The Challenge of the Century

The stage was set. We had now been here in Israel for four days. We had finally gotten some what acclimatized to the new culture, at least as much as one would expect from a group of rambunctious, no awesome, young adults from Canada and more importantly one from Baden. Just as we had achieved a level of equillibriumal balance, and yes i know equillibriumal is not a word, but this is my story and I am going to use it, so all you English majors are going to have to suffer. Where were we, o yes, just as we had, as whole unified group of friends, no brothers and sisters in destiny, achieved a state of comfort, we were dragged off on an adventure that few would survive, and fewer yet would forget (ps. don't worry no one actually dies, but death sells better). We were called to save a poor helpless...

Ok sorry i am for getting carried away.

So yes on this day May 8, 2008 our Yella (which means "lets go" in Hebrew) group went on a journey. An 11 kilometer hike(which is really really far), through tough terrain and up steep escarpments from Nazareth to Sephoris/Zippori (we actually had a big debate on the name and there was lots of confusion, at least for me). After having breakfast at 8am we grabbed lunches from the stores near by, most people buying pizza from a store for only 6 shekels, translating to less then 2 dollars for a pizza (crazy eh).

A little aside of interest: today is actually a very special day in Israel. Called the "Independence day" by the Jewish Israelis or "the Disaster" by the Arab Palestinians, it marks the day of the creation of the state of Israel. Today in fact is the 60th anniversary of this birth.


At 9 we headed out for our hike which took place on a section of the Jesus trail. This is a project initiated about 6 months ago that retraces the steps of Jesus from town to town across the plains, and hills (big hills, that are very steep with lots of thistles, and other pointy objects). Our fearless guide David, former student of EMU led us up steep sets of stairs that were way to steep, tell we got to the top of the ridge the surrounds Nazareth, giving us a breathtaking view of what lay before us. From here we spent the next 2 hours trekking through the Israeli bad lands, through farmers fields and forests, until we reached our destination of Zippori, awesome place by the way.

Here there was a national park that contained many remnants of Old Zippori from first century Israel. They included an ancient Roman road, like the ones that covered the Roman empire; many amazing stone mosaics found within the remains of many ancient Jewish buildings. Unlike the homes we saw at Nazareth's Village, these were far more complex, colourful and big, clearly belonging to the wealthy elite. Also in this village was the remains of an old Jewish synagogue, oddly included in the stone mosaic in this building were inscriptions of a Greek god. After enjoying our stay here, which included the discovery and of course exploration of a cave like hole, which Stephen claims must have been inhabited at one point ( I am a little more skeptical) we headed on our way to the nearby (it actually wasn't nearby, like David claimed, rather another hour and a half hike, to the town of Cana. Here we visited a church which claims it has the water vessels in which Jesus turned water into wine, Lynn, our other not quite as fearless leader, said that it was highly unlikely that these were the exact water vessels which Jesus used, but that they would have looked the same. Finally after getting a taxi ride back to Nazareth...

...our heroes returned to their highly secret fortress, to relax after another hard day of work fighting crime. I lie now in my comfortable bed with built in foot massager, knowing that the world is a safer place because of what we had achieved today. Others are skeptical that our adventure today will solve all the worlds problems, but i figure its the best that one man can do when he is part of this Yella adventure. And maybe, just maybe, the leafs will win the Stanley Cup next year.

But that is a story for another day.....Blog written by Derek Alton
Pictures by Kristina Harder

Day 3: Learning about conflict with two Eliases

When I said I would write the blog for today I had no idea it would be such a challenging day to write about. We met with Father Elias Chacour today at his office in Haifa. Father Elias Chacour is the Archbishop of Galilee of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. He is also a noted author and peace activist who promotes reconciliation between Arabs and Israelis. At the age of eight he was evicted, along with his whole village, by the Israeli authorities and became a deportee and a refugee but remained in the region. This is the first day that we have been able to discuss the conflict here in depth with someone from the region. It was a privilege to be able to discuss it with someone as well spoken and educated as Father Chacour.

The discussion was primarily based around questions asked of us, about our conceptions of this country, the conflicts, and why we have come here. Father Chacour's message of peace. His stories of struggle and persecution, stick out for me as an important part of this trip already. Our conversation with Father Chacour lasted two hours and was packed with enough information and personal experience to write several essays on. I feel that one of the most important messages that he tried to leave us with was something like this excerpt from a commencement address at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where he said:

"If you are pro-Israel, on behalf of the Palestinian children I call unto you: give further friendship to Israel. They need your friendship. But stop interpreting that friendship as an automatic antipathy against me, the Palestinian who is paying the bill for what others have done against my beloved Jewish brothers and sisters in the Holocaust and Auschwitz and elsewhere. And if you have been enlightened enough to take the side of the Palestinians -- oh, bless your hearts -- take our sides, because for once you will be on the right side, right? But if taking our side would mean to become one-sided against my Jewish brothers and sisters, back up. We do not need such friendship. We need one more common friend. We do not need one more enemy, for God's sake!"

After meeting with Father Chacour we drove to I'billin and the Mar Elias High School, which builds bridges between the different religious communities in the area. We then heard personal stories and experiences from another Elias: the director of Mar Elias Educational Institutions. We returned to Nazzareth Village for a recap and some discussion about what we had experienced that day, and then Linford led us in some historical and scriptural role playing exercises in the synagogue at Nazareth Village.

Some photos from the day:


Members of the group meeting
with Father Chacour

The Baha'i Gardens in Haifa. Aren't we just classic tourists?















That's us singing in the Church of the Sermon on the Mount in I'billin










View of I'billin

Mar Elias High Schooli I'billin

Photos by: Christine Horst and Mike Turman
Text: Stephen Trepanier

Day 2: Mount Carmel and Caesarea

Day 2 here is practically completed. We are recovering from the intense jetlag we all felt yesterday. Linford arrived this evening, so all of us have now arrived. Five minutes ago I heard the Muslim call to prayer, and now I'm hearing the church bells ringing out 9:00. I really enjoy being able to hear both of these from the hostel.

Today is the Memorial Day in Israel. It commemorates those who have died in wars. This morning at 11, and this evening at 8 we heard a minute-long siren, reminding us.

Anton, a Maronite from Nazareth was our guide for today. He was full of knowledge about everything we passed. I feel that I will be receiving so much information here that it will be a big challenge to keep everything from merging together.

We started off our day at the top of Mount Carmel, where Elijah slew the prophets of Baal. We had some beautiful views over the plains of Jezreel and could view the hills where Nazareth is built in the distance. I was very surprised to see all the fish farms that have been constructed in the plains. This is an arid country (there are drip irrigation tubes everywhere), so I wonder how much water evaporates from those farms on a daily basis.

We then proceeded to Caesarea to see the Roman ruins. We walked along an aquaduct, and then wandered through the theater, hippodrome, baths and a French fort. Anton, our guide, led us through, allowing us to understand the significance of each ruin. At the left are columns where Herod had a palace and a swimming pool.








The hippodrome is in the background as we listen to Anton (in the white baseball cap, mostly hidden by the rest of us).











Our final stop for the day was Nazareth Village. We were surprised to see that it is actually located in the middle of Nazareth. It seems like a little oasis in the middle of this busy city. It was interesting to compare the simplicity of life in Nazareth in the 1st century with Roman life in Caesarea. Tara, a volunteer, led us around the village. She tied scriptural references into her talk seamlessly, and was incredibly enthusiastic. We will be returning to the village later to learn and volunteer.



Tomorrow, we look forward to meeting Father Chacour and to visiting Haifa.

This is actually Alison posting, not Megan (who took the photos). I wasn't able to maneuver the Arabic necessary to log in to blogger.com, so Megan signed me in through her gmail account. Thanks Megan!

Photos

Here are some pictures we shot today:

Tired travelers on the bus to Nazareth.
View of the valley that we drove through.

One of the beautiful purple flowered trees.
This is the courtyard and entrance of the guest house we're staying at.

We'll have more posts and pictures tomorrow!

Day One: Arrivals

Yesterday morning our group assembled and departed for Tel Aviv--no major difficulties. Thanks to all the parents and friends in Stouffville who helped get us and all our things to the airport in good time. It doesn't feel like yesterday morning, it feels like that was today. That's the joy of international travel between time zones!

We arrived safely in Tel Aviv early this morning, amazed by the size and modernity of the Ben Gurion Airport. The sun was shining brightly as we stepped outside for our first taste of Israeli air. We bought our first New Israeli Shekels, filled our water bottles and boarded our coach bus. Our first destination: Nazareth.

The ride itself was fascinating--one and a half hours driving through countryside we barely knew how to imagine before we left. There are things growing in this country. Trees! Fruits! Vegetables and crops! It's their dry summer season now, and so many of the fields looked harvested, but we were surprised by the green that's here--it's not just all desert like our guide books make it out to be. The security wall passes nearby the highway in many places. Towns filled with three-story concrete buildings and frequent minarets cover the hillsides. Then we arrived, and began our look up-close.


This afternoon we took a short tour of the old city of Nazareth. We are staying in a lovely guest house, called the Fauzi Azar Inn, which is in a 250 year old building. We are very excited to be staying here, where the people are friendly and the coffee is strong. Already after an afternoon here, we've probably taken hundreds of pictures.

Stay tuned for more impressions, pictures and anecdotes as we have the time to write and share them.

The last day at work before the trip.

It's funny how your daily routine can seem special when you know you'll be away for a while. I found myself quite satisfied as I sat down on the bus for the last leg of my commute, knowing that It would be a while before I make the trip again. Montreal in the spring is always enjoyable, the terraces are open and thriving, trees blossoming, and a fine fresh feeling, after the grime and slush of a long enough winter. The park, the longer days, green grass, blooming flowers, and open bike paths make leaving an almost melancholy act.

I always find that the time leading up to trip is like a drain emptying, or one of those coin slides they used to have at McDonalds when I was a kid. Slowly but steadily time seems to speed up, circling toward the drain of the airport, and finally onto the eight hour cocoon of a 747 or some other jet. Until your spit out on the other end, usually sleep deprived, and in the middle of some cycle completely unfamiliar to the one you left, but full of possibilities.

See you on Sunday.

3 more sleeps

Our trip is approaching so quickly. Just three more sleeps! Right now we're probably all thinking: do I have everything I need? Can I get away with packing my bag last minute on Saturday, or should I try to do it now? How much foreign currency should I take? Just how hot will it be there anyway?

I have the answer to that, actually. According to Google, it's currently 22 degrees in Jerusalem, with sun expected for the rest of the week--high of 26 on Saturday. Wild to think we'll be halfway around the world in less than 4 days.

Stay tuned for more next week!
--Mike