Galil Blog
Shalom!
Today was Yom Israel!!! The day began with homemade, straight out of the oven pita along with a scrumdiliumptious smorgasbord of dips and drizzles. After filling their tummies to the very brim, the kids were split into the neighborhoods of the great city of Haifa, and competed with one another in escape rooms, which featured a series of mind-locking puzzles and puzzling locks. They continued learning more about their neighborhoods in a trivia activity, before moving onto more serious, yet enlightening peulot about Israel as a melting pot. We moved onto lunch, which was served in outdoor stands, and featured pita with delicious, beautifully, spiced Kubbe and Majadra.
After lunch there was a round robin where we traveled through different cities in Israel. Dimona, Yarka, Tiberias, Jerusalem, Petach Tikva and Beer Sheva. At each location we did a short activity in the spirit of the city! Then we had chigritz (serious clubs) where we delved into different issues in Israel today. Specifically religious and secular tension, feminism, the Druze community and Judicial Reform. When we learned a little about the Judicial Reform we made signs for the protest that took place later in the day.
Then we had sports where we played traditional Israeli sports! For example, Matkot is a traditional Israeli beach game! Another example is Chaiai sara bal! It’s a mix between dodgeball and gaga!!! The big hit of the activities was the gigantic water slide! The kids loved climbing up the big, blue waterslide and having the time of their lives! The kids loved learning about Israeli sports as well as having so, so so, so much fun!
After sports we had shira! At shira we learned “Shir Baboker Baboker”, an early in the morning song. We sing this song everyday during our lunch chants. This was a great opportunity for chanichimot to learn songs that we sing daily!
Then we went on a protest to support the people who are fighting for democracy in Israel. It was led by the kids who went to the chugritz about it.
Following the protest we had a Moroccan dinner. With yummy cous-cous, fish, challah, and tofu. Galit, our family engagement specialist, was an extremely special guest when making the food! She helped in the mitbach (kitchen) all day long ensuring that the campers had a yummy, memorable meal and day.
We finished off the day with a Tel Aviv beach/pool party..YAYYYYY! We played volleyball in the pool, danced in the pool, swam in the pool and had the best time in the pool! We finished off the night with Knafeh. Knafeh is, “a popular traditional dessert of Fatimid origin, made with spun pastry called kataifi, soaked in a sweet, sugar-based syrup called attar, and typically layered with cheese, or with other ingredients such as clotted cream, pistachio or nuts, depending on the region. It is popular in the Middle East.”
What a day it was for our campers! They were surrounded with so much Israeli culture and food that they felt like they were practically there. Even though it was a hard day in Israel we wanted to give the kids a meaningful and heartfelt connection towards the Holy Land.
See you soon,
Jordyn
David’s Note: Camp Galil stands by the those who have been protesting for 29-straight weeks against the so-called judicial reforms. We remain in solidarity with the Israeli protestors who have taken to the streets. The reasonable standard is a crucial legal tool that protects the rights of minorities and others in Israel.