CAARI's Super Tuesday

CAARI’s Super Tuesday by Rosalie Whitehill
Tuesday is our program's Forest Day...when we do something related to JNF forestry in Israel, not really one of my favorite activities, but I am always interested in what JNF is doing...as it is so much more than trees and so very inspiring. Well, weather wise, things couldn't be better.... short sleeves again for most of the day...it felt like 70.... and even though we went to the Sataf forest near Jerusalem...it was just as warm there. I walked with the group about a mile down to where they would prune olive trees, and clear weeds from around the base of the trees, but because getting to the trees required walking on rocky, hilly ground, I opted just to wait while the real work was done...but it was pleasant and I was happy...especially when a group of school kids came by. The group must have pruned over 50 olive trees located on the biblical terraces – they couldn’t have been happier and so was the JNF forester who worked with us. He kept thanking the group for their help. I don’t think he thought they were capable of doing so much work!
We had a really fine picnic lunch...bagels.... with whatever salad you chose...and cookies home-made by our coordinator, Susan, and the best clementines ever...and the weather was perfect...we ate at some tables on a hill looking out toward other hills around Jerusalem.... you can just imagine what a happy time that was for me!!
After the picnic, we headed to a town called Or Yehuda... located between Lod (Ben Gurion airport)...to a museum that was listed in our activity schedule as “Babylonian Museum”...I had no idea what to expect...and it turned out to be a GEM...completely exceeding any expectation I might have had...and we had a guide whose knowledge and charm made our visit even more enjoyable.........you know I love Israeli museums. And this one did NOT disappoint...it depicts in huge dioramas and displays the Babylonian culture from the time of the Diaspora through the time when the country became part of Iraq and the huge wave of immigration back to Israel in 1951-2...it is meant to give young people of Iraqi descent a sense of their history and culture. As someone whose experiences are limited to mostly Ashkenazi customs, I found the materials and information ...about the culture with Muslim influence so fascinating. I felt like I wanted to hang on to every word she said, and wanted more, more, and more. I loved seeing how they celebrated the Jewish holidays, the important events in a Jewish life...and the museum even contained a small reconstruction of the main synagogue of Baghdad. It was truly one of the most interesting places I have visited here, and part of the CAARI group's attempt to take us to unusual places...it was incredible to find this little treasure located in a small town of which I had never heard.
And so it was really a SUPER Tuesday for me...and I hope I will still feel happy when I see the primary results.
Tomorrow, we are heading south to the Negev. I checked the weather and it is scheduled to be another glorious day...I am almost bursting with happiness, being here ...and each day gets better.... or have I said that before.
Stay well,
Love you all
Rosalie

My view - by Bev Fluxgold

Bev Fluxgold - Toronto, Canada
It has taken me a while to be able to put my thoughts into words. It was always a given that I loved Israel unreservedly. But it just came to me that I feel safe here. This may seem strange because my head tells me there are dangers, but safe is what I feel..
A sense of pride swells within me when I see all the accomplishments that have been made by my fellow Jews. This is something I can not feel anywhere else in this world.
Yesterday it all came to a head when we visited Bet Shemesh. A town of about 80,000 situated between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. We viewed the ruins of the ancient city and then went to an after school program for children whose ages run from preschool to teens. This program enables their parents to work while their children are being well looked after.
The teens have a nutritious meal that they have learned to prepare themselves. They are given help with their homework, and the attention they may lack at home.
There is an equipped computer room and they are in the midst of setting up a library.
From there we went to a sculpture garden that was tucked away in the middle of a residential district. This garden was the on a piece of property donated to Bet Shemesh by the husband and wife sculptures. In the centre of the garden was a sculpture depicting a ladder (like Jacob ascending to heaven.) The garden was dedicated to the memory of their son who had died in the Lebanon war. Not 27 virgins, but the beauty that came from their hands.
We'll I thought this must be it, but from there we were taken to a conservatory of music. What a treat. The children put on a concert for us. The culmination was a brother and sister team. She on violin he on piano. Someday I'm sure we will see them in our concert halls.
As we observed Bet Shemish is very diverse. Ethiopians.Russians, Orthodox, Ultra Orthodox. I'm sure it isn't perfect, but a great effort is going into making it work.

Weather in Tel Aviv - CAARI Keeps Going!

By Anice Stark - Toronto, Canada

Dear Friends and Family,
The past few days we have had weather more closely associated with North American or Europe - cold, wet and extremely windy. The windows in the hotel dining area have been moving like they were going to fall out. We have had pelting rain - which was snow in Jerusalem. The only magnificent sight were the waves coming onto the beach area - huge white caps - rolling, bubbling, and spraying both sea and sand. Even the roof top pool, which we can see from our room, had a few white caps!

CAARI still "weathered" the storm - enjoying our work at schools and community organizations. The other day we enjoyed a special afternoon at one of JNF's therapeutic riding centers in Tel Mond, just north of Tel Aviv. It is amazing how the animals relate to those tha have CP, autism or are suffering from head injuries. The staff is so supportive. We were all in awe with the work that is done and some of us got to work with the dogs to experience how they relate.

Our speakers continue to be outstanding. Zelig Chinitz, Sr. Advisor to the JNF CEO, spoke to our group Wednesday evening. He discussed the partnership of the Diaspora to Israel - very relevant of our group.
This week we have the "CAARI turnover" 13 CAARI participants completed their three weeks. We will miss them and there were lots of hugs and even a few tears as the said "farewell"! Diane Amster received flowers from her students, others received notes, candy and lots of thanks! Yael; the head nurse from Ichilov praised the CAARI volunteers! She said - " we can't thank you enough for what you are doing for our patients!" Thursday and Friday new participants joined the group and we are back to a full bus! Next week we are looking forward to better weather - the CAARI program goes on!

We hear it is pretty cold in Canada - stay warm!

Love,

Anice and Arnold Stark

Our Experience - "the Frieds"

By Rhoda and Joe Fried - Paramus, NJ
Shalom to our friends and family. This is our first time with the CAARI program and our first report on the CAARI Blog. Rhoda is volunteering in Ichilov Rehabilitation Center and Joe is at Koach L'Tet. We wanted to share with you a few thoughts on the visits we have experienced. I (Joe) have already been quoted in the KKL website regarding our visit to JNF sites and our Tu’Bshvat experience at the nursery......I said.... “It seems as though KKL-JNF is just as involved in planting the Jewish people in its land, as it is in planting trees!” Last week we visited Eretz Museum in Tel Aviv - "Behold the Land!" From the ages of the Pharaohs, to the smelting of the copper mines (we toured the mines when we were in Timna a couple weeks ago) in Biblical times, we moved to Italia Ebraica where we learned about differences in their liturgy, to the beauty of the magnificently hand crafted glass by modern Israeli artists.
We were supposed to work in the forest, but snow – yes SNOW – was forecasted. Our leaders, Neil and Susan, rearranged the day. In the morning, we had a guided tour of the Diaspora Museum – following the Jews through the ages from all over the world, and how they maintained their religion and culture whereever they lived. We saw a wonderful exhibition of synagogues - some replicas of lost buildings and some still existing. In the afternoon, Dr. Mordechai Kedar, a lecturer in the Department of Arabic at Bar-Ilan University and a research associate at the Begin-Sadat (BESA) Center for Strategic Studies spoke, to the group about Iran. We learned some interesting facts on the issues about the Iranian situation and what it means world.
The other day, through a blowing sand storm we persevered in the tradition of the Irgun, leaving nothing to deter us from reaching the Etzel Museum (located on the Tel Aviv promenade). We were privileged to have Josef Ben David Nachimas, relate personal incidents from the struggle with the British (during the Mandate Period) to the eventual Statehood. Enlisting in the British Army at the age of 14, fighting the Germans, through his service in the Irgun under the Command of Menachum Begin- Josef was a hero!! There wasn’t a dry eye in the room as he recounted his stories. It is indeed an honor to hear about the early days of Eretz Yisrael from people like Josef. Events like these make CAARI a special program. Oh - we also had some Israeli folkdancing lessons!!! Kef (fun)!

Touring Day - Shuni and Casearea

Anice Stark - Toronto, Canada

Sunday, Jan. 26 we had a full travel day - a day off from our community service and an opportunity for those that are with us for 3 weeks to see JNF sites and Israel!!! Our first stop was Shuni Park (JNF tourist project), where we met Eli Shenhav - not only was he the JNF-KKL archaeologist who uncovered the site, but he was also the sheliach for both Montreal and Toronto. Of course, this is where Arnold and I met him. We also discovered another connection, our son who worked with Eli at one time - typical Jewish connection! Eli explained how they uncovered the different layers of the theater, the pools and described the special "finds" uncovered. If you don't know - Shuni is related to Caesarea - Eli described it as the "country club" for the people living in the surrounding area - a place for fun and frolicking! The pools that they uncovered are amazing - you can still see evidence of the types of games they played in the water. Today the area is used as a sculpture garden.

The weather, while threatening, was very good, especially for sightseeing. We made a brief stop at Zichron Yaacov, a charming, restored 19th century village, and then continued on to Caesarea. This is an amazing site built by King Herod, overlooking the beautiful sea. We visited the theater, and walked around the hippodrome - trying to imagine the chariots racing around. There were lots of other ruins, some still are being excavated. We ended the evening with a fabulous meal at the ancient port of Caesarea - watching the sun set over the sea!

"Our CAARI Day"

"Our days with CAARI" by Joan Hulkower, Port Washington, NY
Shalom from Joan and Bernie. This is our 7th time with CAARI and our 5th consecutive year! We are always amazed at how many different places we see and visit. Susan and Neil always manage to find something new and interesting to add to our itinerary. Our time in Eilat was most memorable for our hike in the Shchorit Canyon – 3 ½ hours of hiking, climbing up rocks with wonderful vistas from the top!
Back in Tel Aviv feels like coming home! The Hotel Metropolitan Staff gave us a warm welcome. Joan’s community service is at the long term care hospital – Bernie is at Bal Shem Tov school tutoring elementary kids. He was greeted with such excitement and enthusiasm – as the students remember him from previous years! We have long days – usually up around 6:30 AM – an Israeli breakfast – and either a taxi to community service by 7:30 or a day trip at 8:00. Our days are varied and each is a new experience. Our CAARI group (47 people) can be described as varied, hearty and ready for any kind of activity and….weather! Our nephew, Jan – who is on with us for three weeks - has distinguished himself as the “Scrabble King”. Bernie complains that the Scrabble dictionary is lousy as it includes “dumb” stuff, like musical sounds (do- re- mi…)
We are so happy to have our Port Washington contingent of Rita and Meil Schweitzer and Marilyn Oser with us.
Old City Tour - This week we had a day off from community service for a memorable visit to Jerusalem. It was chilly, some would call it cold – but no rain – that was a blessing for us. We began the day at Mt. of Olives with a view of the Old City – although the clouds interfered with the view – they didn’t dampen our spirits. From there we went to the Kotel and an amazing session at the Davidson Center. If you haven’t experienced the virtual model you don’t know what you are missing! It is always interesting to walk through the Jewish Quarter, visit the historic sites, shop (always can do that) and mingle with Israelis at the coffee places. Tourists are everywhere - what a difference a year makes! A little excitement with Seymour Karpas and his camera - police to the rescue; you will have to ask Seymour and Gloria about this one!

Our day concluded with a delicious dinner at the Jewish Quarter Café before making our way back to Tel Aviv. Tomorrow – community service! Along with community service, tours, lectures and our traditional Oneg Shabbat with Noami Halpern - we are also enjoying Tel Aviv’s culture scene – concerts – music and dance performance – who could ask for a better winter vacation than with JNF’s CAARI program!

Tu Bishvat with CAARI and JNF

CELEBRATE TU'bSHVAT - By Rosalie Whitehill - Plainview, NY

Shalom!
Last night's Tu B'shvat seder was so incredibly wonderful.....I don't know if I can find enough superlatives.....and this opinion is shared by just about everyone I spoke with.
We had a fantastic entertainer.....started the evening with many familiar Israeli tunes (in the course of the evening there were about 5 or 6 melodies to which I know the folk dance...) with a marvelous keyboard that sounded like a 6 piece combo.....he also sang.....there was singing and dancing with some of us adding tambourine emphasis (me....when I wasn't dancing) and everyone was quite happy even before we started our seder which included several glasses of wine along with the fruit and nuts. Our coordinator supplied us with wonderful booklets that came from Neot Kedumim.....and emphasized conservation, the environment and caring for our earth......and every 8 paragraphs or so we had a musical interlude.....with more of the marvelous Israeli music......so the reading was much more palatable..(of course people took turns reading, as in a regular seder).....and we danced and sang at all the interludes. When the reading was over.....and we were all feeling VERY HAPPY........more singing and dancing......and then some Spanish stuff....Besame Mucho, cha cha, etc. then Italian songs, then French songs, then Elvis stuff, then rock and roll......and our entertainer continued playing requests........What a night....at breakfast this a.m. one man compared it to a “freilich wedding”.....a very special experience for us!
This morning we celebrated Tu B'shvat by going to a JNF nursery outside Jerusalem.....we had a terrific guide who showed us how seeds are planted, incubated, transplanted and then sent off to nurseries before they go to forests or parks.....so inspiring....we will not do any transplanting or pruning this year as this is year 7 in the Hebrew cycle when the land is given time to renew itself. If you want to see more and read about us on the KKL website – some of us were interviewed and photographed –
Log on to www.kkl.org.il - than and read about Click to read about A Special New Year for Trees Celebration at KKL-JNF Nurseries

Love to all!

Rosalie