you never know what is going on just under your feet

Taking into account the activities of the past few days and that Levi would be going back to California tonight, I kept things light and low key. Perhaps oddly enough one of the best parts of the day was talking on the phone to my sister (who lives down the block from our rental home) and discovered that we both needed to go to the market. So we walked up to the mercaz (Center of town) without any children tagging along and did some normal things like buy bread and milk and food for dinner.  It was so normal. It was great. It was a good reminder of what this trip was about. Spending time in Israel with my family and extended family.  I still forgot the eggs, though...
Once I got back to the 5 crazies/ kids it was time to sunblock them all and head out to Rechovot and our reservation at the Ayalon Institute Museum on Kibbutz Hill. http://www.ilmuseums.com/museum_eng.asp?id=227 This has always been referred by me as the Underground Bullet Factory place. I have fond memories of going there with my seminary and knew it had to be on the list. FYI, you MUST make a reservation with them for a tour, and you can't go down without a tour guide. And don't worry, they speak perfect English on the phone. The lady Noga who confirmed my reservation via email was actually there in person. According to the poster on the wall the factory has only been completely restored since 2003, so what I saw way back in the 90's was only a partial experience. Israel loves those pre-experience movies (this time, no cheesy theme, just straight up history) -- even the tour guide poked fun at the movie requirement. When we got to the laundry area which was part of the cover story for the purpose of the Kibbutz, Bailey decided there wasn't enough action so she caused some of her own. Levi was nearest to the door and took her out. I tried to switch places with him, but he took her to play with the Ipad in the car and to run around with the kittens in the picnic area so I never found him. He also had the camera with him...

We learned about the ruse set up to fool the British and even keep other kibbutzniks in the dark as to the true purpose of the place. We went down the winding stairs under the ground and saw the bullet factory. Our guide showed us the original tanning booth made to keep the underground workers looking orchard farmer tan. We saw how they smuggled the bullets out in orange crates, milk containers and tankard trucks. The kibbutzniks who didn't know what was going on underground were called giraffes. So, next time some one refers to you as a giraffe, they mean that you can see far a head of you, but not what is happening right under your feet.  You know, if such a thing were to come up....

After the tour we met up with Levi and Bailey and ate lunch in the picnic area and met the cats Bailey had befriended. I had planned to keep our day in the military theme by going to Latrun Tank Museum, but Levi needed to get back to the house to finish packing and to give me a run down about which of our dozen wires goes to which device and how to work all of the technology we brought along.

The kids hung out with their cousins for most of the early evening until I had to get them back to our house and ready for bed so I could take Levi to the airport. It has been a joint Solomonth so far, but now it is a SOLOmonth in Israel. Wish me luck.

Some almonds we eat, some we play with and some we avoid.

Our third day up north was meant to start with a trip to Tiveria (Tiberias) to go to the Kever of the Rambam and perhaps check out the Kinneret, but I had decided that between the intense heat (and it is like a steam oven down there) and nearly reaching the max of graves my kids could take in a 24 hour period, we decided to change plans. I asked our Kibbutz host for some ideas that would also take us slowly south on our way back to Ramat Beit Shemesh. He produced for me a coupon booklet of activities to do in the Galil/Golan. Whoa Hoo! He did not know that giving it to me was like giving candy to a child. I love those things even in Los Angeles.  He even took the time to paper clip a few things he thought the kids would particularly enjoy. We decided to go to Kfar Tavor which had a few choices.

When we reached the Kfar, we went to the Marzipan Museum. http://www.shakedtavor.co.il/home/doc.aspx?mCatID=23175 My kids are used to my fondant cake and cookie creations, so they really got into the food sculptures on display. It was like walking into an episode of Cake Boss or Ace of Cakes! (Albeit on a much smaller scale) After checking out the featured "Women of Tanach and History" exhibit we watched the movie about the history of marzipan and marzipan on the kfar. Israel wins for corny movies. This time it was an "Italian" narrator. We also got to try our hands at molding our own marzipan creations. *note, the marzipan had a hechsher, but not mehadrin, so we played with it and had a great time, but it you are at your own discretion for eating it.

Who can resist a Kibbutz called Gan Garoo that was founded by Australians and had free roaming kangaroos to pet? Not me! With our coupon booklet, we even got 10% off admissions. Gan Garoo is further south, right next to Gan HaShlosha/Sachne and near Beit Shean.  http://www.gemsinisrael.com/e_article000002706.htm It is also Australian outback HOT! At first the park was a bit disappointing and zoo like with sleeping koalas and birds, but then we got to the kangaroo feeding and petting area. That was awesome. You can buy feed for a shekel and have them literally eat out of your hands.

Their fur was rougher than expected and the hopping is comical. They had a few other typical animal exhibits, a tree maze, a playground and another favorite, a lorakeet feeding area. The zookeeper gave everyone several sticks with apple bits and we entered the enclosure. If you get near to the birds they climb onto your arm or head and eat the apples. Some of my kids could have stayed there all day. We also watched the keeper feed some of the birds live beetles. We entertained the idea of going to Sachne to swim in the hot springs, but the thought of having everyone change twice was just not that appealing for the third day in a row. Something to save for next trip ;)

Finally it was time to head back down to Central Israel and meet Raphy, Bettina and Rina for dinner at Gechalim. This is the home of the endless salad and fresh laffa for 18NIS a head. (Note to those getting hungry, "Almonds" are not the vegetarian kind that you find at Kfar Tavor.) The kids meals came with shark shaped water guns, so the meal was a success all around. By 9:30pm we were back in RBS.

Happy, Tired and Dirty. Mission accomplished.

Israelis know how to do breakfast, that's for sure. Our Zimmer is Kosher, but only Mehadrin upon request, but our host Yossi showed us everything that we could eat. http://www.this-is-galilee.com/kibbutz-moran.html The kibbutz even has a mehadrin bakery on premises so the warm fresh from the oven multi grain bread was first thing on the menu. They had an Elite coffee/hot cocoa machine which we enjoyed all morning long. As much fun as it was to sit around the kibbutz dining hall tasting everything, there was a big day planned ahead of us.

Our first stop was nearby Meron with the resting place of the infamous Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (think Lag B'Omer). We parked right at the top of the hill and did our now familiar grave site routine. We tried to go to Hillel's site, and went down a path that I vaguely recalled. There was one un-marked cave that we stopped at briefly, but I couldn't promise anyone that it was the right spot. Down the hill we went and up to the Golan for our next adventure.

Along the way to Kfar Blum for kayaking/rafting down the Jordan river we passed MANY MANY kevarim. We didn't pull over to stop, but we got into a lot of who is who discussions and quizzed the boys on some of their men of the mishna and people of the gemarah. In Hollywood you might do a tour of the stars homes, here you do a tour of the tzadikim's final resting places.
We got to the rafting location. I knew that Bailey would not be allowed to get on a raft (5 and up only), but she insisted that she put on her bathing suit like everyone else. They have signs and ads for Baby Kayaking and Baby Fun, but apparently its only open on Shabbos.... One lady said the kfar has a swimming pool, but I didn't feel like venturing out to find it. Bailey was happy playing in the sink (a normally frowned upon activity), eating Popsicles, playing with a balloon, people watching and playing in the dirt. Levi took the boys on a bus to the starting point and went rafting for about an hour, hour and half. They said it was very nice, not that wild, and full of crazy Israelis (lots of Arabs too.) I think they liked it, but it wasn't the "OMG" experience I thought they would have. It was more relaxing than thrilling. There is some one who sits on the banks and takes pictures, but the Solomon raft was blocked by one of those Crazy Israeli groups. :(    You can check out the Kfar Blum Kayaking experience at www.kayaks.co.il

We were very close to the Tel Dan Nature reserve. (www.parks.org.il ) I had never done this hike, but I had read it was very family friendly and there is a wading area that kids can splash around in unlike the Banyas hike which does not have any water play. The Tel Dan also has a route that takes you to the "Winnie the Pooh" Tree. I had no pictures of reference for this but I thought it would probably be cute so we chose to go that way. The beginning of the hike is wheelchair accessible. You cross of raging streams. Most of the way is shaded by tunnel like trees. It is beautiful, cool, easy yet interesting enough for everyone. I brought the carrier for Bailey just in case, but she did most of it on her own. The Pooh tree ended up being a hollowed out tree that reminds you of the story of Pooh Bear getting caught in Rabbits house. At first it looked rather lame, but our adventurous Mendel decided to see what was in there. The kids climbed and poked through holes in the tree until we decided we needed to keep moving. We made it to the Wading area. The littler 3 couldn't get enough of the icy water. The boys were prepared, but Bailey just went in her T-Shirt and Diaper. I am not a fan of swim diapers since they are pretty much useless, but the way the regular one swelled was comical. Fortunately we could change her before we moved on.

The last stop planned for the day was the Holy City of Tzefat. I had previously spent a YEAR there and for some reason wanted to go back. Our GPS (getting crazy I know!) lead us down a poorly paved mountain road, past a landfill, winding around for a while until out of nowhere it told us to "Turn around when possible". Levi had decided he had enough of that so we went back to start and found a full fledged highway that took us straight there. He then brought out his inner Israeli as he passed an insanely slow driver/road hog while honking his horn.

First on theTzefat list was the Old Cemetary. We paid our respects to numerous tzaddikim, namely The ARI. Meir, Mendel and Levi braved the chilly waters of the mikvah, Dovie and Eli refused.The kids went into Chana and her 7 son's cave and passed the Navi Hoshea's kever. Since I had been there last, they now have proper stairs and platforms around all of the major grave sites. Kind of funny to know how they have improved a graveyard, but that's basically all there is to do in Tzefat. We the drove up to the main drag Rechov Yerushalaim in search of something to eat. There was a new park where the Davidka used to be and many more stores. I passed the Post office and photo developing stores, two of my most frequented places back in the day. We split up and ate something on the Midracov, passed Machon Alte and decided we had time for one last stop. I was curious to see if I could navigate us up to my old Seminary on Har Canaan Bet.
The old Pisgah hotel that was my school and dorm for the year in 1995. We made it. It was already dark by then, so I took one picture on the same steps to the building and pointed out my room from the parking lot. It is now a boys' school, so we didn't hang around too long. I don't know how much the kids got out of it, but for me it was a trip down memory lane.

GPS is no guarantee, but at least the scenery is good.

The plan was to leave Hashmonaim at 9:30, but we didn't get out until 11, so something on my jam packed itinerary was going to get chopped, it was just a matter of what and why. We left the Modiin area and headed to the coast, going north.

 Our first stop was in a place called Alona Park. It is a hike in an ancient water aqueduct dug by the Romans called Mey Kedem. www.goisrael.com/Tourism_Eng/Tourist%20Information/attractions/Pages/Alona%20Park,%20Mei%20Kedem%20(Ancient%20Water)%20.aspx  We flashed our Matmon card (best purchase ever!) and entered at a discounted rate. We watched a movie offered in English or Hebrew (we obviously chose the English one) on how and why the aqueducts were built and how far they go etc. It was a bit cheesy with an Indian Jones theme, but informative and set the scene. You cannot go into the tunnels without an escort. Our guide, Ofir, lead us through letting us know when uneven ground was ahead or if the water was going to get suddenly deeper. We were prepared with water shoes, bathing suits and headlamps. Love those things. The water was between ankle deep, and up to 70 cm (about waist high for some of us). Levi walked with Meir, the water would reach his chest at some parts. I put Bailey in a front carrier. She loves the water so at deeper places I crouched down even further so she could put her feet in and splash around. The tunnels are about 2 meters below the earth. You can see where the Romans (probably slaves) notched out places to put their candles and built sieves to prevent alligators from coming in. The water was chilly, but we got used to it VERY quickly and it was a relief from the crazy heat and humidity of the day.

Our next stop was Cesaeria. That is where the aqueducts finished. We didn't have an exact place to plug into the GPS, so we wandered around a bit before getting to the National Park and the excavated ruins. Yay Matmom, we entered for free! The visitors center has a wonderful movie (and in a very well air conditioned room) on the history of the area done with computer animation. After you can watch another movie (we didn't) or check out the interactive holograms. We went to see what Rabbi Akiva had to say about his time (he was apparently killed very brutally in Cesaeria) and then went off to see the ruins first hand.

It is very beautiful set along the Mediterranean. The kids loved to see where the horses and chariots raced. We climbed along some of the ruins until we reached the some what restored amphitheater. They use it for concerts today and was being set up for something in the near future. It was interesting to see all of the modern sound equipment facing the ancient stone benches and arches. We decided to head back to the car and move on with our trip, but we could have stayed there for much longer. While we were walking around it was breezy and pleasant, but as soon as we left the waterfront we were hit with the intense heat and humidity. Popsicles and ice cream for everyone. We also downed liters of water.

Our next stop was Eliyahu HaNavi's cave. Not his grave, because of that whole chariot of fire thing. I had been there before and knew it was nothing major to see, but Dovie's Haftorah portion about Eliyahu challenging the Baal worshipers happened right there and our second son is named Eliyahu, so I felt it was important enough to stop at. Unfortunately, the GPS made getting there a challenge. Finally Dovie said, "I see Jewish people up there!" We were, like, that is nothing special, this place is full of Jewish people.  Finally when we figured out where to park, we saw a bunch of Hassidim. He said, "See, Jewish people!" We walked up the 100s of steps, did our tehillim bit, took some photos, discussed Dovie's Haftorah and thought seriously about riding the orange ball cable cars up the mountain.

 By then though, everyone was getting very hungry and it was getting late. Haifa doesn't have much to eat in way of Kosher Mehadrin food besides a formal fish place that I found online, so we decided to ask the information center. Once we finally found the place, it was closed, but HaShem sent me my own Eliyahu HaNavi in the form of a yarmulke wearing man with his family sitting right next to the information center eating their meal. I asked them about the food and they directed me to a Medhadrin Cafe Cafe at the end of the next street. By the time we all ate, it was too late for my final stop on my itinerary, the Rosh HaNikra Grotto. The last cable car goes down at 5 in the summer. Oh well.
We drove to Kibbutz Moran Country Lodging -- Zimmers and checked in with a very helpful Yossi.
We have two cute rooms with queen size beds, 2 full beds and a crib. We have 2 bathrooms and 2 wet bar areas. The rooms have TV (which was exciting for my kids since they have been doing with out until they turned them on and found nothing was on!) and most importantly air conditioning. Everyone showered (even Bailey, who until now has only taken baths, but it went very well) and off to bed. I told the kids I have big plans for tomorrow, so they better get to sleep now!

Shabbos 2

After our late night driving mishaps, the whole family was more than happy to sleep in on Friday. By lunch time everyone was ready to get out, but nothing too "cultural" or "outdoors-y" as that was on schedule for the following week. So, too the Modiin Mall. You think the Macabees walked on this ground? The kids (and lets face it, Levi and I, too) were still more than happy to be able to have kosher food choices in the mall. There were a few Kosher Mehadrin options that the kids could choose from. They were all eyeing the not one but TWO McDonalds at the end of the food court with more disdain than usual. (Even in Israel food is not guaranteed kosher). We hit the candy kiosk for some Tic Tacs, wandered around for while and went back to Hashmonaim to get ready for Shabbos.
The thermometer rose quite a bit for shabbos, so we spent most of the time indoors. We tried to visit our friends who had moved into the neighborhood a few years ago from Tarzana, but they were taking their Shabbos nap. On our way back we were serenaded by our lovely "cousins" call to prayers. I took Bailey to the park to play on the Israeli equipment that never would have passed California's standards (which meant it was actually fun). She started to look like a tomato, so I brought her home.
The kids had a great time playing and bonding with their cousin Rina. We ate way too much food, as per Raphy's orders we needed to eat until it hurts and we tend not to be ones who break the rules. They had a variety of guests. So much English spoken here you would be hard pressed to guess we were in Israel from the inside of the house.
After Shabbos, the Ipads, laptops, DS's and Itouch come out. The DVD player goes on and everyone does their usual.
We have been warned that its going to be brutally hot tomorrow, but we didn't come all this way to sit in an air conditioned home playing with our electronics, so we will drink a lot of water and travel on.

Blue beach and Green line

My husband has one aunt who lives in Hertzylia Pituach and since we are staying my sister's neighborhood during or visit, one day of visiting his family was a must. We drove up the coast and marvelled at the differences between the holy city of Yerushalaim and the metropolitan area of Tel Aviv and its surroundings.
We visited with the family. The boys ran around in their spacious yard (the boys almost forgot how grass looks and feels), swung on the hammock until the fighting hit the point that if we don't move from shmoozing and looking at old photos to something else fast we will be in big trouble. When all else fails, feed the boys.
They put out a lovely spread of cold cuts, pita, rolls, salad, drinks and cake. The boys devoured the food, but were itching to get to the beach.  Wardrobe change and off we went.

The sea was blue and warm. There were umbrellas and chairs set up to rent. The kids hit the beach, collected some shells and had a great time until the jelly fish began to sting. A huge one came to the shore and I flung it onto the sand. Digging in the sand and building moats entertained the kids for a while. A few of them decided to brave the water some more. Levi enjoyed lounging around, reading and having a drink served to him on the beach, but it was time to go. On the way back up to the car we continued with our tradition of eating Angry Bird Popsicles every where we go.

We had to pack up for Shabbos in Hashmonaim at Uncle Raphy, Aunt Bettina and Cousin Rina's house. We were also packing for the next leg of our trip, up north, so I sent the boys down to the Mercaz of RBS with a few shekels to buy their own falafel dinner. Fortunately Cousin Shlomo was around to act as interpreter and guide since my kids are not yet comfortable and brave enough to order on their own.

Our GPS does not recognize anything on the other side of the Green Line. Traveling to Hashmonaim at night became quite problematic. We had verbal directions from Raphy, and we took out our handy dandy paper map. Unfortunately we missed ONE turn. We were driving for a while passing lots and lots of barbed wire, and delightful yellow signs that said "Sim Lev Yisraelim".  We came to a MAJOR check point, at which we knew we went to far. An immediate U-turn was in order. We found where we needed to be and breathed a sigh of relief. We found Hashmonaim and its guard station and left a little piece of our car at the entrance. We made it to the Solomon's lovely home where we will be for the next couple days.

Sadly, no rabbis milking cows.

During the planning stages of our trip, Rabbi J. Gordon in Encino told us that we should take a tour of Kfar Chabad. My memories of the place was a "rabbi" milking a cow and a giant 770 replica. But he told me he really wanted my family and my parents to go and he would "hook us up".  Within a day or two we had our tour set up with Rabbi Yossi Swerdlov.
On the way we stressed to our 3rd son the importance of not getting lost because asking some one if you have seen our son, his name is Menachem Mendel, in the middle of Kfar Chabad, would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

We were greeted with a table laden with snacks and drinks and given a history of the Kfar and a basic layout and features and programs. The kids were busy munching away and we were all comfortably listening to stories from our tour guide, but there were people to see and places to go, so off we went.
Our first stop was where the Children of Chernobyl are brought when they are rescued from Russia. They grow up dormitory style and are educated and loved and cared for in Bais Rivka. We visited the girls art class and music. They put on a little concert for us. We went outside with the girls for a photo op and some ice cream. (note to tour guides everywhere, keep the kids cool and well fed and you are guaranteed a happy audience)

We then went to the esrog field and learned about the trees - did you know they only produce fruit for 7 years? and that leaves and bugs cause the discolorations and blemishes causing a very valuable esrog to be nearly worthless? Since it is approaching the time of collecting the esrogim for sale we couldn't walk around or touch anything, but it was very interesting none the less.
Roeber's leather seforim binding factory was next. We saw the leathers (only crazy bright colors for the Lubavitchers), the blocks for the covers, the impression plates and the embossing letters in action. Dovie loved to see where his Chitas was born.


The replica of 770 was our final destination as the matza bakery is in action from Rosh HaShana on wards and the honey making area was busy (or buzzy...). We saw the storm drains to no where and the bars for no purposes. We watched a Rebbe video and the tour was over.

Tough to beat

My husband has taught 3rd grade for the past 18 years, and even though this is now B"H a thing of the past, he knows the parshas of Va'eira, Chayei Sara and Toldos backwards, forwards and diagonally. My 8 year old is a recent graduate of this last 3rd grade class, so he knows those mid parshas of Bereshis quite well, too. So, a trip to Eretz Bereshis was calling us. It also showed up on 3 of my friends Israel itineraries and got rave reviews. The question the was, how on earth do we get there?? It is located in Yishuv Alon, which our GPS does NOT recognize. The "map" on their web site looks like it was done by my 8 year old and leaves much to be desired. We stopped off at a gas station and asked for help. We were then gifted a detailed map of Israel. Our trip back in time began with shutting off our digital maps and opening a paper one. For your reference if you were to try and drive this on your own, you take Hwy 1 towards Jerusalem (we always seem to go that way in the morning) and continue on the 1 towards Ma'ale Adumim. Don't go into Ma' ale Adumim, but look for signs to Yishuv Alon. You end up on a winding desert road for about 10 minutes until you see signs for Eretz Bereshis/Genesis Land.  FYI:www.genesisland.co.il
Once we got there we were greeted by "Eliezer" and given a brief history lesson of how Avraham Avinu go to this area from Ur Kasdim. Everyone put on tunics and was led to our camel caravan. A short ride later we were lead to Avraham's tent. We were taken to pet the sheep and goats and then the history/biblical lesson continued in play acting. It was engaging for everyone. We made our own pita, drank some tea and really had a great time and more than once encouraged to make Aliyah. Back on our camels and back to the future.

Our day continued with a trip to the Dead Sea. When we go there the thermometer read 44 C, which is 111F. Seriously HOT! 2 Shekels later for the bathrooms to change and we were all ready for our float. The beach is a pile of rocks some very sharp, so fortunately we had water shoes or sandals. The water was super warm. The kids loved it. Dovie and Eli got into the mud slathering, Bailey could have floated with me for hours. Unfortunately, Mendel with his allergies to the world was very uncomfortable in the water and ran back and forth up the hill to the showers and to the sea. Before we got there Meir insisted he wasn't going in, but he was one of the last ones to come out once he got there. After we guzzled water, we stopped off at the snack shop for Popsicles. My kids discovered the Angry Bird Popsicles that come with a toy. Bailey was so hot and thirsty, she insisted on my watermelon sorbet too.

We kept everyone in their bathing suits (which after a few moments were practically dry) and drove to Ein Gedi.  The hike to the first waterfall was very short and easy. The kids splashed around in the fresh water for a while. Then they decided they wanted to hike to the higher falls. I put Bailey in my soft carrier backpack and began the trek. It is basically tons of stairs. The heat got to Levi and he went back down to cool off (native to London he never knew such temperatures existed!). Lugging a two year old up got a bit challenging, so even though the big boys could have gone on for ages, I called them back to the second set of pools to splash around and cool off. They played in the water and made a dam (which I made them dismantle before we left, no need to ruin the land of Israel) before calling it a day.
The drive back to RBS was about two hours. My kids aren't used to drives like that with DVD players, Ipads and DS. To keep the peace we began a family game of "I spy". The added challenge was it had to be outside of the car and we had dirt as our scenery. A- automobile B- boulder C- car D- dirt... "I" almost stumped us until it dawned on me that we were in "Israel". Once back in RBS, the temp of 34C seemed pleasantly cool.

GREAT grandparents

What do you know, it's back to Yerushalaim this morning, but that is not our destination for the day. We met up with our tour bus after a bit of a late start and an aggravating drive at the Leonardo Plaza Hotel on King George and began our travels. A trip to Israel is not complete without visiting the grave sites of our forefathers who started this all. Our first stop was just outside Yerushalaim at Kever Rachel. I hadn't been inside ever but the last time I was nearby it was a small room surrounded by concrete blocks. Now the Israeli government and army have created a bunker like enclosure to the place. It is secure from all sides (especially from the Arabs in Bethlehem) by GIANT sheets of concrete and steel. The place has been built up, it is safe, but it is a very sad statement that this is the way it needs to be if Jewish people want to continue to pray and give respects at Rachel's grave site.

Our bus then drove for about 40 minutes until we reached Hebron. We made a few stops seeing where and how the residents - 90 families - live amongst thousands of hostile Arabs. It is shocking to see the regulations the Israeli government has imposed on Jewish citizens wishing to live in the city first purchased by our very own Avraham Avinu. We heard the story of the massacre in 1929 and saw the graveyard. We drove by Beit Hadassah. We went into the Avraham Avinu shul and saw a Torah from rescued and used today since the 1492 Spanish Expulsion. Finally we went to Ma'arat HaMacpelah. Mincha service was held inside and then we were left to pay our respects to everyone but Yitzchak and Rivka, as that section is only open to Jews 10 days a year.

The trip was an important one. The absence of concrete bunkers surrounding the place is only due to the human barriers that are the families sacrificing to live in Hebron.  It was serious and thought provoking. It was spiritual and an eye opener, but to be honest it will not likely be a highlight of the trip in my children's eyes. It was hot, the guide (Rabbi Simcha Hochbaum) was passionate about his city, but was a bit sharp with the kids and even some adults. His approach was more of a fund raiser than a teacher and story teller. I am not sure who else gives this type of tour -- this one can be found by going to www.hebronfund.org . It was $200 a family or $40 a person. Any extra money you wish to donate to the hebron fund in order to support financially and politically the families of Hebron is welcomed. Whether you go with them or with some one else, it is worthwhile going and an important statement all on its own.

The road to Yerushalaim is getting well known

Sunday was the fast of the 17th of Tammuz. Thinking about breaching the walls of the Old City that we just seen first hand made it all the more significant. Unfortunately small children cannot be entertained by thoughts alone, so some sort of outing had to be planned. We gave Dovie the option of staying home and hanging out with Shlomo, where he could play hours of uninterrupted DS, PSP and Ipad or come with us to a museum.  Hmmm... which do you think he chose?
Since we now had an open space in our car, we took Shayna along because she enthusiastically said she "wouldn't mind coming along with us." We chose the Israel Museum (back to Yerushalaim - which I drove for the first time) on the recommendation of our tour guide and confirmed with my sister.  Those reasons and it was open on Sundays. 50NIS for adults and 25NIS for kids 5-17 which included an audio guide. For some reason they gave us the electronic audio guides for the entire museum, but only a map of the Second Bais HaMikdash model instead of a map of the whole museum. So, we just decided to go straight and enter the first hall we came to.
The Youth wing was exhibiting  "Good Night - Leila Tov". Most of it was kinda weird and out there, however the kids REALLY liked a life size room and bed of the  Good Night Moon book. Even the docent was impressed that I know the whole book by heart and was able to recite it while the kids tried to find everything mentioned in the story. Outside we all sat on giant Hand chairs, stroked the brass pipe smoking man's head (apparently he likes it) and watched the kids climb the structure that looked like a cat puking, but they were happy.
We roamed around other halls which included statues and pottery from a millennium ago. We then attracted the attention of other security guards and docents as the kids TOUCHED some of these ancient artifacts.  We stumbled upon a very interesting exhibit on Chassidim. They did a fairly positive depiction of Chassidic life which was nice to see. The kids could relate to it much more than the Greek, Roman and Ottoman statues.  The shuls from other countries and eras was very interesting. Being able to completely walk into them was very neat. I think we should all have sand in the shul. It would keep the kids much quieter and Zen like. The adults too.
I brought apples for the kids to eat because really, how my Bissli and Bamba can a kid eat (a lot!). It ended up being a perfect choice for a photo op in front of the GIANT apple core sculpture which is just begging to be climbed, but according to the security guard (they must have decided that we were worth more careful observation) cannot not be. 

Finally we made it to the Second Temple Model. We would have stayed longer, but some of our group were getting cranky and hungry (Bailey and Levi). Back to RBS to relax until Break the Fast at the Bermans.