June 15th Departure - Hasbara Israel - Day 2

Wednesday July 18-2008

Greetings and Salutations,
Day two of our adventure was full of many interesting people. We started the day with breakfast and head over to the Jewish Quarter of the old city. Our first speaker of the morning was our lovely campus coordinator Elysha Ames. She spoke to us about what communicating for Israel meant. We started working on real tactic on how to talk about Israel. On day two we’ve already got knee deep into the nitty gritty of what Hasbara really is.

Our second guest of the day was Ken Spiro, who began educating us on the History of the Land of Israel. He spoke quickly with a large message. The group was full questions and we ran out of time to pick his brain. We all left Ken’s speech beaming so happy about what we have been learning. We all felt so lucky to be able to have the opportunity to learn from him. We would get to meet up with him again on Wednesday, but we were on our way to the next destination, the Kinesset.

The Kinesset, (the Israeli parliament) was quite an experience. We were told no cameras or cell phones allowed, and individually had to pass through the security. It was as tight as airport security. We then went in through the outdoor compound into the main building. The Chagall hallway was spectacular. There was three giant tapestries, each one representing a time in the Jewish written history, the past present and future. The tour guide did a wonderful job of describing Chagall’s vision of the times. The other pieces of artwork were tile mosaics scattered all over the floor and another giant mosaic on the wall. All the pieces must have taken a tremendous deal of time and patience to create.

Onwards to our meeting with Michael Eitan member of kinesset. The fact that we were talking with Mr. Eitan was very exciting. This was a man who was currently on many committees. He was quite verbose and remained politically correct when faced with our challenging questions. After our meeting we got to sit in on Kinesset in session. It was interesting to note that there were only about 20 members of kinesset working out of a total 120 seats in the house. Let’s just say it seemed rather empty.

After what seemed like already a full day, we got to hear from Itamar Marcus. Mr. Marcus is the founder and director of the Palestinian Media Watch, an organization that monitors and translates Palestinian media sources. We were shown current TV clips that propagated messages of hate. It was appalling to see what the TV was teaching the Palestinian children. Something in the presentation triggered something in most of us. I’m sure we were all pretty excited to bring these videos back to our campuses.

As discussions dwindled down we were set loose to have a free evening. It was quite an exhausting day, full of so much information that my brain is a little sore.

Your Israeli Correspondent

Amy

Over and Out

Poland and Israel- Day 2

The group woke up early for their packed day of touring. They started off the day with a drive to Lublin, where they visited Yeshivat Chachmei Lublin. Although the Yeshiva is empty now (and under a restoration project), the fellows were able to bring it back to life by learning some Pirkei Avot there, followed by singing and dancing. Afterwards they left for Majdanek, another death camp, but this one is very much in tact. The fellows were able to visualize the Nazi crimes and expressed shock and anger at the extent of the cruelty. The group then headed to Markova where they visited the grave of Rav Eli Hemelech. There they danced and sang in his honour.

Poland and Israel- Day 1

Following their delayed departure from New York, the Poland-Israel group landed in Warsaw and headed straight for a tour of the remaining Ghetto walls. Then they headed to Treblinka, one of the death camps. The students saw how today nothing remains there but monuments erected in the memory of the victims. The fellows were educated with a vast amount of history regarding the camp in order to help them truly feel the reality of what occurred there. They then returned to Warsaw where they stayed overnight.

June 15th Departure - Hasbara Israel - Day 1

Greetings and Salutations from the holy land! The Hasbara Fellowships group has arrived and the trip is going great. Our long flight was well worth the wait as we arrived into Tel Aviv at 8 am Monday, the beginning of the week in foreign territory. The feeling as we got off the plane was of welcome and excitement. As a tired group met with our Madrichim, we all started learning each other’s names and schools and majors. We learned that the students from this trip came from as far and near as West coast Canada and the States and covered all the way to East coast. Even though we were all from very different places in North America (even as far as Texas) we all shared at least one thing in common, our love for the Holy Land. And we had all made it here together.

After we all got our rental phones and figured out T9, (thank god for T9) we began our journey to Jerusalem. The bus ride was all yawns and smiles, and when we finally made it into Jerusalem we were glued to the windows. We were in awe of the scenery, the buildings and the trees. The homes and the shops, the synagogues and the churches all seemed so unreal. As we made it into the Jewish quarter we were greeted by a large group of IDF soldiers. We ate a beautiful breakfast and played some ice breaker games to get to know each other better.

After a lot of laughing and learning some rather interesting facts about the group we did a short bus tour of the old city. Our trip leader gave us a brief rendition of the history of the borders of Jerusalem how they came to be how they are now. The history of the walls that Jerusalem has always had and the new walls that are being built were explained.

A very Jet-lagged group parted ways with our guide and the Men and Women parted ways and we checked into our hotels. We all took a much needed nap before we met at a local bar called Zolly’s. We shared stories and laughs.

Thus was the end of day one.
Your Israeli correspondent,
Amy

Over and Out

Day 7 - May 20th Trip

Today we began our day with a class taught by Natalie Menaged called Answering the Most Difficult Questions. She taught us the ways to address the most common anti Israel topics many students may face back on campus. After her class we heard from Jessica Montell, executive director of B'Tselem: The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. Ms. Montell spoke with us about human rights issues in Gaza and the West Bank. After lunch we returned and heard from Dovid Goldstein. The class was full of laughs and very meaningful for many of the students.

Following a short break Itamar Marcus the director of Palestinian Media Watch joined us and spoke to us about PMW and their monitoring of Anti Semetic and anti-Israel propaganda. Before dinner we heard from one of the campus coordinators on how to build up the leadership and organizational skills of our Israel groups on campus. After a free dinner in the Old City three of our staffers role-played as anti-Israel speakers and we were able to try out some of the tools we have been taught.

Day 6 - May 20th Trip

Monday morning we spend our time volunteering with Livnot Ulhibanot, an organization of volunteers helping to rebuild the north of Israel. Many of us got messy painting the Synagouge that also functions as a bomb shelter. After cleaning up we traveled to Metulla, watched a film OZ 77 and then took a wonderful hike where we ended up at a waterfall. Once everyone finished the hike we headed back into Jerusalem for a free night.

Day 4 and 5 - May 20th Trip

Saturday night the students returned from their free Shabbats. They spent their Shabbats doing many different things, some stayed in the Jerusalem area and stayed with friends, other went into Tel Aviv to relax and sunbathe while others went to visit family all over the country.

Sunday morning we woke up early and had a class taught by Ken Spiro. Mr. Spiro taught the second part of a class we had earlier in the week, History of the State of Israel. Spiro is an expert on many topics like, the roots of Arab/Muslim conflict with the Western world, Anti Semitism, and Jewish and Israeli history. Along with his talk he gave us dozens of book recommendations.

After the class we got back on the bus and headed north. We stopped at Latrun and the Alfei Menashe overlook. In Latrun there were many pictures taken on the tanks after learning about their roles in Israel's military history. After lunch at the Alfei Menashe overlook our tour guide, Yisrael Neeman continued his talk about Israel's military history.

We later went over to visit Lydia Aisenberg at Givat Chaviva. Givat Chaviva is a kibbutz where people from all different backgrounds, Israelis, Israeli-Arabs, Palestinians, soldiers and students come together for the purpose of dialogue and understanding. Lydia is responsible for the creation of the International Department at Givat Chaviva and has been working there for more then fifteen years. She took us on a tour into Barta and showed us a city that is split by the green line, part of the city is in Israel proper and then rest is in the West Bank. After our packed day we checked into the hotel.

Day 3 - May 20th Trip

Today in the morning we heard Khaled Adu Toameh, an award winning independant Israeli-Arab journalist. He has been covering Palestinian issues in the West Bank and Gaza for over 2 decades. He spoke out against the lack of free speech and press within the PA controlled areas and its effect on the foreign press. He now writes for the Jerusalem Post, as does our next speaker, Gil Hoffman. is the chief political corespondent and analyst for the Jersualem Post. He gave us a behind the scenes look at the intrigue and humor in the Israeli political arena. Now we are heading off to our Shabbat plans and will be back together tomorrow night.

Day 2 - May 20th Trip

Our second day was a full schedule that kept us on our feet. After a morning class with Natalie, Communicating for Israel we had a discussion about our campuses. In the discussion we addressed many problems that we face on our campuses and talked about possible resolutions. After lunch in the Old City we went on a bus tour that kept us moving and taking pictures. Yisrael Neeman gave us an in depth History of the land of Israel, followed by Krav Maga. But do not worry all the students promised to use what they learned for good.

Day 1 - May 20th Trip

After arriving in Israel Wednesday afternoon we all traveled into the Old City for orientation and dinner. Natalie, Hasbara's managing director, spoke with us about all the exciting things we will be doing, people we will be hearing, and opportunities in front of us. In order to get to know one another we played some fun games that produced many laughs and a good time. To continue the good time we quickly checked into our hotels and then many students and the campus coordinators meet up and hung out by Ben Yehudah with many other Israelis watching football (soccer).

Day 5 - Meeting Jerusalem Post Reporters

We drove to the Old City where we heard from Yaakov Katz from the Jerusalem Post, who spoke about Israeli Defence and Security. The topics ranged from kidnapped soldier Gilaad Shalit to the Iranian quest for nuclear weapons. Then we heard from Khaled Abu Toameh who also writes for the Jerusalem Post who spoke about Palestinian Society Under Hamas. Khaled enlightened us with the internal problems of the Palestinian Authority and his personal story of working for Yasser Arafat’s newspaper. After an informative morning we were given the afternoon off to prepare for our free Shabbat.

Day 4 - Continuing the Strategic Tour of the North

After an amazing night in Chispin we had breakfast and got on the bus to start our activity filled day. We drove to Kiryat Shimona where we paint a bomb shelter with Livanot Ulhibanot in an effort to rebuild Northern Israel. Then we headed to Metulla where we learned from Yisrael Neeman atop a look out point into Lebanon. Afterwards we drove to the border fence between Israel and Lebanon where we witnessed UN vehicles drive by in the distance. We ate a packed lunch were we were able to talk to soldiers who were on break from patrolling the border. They shared there experiences and were kind enough to tell us about the security concerns they deal with. Then we headed to a Oz 77 where we watched a documentary about the Yom Kippur war which gave a personal account of what the soldiers experienced. Later we went on a water hike in the Golan Heights. Finally we finished our fun day with a ride back to our accommodations in Jerusalem.

.

Day 3 - Our Strategic Tour to the North

We woke up to a very warm day in Jerusalem where we departed for the Old City where we heard a class, History of the State of Israel by Yisrael Neeman. Directly after, we departed on our trip to the North. On our way we stopped at Latrun which is the largest tank museum in the world. We were able to view tanks dating back to the British rule and the newest Israel tank known as the “Merkava”. We drove to Alfei Menashe where the we were able to see the security fence.After we drove to Givat Chaviva where we heard Lydia Aisenberg who educated us about the security fence as well as its impacts. Lydia then joined us on the bus to give us a tour of the Arab city of Barta which is split between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. We were able to meet an Arab-Israeli teenager who answered our questions on his views of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Later we drove to our accommodations in Chispin where we enjoyed a delicious dinner. Finally we sat under the stars playing the guitar and schmoozing about all the things we observed.

Day 2 - Our Activism Begins

On the second day of Hasbara Fellowships, we got right into the bread and butter of the program. After breakfast, we headed into the Old City where we had our first class¸ Communicating for Israel led by campus coordinator Elysha Ames. We were introduced to Hasbara Fellowship’s advocacy strategy. Then, historical and political analyst, Yisrael Neeman taught History of the Land. Yisrael gave a brief historical overview of the land of Israel since the time of Abraham. After lunch, Itamar Marcus from Palestinian Media Watch spoke to us about the incitement of hatred towards Israel in the Palestinian media. Itamar brought clips from children television shows, music videos, etc. Afterwards, we did krav maga, an Israeli martial art that the IDF is trained in. After dinner, we ended the day by hearing from Yohanan Plesner, a member of Knesset from the Kadimah party. Yohanan spoke to us about the current situation and answered all of our questions. It was a fantastic first day, giving us a firm foundation in which to launch into our trip up North.

Hasbara Canada Has Arrived!

We landed in Israel, grabbed our luggage and hopped on the bus on our way to the Old City in Jerusalem. Happy to finally be in Israel, we arrived in the Old City where we ate brunch and went through orientation. We had a few minutes to explore the Old City and get acquainted with the area. Then we did some ice breakers, taking an opportunity to learn each other’s names. Afterwards, we hopped back on the bus for a bus-tour of the city of Jerusalem. We had the opportunity to visit incredible overlooks of the holy city, including Mount Scopus. Finally, exhausted and ready for a shower, we arrived to our respective hotels for some down time. After some much needed rest and relaxation, the entire group met up for our first session, What’s Up On Your Campus. The session was led by campus coordinator, Sammy Katz. We talked about each of our campus environments and learned that we each come from unique campus cultures. Everyone who was still up for a little adventure went out for a night on the town. It was an excellent first day and a great way to start our time in Israel.

Hasbara Canada

CFJS Hasbara kicked off 2008 with a great start. We had a delicious breakfast at the Marina hotel overlooking the Mediterranean. The fellows were fortunate enough to be hosted by the Interdisciplinary Centre (IDC) in Herzliyah, Israel’s leading academic institution in the field of counter-terrorism. The speakers included one of the foremost experts on radical Islam Dr. Isaac Kfir, who elaborated to the fellows on the geopolitical situation in the Middle East today. We also heard from Jonathan Davis, the VP of IDC and Dr. Ely Karmon who also expanded on the threats to Israel and the status of Lebanon. After enjoying lunch at the IDC’s cafeteria our group moved on to visit the Weizmann Institute where they were treated to a display of Israel’s environmental innovations.

The fellows were given a tour of the centre and valuable insights on all of Israel’s advancements, this will allow them to present a different perspective of Israel on their campuses. From their we traveled to the Wolfson Hospital where we learned about the important humanitarian efforts Israel has and continues to engage in around the world. The fellows heard from representatives of Save A Child’s Heart (SACH) and the founder of IsrAID, Shachar Zahavi. Both of these are Israeli humanitarian organizations that work to better our world. The fellows got a first hand look at what SACH does when they visited the group home of children who were brought to Israel to undergo lifesaving heart procedures. We then returned to the bus after a very informative day to drive back to Jerusalem.