Today we went to the city of Tel Aviv, a city unlike any other we have visited.
When we arrived in Tel Aviv we went straight to Rabin square. This square is famous for having all types of rallies and protests. In 1995 there was a rally for peace in support for the Oslo Accords, a big peace effort with the PLO headed by Prime Minster Yitzhak Rabin. There was someone who disagreed with the accords and shot and killed Prime Minister Rabin on nearby steps, which we saw. This was the first and only time a Prime Minister of Israel has been assassinated. Every year there is now a memorial service for the Prime Minister at Rabin Square.
Matan wanted us to get a real idea of the reaction to Rabin's assassination and the divides it caused so we separated into groups of 2 or 3 and were told to go find an Israeli and ask them questions about the assassination among other things. Sara, Matt, and I approached a lady on a bench, explained who we were and with (birthright) and asked if we could ask her a few questions. She said sure and told us how she was on a bus back from a party in Jerusalem when she heard on the radio that Rabin had been shot. She said "something broke" that day. No one had thought an assassination was possible in Israel, they felt immune to problems in the rest of the world and this was a shock of reality.
After getting a chance to talk to her about some other things we all regrouped and discussed what we learned, similar things to what I said above. Then we walked to Independence Hall. At Independence Hall we learned about how Israel was formed. In short, the UN decided to give British territory to the Jewish people. The Arab countries around Israel planned to attack when they declared their independence so the question was when, where, and how to declare the independence. The new government of Israel decide to meet in a bomb shelter and invite 350 people. In 32 minutes they declared the country, said the shechyaniu, and sang the Hatikvah. The coolest part of the presentation was when the presenter turned on a recording of part of the speech declaring Israel, the shechyaniu, and Hatikvah. It was like we went back in time and were living through the creation of the country.
After this we took a beautiful and long walk to Jaffa. On our way we stopped by the Mediterranean Sea to take some pictures and talk. In Jaffa I ate a really good bowl of hummus and chickpeas with pita.
Then we walked around another really cool outdoor market. This one was busier than the one in Jerusalem and had so many interesting things throughout it.
Then we walked to the port of Jaffa which is known as the port/entrance of Israel. Although no longer active, the port used to be where everyone entered Israel. We were greeted by an amazing sunset as we talked about the area's history.
We then left the port and walked up many steps to a really cool piece of artwork. It was a orange tree growing in a clay pot hanging off the ground. The question we asked to wrap up the whole trip was where the roots were and at this point where our Jewish roots were.
Finally, we went to a session by Alia who talked about the interesting situation in Jaffa, since many Muslims, Christians, and Jews live together in the area. She had many interesting things to say but what I learned most from her was her can do attitude and optimism.
Then we returned to the hotel for our last meal there and then met in someones room and just got to talk and goof around about the great parts of the trip.
One more day in Tel Aviv and then off to the airport to head back to the states.
Good night!
Laura
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