ISS: July 24 by Sarah Lifshitz

Today was sports day, we tried to focus on the importance of staying active and being healthy, while having fun doing different things. We started off by meeting a nutritionist which was very educational. We later had a Zumba class where everyone was very engaged. 

Afterwards we had a soccer tournament, many people participated and had fun. This was followed with an activity aiming to educate the group about sports in Israel, Canada, Be'er Sheva, Montreal and about Judaism in sports. The fellows learned a lot throughout this activity. During lunch, we all had an opportunity to talk and bond some more. After lunch, the coach from Hapoel Be're Sheva's basketball team came to speak to us about the development of his team and how he came to be the leader that he is today. 

For the rest of the day we had free time at the pool and at the volleyball field. Many fellows also stayed longer at the athletics centre after the scheduled day ended.

During this day, I learned some meaningful lessons including the importance of stepping up and taking action, and of being flexible enough to be able to adapt and change aspects of what was planned when change is needed.

By Sarah Lifshitz 

ISS: July 19 by Emma Armony-Fridman

After having spent the most unbelievable days in Jerusalem we all thought that nothing could surpass the excitement that the beginning of the trip had brought forth. We woke up a little later than usual, which was quite a nice change of pace, and we got on the bus on our way to S'de Boker. 

We had all bonded as a group and no one really knew what to expect from the other cities whom we had previously only encountered a couple of times with no real interaction of any kind. 

On the bus we listened to a perfectly constructed playlist about the road created by yours truly. We stopped briefly in a mall with the purpose of going to a supermarket and buying snacks. Most of us got the opportunity to try for the first time "choco besakit" (chocolate milk in a bag). It was all quite exciting. 

When we finally arrived to Kennes, we were all split in colour groups (W-H-I-T-E YOU KNOW WHO YOU WANT TO BE! BRIGHT WHITE LET'S GO FIGHT!) 

We met an incredible amount of people who, for the most part, where pretty darn awesome. We did various activities in our respective groups. We then had the amazing opportunity of listening to a lecture by Neil Lazarus who explained to us a simplified version of the reality of the Middle East and its many struggles. 

We finally finished the day with a nice Ma'agal outside under the stars. If you're familiar with S'de Boker you'd know that there's a breathtaking cliff on the side of the kibbutz. Well picture this, all of us sitting outside in the stars in a circle beside a ginormous cliff discussing our day. It was the best way to end this beautiful day. 

Emma 

ISS: July 21 by Jordana Marciano

We began our day at sunrise with our suitcases packed leaving behind Sde Boker and taking with us the memories that we made with the new diller teen fellows that we met from across North America and South Africa. We then drove to Masada where we all ate breakfast before our journey through history.

Once we arrived to the top of Masada, we learned about it's history, representation and the fortress it once was. We then stopped for lunch near the Dead Sea. Finally we arrived at the Dead Sea where we covered ourselves from head to toe with mud, from the lowest place on earth, leaving our skin silky smooth. We then spent the rest of our time swimming, or rather floating, in the Dead Sea. 

This was a bitter sweet time since it marked the end of the kennes part of our trip but also marked the beginning of community week! This was the week that we had been planning for with the Israelis for the last three and a half months! We would be spending the next eight days being hosted by our Israeli pen pals. Once we arrived at the altshoul (Be'er Sheva's "Y") we were told that we wouldn't be seeing the Israelis until much later on. Feeling a little bit disappointed, we were then shown a video and, at the end of it, surprised by our Israelis! This was followed by many hugs, smiles, laughter, and tears of joy. 

We were then all treated to gelato from one of the Israeli's ice cream store! Then our leaders of the week, Nir and myself, ran an activity to introduce community week to the other fellows and to give them an idea of what was in store for them! It was a great start to a sure to be amazing week!

By Jordana 

ISS: July 20 by Matthew Stendel

On July 20, we had our 2nd day of Kennes. So we started our day with breakfast... obviously...

We were then sent to the auditorium for activities on David Ben Gurion. We were all asked to chant D B G to get him (Sam from San Francisco) to come, but because Phil was on stage today, I chanted Phil anyways. 

We were told about the life of David Ben Gurion, and about how he wanted to develop the Negev. We were then put in DBG's shoes in our colour groups to debate if and how a Jewish state should be made. After lunch, we had a lecture on the past and present of Judaism. The fact that I couldn't see the words on the screen (even with my shades) and the lack of jokes made it boring for me, but I did learn a bit. Afterwards was an activity where in our colour groups, we had to guess who the first Jew was. My group's story about Hershel Mendel Rosenberg from Spain who travelled to Santo Domingo with 3 other merchants in 1516 was pretty entertaining given how far it was from the truth. We also had to rank the top 10 largest communities in North America, which we weren't too bad at.

Then we got to see our JCs' how to Diller video, a draw my life style video about the impact projects. We then got to discuss certain possible subjects. If you're wondering, I discussed special needs. After that, we had a comedian, and let's face it, Josh Levine is much funnier. Buddy got to do an improv too and he rocked!! After the comedy, we had our ma'agal laila, and it was about the family that is Diller Mtl. In fact, I wrote it today and I was the first fellow to do one actually. It was a huge honor and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

We then had some amazing snacks and went to the White Tent party, where we hit the whip, cranked that Soulja Boy and did much more. Sadly, it wasn't too hectic. We then went to bed and about a few minutes later, we had to wake up again. If you're wondering about the friends I made, one of those people is Shakira from South Africa. I meant Yakira, my bad... We talked all day and it was so much fun!!!

-Matt

ISS: July 22 by Miriam Abadi

The journey of community week has finally arrived and we are starting with partnership day. A few fellows and I have been preparing this day for a long time and we are so happy to finally turn all the hard work into reality. Since I am leader of the day this was an additional responsibility and i was a little nervous to coordinate the whole schedule but at the same time i viewed it as an opportunity to gain more leadership skills and so i considered it a challenge.

Today was a beautiful, sunny day and the canadians started off the day with a morning circle in Gan Hapaamon where we all shared how our first nights at the israelis were. Also, since the theme of partnership day was “saving the partnership”, we went around the circle and mentioned who your hero is in your life. Afterwards, we walked to Avraham’s well and had a tour there. In this fascinating place we were taught the background of Avraham Avinu and at the end we were shown the actual well of Avraham. 

We then travelled the old city of Be'er Sheva which was also where an activity took place prepared by the canadian leaders of partnership day. This activity consisted of informing everyone about what a bomb shelter is by doing a few tasks and also mentioning the good things there are in Be’er Sheva. Right after, we headed to the Turkish railway station where we explained the history of it to all the fellows. Followed by this historic site, we walked to Altshul and ate delicious lunches and cool ice cream.

After lunch we had an activity prepared by the staff which was about how we feel when being in the position of a host and a guest. We made skits and read a short story from the Torah to illustrate these positions. Then we were driven to Kibbutz Beit Kama. The scene of the kibbutz was a new experience for many of the canadians which made it really exciting. Shimon Shmila, the head of our partnership, came to talk with us about what the canadians as well as the israelis contribute to this partnership between Be’er Sheva Bnei Shimon and Montreal. This gave us a realization of what we do for one another for our partnership. 

Soon after, there was an activity prepared by the israeli leaders of partnership day. During this activity we completed small games combined with learning facts about our partnership. Later, we volunteered in the kibbutz by milking cows. Many enjoyed this activity because it was their first time and it also gave people a sense of generosity and kindness to the community we visited. We ended off the hot and long day with a relaxing pool party where we ate yummy pizza.

In all, this amazing day packed with all sorts of activities was super fun and taught everyone a lot about our partnership. Seeing smiles on everyone’s faces and hearing from the fellows how they now know more about our partnership has made me feel that i accomplished my goals for today and thus making me proud to be the leader of the day. This unforgettable day was just the beginning of an amazing community week to come!

By Miriam Abadi