, JULY 2 – Breakfast At 8:00 am we join our B’nei Mitzvah on the hotel roof terrace as these young people affirm their entry into Jewish adulthood and acceptance of the mitzvoth.
 At 9:30 we depart for Yad Vashem. The children will have a special activity with a youth counselor. We will spend a solemn time at Israel’s national Holocaust memorial.
 We will have lunch at Beit Guvrin at 12:45 pm. Become an archaeologist for a day and take part in the ongoing digs at the caves, which served as storerooms, burial crypts and safe havens during the time of the Bar Kochba revolt against the Romans.
 Return to Jerusalem. Options for Dinner: Shipudei Hagefen, Littly Italy, Taverna.
 Overnight: Mt. Zion Hotel, Jerusalem

DAY 9: TUESDAY, JULY 3 – Breakfast followed by 8:00 am check out and departure for Tel Aviv.
 At 9:30 take “White City Tour” with out guide. Bauhaus – the “White City” of Tel Aviv. UNESCO has declared Tel Aviv a World Cultural Heritage Site. We will be accompanied by an expert on our tour in the central area of Tel Aviv, tracing the routes lines by beautiful buildings and extraordinary balconies, which have been preserved and even enhanced in recent years.
 At 10:30 we depart for Independence Hall which is housed in one of the first homes in Tel Aviv and was the private home of Meir Dizengoff, first mayor of Tel Aviv. On the 5th of Iyar, May 14, 1948, the People’s Council gathered to hear David Ben Gurion proclaim the establishment of the State of Israel.
 12:00 pm Lunch on own in Tel Aviv
 We visit Palmach Museum at 2:00 pm. This museum aims to provide a sense of the period that led to the founding of the State of Israel. Appropriately, the main exhibit takes place in a series of underground chambers. Remarkably realistic sets, sounds, lighting, special effects and even moving rooms, make the visitor feel part of this extraordinary experience.
 Check in at hotel in Tel Aviv at 4:30 pm.
 Farewell dinner at Maganda Restaurant. Overnight: Tel Aviv

DAY 10: WEDNESDAY, JULY 4 – 8:00 am return to US on El Al flight LY031

For full pricing, please download mission costs below.

For more information on this mission, please contact Jerry Fischer at 860-442-8062 or email him by clicking here.