Day 8: Travel Begins

July 31, 2014
By: Dani Stancer
Well hello, World Wide Web. How are y'all? I'm doing splendid. It's incredibly hot here and unbearably humid. So guess what? I woke up at 6:30 in the freaking morning because we had to be at the library for 8am and I still had to finish packing. Procrastination is my middle name. While at the library, yesterday's day leaders led a wrap up program for the week. They asked questions like 'what is something you learned about yourself?' Yada, yada, yada. After that invigorating experience, we headed onto the thankfully air conditioned bus (one of the only ones we've had with air conditioning, woohoo!). From then on, we travelled for about 3 hours until we reached this beautiful place called Masada. I mostly slept on the bus so I can't give you a play by play on what happened. Sorry, I like my sleep too much.
So, if you haven't figured it out already, we're currently at Masada until Sunday staying at the hostel. The rooms aren't cramped and the place is pretty cool. After we brought our luggage into the hostel, we boarded the bus once again, but we headed to the actual place called Masada. We took the cable car up and once there, we split into four groups and had a competition based learning program. We had to figure out five interesting facts, find a Diller hat (there was only one!), debate on the interesting topic of whether the story of Masada was an act of heroism by the Jews or of cowardice, and, lastly, take a Diller-esque photo. Once the mini competition was over, we walked down the Roman Ramp, which isn't actually a ramp, and headed onto the bus (again, I know). We took the bus over to the Bedouin community near us. The culture and atmosphere there was phenomenal. The energy was unbelievable. Their way of life is so intriguing and I wish we stayed the night. We had a surprise camel ride and the camel I rode on with at Tomer was named Antigone. The one behind us was named BoBo, and she kept rubbing her head on Tomer's leg. I was scared she'd bite me, but I still have all ten toes. We had a Bedouin style dinner and then were invited into one of the community member's tents. While there, I had the honour of thanking them for hosting us and was then considered the man's ninth daughter and twenty-fourth child. My favourite part of the whole night there was the nice temperature. The area had a slight breeze and fantastic temperatures. Once we were finished there, we boarded the bus for the final time and got back to the hostel in about an hour. Well, the World Wide Web, it's pretty late and my bed is once again calling my name, so this is me signing off. Nighty night. Don't let the bed bugs bite, and if they do, take your shoe, and whack 'em till they're black and blue. Xoxoxoxo Dani

Day 7: Goodbye, Eilat!

July 30, 2014

By: Orly Lipsitz

‎As our amazing community week comes to a close, our cohort was given the huge honour of visiting soldiers who had a few hours off to rest and wash up at the Beit Hachayalim (house of the soldiers) in Eilat. We would like to thank the anonymous donor who sponsored the socks and underwear that we delivered to the soldiers. I was so appreciative to have the opportunity to thank the soldiers face to face for protecting our country and to remind them that Jews in the diaspora stand by them, support them, and definitely never forget about them and the sacrifices they are making every day. The soldiers were so grateful for the new clothing, but were even happier to have us visit. It was an amazing reminder that something so simple can change someone's day. 

After visiting the soldiers, we went to Top49, a centre for extreme sports. There we honed in on our teamwork skills by playing paintball and guiding each other through rock climbing and other activities. 

We enjoyed an afternoon indoors with air conditioning at the campus of Ben Gurion university in Eilat. We were given time to write a letter of thanks to our host families and then each wrote a second letter addressed to a soldier, which will be given to soldiers who are fighting right now in Gaza. It was especially significant to write the letters today, after we visited a group of soldiers in person. We were then immersed in discussion on the topic of language,in particular Hebrew, which was led by Daniel and Liav. It was very interesting to hear the diverse opinions in the room regarding the language of prayer and the attitude people hold towards praying in a language that they don't fully understand- even for the Israelis who struggle to comprehend Biblical Hebrew sometimes. We discussed that language can create family, but family is not dependent on language, and therefore those in our cohort who don't speak Hebrew or English are still a part of our Diller family. Daniel and Liav led an amazing and thought provoking session with us.

We then traveled to the Eilat fire station and witnessed just how much Toronto supports the Eilat‎ community. 

The night ended with a farewell banquet.  It was great to spend the night all together with our host families before we leave tomorrow morning. It's amazing how in just one short week we have been welcomed into the Eilati's homes and treated as a member of their family, even during such trying times here. Our host families will definitely be missed, but I can guarantee that I will be traveling back to Eilat soon to visit my new home.

Day 6: Tikkun Olam and Fun

July 29, 2014
By: Amir Mesterman

‎Today we started the day off by volunteering. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot. We were split up into different groups. I was volunteering in an organization to help people with special needs integrate into society. I got to understand personal stories of many different people. It was interesting and a good experience. We then went to the Ice Mall and had free time where some of us went ice skating. After, we went to a cruise where we ate dinner. After the cruise we went to the "youth tent" where we met Israelis and Canadians our age. Today was a really fun day with some great volunteering.

Day 6: Volunteer-Work

July 29, 2014
By: Judah Hoffman

Today was focused on giving back to the community of Eilat which has given us so much up until this point on the trip.

We started off the day with an intriguing discussion led by the leaders of the day regarding "tikkun olam," repairing the world. After coming up with some great ideas, we turned our ideas into realities by splitting up and going to different charitable organizations. The group I was in went to an organization called מיוחד (Meyuchad) that gives work to people with special needs. We helped out with the work they were doing, which included folding labels and Nesspresso bags. It was fun, but more importantly we got to know the people working there. This gave us a chance to better understand their lives and appreciate the organization's work. In my opinion, this was the greatest experience of the trip so far.

We then moved on to a compelling discussion about family led by our amazing Junior Counselors. Afterwards we went to the Ice Mall for some food and skating. Finally we embarked on a fun cruise through the waters of Eilat, where we saw the Jordanian border up close, dolphins, and the beautiful night-time skyline.

Day 5: To the Beach!

July 28, 2014
By: Oliver Blatt

We started off the day at the underwater observatory, learning about the different fish and coral found in the Red Sea. Then, we saw the shark feeding. It was very interesting to watch. The person feeding the sharks actually went in with the sharks as opposed to just dropping the food in the water. My favourite part of the observatory was seeing the sting rays and turtles interact together in the same living space.

After the observatory, we went to the marine university, where we meet with a professor specializing in marine life. Luckily, we had the opportunity to see plankton both alive and dead. Since the plankton is so minute, microscopes were necessary to look at them. The professor spoke to us about ocean currents, coral reefs, and other marine life, which was all very intriguing. We ate lunch outside on the university campus, then walked to the nature reserve. At the nature reserve we went snorkeling and saw beautiful fish and corals. The day ended off with some matkot (beach tennis) on the beach.

Day 4: From Mountain to Parade

July 27, 2013
By: Antigone Fogel

Today was an amazing day of both education and fun. We started our day with a visit to Kibbutz Eilot where both Artyom and Tamara (two of the Eilat-Eilot fellows) live. Our visit started by meeting one of the original members of kibbutz Eilot. He told us all about why he chose to move there and the type of work members of the kibbutz do to keep it running smoothly. After that we spoke with Artyom, Tamara, and the head of their program about the program and what it is like to move to Israel alone as a teenager, living without the support from your parents which we all take for granted. It was very interesting, and I am very glad that Artyom and Tamara chose to share it with us!

After Kibbutz Eilot we went to the police station and learned about how they deal with suspicious objects which are potential bombs. It was a very interesting and interactive presentation, but because it was outside and the weather was very hot, it was difficult to pay complete attention. After the presentation ended, I decided I would find my way inside to air conditioning. However, it turned out that right as I started off, a prisoner was being taken to a building. So I followed him. I followed him a bit too far, because I almost ended up in the place they take all the prisoners. Luckily, I realized before I got booked as a criminal myself. In total, the visit was very interesting and I had fun.

Then, after the police station tour, we went on a jeep ride up some of the mountains in Eilat to a beautiful viewpoint. From it, you could see three different countries! It was beautiful, and the drives to and from the viewpoint gave us a great opportunity to bond with the other people in our jeeps. So far, that tour is one of my highlights of our trip!

Finally, after all of that craziness we went on a parade to support Israeli troops. It was amazing for me to see all of the people who came out to show their support. There were tons of huge Israeli flags, and even people driving by would honk their horns in solidarity. The sense of community for that short period of time was incredibly strong, and the experience is one I will never forget.

Well, that's all for the day! We each did our own thing with our hosts. Now it is late, and I have to wake up early tomorrow. Goodnight!

Day 4: Understanding Realities

July 27, 2014
By: Jonathan Aaronowitz

As I see it, today was a day of culture and understanding the realities of Eilat and its people. Meeting with professional kibbutznik Shmulik and hearing from our fellows, Artyom and Tamara, gave a shocking realization about the enormity of the life decisions that youngsters in other parts of the world make. In all three cases, brave, curious, and ambitious personalities changed their lives completely by voluntarily leaving their families to move to kibbutz Eilot. Not out of spite or regret, but out of courage, all three moved to seek the multitude of opportunities that Israel offers and built themselves for the future to come. Kind of sounds like Diller, now that I think of it.

Anyhow, we continued on a jeep tour to gain a spectacular perspective of Israel and its neighborhood. Standing at the peak of a mountain, I had an epiphany. Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt were all surrounding the our little country. With mountains on all sides, it was as if the thin stretch of land could be swallowed by the mountains. But here we were, a bunch of ambitious teenagers standing atop a mountain enjoying the view and talking about peace. Why does it have to be so complicated?

As the organized programs came to an end, we joined the parade in support of the soldiers. We held signs, waved flags, and sang. Nearly 10% of Eilat turned out! Overall, today was a simply wonderful day. It kept feeding our minds with questions, experiences and hope.