It’s a double header this week as Shana bet went up north and Shana Alef began their Lech Lecha Journey. Shana bet had a really awesome time as Rav Jason and Ruthie took us all the way to Teveria and the Golan! How lucky are we!? First stop was Kaser alel Yehud. We literally got to put our hands into the Jordan river where Bnei Yisrael crossed with Yehoshua. Afterwards, we went on a water hike in Nachal Kibutzim. Well actually it was more like a swim. The water was up to our necks!! Then we went to visit the kevarim of the Ramchal, Rambam, and Rabbi Akiva. We then davened Mincha looking over the Kinneret...breathtaking. Last stop was the hotel in Chispin where we played a team building game, heard a Rosh HaShana shiur by the one and only Rav Jason and ended off with a nice kumzits.

Day 2 was even more jam packed! We began the day with a 4 hour hike at Jilabun. The views again were unbelievable. We all jumped into the waterfall pools which were so refreshing! Afterwards, we went up to Ein Zivan to make chocolate at de Karina chocolate factory! It was so much fun and now we are master chocolatiers! Last stop was Har Bental. We learned lots about the Yom Kippur and Syrian war. Really informational!

We really had such a great trip filled with hiking learning and great bonding time! It was amazing!!! Thanks to everyone who made it all happen! Have a great Shabbos!

Gabby Schwartz and Rachel Berger, Shana bet

Shana Alef  started off Tuesday morning waking up at 4:30am for our "Lech Lecha 5777 Midmo trip"! Upon arriving to the desert we were all a little nervous but excited! The theme of Tuesday was "Bein adam le’atzmo" meaning the relationship between a person and them-self. Along the long journey through the desert we had time to think about our life without any distractions. When we got to the top of the mountain we took out a notebook that Midreshet Moriah gave us and wrote down everything we were thinking. It was a time of silence for ourselves to reflect. When we returned after the 7 hour hike, we saw the many tents that were built for us. We watched the sunset as we rested and ate soup. Then we were given ingredients to create our own dinner! We divided into the three groups that we hiked with. It was so much fun! We made hamburgers, salad, and sauce for pasta! Then we had the option to go to sleep or roast marshmallows and look at the stars. We were then divided into random groups of three for the sleeping arrangements so we got to meet new friends.

The next morning waking up at 6am, we davened in the peaceful desert. After eating breakfast and making lunch we headed out to a park. The theme of Wednesday was "Bein Adam le’chaveiro". We did outdoor training, which was so much fun! We had to all trust each other in order to complete the task. We learned new things about ourselves and reflected on our roles in the exercises. After the ODT we continued down to Eilat for water sports. We had the options of banana boating, paddle boating, and kayaking. We also walked around the outdoor shopping area. We had perfect weather and a really fun afternoon! We made our way to our hotel for showers and a yummy feast! Dinner was followed by a group meeting to speak about our personal journeys so far. Then we headed to the mall for a scavenger hunt. We all finally went to sleep in preparation for our early morning Thursday hike to see the sunrise. We can't wait for what's to come the rest of this week! And of course we're so excited for our Shabbaton. We look forward to making even more new friends on this unbelievable Lech Lecha experience!

Elisheva Abilevitz and Rebecca Alexander, Shana Alef