National Parks: Castel Edition

Warning: The following post may exceed the recommended daily allowance for other people’s vacation pictures and videos. Proceed at your own risk.

And so, the succah is put away; the younger kids have gone back to school; and we’ve reached that elusive time of year known here in Israel as אחרי החגים (literally, “after the holidays”).

B”H we had a wonderful Succot. We spent time with family and friends and enjoyed various activities and outings – including, as promised, a repeat visit to the Circus Festival and, of course, the requisite trip to one of our beautiful country’s many national parks.

This time our destination was the Castel (aka Har Ma’oz (“Stronghold Mountain”) for the Hebraically-oriented amongst you).

Originally a Roman-era fortress known as Castellum, it was subsequently renovated by the Byzantines, who called it Castellum Belvoir and appreciated its proximity to similar fortresses in the area (such as Ein Chemed and others).

Soaring above and dominating Route 1 (the main highway leading up to Yerushalayim), the Castel was the site of a key battle during the War of Independence. Many brave men and women gave their lives during the heavy fighting.

At one point, the situation became so desperate that the Palmach company commander and his deputy famously ordered the privates to retreat – shielded by their commanders, who remained behind and continued fighting.

When the war finally ended, the newly-formed IDF dug a number of bunkers and communication trenches around the Castel, which overlooked what was then the Jordanian border.

And now, without further ado, the threatened promised pictures: (As always, please feel free to click on the pictures for a much better view.)

First, the traditional view of the price list… to show how much money we WOULD have saved, if we hadn’t allowed our National Parks membership to lapse:

Looking up at the fortress:

Inside one of the tunnels:

The view from the top:

And finally, a video showing a walk through one of the communication trenches:

חורף טוב, בריא וגשום!

Have a wonderful, healthy, and rainy winter!

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P.S. The latest HH blog carnival is available here. Special thanks to Batya for including my Reasons 3721 and 3722 for making aliyah.

Chanukah 5774 wrap-up

Zot Chanukah

As Chanukah 5774 comes to a gloriously wet and wintery end, and as the younger Shiputzim kids prepare to return to school tomorrow morning IY”H (“Oof, why can’t there be a gesher*?!” a certain annoyed Shiputzim child wondered), here are several items of interest or note:

1) I updated my post from last year about my Zaidy z”l and his extraordinary letter.

2) Rabbi Wein shows how satire can be used to help change the mindset of those who are disconnected from reality.

3) Rafi G. shares a beautiful story about a bus ride.

4) And finally, in a shocking break with tradition, we weren’t able to visit any national parks over Chanukah. In our defense, however, we DID drive all the way to the Yarkon and Tel Afek National Park earlier this week – only to discover that it was closed due to strong winds.

Actual exchange:

Park official: It’s really too bad that you schlepped all this way for nothing.

Us: Was there any way that we could have known in advance that the park was closed?

Park official: {surprised at such a ridiculous question} Why, of course! We posted it on our website.

Us: Um, we looked at your website this morning to get directions. We didn’t notice anything about the park being closed.

Park official: {clicks on computer} Oh. {shrugs} Well, apparently we forgot to post…

But the good news is that we WERE able to snap the requisite shot of the price list, to show how much money we [would have] saved as a result of our National Parks Authority membership and to prove that we were actually there:

!שבת שלום ומבורך

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*Gesher – Literally, a bridge. Refers to an extra vacation day or two.

Just call me Yente

Ah, the lengths we bloggers go for our craft!

{cue: dramatic sigh}

Take me, for instance.

I mean, sure, I could’ve continued to churn out my usual blogging fare – you know, things like Heblish, national parks, and so on – and no one would’ve complained. (Well, not TOO much, anyway…)

But instead of resting on my laurels, I decided that the time had come to take things to a whole new level.

To boldly go where no J-blogger had gone before.

To use my blogging powers for good.

To get my blog into the shidduch game.

And thus, I channeled my inner Yente…

…And deliberately caused my blogging world to collide head-on with my real life world.

My blogging friend relative G6 has all the details.

Mazal tov to the young couple and to their parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins – including, of course, those who now fall into more than one of the above categories!!

יהי רצון שתזכו לבנות בית נאמן בישראל!

Pool of the Arches

A special shout-out to our dear friends and family on the Eastern Seaboard. We’re thinking of you and hope you all stay safe and dry! Oh, and in case you were wondering, here in Israel, we enjoyed beautiful, clear weather today. I’m just saying…</gratuitous aliyah plug>

We interrupt this blog’s incessant litany of national parks to bring you an idea for a family outing*: a visit to Ramle’s Pool of the Arches.

*Full disclosure: Most of the Shiputzim teenagers did not join us on our recent trip to the pool – they felt that it sounded, and I quote, “boring” – and thus, “family outing” might perhaps be too strong a phrase. But each of the younger (and older) members of the family who came along had fun.

Built in 789 CE, the Pool of the Arches is an underground water reservoir. The ceiling is supported by a series of pillars and curved arches (hence the name), and today, visitors get to explore the pool in row boats:

One of the rowboats

One of the arches

More arches

Historians believe that people would lower buckets into holes in the ceiling to draw water.

Suggestion: The Pool of the Arches can serve as a perfect companion trip to the Nesher cement factory, which is located nearby.

Have you ever been to the Pool of the Arches?

We now return you back to your regularly scheduled catalogue of national parks…

National Parks: Herodion Edition

Warning: The following post may exceed the recommended daily allowance for other people’s vacation pictures. Proceed at your own risk.

As longtime readers are aware, it wouldn’t be Chol Hamoed here in TRLEOOB (=the real life equivalent of our blog) without a trip to one of Israel’s beautiful national parks, and so, on the Wednesday of Chol Hamoed Pesach, we set out for Herodion.

The weather was windy yet clear, and we were thrilled to be joined by Guest Blogger Malke and her family.

Located just outside of Yerushalayim in eastern Gush Etzion, Herodion resembles a truncated cone and dominates the surrounding area. From the top, one can see the Dead Sea and even the mountains beyond.

Herodion was originally built by Herod as a sumptuous palace/fortress, and it boasted the absolute latest in Roman era mod. cons. and amenities - including cisterns, saunas, a theater, and a lavish swimming pool with an island in the middle.

Historians believe that out of all of Herod’s massive construction projects (e.g., renovating the Second Beit HaMikdash, Caesarea, etc.), Herodion was his favorite. After all, it was the only one he named after himself, and it was where he was buried. (The park’s requisite movie focuses on the hours leading up to Herod’s funeral. Apparently, the funeral’s organizers had the foresight to video the proceedings… :-))

Later, during the Great Revolt (66-70 CE - i.e. HaMered HaGadol, for the Hebraically-oriented among you), Herodion served as a base for the Jewish fighters, who were unimpressed by the luxury and added a beit knesset and several mikvaot instead.

Then, during the Bar Kochva Revolt (132-136 CE - i.e. Mered Bar Kochva, for the Hebraically-oriented among you), the fighters dug out a cleverly-engineered network of  tunnels, which today’s visitors are allowed to explore.

And now, without further ado, the threatened promised pictures:

First, the obligatory shot of the price list, to show how much money we saved as a result of our National Parks Authority membership:

Note the little bird resting on top of the sign.

The view from the fortress:

The square with the round thing in the middle in the foreground is the remains of Herod’s swimming pool.

Inside the fortress:

The green tarp covers the beit knesset.

And, finally, inside one of the Bar Kochva tunnels:

As always, feel free to click on the pictures for a closer view.

Have you ever been to Herodion?

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P.S. Coincidentally, Batya also visited Herodion during Chol Hamoed (although not on the same day as us). Be sure to check out her post.

Chol Hamoed at the Museum

It’s Chol Hamoed Pesach, and you know what that means, right?

Yes, that’s right! It means that it’s once again time for me to bore you to tears with our family vacation photos! Yay!

But for a change, this post won’t include any national park pictures (although I can’t promise that they won’t appear here on the blog later this week IY”H).

The thing was that yesterday’s warmer temperatures seemed to call for an indoor attraction, and Yerushalayim’s Israel Museum fit the bill.

Although it’s been nearly two years since the museum’s renovations were completed, we hadn’t been there since it reopened, and so when a Shiputzim daughter asked if we could go this week, YZG and I were happy to oblige.

Because not only is admission free for kids under 18 throughout chol hamoed, but the Israel Museum is somehow able to pull off that rarest of feats:

You see, it’s very interesting and has much to offer for visitors both young and old. (In particular, the Judaica collections, the interiors of the old shuls, the wedding gowns, and the Holyland model are some of the Shiputzim family’s favorite things to see.)

However – and here’s the amazing part – at the same time, like any museum, it, by definition, raises the KQ (the all-important Kvetching Quotient) to astronomical levels. And as I’ve noted elsewhere, there’s nothing that YZG and I enjoy more than some good, old-fashioned, adolescent grumbling… </sarcasm>

And now, without further ado, here are the promised photos…

Assorted archeological finds:

A succah from late 19th century Germany:

The interior of an Italian shul from 1700:

BTW, a somewhat similar 18th century Italian Aron Kodesh can be seen in Beit Knesset Renanim, Heichal Shlomo’s on-site shul.

And of course the famous Holyland model of Yerushalayim from the time of the Second Beit HaMikdash, which is now located near the Shrine of the Book:

As always, please feel free to click on the pictures for a closer view.

What are your favorite parts of the Israel Museum?

A winter wonderland

Back in September, I shared a couple of entries from the journal YZG had to keep when he and his high school classmates came to Israel for six weeks on a midwinter tour nearly 30 years ago BA”H.

Several readers asked me to post a few more excerpts from the journal, and so – without further ado, but with YZG’s permission :-) – here goes:

Thursday, February 3

Today we went south. First, we went to… Kever Rachel. Next, we went to Elonei Mamrei and Hevron. There, in Hevron, we saw Me’arat HaMachpeilah, the place where the Patriarchs and Matriarchs are buried. It is run and controlled by the Arabs. There are three mosques and two synagogues. Then we went to one of the houses owned by Jews. We saw a museum there which told about the history of Hevron. There is also a yeshiva there.

After Hevron, we went to a pottery factory where everything is made by hand. Then we went to a glass factory where everything is handmade and blown by hand. [Ed. note – Do you detect a theme? :-)]

Then we went to Kibbutz Kfar Etzion… There we saw a museum of the history of the Etzion Bloc.

Today was the first day it rained…

Friday, February 4

…Then, we went to see 3 caves. The first one is called Bell Cave. It is a cave that was formed by mining out the chalk there. Next we went to the Pigeon Cave. This cave was used to keep pigeons in. The last cave is called Grave Cave. It was once used as a tomb… [Ed. note – If this sounds familiar, it’s because this entry first appeared here.]

Saturday, February 5

We [spent Shabbat] in Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh.

Sunday, February 6

This morning, we went to Jericho. On the way, we stopped in a new [community] called Ma’aleh Adumim. Then we continued on and got to Yericho, which is an oasis in the Judean Desert. In Yericho, we visited a 6th century synagogue, which has a mosaic tile floor. We then went to Ai and climbed the mountain there…

Wednesday, February 9

…At night… I visited [relatives] and talked with them from 8:00-10:00… [Ed. note – Because you might think that he spoke to them from 7:30-9:30 or perhaps even 8:30-10:30, but you would be wrong… :-)]

Thursday, February 10

We went to Givah, and then we went to Givon and then to Ma’aleh Beit Choron. After that we went to Latrun, a place Jordan used to separate Tel Aviv from Yerushalayim in 1948. Then we went to Modiin, where they had a model of a city of centuries ago…

Friday, February 11

…In the afternoon, we went to Bnei Brak…

Saturday, February 12

[Last night], we went to the synagogue of the Gur Chassidim. That night we saw the tisch of the Vishnev… In the morning, we davened at Ponevitch…

Monday, February 14

…In the afternoon, we went swimming and visited the elderly. At night, we went to Machon Lev to use the PDP11/34 computer… [Ed. note – Those of you who know YZG in person know that this and his visit to Kiryat Noar were the two highlights of his trip… :-)]

Tuesday, February 15

Today we went to the Old City of Yerushalayim… We visited four different synagogues… After that we went to the Holyland Hotel and saw a 1:50 scale model of Jerusalem as it looked in the days of the Second Beit HaMikdash…

Thursday, February 17

Today we went to Shchem… We saw Kever Yosef, Har Grizim, and Har Eval…. It rained today…

Friday, February 18

We went to Yeshivat Har Etzion [for Shabbat]…

Saturday, February 19

It snowed…

Wednesday, February 23

Today we went to Tel Aviv to see the Diaspora Museum. It is a museum that shows Jewish cultural life in different areas of the world in various times in history. After that, we went to the Old City of Yafo and walked around. I went down to the water – the Med. [Ed. note - Don’t you love how he and the Mediterranean are so close that he gave it a nickname? :-)] – for most of the time…

Friday, February 25

This morning we went to the Institute for Halachah and Technology. They showed us some of their inventions, and then we went to families in Bayit V’Gan for Shabbat…

Saturday, February 26

It snowed…

Sunday, February 27 (Purim)

…At night, we went to the Old City, to Rabbi Kahana’s synagogue, for megilah reading. Afterwards, we went to various yeshivas… Porat Yosef, Yeshivat HaKotel, and a yeshiva in Me’ah She’arim…

Monday, February 28 (Shushan Purim)

…I went downtown, to see the Purim celebrations there…

Wednesday, March 2

Today we went to Yad Vashem…

Thursday, March 3

Today, we got up at 3:30 and left at 4:00 for Masada. We climbed it at sunrise - it took me 40 minutes, and I was the first up – and davened Shacharit there. Then we toured it until 11:00. Then everyone - except [two other boys] and I - took the cable car down. We got down in 12 minutes and got down before everyone else. Then we went to Ein Gedi, ate lunch there, walked in the reserve, and saw a waterfall…

To be continued…

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P.S. The latest JPiX is available here. Special thanks to Ilana-Davita for including two of my posts: Avnei Eitan and the olive oil factory in Katzrin.

Heading to the Great Indoors

“Let me guess. When you blog about this place, the post will begin: ‘Admittedly, it wasn’t a national park, but we had a very nice time anyway.’ Yes?” YCT (who’s always been like a brother to me) asked rhetorically.

And, as you can see, he was right…

But I’m getting ahead of myself…

After a beautiful Shabbat Chanukah in Avnei Eitan, the original plan was to spend this past Sunday at Gamla (seeing as how it’s a national park and all…).

But the weekend’s wonderfully wet and windy winter weather (try saying that five times fast…) meant that we had to scramble to find an indoor attraction instead. (Actually, this was the third year in a row that we tried – unsuccessfully – to get to Gamla. Indeed, as far as the extended Shiputzim family is concerned, Gamla has become the Holy Grail of Chanukah trips… :-))

Ice skating in Maalot was one option, but we had all been there two years ago (in lieu of Gamla…), and the family members who were doing the driving were reluctant to brave the dense fogs.

And so, in keeping with the whole Chanukah theme, a visit to a boutique olive oil plant in Katzrin was the answer:

The sign reads: “Beit HaBad Shel HaGolan – Katzrin” (“The Golan Olive Press – Katzrin”)

ACSC (=a certain Shiputzim child) – who, just before Chanukah, went on a school trip to Neot Kedumim and got to see how olive oil was produced during the time of the Second Beit HaMikdash – especially enjoyed learning how the process works today:

The large tanks where the olive oil is stored

After watching the requisite movie (I believe that by law, all tourist attractions must include some sort of audio/visual presentation…) and seeing the machinery, visitors get to taste the different types of olive oil and also sample the various cosmetic products produced from the olives.

Tasting the different types of olive oil

Supposedly, the factory’s basalt structure was modeled after an ancient synagogue.

What are some of your favorite indoor attractions in the North?

Around the J-Blogosphere

Several items of note:

1) An amusing piece about the psychometric exam (the Israeli equivalent of the SATs). Watch this space for my take on this test…

2) The Chief Rabbi of South Africa discusses the Shalit deal.

3) The latest Kosher Cooking Carnival is available here. Special thanks to This American Bite for including my pasta salad recipe.

And finally:

4) As you may recall, YZG kept a journal of his 11th grade trip to Israel. (Be sure to check out the original post –- and see how the CTO isn’t the first generation of the Shiputzim family to have an interest in computers… :-))

In any event, here’s what YZG had to say about Beit Guvrin:

Friday, February 4

…Then, we went to see 3 caves. The first one is called Bell Cave. It is a cave that was formed by mining out the chalk there. Next we went to the Pigeon Cave. This cave was used to keep pigeons in. The last cave is called Grave Cave. It was once used as a tomb…

Aren’t you glad he cleared THAT up?

National Parks: Beit Guvrin Edition

Warning: The following post may exceed the recommended daily allowance for other people’s vacation pictures. Proceed at your own risk.

Think of it as the antidote to our Neot Kedumim trip.

Because unlike the Neot Kedumim trip, our second chol hamo’ed tiyul on Succot was planned well in advance, began first thing in the morning, and – most of all – involved a national park.

Located not too far from Beit Shemesh, the Beit Guvrin-Mareishah National Park contains numerous man-made, limestone caves and includes the ancient cities of Mareishah (see Yehoshua 15:44) and Beit Guvrin (from the time of the Second Beit HaMikdash and the Bar Kochva Revolt).

And now, without further ado, the aforementioned pictures:

First, the requisite shot of the price list, in order to show how much money we saved as a result of our National Parks Authority membership:

Next, the entrance to one of the caves:

The sign says that the narrow, one-way, 20-meter-long tunnel leads to the columbarium and that flashlights are recommended.

An underground olive oil press:

Interior of one of the caves:

An opening to another cave:

A view of the “Bell Cave”:

As always, feel free to click on any of the pictures for a closer look.

!חודש טוב ושבת שלום ומבורך

Going beyond our comfort zone

The symbolism was striking.

After all, Succot is all about leaving one’s comfortable home.

And, similarly, our chol hamo’ed trip to Neot Kedumim was - in so many ways - all about leaving our natural comfort zone…

Take, for instance, the destination itself. Not only isn’t Neot Kedumim a national park, but it figures prominently on the Shiputzim teens’ list of “Places We Should Never Go Ever Again, Because We’ve Gone Every. Single. Year. Without. Fail.”

(Except that a quick calculation revealed that we hadn’t actually been there as a family in about ten years, and so the aforementioned adolescents had no choice but to temporarily suspend their moratorium on visits to Neot Kedumim...)

And then there was the way the tiyul was, er, “arranged.” (Please note that I use the term VERY loosely…)

You see, as those of you who know the extended Shiputzim family in real life are well-aware, we’re not exactly the spur-of-the-moment, impulsive types.

Instead, we’re big believers in advance planning, detailed schedules, and early arrival times (especially during chol hamo’ed).

But oddly enough, our trip to Neot Kedumim involved none of these things.

We only decided to go at the last minute; we didn’t get there until several hours after the park opened; and our largish group kept getting separated.

And yet, nevertheless, a great time was had by all.

In particular, everyone enjoyed seeing the life-sized succahs representing each of the kosher and non-kosher cases discussed in the Mishnah (Masechet Succah). For example:

A succah on a boat (KOSHER)

A succah that is less than ten t’fachim high (NOT KOSHER)

A succah with no roof (NOT KOSHER)

A succah with only two walls (NOT KOSHER)

When was the last time you visited Neot Kedumim?

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P.S. The latest Haveil Havalim is available here. Special thanks to the Rebbetzin’s Husband for including my ArbaMinimMaintainers post and also my post about Netanyahu’s “V’Shavu Banim L’Gvulam” speech.

The Innocents Abroad

When YZG was in 11th grade, his school traveled to Israel on a six week tour.

The kids were accompanied by one of their rebbeim, and the secular teachers sent homework along. For instance, the English teacher instructed the students to keep journals of their experiences.

As it so happens, YZG recently found his old journal and graciously offered it to me to use for blogging purposes.

And so, without further ado, what follows are a few  excerpts (lightly edited for spelling and clarity) from the first week of the trip:

Thursday, January 27

This morning we got up at 5:30 to go to the Kotel for morning prayers. Before we went, we went to a mikvah (ritual bath)… By the Wall, it was approximately 40° F. Later that day, we took a tour of Yerushalayim and looked at it from various viewpoints, in various directions…

Friday, January 28

…We went to Mevo Beitar and planted trees in a moshav. We then traveled into the Judean Hills and went to the Stalactite Cave. This is a naturally-formed cave about 90x80 ft. It was discovered by people who were quarrying rock for building…

Saturday, January 29

…[After Shabbat], we went to see a concert at the Diaspora Yeshiva.

Sunday, January 30

…We went to the Israel Museum. We saw the Dead Sea Scrolls and saw religious articles from many different countries as well as exhibits on the past history of Israel, starting from the beginning of time…

And finally, there’s the following entry, which is one of my favorites – for two reasons. First, because it includes the sort of detail that a certain Shiputzim son would’ve included if he had been on this trip. And also, because the last sentence cracks me up every time I read it:

Monday, January 31

Today we went to Kiryat No’ar… They have a computer center, and I saw a PDP-11. There are 15 computer terminals there - although as of now, I don’t know what kind.

We then visited the elderly and helped him clear his porch…

So, what do you think? Are you interested in reading more from YZG’s old journal? If so, I’ll be glad to share additional excerpts in a future post.

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P.S. The latest Haveil Havalim is available here. Special thanks to Susan B. for including my 9/11 post.

National Parks: Ein Afek Edition

Here in TRLEOOB*, we (and when I say “we,” I naturally mean YZG and the kids, and not so much me…) have been busy spackling and painting the LR/DR.

(By a show of hands, anyone interested in an “Our Shiputzim” post on the topic - complete with, er, FASCINATING pictures of wet paint drying?… Anyone?… Anyone?… Bueller?)

But in between all that physical labor and toil, we’ve managed to squeeze in some fun – including swimming, picnics (see, for example, last week’s outing to Palmachim Beach), and various and sundry tiyulim.

Which brings me to our recent trip to the Ein Afek Nature Reserve.

The day began with a visit to Rosh HaNikrah. (Watch this space for more details about that portion of our trip, but in the meantime, you can check out Leora’s gorgeous photos of the site.)

And then, after consulting our Israel Nature and Parks Authority guide, we headed on over to Ein Afek.

Located near Kiryat Bialik (not too far from Acco) and home to assorted flora and fauna, Ein Afek encompasses the upper section of Nachal Na’aman and the springs, pools, lake, and stream which flow into it.

The lovely park also includes Biblical-era ruins (see Yehoshua 19:30, which states that Afek was part of Shevet Asher’s nachalah), a Crusader fortress/mill with a rooftop scenic overlook, a picnic area, a movie about Ein Afek’s history and wildlife, and a pretty walking trail over and around the water canals and lake.

First – as always - the requisite shot of the price list, to show how much money we saved as a result of our National Parks Authority membership:

Next, the Crusader mill: 

A view from the rooftop:

The so-called “floating bridge”: Please feel free to click on the pictures for a better view.

How are you spending the final days of summer?

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*TRLEOOB=the real life equivalent of our blog