Our 5th Israel Journey took place in June, with 91 Year 9 students and 10 intrepid staff boarding buses Aleph and Bet for a whirlwind 2 week journey around Israel.  Our programme is unique in many ways, and while the students did the mandatory Jerusalem, Masada and Tel Aviv sights, we also spent time packing food parcels for families in food crisis, learning about coexistence in Jerusalem’s only mixed Jewish-Arab school and meeting young new immigrants to Israel who had come to live in Israel without their families.  Students meditated under the desert skies, rafted down the Jordan river and explored the graffiti art of South Tel Aviv.  We were lucky enough to spend two beautiful shabbatot together as a group, in Jerusalem and on Kibbutz Nes Amim – a centre for interfaith learning and encounter.

As staff we were hugely impressed with the students’ maturity and stamina as well as their willingness to try new experiences and their insatiable curiosity.  New friendships were formed across the year group and new skills were learned.  A huge thank you to all the staff who worked incredibly hard with virtually no rest at all. 

We are excited to report that planning for the 2018 Journey is already underway and we look forward to sharing the plans with the new Year 9 parents and students early in the new school year.