Ancient Jerusalem

We were back with Gershon today, and he asked us to impeach him from “Mr. President” status.
Our day started at Ammunition Hill. This was Gershon’s choice as he felt it was important for the kids to understand what holding Jerusalem meant and what people were willing to sacrifice to make it ours. There was an excellent, recently-produced video featuring men who survived the Battle of Ammunition Hill discussing what had occurred with their grandchildren. (I was particularly moved that they included in the video the grandchildren of a man who did NOT survive the battle.) The video was projected onto a platform below which was a topographical sculpture map of Jerusalem and the hills surrounding the city as it all stood at the outbreak of the Six Day War. With incredibly cool lighting effects, the map-sculpture was used in conjunction with the map to give one a true sense of the retaking of Jerusalem.

Ammunition Hill, which is not far from Mount Scopus (Har Hatzophim) where Hebrew University is located, was held by the Jordanians following the 1948 armistice. Because of its strategic position, the Jordanians prepared the hill in case of an Israeli attack. They built and fortified a series of trenches, making it incredibly difficult to overtake. Following the film, we walked through the trenches while Gershon gave us an even more position oriented sense of the battle.

Leaving Ammunition Hill, we parked the car at the Mamilla Mall and made our way to Jaffa Gate. Probably the most heavily used gate of the Old City, it is part of the impressive wall that now surrounds the Old City and which was built under orders from Sulemein the Magnificent. While Gershon spoke about the features of the walls, the actions of the Jordanians between 1948 ad 1967, and the history of the city outside the walls, we made our way slowly to the stairs leading up to the Ramparts.

Walking the ramparts of the Old City of Jerusalem (We crossed from the West Wall and onto the Southern Wall, I believe.), is breathtaking. Doing so with a toddler is chaotic. As we walked, Gershon brought history to life, and helpfully carried Asher up some of the steeper stairs. The walk itself was tiring because we were in the direct sun and there were numerous towers to pass over-around-and-down.

The Ramparts walk ended near Har Tzion (Mt. Zion) and the Zion Gate, which put us right next to the Tomb of David. My memories of this place, probably from my first trip to Israel when I was 11, was of a much smaller and less decorated place, but when I asked I was told my memory was wrong. It was a beautiful room with a wood mechitzah (divider) decorated with bronze placards of some of the shorter Psalms.

It was now close to 1 and hunger was overtaking the kid’s so we aimed for the Rova, the center of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City, where there are many lunch spots. Pizza and falafel for most, shwarma for Shevi.

As we entered the Rova, I stopped in awe. Across from the path we were on stood the Hurva Synagogue. Originally built in the 18th century and then rebuilt in the 19th century, the synagogue was deliberately destroyed by the Arab legion when they held the city after 1948. When the Jews retook Jerusalem in 1967, all that remained was an arch, a striking reminder of what had once stood there. In the years since either of us were last in Israel, however, the Hurva was rebuild based on pre-1948 photographs and just walking past it was incredible.

After lunch we went to go see the remains of Chezkiahu’s (Hezekiah) Wall, which he built to keep out the Sancherib and the Assyrians. Unfortunately, some municipal worker thought it was a good idea to place a giant inflatable Moon over the ruins as part of the week long Jerusalem light show.
Disappointed, we continued to walk through the Jewish Quarter and made our way to the Cardo, the ancient Roman market road that was unearthed beneath the Jewish Quarter. It’s now rather commercial, but also has “windows” down to more remains of Chezkiyahu’s Wall.

Next Gershon led us to a shul that connects to the Kotel area. We went down to the Wall and from there we went out of the Old City through the Dung Gate, which is the gate near the Western Wall. We were on to our final destination...the City of David, Eir David.

We started this part of the tour with a 3D movie about the history of the valley, how the Jebusites settled it and what David saw when he conquered it. The 3d was cool, the air conditioned theatre even cooler.

As we climbed to the roof for a view and pointing out where things were session, my mom decided she had had enough. Up the stairs and down the stairs under a roasting sun...so she went back the plaza. We passed her on our way down to walk through the tunnel that Chezkiyahu built to ensure there would be water if the Assyrians besieged Jerusalem.

Getting to the tunnel was quite a few steps, and I have to admit that by this point I was a bit shakey from a full day in the heat. Finally we got to the entrance. The first few feet of the tunnel has rushing water, and it’s quite cold. David held Asher in his arms since we did not want his bandages to get wet.  As we entered the single file tunnel, Yaakov started panicking and asking to go back.  Sorry kiddo, no u-turns.  Once past the fast water, the spring got deep ... meaning up to my thighs but it quickly leveled out to just above the ankles and remained there for the duration of the tunnel, which was far longer than we expected.

This was no walk for anyone with clausterphobia or who is very large. I only had to duck a few times but I felt bad for David who was carrying Asher in his arms. To make things just a smidge more challenging, the group two ahead of us went really slowly and created a traffic jam. The walk was pleasant but long. David, however, said that the whole time he kept thinking about Gershon mentioning a few days earlier that Israel was probably due for an earthquake.

Out of the tunnel, we heard a little more about the excavations and the history of the site, both ancient and modern. However we were quite tired so we took a shuttle back to the beginning, got my mom and took a bus to where we had parked the car.

We returned home exhausted but was quite satisfied by the day. Next however I needed to fulfill my promise of ice cream to the kids. Asher was asleep. Mom and David were too tired. So I took the four big kids to Ben Yehuda Street where we found gelato (Italian style ice cream) and they even had pareve for Shevi, since she had eaten shwarma earlier.

Through the Books of the Prophets, or a Journey in the Shomron

July 3: We started the second day of our Jerusalem-based touring with an early start. OK, to be honest, we started every day early, and every day the kids grumped getting out of bed, but we generally made it out at a decent hour.

Our goal today was to give the children a sense of Israel via the areas connected to the stories of the prophets, and our first stop was the Kever of Shmuel Hanavi (Tomb of Samuel the Prophet). I guess what was most interesting to me as we started out was that our itinerary for the day included so many places that I had never visited. I hadn’t expected that. For example, this site was only designated as a national park in the 1990s.

Nabi Samwil, as the location is referred to in Arabic, is said to be the burial site of Samuel the Prophet, the man who anointed both Saul and David as king of Israel. The thing with all of these burial locations, however, is that there is no solid proof, merely oral traditions maintained through time and also passed between reigning cultures. Holy sites tend to remain holy, so thus it was that the grand building at the site was built as a mosque but also has a church attached, as well as a synagogue.

To get to the mosque/church/synagogue, one first walks over a bridge over the current extensive excavations, which have revealed a number of layers of settlement surrounding the tomb. The main building itself is quite impressive, even as it is extremely simple. We entered and I was immediately in awe of both the incredibly high ceiling and the amazing difference in temperature. Where outside was I-want-to-faint-hot (and remember, this was still the morning!) inside was very pleasant.  Speaking of the high ceiling, Gershon next invited us up a narrow, stone staircase so he could present the tour from a proper elevation. It was breathtaking, of course, and we were able to see the strategic value of this mountain that made it historically significant. Gershon pointed out the sites of the Gibeonite territory and how close it was to Jerusalem, and he showed us the location of the battles of the Maccabees.

Alas, the roof of the mosque was turretted, and the boys found the domed slopes of the turrets too inviting to ignore, so I spent most of the roof-top tour slowing people down from being wild. After we descended from the roof, we headed to the synagogue. We took the opportunity to recite Tehillim (Psalms).

Following Nabi Samwil, we headed to the Shamron, frequently translated at Samaria. On our way, we stopped for Gershon to point out the location believed to be the palace of King Saul. The site is particularly easy to point out, even from a distance, because it is on top of a hill and there is now the large skeleton of a building that is hard to miss. This framework is the beginning of a royal palace that King Hussein of Jordan began to build in 1964. In 1967, the Six Day War interrupted the project and now only the metal outline of the building remains.

I feel that for anyone unfamiliar with the situation, I should mention that the areas we entered today were all in what is known as the West Bank, the land reclaimed in the Six Day War. While politicians talk about the ownership in land, there is no question that the area is rife with Jewish antiquities!

The next feature of our tour was, again, not a real stop, but rather a narrative of the place we were passing. Gershon pointed out that this was the location of the story of Elisha and the Bears (see II Kings 2:23-25). What struck me was the fact that I only picture bears in woods, and there hills were not particularly woodsy. But, then again, after thousands of years of people passing through and conquering armies marching forth, it is not surprising that the terrain is greatly changed.
We were headed to Beit El, but we detoured first to visit the Psigaot winery. I’ll have to have one of the kids submit a description of this stop because Asher was fast asleep in the car, so I stayed with him.

I had last been in Beit El in the 1990s when I knew a few people who lived out here. I remembered it as a settlement – meaning that, while there were a few houses, many of the people lived in caravans (temporary homes). It was now a very large town with numerous neighborhoods. But we didn’t stop in the town. Rather we headed just north of it to a fascinating archeology area that is now believed to be the site of both Jacob’s dream (Genesis 28) and one of the temples with golden calves built by Jeroboam (I Kings 12). The site is incredibly rocky and dry. As at most such historical spots, there were the remains of a small mosque that had once serve as a Crusader church. Holy sites in Israel remain holy throughout history! Another fascinating feature of this site was an oak tree that was a thousand years old. It was cooly gnarly!

These types of archeological sites often require a tremendous amount of visualization. Often times it is a matter of accepting the guides explanation of what archeologists see, and Gershon spent time explaining why and how this spot was identified by archeologists. Particularly he explained where and why King Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel erected a temple here in order to distract pilgrims from heading to Jerusalem and the Temple in the Kingdom of Judea. I believe there are midrashim that say that Jeroboam chose the site because it was the site of Jacob’s dream.

 

After exploring the rocky terrain and taking some silly pictures of our own Yaakov (Jacob) with rocks under his head as pillows, and with the children getting rather peckish, we continued our tour. We stopped on the way to pick up pita, hummas, and other exciting food (This time we also grabbed salami for the kids) so that we could start our trip to Shilo with a picnic lunch.

Once again, we arrived at an important Biblical site to which I had never been. I actually looked it up to understand that it had also not been open to tourists until well into the 1990s.

Our very cool tour of Shilo started out with a picnic. Although the lovely visitors center and gift shop had wonderful air conditioning, it was a bit crowded with us inside and there was too much stuff to draw a toddler’s attention. Behind the tourist center was a truly lovely picnic area, which included a neat pond (that had plants whose roots acted as a water filter) and several hammocks in addition to a plethora of picnic tables and shade.  Around the picnic area there were small archeological excavations as well as some booths (not in use at the moment) for when Shilo opens up for re-creation tours to show how people lived in Biblical days.

After a very long lunch, we headed toward the archeological park

The kids were a little bit tired of the intense heat and the heavy walking, so they were a bit whiney even after their lunch, but I was really excited. We headed through an excavated village site that is more interesting/entertaining when there is a program running. Our destination was a building with a multi screen presentation. (The ramp up was aluminum metal and Asher definitely hesitated to go near it. Poor baby.)

The presentation at Shilo was excellent, presenting a somewhat reenacted overview of the role of Shilo in Jewish history. The presentation talked about the Mishkan (Tabernacle), Elkana and Chana, King Saul and the story of the war with the tribe of Benjamin. After the video, although we didn’t go down because the party was really just over-tired, we could see where they were excavating what they believed was the site of the Tabernacle. I found it very impressive.

It was late afternoon so we headed back toward Jerusalem, stopping only to drop Gershon off at a place from which he could easily get home. Dinner was an in-house, simple affair and we all made an early night of it.

For those who are wondering how Asher was fairing, I should add that each day included a 45 minute session of changing Asher’s bandages. This was accomplished by sitting him on the counter near the sink, taking out one of our electronic devises and distracting him with a great set of videos called Truck Tunes ( I believe) that are all these songs about different types of trucks. I had found this site before Israel by googling monster trucks and the first song they have was all about Monster Trucks. We love these videos.  The first few times we used the videos to calm him own, but by day four or five it was just part of the routine. We rinsed the burns I cool water, dabbed them with clean cloths applied creams and applied new bandages. David was unbelievably good at this process.

Jerusalem On Our Own

Tuesday, July 4th
We planned this day to be a little more low key...just us, no tour guide. To be honest, however, Gershon did help us by making reservations for us for the tunnel tours and the virtual reality Beis Hamikdash (Temple). Alas for my kids, the reservations were pretty early in the day so it was another morning of "rise and shine" and "up and at 'em." We actually decided that the best course of action would be shacharis (morning prayers) at the Kotel. My mom stayed with Asher in the Rova rather than shlepping the stroller down the stairs just yet and when I finished davening, well before the men, I ran back up the steps and we ordered bagels for everyone. By the time we got back down to the Kotel plaza, we were already running tight on time.

Replica of the Menorah from the Holy Temple

How does one explain the Kotel Tunnel Tours... The Western Wall (the Kotel) is a familiar view to people, but archeologists have been excavating the wall for years. The Tunnel Tours take you beneath the city and up against the unexposed stones of the wall. Some of these stones are just massive! First, however, a trained tour guide provides a fascinating history of the mountain on which the Temple was built and how the Temple evolved so one gets a better understanding of what we are about to see.

One spot, which generally has a contingent of people there for davening, is the closest one can physically get today to where the Holy of Holies part of the Temple was. Additionally, the excavations also take you "out" onto an ancient roadway where you can see pillars and windows from a time long gone, technically, for a good part of the tour, you are under the Arab quarter and the tour's exit used to be in that section as well.

Unfortunately, I can't tell you where it ends this time because our two tours ended up scheduled to closely together and we had to cut out early to make the 4D Temple tour.

While the kids had done virtual reality in Acre, we adults had not. The 4D required us the put on these goggle and headphones, blocking our senses of the world around us....which would have been no problemo if we hadn't forgotten to take Asher into consideration! So if all seven big people are immerse in VR, whose watching the wide awake toddler? I asked if we could stagger our time, but there was a larger group scheduled right after us. In the end, it worked, David kept a hand on him, and I partially removed my headphones so I could hear if he needed me.

The Virtual Reality Temple Tour was really cool. When it started you found yourself in the courtyard of the Temple. Wherever you turned your head or body, it was like you were really turning. In fact, it was a little trippy that if you turned to look at your hand, there was no hand, just part of the scene, like the floor or something. The animation was excellent and the tour took you through the main areas of the Temple that was built by Herod. It gave you a real sense of perspective.  Like how tall a pillar was and how long the courtyard was.

Having spent our morning in the Old City, we headed back to the apartment to park the car and take advantage of a free afternoon for some shopping time. The girls had been hoping to go look for clothing in the Geulah area and the guys wanted to go to Meah Shearim for some Judaica stuff. I'm going to leave out the details of our shopping expedition, but I can say that Avi found a Yad, a pointer for someone reading Torah In shul - something for which he appears to have a great talent - and we ladies came home satisfied (is there such a thing as too many scarves?)

A Safe Journey to Some Special Sites

Today was our last day scheduled with Gershon, and I was determined that we would not start late, as we had most other mornings. We were out the door on time, but...there was a car blocking our van and it took nearly twenty minutes to resolve the situation. Why do I remember being late? Because the long wait for the man to get his keys compounded with needing a pit stop for Yaakov to deal with Yaakov being carsick made us late for our very tightly scheduled stop at Eretz Bereishith (The Land of Genesis). I felt bad because Gershon had negotiated with the guy there to get us an early slot to ride the camels, and we missed it.

Resigned to our fate we headed to the next spot, which was actually a surprise for us that was not far past Eretz Bereishith. We were heading into the Judean desert, and as we continued further south, the temperature was steadily rising. The signs indicated we were heading toward the Dead Sea and then, suddenly, Gershon instructed David to pull over to the side of the road, which was actually a small parking lot. From where we sat there appeared to be nothing particularly to do over here. Gershon assured us that this was going to be worth it and told everyone to get into their swim gear. Noticing that we were surrounded by tall mountains and steep valleys and that Gershon was pointing to a narrow, rocky path , my mother opted to stay in the car, perhaps fearful of another surprise hike.

The path to our destination only started off narrow and rocky. Shortly after, it became a paved road angled sharply downward. Gershon was 100% correct on how great this would be, as this proved to be our most popular recreational stop. At the bottom of the hill was a spring called Ayin Mavoah. The water of the spring was harnessed into a prepared swimming area deeply set into the ground. The unique feature of Ayin Mavoah was that it was a spring situated over underground caverns that worked as vacuums, sucking the water inward and pushing it outward again. In this way, the swimming hole emptied and filled with refreshing but very cold water every 20 minutes or so. It was very cool to swim in the deep water and slowly discover that one’s feet could now touch the ground until one was standing on dry earth, and then, after waiting a torturous few minutes, watching the water rush back in and feel oneself slowly float up. It was delightful in the heat, and it grew steadily more crowed as the morning wore on.

After the swim, we trekked up the long steep road and reunited with Grandma, who had waited patiently for us. Gershon proposed that we stop at Eretz Bereishith, which was on our way to our next stop, and try our luck at there being an opportunity to ride the camels. We were successful! Now, if we had made it at our scheduled time we would have ridden the camels down the descending path to a re-enactment area where one is meant to feel as if they are visiting the tent of Abraham and then, after prepared activities, return along a narrow trail once again on camelback. Because we were slipping-in between appointments and several more camels were needed below, we received a one way trip (and not a few of us were QUITE ok with walking back up anyway!).

The camels were sitting beside the building ready for “boarding.” Mom immediately opted for skipping the ride atop the tall dromedary and when David tried to bring Asher with him, the little guy flipped out. “No camel me!” he yelled, and so he stayed with Grandma. I paired with Yaakov, and we both firmly believe that the saddle was just slightly off-center. I felt like I was tilting sideways the whole ride to stay balanced.  Riding camels is a must-do for touring Israel, and I think we all fulfilled that requirement without a passion to do so again.

Out next stop was Kever Rochel, the Tomb of Rachel, which is located in Bethlehem. The Tomb is an isolated compound in the territory of the Palestinian Authority.

I have to be honest and note that I, personally, do not even remember how we got to Bethlehem. Many of the nights of the trip I had been up late working and the car lulled me to sleep. One moment we were in a familiar neighborhood in Jerusalem near the Old City and the next, what felt to me like a five second doze, we were in a similar neighborhood in Bethlehem. It was considerably disorientating.

Once upon a time, even when I came as a child, people who came to Kever Rochel saw this:

Alas, since the intifada and the transfer of Bethlehem to control of the Palestinian Authority, that humbly beautiful vision is lost behind massive walls topped with barbed wire and watchtowers. The parking lot was full as Jews come here in a steady stream to pray.

According to Jewish tradition, God was particularly open to the prayers of Rachel. In the merit of her having given her sister the secret codes that allowed her to marry Jacob (Genesis 29). For this reason, and perhaps because it has truly one of the longest histories as a Jewish holy site, it is considered a place where one has a more open, so to speak, line to God. Also, this site is very significant to mothers and to women who wish to be mothers because Rachel suffered to have children.

There isn't much to describe about being at the synagogue itself. We all did our own prayers and then met outside. Timing wise, a Mincha (afternoon service) minyan was about. To start. Since the girls and I had davened Mincha already, we waited outside with Yaakov and Asher. It was hot and one child became increasingly grumpy. When the guys came out and Gershon announced that we had a really cool opportunity to meet and see the small settlement attached to the Kever Rochel enclave, this child and I went back to the van for an emotional cool down. I hope I can get someone to write about it.

We grabbed a lunch of pizza and falafel in Gush Etzion and headed for Hebron and Maarat Hamachpela, the Cave of the Patriarchs, and truly one of the holiest sites in Jewish tradition.

I don’t know what I expected of the area we drove through between Bethlehem and Hebron, but the drive was not that much different than between any other towns we moved through in Israel.
Hebron is a town known for having a “challenging situation” between Jews and Arabs. The primary Jewish settlement, which is Kiryat Arba. Gershon had many friends an connections in the area, this being a particularly important location for people involved in active settlement, and he would have been delighted to give us a proper tour, but our goal in coming to Hebron was the “Tomb of the Patriarchs.”

This is the site which, according to Jewish tradition, Abraham purchased to bury Sarah because he knew that it was the cave in which Adam and Eve were buried. Abraham was also buried there, as were Isaac and Rebecca and Jacob and Leah (and, according to legend, the head of Esau, but that’s a whole story unto itself).  The incredible building that was built over this site was erected by Herod during the Roman era and has remained in use throughout the different rulers of the land. It has served as a synagogue, a church, a mosque.

Here’s a concise explanation for JewishVirtualLibrary.org:

This uniquely impressive building is the only one that stands intact and still fulfills its original function after thousands of years. Foreign conquerors and invaders used the site for their own purposes, depending on their religious orientation: the Byzantines and Crusaders transformed it into a church and the Muslims rendered it a mosque. About 700 years ago, the Muslim Mamelukes conquered Hebron, declared the structure a mosque and forbade entry to Jews, who were not allowed past the seventh step on a staircase outside the building.

Upon the liberation of Hebron in 1967, the Chief Rabbi of the Israel Defense Forces, the late Major-General Rabbi Shlomo Goren, was the first Jew to enter the Cave of Machpelah. Since then, Jews have been struggling to regain their prayer rights at the site, still run by the Muslim Waqf (Religious Trust) that took control during the Arab conquest. Many restrictions are imposed on Jewish prayers and customs at the Tomb of the Patriarchs despite the site's significance, primacy and sanctity in Jewish heritage and history.

I had been to Maarat Hamachpelah before, but it had been many, many years ago. I was very excited to have this opportunity to come here again. As we entered, we passed a family that was all dressed up. They were there to celebrate a bris milah, a circumcision.

Even before we entered, we were touring. I was fascinated by the place Gershon showed us that was the “seventh step.” As mentioned in the description above, when the Muslim’s had complete control of the site, Jews were not allowed past the outside staircase’s seventh step and many Jews still pray in that same location.

Maarat Hamachpela is divided into different chapels, for lack of a better English word, that are marked as the tombs of the Patriarchs. And while they appear to have large burial caskets within the alcoves, the actual remains of the patriarchs and matriarchs would be far below. Of course, having two boys with patriarchal names, I couldn’t resist taking pictures of them at their respective chapels.

The tomb of the Matriarch Leah, not sure why I don't have Leah's photo here like I had the boys.

More seriously, this is one of the most ancient sites in the heritage of our people. I definitely felt a profound sense of awe here and I made it a specific point to use my time there to daven (pray) for the people in my life and people I new had specific needs such as health, children, finding a spouse and parnassa.

As we left the complex, we stopped to take pictures with some lovely soldiers...

I think that everyone in our party gained something positive from this stop. However, the children were getting restless. At Gershon’s recommendation we returned to Gush Etzion and went to a park that was across from where we had eaten lunch. The park, which was dedicated to the memory of the three youths who had been kidnapped and murdered in 2014, contained several play areas appropriate for different ages, including a zip line. There was also an area for camping. Oddly enough, there was also a donkey wandering around...still not sure why.

Rebbe Tour!

It had been our intention to go to Masada and the Dead Sea today, but a good friend David’s made arrangements for us to be taken on what I jokingly call a “Rebbe Tour” of Bnei Brak this evening, so we revised our plans. Bnei Brak is part of the greater Tel Aviv city, so we tried to plan an activity on the way.

However, since we still wanted to get to Masada, and our only day to do so really seemed to be Friday, we knew that we had to use the morning to get ready for our second Shabbat in Jerusalem. Off to the Shuk we went once again. This time we attempted to drive... and it was almost as confusing as when we tried to walk. Wow! The fact is that some of the movements that we witnessed could be on a crazy driving series...and David maybe did an illegal move or two himself.

Our shopping today was a bit for Shabbas but also for gifts for home. The shuk was, as always, an active and vibrant experience. When we headed back to the Ben Yehuda/Geula area hoping to pick up the pre-ordered yad (silver stick with a hand pointing at the end, used for reading Torah). It wasn’t ready, but we did find a kiddush cup for Shevi.

We were told to meet our contact in Bnei Brak around 5, so our intention was to leave around 1:30 and find an activity to do on the way. I had some great suggestions, but we left late and traffic was horrendous, and we ended up going straight to our meeting (and getting there in the nick of time).

The best way to describe my first impression of Bnei Brak was...this place was never meant for people to have cars. The parking lots were practically part of the street. It was even crazier than Sfat! I was so glad David was driving and not me!

The feel of this evening in Bnei Brak will be very hard for me to convey. The people we were being taken to meet have dedicated their lives to studying Torah and uplifting the Jewish people. While I may not 100% understand their world (which adheres to a stricter understanding of Jewish law than my own community), I am in awe of their dedication.

I could describe each visit that we had, but the truth is that they are hard to capture in words. These various rabbis welcomed us into their homes, took time out of their schedules to spend a few minutes talking to us and they all showed a genuine interest in who we are. They shared with us their thoughts about varying subjects, from education in Bnei Brak to guiding advice for life. Some of the rabbis we visited were Rabbi Baruch Dov Poverski, Rav Dov Landau, Rabbi Eliezer Kahaneman, Rav Moshe Halevi and his son, Rav Shmuel Halevi, and Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch. The most well-known of the rabbis that we visited was Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, one of the gadol hador (leaders of the generation). We also visited his daughter, Rabbanit Leah Kolodetski, who, like her mother before her, opens her home to people and shares with them the joy of fulfilling the mitzvah of taking challah (the ritualistic part of making challah for Shabbat). She was warm and welcoming and gave out candy and sfarim (religious books).

As evening faded into night and we finished our visits, our guides/translators led us to what they considered the best place to get cholent in Bneu Brak (Indeed, the family loved it.) Before we left the city, we were handed an incredible smelling box of freshly baked challah made from the dough we took challah from with Rabbanit Kolodetski. The special challah, eaten that Shabbas, was AMAZING!!

The pictures below are all taken from a beautiful photo album of our Bene Brak tour that we received as a gift:

With Rabbi Chaim Kanievsy

At the home of Rabbi Eliezer Kahaneman

At the home Rabbi  Moshe Hillel Hirsch

At the home of Rebbitzen Kolodetski