Bellevue woman to lead 100 on trip to Israel
Published 10:43 am Tuesday, May 18, 2010
One hundred members of the local Jewish community will travel to Israel beginning May 23, the largest such trip to that country from the Northwest.
The trip is part of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle’s communitywide trip to Israel. Israel Unplugged, as the trip is called, is an eight-day exploration of Israel’s culture, politics, history and people. The trip is being led by Jacquie Bayley of Bellevue. The participants range in age from 21-80.
“This trip is one-of-a-kind,” said Bayley, the trip’s volunteer chair. “We are doing things you can’t do traveling alone.”
To date, some of those activities include:
Meeting with Natan Sharansky, Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, former refusnik denied permission to leave the Soviet Union, which galvanized the Soviet Jewry movement
Meeting former head of the Israeli Navy, Ze’ev Almog, and tour of the Haifa IDF Naval Base
Briefing and demonstration of new technology at Microsoft Research Center
Briefings with US Ambassador to Israel James Cunningham, Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman and other leading educational and political figures
Shabbat services on top of Masada
Float in the Dead Sea
Overnight at a kibbutz
Wine tasting at the Bat Yaar Ranch
Guided tour of Yad Vashem complex, honoring the six million Jewish and millions of other victims of the Holocaust
Visit to Hadassah Hospital, one of the most advanced medical centers in the world
Kayaking and rafting down the Jordan River
Participants on the trip will be posting on a blog called “Straight from the Camel’s Mouth” about their trip. People can follow along at www.JewishInSeattle.org/camelblog.
