Hello! I’m a little bit more than halfway done with the Fall Semester at this point, and have been thoroughly enjoying it so far! We just finished Yam le Yam (a four-day hike from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee, or Kinneret), and are now getting ready to fly to Poland.

We are about half way through AMHSI and have done some amazing and really informational Tiyuls. By far the best Tiyul I have been on was going to Masada. I fell in love with the challenges that came with it. The experience was life changing and in the beginning, right as we started I thought I wouldn’t be able to climb all of it but each step got easier. Plus the beautiful view kept me going.

Hello everyone! I have just come back from a tiyul called Yam le Yam where we hike from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee or the Kinneret in Hebrew. It was an absolutely amazing experience and would recommend for anyone to go try it.

On September 26, 2018, our group woke up at 4:15 am at a youth hostel in Arad. We got all of our stuff ready, had some quick sandwiches for lunch, and then got on the bus. We arrived at our stop. We all got out of the bus, and saw Mt. Masada, but not exactly; it was still around five o’clock in the morning and it was still super dark.

Overall, I believe the Poland trip was an incredible and irreplaceable experience. While it was a difficult trip, I could not have asked for a better group of people to accompany me. I felt so supported by my friends, who now feel more like family, and I did my best to do the same for them. I undeniably struggled emotionally on this trip.

Last week we went to Poland for six days and explored the country and learned more about the Holocaust. I expected that the trip to Poland was going to be hard, but I didn’t realize just how difficult it was actually going to be.

Hello! Last week my group went on a trip to Poland. While we were there we toured several camps and old Jewish Shtetls. I think I can speak for everyone on my trip when I say that it was a very difficult and emotional trip.

The expectations I had about what I would learn were tremendously exceeded. At first when we arrived in Poland stepping on the same land my ancestors once did fulfill me with mixed feelings knowing what tragedies they went through. Previous to going on this trip I didn’t know how emotional I would get and how sensitive I would be to this subject. In addition, I didn’t know how connected I would feel just by being in Poland.

Some of the expectations that I had before going to Poland, was to learn more about how the Nazis treated people, and also to see all the concentration camps in where a lot of my family had died because of the horrendous acts of the Nazis. Another thing that I expected to see was the history of how good the Jews lived in Poland before, and fast transition to those horrible years of the war.

I hoped that I would leave Poland with enough knowledge of the Shoah to be able to help in educating others when returning to the United States. I feel as if I have accomplished this goal and writing this essay will allow me to give others a glimpse of what it is like to learn about the Holocaust in Poland, hopefully increasing their desire to properly educate themselves and others.

Hello everyone. Poland was jaw-dropping. It was a trip like no other...

We only have about four weeks left in Israel, and although those weeks are packed to the brim with activities, I know that they are going to go by so fast. Honestly, I am a bit scared to be home and so far away from everybody, but thinking about home led my brain to other things, such as what my impact is going to be on my community when I get back.

We are now about fourteen weeks into the semester, which means we only have about four weeks left until we go back home to the United States. This has been a great experience, where I learned so many things, both educationally, and personally about myself. This experience that I had, is an experience that should not be kept, and should be spoken out to many people, so that they can also have this amazing experience...

After being here for so long and learning so much about the history of Israel and the current conflicts, I feel a sense of responsibility to bring what I’ve learned back home with me.

When I get home, I have a few things that I am hoping to be able to carry out. Besides encouraging others to come here and telling them about my experience, there are also a few things I’ve learned in Israeli Studies class that I want to bring home with me.

Alexander Muss High School in Israel has been one of the most influential experiences I have ever had. I have learned so much about my heritage, Israel, and mostly myself. I wanted to be a better version of myself, seizing this opportunity to learn and expand my horizons.

Throughout the four months I have spent at Alexander Muss High School in Israel, I have learned many new lessons and traditions. These I definitely want to take home. Even share with not only my community but my friends and family.

Hello! So, this is my last blog entry for this trip, which is a bit scary and uncomfortable because we have all been experiencing a lot of lasts lately. Last Saturday was our last Shabbat with Aubrey, who is one of the core teachers. Yesterday was our last tiyul, or trip, on the program. This weekend is our last free weekend. I just finished my last lab, and next week is finals week for all my classes.

Before coming on the semester in Israel, I thought a lot about some goals I would love to achieve, and in my opinion, I did achieves most or even all of them...

In my second blog post, I talked about the goals I wanted to reach while I was here. The first was becoming as fluent in Hebrew as possible. While I don’t think that I am nearly close to becoming fluent, my Hebrew has improved since coming here...