• Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzmaut

    on May 17, 2016

    Yom Hazikaron began with a siren and a deafening silence. Our group went to the tekes at the Kotel to hear President Reuven Rivlin speak about the great sacrifices the young people of Israel have made to insure its survival.


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  • Experiencing Ben Yehuda Street and Learning About the Current Reality

    on May 9, 2016

    The theme of the last two days might be called "Fun & Security!" Thursday and Friday had elements of each, both literally and figuratively. Let me explain.


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  • A Challenging Hike, but a Symbol of My Strength

    on May 4, 2016

    Over a ten day break from classes late last month, we had many new and unique experiences. All of us on EIE went to possibly our first Israeli Passover and experienced hiking from sea to sea.


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  • Passover in Israel and Hiking from Sea to Sea

    on May 2, 2016

    Israelis are born with an extra gene called the L’Tayyel or Hiking Gene. Ask most Israelis what hobbies they have and, almost without exception, they will tell you they love hiking. It seems everyone here goes out during the Passover and Sukkot vacations to hike the entire country.


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  • This Year in Jerusalem

    on April 25, 2016

    This past week, our attention in Jewish history focused on the Six Day War and on Passover preparations.


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  • Not Your Normal Tour of Tel Aviv

    on April 21, 2016

    Recently, our Spring students went on a graffti tour of the Tel Aviv neighborhood of Florentin. Nathan describes the tour in detail, led by EIE teacher Aaron Gertz, and the unique graffiti that has appeared in the neighborhood.


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  • Learning About Different Movements of Judaism

    on April 18, 2016

    On March 22, EIE visited and toured Hebrew Union College. We sat and listened to three rabbis as speakers from the different movements of Judaism. They lectured about their understanding of Judaism and the way Jews should live their life in today's world.


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  • Chalutzim, Kibbutzim, and Early Zionism

    on April 14, 2016

    We woke up at 6:15 and were greeted with a two hour bus ride up to Kfar Tavor in the North. When we arrived, our first stop was the Aliyah Museum. We explored what life was like in a Moshava, which is a Zionist agricultural settlement.


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  • Visiting a Place of Unimaginable Horror

    on April 11, 2016

    Our day at Auschwitz began at Auschwitz-Birkenau, a part of the camp built specifically for the elimination of the Jews. Beginning outside of the train station, we made our way along the railroad tracks, passing barracks and crematoriums on both sides.


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  • Learning About Life in the Face of Darkness

    on April 7, 2016

    We began our pilgrimage to Poland bright and early on a Sunday morning. Once we arrived in Warsaw we started our week off by visiting a cemetery. Cemeteries are often known as a place of death. However, we learned that the translation of “cemetery” is “house of life.”


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