April 24/Day 2

By: Nathaniel, Class of 2025

April 24/Day 2

Nathaniel, Class of 2025

Our second day in Israel began with a nice shacharit service. It was interesting because we had a Sefardi torah (so the scroll stood upright in a big metal case), and because we got to see how one of the other schools prays (similar to us, but with a few different tunes). We then did a very fun (and slightly scary) two-hour hike down Mount Arbel. There were some difficult parts, including climbing down a cliffside so steep that we had to use cables and rungs that had been drilled into the rock— but we got to see Herodian-era ruins, and the whole experience was great. Before we started the hike, at the top of the mountain, we heard the Yom HaShoah siren and did a small ceremony led by our Israeli staff.

After the Arbel, we toured and had lunch in Tzfat, where we were able to go to the synagogue of Rabbi Yosef Caro, the author of the Shulchan Aruch, a code of Jewish law. From there, we went to volunteer on a farm. The farm is owned by a husband and wife, and they follow the Torah’s rules of agriculture. It was really cool to see a real way that Judaism has an impact in Israel, even for people who aren’t part of the religious community. 

We ended the day with a boat ride on the Kinneret and dinner in Tiberias!