Spirit of Kibbutz Close to Home

Hello again!

Today at machaneh (camp) we had Yom Yisrael (Israel Day)! During the morning, all the kvustot (age groups) had Israeli styled picnic breakfast in their shetach (bunk area). After that the chanichimot (campers) went around to different stations to explore the different avodah (work) a person can do in a Kibbutz.

After, the chanichimot explored different parts of Israeli daily life. They made their own semel (symbol) for their own Jewish states, practiced being in a workers union by staging a protest for later wake up time, and learned about Israel's soccer team by playing soccer!

We then moved on to one of the most important meals in Israeli society: lunch! We had our lunch shuk (Israeli market place) style. Madrichimot and Madatz pretended to be vendors trying to sell us their wares of falafel, shawarma and hummus. It was hectic and chaotic and fun-just the way a proper shuk ought to be.

As you may or may not know, today was very hot. As our chanichimot  do not have air conditioning in their tzrifim (cabins) we decided that a pool party was necessary. Our chanichimot pretended to be in the Israeli city of Eilat for this party. Just because something's fun doesn't mean it can't also be educational after all!

After cooling off, our chanichimot  had even more fun with a carnival with all the different fun things one can do in Israel. We learned Israeli slang, pretended to be in the shuk again by bargaining for candy, and had fun pretending to be camels by holding water in our mouths for as long as possible while people attempted to make them laugh. We also "built" Israel with boxes, wrote letters to our sister movement Hanor HaOved, and pretended to be Bedouin story tellers by playing group story telling games. It was silly and educational at the same time.

The day was not only silly educational, it was also serious educational. We had chugim (clubs) with serious discussions about tough topics such as LGBT rights in Israel, asylum seekers in Israel, as well as check points in the West Bank. These topics are undoubtedly serious but we know here at machaneh Galil that our chanichimot have the capacity to sometimes step outside their comfort zones and address them head on. Camp is not only a place to have fun, it is also a place to grow.

Now our Beit Omanut madam (Arts and Crafts Specialist) is going to tell all of you how the rest of the day went!

After a long day of education and kef (fun) everyone headed to the chadar ochel (dining hall) for shakshuka, a jewish moroccan delicacy; And baracas a flaky pastry filled with cheese or potatoes. Our tochnit erev (evening activity) was a big Israeli game show where everyone got to perform  a dance that each shichva (age group) choreographed for themselves.  As well as a rousing round of challenges followed by a dazzling display of festive fireworks to close out a wonderful day.
It's time to sign off and get ready for a fun day tomorrow, it is shabbat after all!
-Sara