An Action-Packed First Week

This week was an action-packed and unforgettable beginning to our adventures in Israel. We started by setting foot on campus, unpacking our belongings, organizing our rooms, and learning the school rules during an opening assembly. Not long after, we traveled to Jerusalem, where we were randomly assigned new rooms, allowing us to connect with people outside our campus roommate groups.

One of the most significant moments of the first week was visiting the Kotel (Western Wall), where many of us had the emotional experience of physically touching the wall for the first time. After returning from the Kotel, we shared a huge, delicious Shabbat dinner together, filled with all kinds of Israeli food, which truly brought everyone closer.

While in Jerusalem, we also had the privilege of hearing a detailed and engaging explanation of the Six-Day War from one of our school’s own teachers, Donni Kandel. Later, we spent time in Gan HaPaamon, where my new friends and I played a wild game of basketball and an extremely fun game of American football (two-hand touch, not tackle).

After returning to campus, we finalized our class schedules, met our teachers, and began our first few days of school, continuing to get to know one another better. We then went on our first off-campus tiyul to Tel Gezer, an ancient city built atop a hill formed through thousands of years of destruction and rebuilding due to wars, land disputes, and even involvement from ancient Egyptian pharaohs.

Another highlight of the tiyul was visiting the Weizmann Institute of Science, where we watched a short film introducing some of Israel’s leading scientists in fields such as biology, physics, and astronomy. Later in the day, we spontaneously traveled to Tel Aviv, where we had time to explore a lively area of the city, grab food, shop for clothes, and experience the incredible energy of Israeli city life.

We ended this action-packed week at Hostages Square, where we witnessed a deeply emotional moment marking the pause in the hostages’ captivity after more than 800 days, following the long-awaited return of the final Israeli hostage held in Gaza, Ron Gvili. Overall, this week was filled with learning, meaningful experiences, new friendships, and powerful moments that made it truly unforgettable.

Ely Waxman is a 16-year-old student attending Westmount Collegiate Institute in Toronto.