A look inside the diary of Taglit-birthright israel's 10,000 Torontonian, Dave Stein

6:30 am – The phone rang with our wake up call. Although I was really tired from yesterday, I eagerly got up to start another new and exciting day.

7:15 am – Breakfast today was great as usual. The Kibbutz served a typical Israeli breakfast with vegetables, breads, cheeses, yogurts and fruits. The food in this country is so good. I eat enough at breakfast to last a full day!

9:00 am – We got off the bus on top of Mt. Arbel. What an amazing view! This hike was remarkable. After all the learning it was break time! Having studied art in school, I felt especially connected to Tzfat, which is known for being an artist’s heaven. With the rest of my free time, I ate lunch and did some shopping. I was determined to get 5 Mezuzahs as a wedding gift for my sister. I knew they’d be extra special for her if she knew they were not only from Israel but from Tzfat.

3:00 pm – We arrived at the Jordan river to go rafting. It was marvelous. We had 7 people in our boat and floated down the river with a boat on either side of us each filled with 2 soldiers. This was a great end to our activities of the day because it gave us a chance to cool off in the water.

5:30 pm – We arrived back at the Kibbutz for our Shabbat preparations.

6:30 pm – We all met and did Kiddush together. We then discussed the meaning of wine and challah and talked about how we can make Shabbat our own. Shabbat on Taglit-birthright israel was very special for me because at this point we had already been together for 8 days and were like family. Celebrating Shabbat in Israel with 40 new friends, 2 madrichim, 8 soldiers and a guide is just so special. It’s not something you can really explain with words but something you feel in your heart.

10:00 pm – A huge party unexpectedly erupted on the kibbutz. The kibbutz was celebrating all the people who had lived there their entire lives. There were over 1,000 people there and being able to join in and dance and talk with the kibbutzniks was wonderful. Even people who no longer lived on the Kibbutz came out to this party.

What a great time! This has truly been an incredible day. But, boy, I have to get some sleep now!