If you think that title was long, it pales in comparison with our day. It’s just past midnight and we’ve only just brought the curtain down on our second and final full day in Tel Aviv.
Following a well-earned good night’s sleep (and, for some, a daybreak, rooftop yoga session), we enjoyed a group breakfast at our Tel Aviv home base, the Shalom Hotel before shuttling over to the Muzot High School of the Arts. Muzot (which is Hebrew for “muses,”) is a groundbreaking program. Unlike other schools for the performing arts, it draws it’s pupils not from auditions, but rather from a group of students that, for whatever reason, have dropped out of public high schools. Started by two social workers, Muzot was founded out of a passionate belief that kids can be students and artists, but need opportunities to do both in an environment where they receive instruction geared to their individual capabilities. This is only possible, according to the school’s founders, when the faculty are personally involved and engaged with students and parents.
Muzot is located in a former residential villa dating back to the early 20th Century. While the building has been transformed into a fully functioning school complete with classrooms, offices and a kitchen (where kids receive breakfast and lunch – sometimes their only prepared meals of the day), signs of its former use abound, including beautiful coffered ceilings adorned with frescoes and elaborate metal light fixtures. Last year, the school building suffered a partial collapse which required replacement of the building’s roof. That repair was underwritten by the Jewish Federation of St. Louis. Muzot currently has 92 students enrolled and graduated its sixth class this year. Half of those graduates have gone on to college.
We then paid a visit to Nachalat Benyamin, once the main drag of Tel Aviv’s garment district. It has since been converted to a pedestrian mall that is home to an enormous arts and crafts bazaar. Our beloved tour guide Amir describes the wares peddled there as “not ready for the art museum but not ready for the garbage.” That being said, a number of Rubinites did find some treasures and we are sure you will love anything that may find its way into your homes at the end of our voyage.
During our rides to and from Nachalat Benyamin, Amir discussed Tel Aviv’s urban architecture. The city experienced an urban explosion in the 1960s and to this day there remains quite a bit of construction in its multiple downtown areas. Amir explained that permits for new construction of large structures are conditioned upon commitments to renovate surrounding, aging structures. As a result, there is quite a bit of architectural revitalization going on.
Following lunch at Cafe Yaffo in Jaffa’s flea market district, the group split into two sections for an afternoon of learning. One section visited the Tel Aviv Art Museum where they were treated to a guided tour of its numerous galleries featuring both Israeli art and works from around the world (including a special Andy Warhol exhibit.) The other group visited the Israel-America Chamber of Commerce where they met with a business development manager who discussed his organization’s role in bringing Israeli business interests to the United States and vice versa.
We had a few hours in the afternoon to ourselves. Some of us trekked over to the port area to visit its shops (and gelato parlor,) while others chose the hotel’s rooftop happy hour to catch the sunset.
Our evening kicked off with a Turkish-style dinner at Pasha Restaurant where we met with “social entrepreneur” Jay Schultz and Natalie Solomon of The Alumni Community, a post-programming organization associated with Birthright Israel. Jay is an American expatriate who made Aliyah in 2006 and now works with multiple, private organizations dedicated to integrating Israel’s 100,000+ young transplants integrate themselves into the country’s social fabric as well as encouraging meaningful community involvement. Tel Aviv is one of the youngest major cities in the world, with 40% of its population under the age of 40. Natalie discussed her role in helping former Birthright participants understand how their initial trip to Israel can foster the development of deeper engagement with the nation and with Judaism as a whole.
We then joined Jay and Natalie at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque where we watched a screening of the Israeli comedy cult classic “Mitzvah Savta” (“Operation Grandma,”) a humorous tale of three rather unique brothers who must handle the burial of their deceased grandmother when the kibbutz she once supported refuses to do so. The screening was followed by a brief talk and Q&A with the film’s creator, Dror Shaur, who advised that the slapstick-heavy film was actually based on his own true story.
Tomorrow we are off to an early start, departing Tel Aviv for the water treatment facilities of Mekorot, a visit to Elyakim military base and then on to Yokneam-Meggido where we will begin a two-day stay at Kibbutz Dalia.
