Akko and Bubble Balls, July 22

We started off our day going to Kibbutz Chanaton. This Kibbutz was unique because it has almost all sects of Judaism represented in it but only has one synagogue so Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform Jews pray together. There, we learned and discussed the differences and similarities between all of those sects. Next we drove about 30 minutes to the old city of Akko. There, we took a tour of the Templar tunnels from the time of the crusaders. We learned about the crusaders as well as archaeological tels or cities under cities, under cities. Next, we had free time in the Arab market in Akko which was quite different from the markets we had previously been in. After that, we went back to the hostile and had rest time until dinner. After dinner, we had an activity with bubble balls which was a great way to end the trip and then we had free time afterwards and then we went to sleep.

Written by: Zach Zaiman 

Shabbat Shalom, July 21

This past Shabbat came just as expected. This week provided us with lots of meaningful and interesting experiences awaiting to be analyzed and reflected upon. Shabbat is the time of week when we choose to focus on the mysteries of creation rather than creation itself. So often we let the trials, tribulations, and chores of the week rule our lives; however, it is Shabbat that allows us to realize why we endure all of this. Shabbat is the day that we can really see what motivates us: friendship, beauty in nature, family, pursuit of knowledge, self reflection, etc. There is an image beauty in shabbat that forces us to put down our devices and not focus on taking pictures. When we leave these desires behind we can focus on making memories themselves, rather than making the pictures the memories we remember. We ought to learn from this and remember that pictures are not a replacement for enjoying beautiful views; being present in the moment offers so much more than one million pictures. Providing us with ample opportunity to reflect on our thoughts, the staff organized and led many thought provoking activities for the fellows. We, as fellows, spent time admiring the beauty that G-d places around us, discussed what Shabbat meant, and reflected on our experience in Israel as a whole. Shabbat came to us as a gust of holy wind that carried away our impurities and left behind the main structures of ourselves, leaving us bare and ready to begin the next week.

Written by: Jason Straus 

Welcoming Shabbat, July 20

Friday July 20th 2018
Today we were up bright and early. We loaded our luggage into the bus and said goodbye to what was hands down the nicest place we had stayed at so far. The bus took us to an Arab village in Israel. There, we talked to Ofer who explained the Arab-Jewish conflict in Israel. We then spoke to kids our age who lived in the village, and after we spoke we played basketball with them. After that, we hopped back on the bus to go to Rosh HaNikrah, a grotto right near the border of Lebanon. The grotto was very cool, and when we finished our tour of it, our tour guide, Yossi, explained how to conflict between Israel and Lebanon began, and why it is so hard to come to a peaceful solution. After he spoke to us, we ate lunch right by the sea. After lunch we went to our new place of residence and checked into our rooms. We were given free time to relax or explore our new accommodations before Shabbat. We then enjoyed Kaballat Shabbat, Shabbat dinner and time with each other.

Written by: Zach Sirody

Our final few days, July 19

Hello parents,

This morning we said goodbye to the new friends we made at Congress and soon reunited with our beloved tour guide, Yossi. After that we went to the city of Tzfat and had a pizor lunch (many of us enjoyed the Israeli delicassy of pizza sandwiches). Following lunch, we went to a scribe and played trivia & watched an interactive movie prior to learning how to write our own hebrew letters. After the scribe, we went to Buza, an ice cream factory founded by a Jew and an Arab together and tasted 5 different flavors. To end the day, we arrived at a new kibbutz to rooms with two floors, a TV & phenomenal air conditioning. To say the least we were far from upset.

Written by: Sophie Rubenfeld

Closing day of Congress! July 18

Today we said goodbye to friends from across the world as Congress came to a close. We started the morning with a fun and engaging activity on Tikkun Olam, where we discussed our roles in making a change in the world. Next, we listened to Diller alumni, as they explained the positive impact Diller has made on their lives. Their stories of carrying on the leadership skills they gained in Diller truly inspired many of us in the cohort. Next, we attended the Global partnership fair, where each partnership set up a station that represented their cohorts. Filled with food, fun, and learning, all of us had the opportunity to get to know a little bit about the Jewish communities across the world. Finally, we ended our night with a closing ceremony, where Baltimore and Ashkelon won the “most friendly and social partnership award”. After the closing ceremony, we sadly said goodbye to our friends and headed back to our kibbutzim for the night.

Written by: Shira Pomerantz

Leadership Challenge, July 17

Diller had a fun filled day planned for us! The busses took us to Tel Hai campus, a small college in Northern Israel. We made our way to our learning classrooms and did an activity in which statements were made about Israel and its relationship to the diaspora; we were told to change our altitude in order to show our level of agreement. After our Israel discussion, we went to our assigned “inspirational speakers”, these ranged from the Mayor of Sohan, the Director of Hillel Israel, the Director of Diller Teen Initiative and many more. From there, we were given lunch made up of assorted sandwich options and sides. After this, we convened in our leadership challenge teams and begun the day’s main activity: the leadership challenge. We were shown a video on with the first task. Once completed we headed to our bus to take us to our next challenge. We went to a field to complete different tasks such as the army crawl, blowing up a bubble over a person, climbing over an “electric wire” (it was really just flags). We got super dirty but had a lot of fun. After the obstacle courses we went to the Rugby Field, here we had to create a “haka maka” chant. After this, we went to a local mall where we had to complete different tasks while not annoying the people in the mall. Our next task was at the Canada Center. Here we had to bowl as a team and gain 70 points after this we moved up to the trampoline park. At the trampoline park we took a picture while making a Star of David while jumping. This was a lot harder than you’d expect. The Canada House was our last stop off campus. Once we returned to Tel Hai, we ate dinner and completed our final task. This was to build a bench for an organization in Upper Galilee. Our group picked a specific organization to donate the bench to. It was an extremely busy and exciting day. 

Written by: Aaron Ness

Our first full day of Congress! July 16

 Monday morning after a hectic weekend and I’m once again sitting in a classroom. I thought that during summer vacation I would have a respite from the slog of the classroom. Today, however, is different. In the places of classmates sit teenaged Jewish leaders from over 30 different regions throughout the world. Instead of monotonous lessons on math, engaging and vibrant discussions and dialogues are taking place between this pluralistic group of people.

    Next to me sits a girl from Herzeliya named Nicole. Although a native of Israel, Nicole is fluent in both Hungarian and English as well of her mother tongue of Hebrew. Her aptness with Hungarian ignites a flicker of interest in me as I had just been to Hungary earlier in the year. Consequently we strike up a conversation and I learn that Nicole’s father was born in the U.S. while her mother was born in Budapest. As young adults  they had both participated in Jewish programs like Diller and decided to make a new life for themselves on a kibbutz in Israel. While content in her beautiful coastal city of Herzeliya, Nicole and her family frequent their ancestral homes in Hungary and the U.S.

    Throughout the rest of my first day at International Congress I meet droves of people with life stories that are both similar and different to Nicole’s and my own. It amazes me to see the seemingly endless stream of Jewish teens who are both proud of their heritage and proactive about their future. As I go back to my kibbutz for the night, I’m both inspired and eager to explore my own unique Jewish heritage and forge a path for myself as proud Jew.

Written by: Eitan Murinson

Congress has officially started! July 15

Sunday July 15

This morning we woke up as the only partnership on the kibbutz and enjoyed a nice quiet breakfast and some programming just with the Baltimore group. Then, other groups started to arrive and we began to get to know the three other partnerships in our “cluster” who we will be staying with for the next four days. We had plenty of mingling, and then we got ready for the opening ceremony and dinner. It was at a wedding venue so there were plenty of nice views and really good food. We met kids from all over the world and began to get a sense of just how large the Diller community is, and the (loud) impact 600 people can have when cheering! We then headed back to our kibbutz to spend more time getting to know our “cluster”.  Today left us more excited than ever to get to know the 600 other Diller Teen Fellows we will be spending the next few days with at Congress!

Written by: Rachel Miller

Our free day in Ashkelon! July 13

Dear Parents,

Friday the 13th was a great day for myself as I not only spent the day with my match but I was able to sleep in. After sleeping in, I was able to enjoy a homemade breakfast with my match and his father. After the meal, I joined other fellow Dillers in an outdoor shopping space in Ashdod, called Big Fashion. After this, we all headed to the beach for some much needed sun and relaxing. We ended the day as a group hanging out at a local Israelis house. A great day and one to be remembered as a overall CHILL day.

Written by: Josh Meister

Israeli Culture Day in Ashkelon, July 12

Today was culture day!! All but 3 of the Israelis were taking their Bagrut, which is an important final exam for school, so our group was small. First, an instructor came to our center and taught us how to make lots of different Israeli foods: falafel, shakshuka, pita, israeli salad, and some weird pouches with halavi in them. It took awhile but it looked very professional in the end and was delish. Then, we drove to a place where they taught us how to make candles. It was cool to decorate them and everyone had creative styles for their candle. We also got a tour of the facility which is a day camp for youth interested in technology and graphic design. When we returned to the volunteer center we had lunch and did an activity where we made posters about what israel means to us. The day ended early and we went back to our host homes to get ready for the closing dinner. At the restaurant we gave speeches, took pictures, and just celebrated a great week!! Then we did a small activity, watched a slideshow of the week, and had free time.
Written by: Hannah Merwin

Army Day, July 11

The theme for our day today was army day. We started off the day being split into two different groups. Two members of the army day committee became our drill sergeants and sent us into a frenzy of drills. We had to stand in different formations, run, crawl, or walk when instructed, and respond to everything with an enthusiastic “yes, sir!”. After sprinting back and forth for a bit, we returned to the volunteer center to discuss IDF values. We debated on what we thought were the ten core values of the IDF, and, after this intense discussion, we decided on 10 of them. For the most part, we were correct. We spoke to 3 Israeli soldiers about their experiences and then, because we missed the physical activity of the morning so much, we had a lesson with a Krav Maga specialist. We learned a lot of really cool moves and debatably life-saving techniques. Overall, we had a fun and learning-filled day.
Written by: Daryn Levine

Community Day in Ashkelon, July 10

Dear Parents,
Community week is flying by. Today, the day leaders planned a day revolving around community service. We began our morning at Park Baltimore; a park built by volunteers from both Baltimore and Ashkelon. At the park, we were privileged to hear from 2 Diller Alum who spoke to us about their connection to park Baltimore and about their Diller experience. Then, we continued our day at the Beit Hamitnadev (the volunteer center) where we played various games connected to the theme of the day: community service. After, we walked to a school for children with special needs and hung out with them. We had the opportunity to speak with them for a while and to solve a word search with them. It was so rewarding to see the impact we made on these children. We then had a delicious falafel lunch and took a bus to a home for girls that could no longer live with their families to help beautify it. We worked together to clean the lawn and paint some of the walls within the house. Lastly, we visited a small gallery that celebrated Ashkelon’s 70th anniversary with a unique exhibit. By this time, we were all exhausted  from the packed day but were fascinated to learn more about the history of this city. We finished off the night with free time to eat dinner with our host family and spend quality time with them.
That’s all for now,
Meira Kidorf

Welcome to Ashkelon! July 9

Today, Monday June 9th, we had the first full day of Community Week. The theme of the day was Summer in Ashkelon. In the morning we met at the Volunteer Center for a few activities. We were split up into groups to make posters about what summer meant to us. We were then sent on an Amazing Race style scavenger hunt all around Ashkelon. It ended with us at the Marina Mall. There we ate lunch and then walked to a surf shop on the beach. We were in the ocean for a few hours while getting lessons. We all had so much even if some of us couldn’t stand up. We ended the day with a Pizzor dinner at the Marina. Pizzor dinner is when we are given a certain amount of money to get dinner in the area we are in. We had so much fun today!
Written by: Ben Katz

Thank you Sarah for today’s blog post, July 8

Yesterday was both a meaningful and exciting day. We started off the day by saying goodbye to our new international friends and toured Yad Vashem. Our tour guide shared meaningful stories and important historical information with the group. Next, we had a quick lunch and then walked along a path to Har Hertzl, a military cemetery. We learned about Theodore Hertzel, Yitzhak Rabin, and many other important Israeli figures. Finally, we made our way to Ashkelon where we were reunited with our Israeli matches during a fun and exciting opening dinner!
Written by: Sara Himelfarb

Shabbat Shalom! July 6

Diller families, friends, and any other acquaintances- I, Bradley Dean Harrison, am going to give you an informed and interesting, yet short and simple, recap of the events that transpired this past Friday July 6th.
We began our morning as we had each of the following two days.
We awoke to the beautiful Mediterranean sun in our eyes as the world was calling to us, and the Maccabim youth house was kicking us out. Having packed the night before, because that is what responsible young adults do, we were ready to get our day underway.
First, we went to meet with a representative from the Women of the Wall. There, the representative told us about the struggles of women at the Kotel and how they fight for the right to read Torah at the Kotel etc.
After this, we headed over to Ramat Rachel where we met with the fellows from all of the international diller communities. There we had opening ceremonies, socialized, and met tons of new people. This culminated in kaballat Shabbat where people could choose from multiple options but each one seemed to be a good time. Friday was a great day and a lot was done here in the holy land.

Alex explains our busy day in Jerusalem, July 5

Today we went to the old city. We saw King David’s tomb and the room that held the Last Supper. After, we travelled to a Charedi neighborhood. We toured the neighborhood with our tour guide Tammy, who had great knowledge about the community. After touring we stopped in a woman named Ruth’s house. There, we had a workshop with her where we learned to make challah. We asked her questions about the way she and her community live. A couple of details I found particularly interesting was that Charedi women must wear their sheitals at all times, and that young adults get set up for marriage by Shidach dates. Usually, they go on about 3 dates before they decide to get married, and they’re not much older than we are during this time. Finally for dinner we went on a culinary tour of the foods in Israel. We were able to try many different options including cheese bread, ice cream and empanadas. To end the day we had free time at the shuk. We had such a wonderful day.
Written by: Alex Cohen

Finally in Israel! July 2/3

On Monday, we left the Owings Mills JCC on a coach bus to Newark Airport. After the 3-hour bus ride, we got to the airport and explored the area as we waited for bag-check to open. However, when bag-check opened, we first had to answer security questions concerning our visit to Israel (a standard El Al practice). After the interrogation, we thought we were finally in the clear, ready to hop on the plane...but alas, we had to face security, and there was no chance that 20 fellows and 5 staff members would make it through security without a holdup. Unfortunately, some toothpaste and Old Bay did not make it to Israel. Fortunately, all 25 people made it through security, so I consider that a success. We all got some dinner at the gate, and hopped on the plane. We slept, watched movies, and sent messages to one another on our seat-back touchscreens as we traversed the Atlantic Ocean and Europe. At long last, we arrived in Ben Gurion Airport at 3:00 Israeli time and we made our way through customs. Our bags came out on the carousel in 20 minutes (much quicker than BWI), and we hopped on a coach bus to Mayumana, a dance/rhythm studio. We used drums, sticks, and even snorkeling fins to produce different sounds. Later, we went to a restaurant called Dr. Shakshuka, where we ate shakshuka, chicken kebabs, and bread and hummus. Many of us were stuffed after the first round of food, not realizing that there was more food coming! Although we were tired throughout the afternoon and evening, everyone seemed excited about being in the Holy Land.
Written by: Jacob Brenner