--- title: Israel360 VIP Trip Day One description: A recap of day one of the Israel360 VIP trip. image: https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/israel360-vip-day-one-5.jpg --- [![Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/JewishFederation_May2019/images/logo--color.svg)](https://jewishphilly.org/) - [Philly Stands With Israel](https://go.jewishphilly.org/philly-stands-with-israel) - - [Donate to Philly Stands with Israel Fund](https://donate.jewishphilly.org/page/66252/donate/1) - [Community Resources](https://jewishphilly.org/philly-stands-with-israel-resources/) - [Emergency Allocations](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/donate-emergency-response-fund/emergency-allocations/) - - [Advocate](https://jewishphilly.org/philly-stands-with-israel-resources/advocate/) - [Israel in the News](https://go.jewishphilly.org/israel-in-the-news) - [Sign up for Israel Emergency Emails](https://go.jewishphilly.org/israel-emergency-emails) - [Who We Are](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/) - 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[Security](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/security/) - [News](https://go.jewishphilly.org/news) - [Philly Stands With Israel](https://go.jewishphilly.org/philly-stands-with-israel) - - [Donate to Philly Stands with Israel Fund](https://donate.jewishphilly.org/page/66252/donate/1) - [Community Resources](https://jewishphilly.org/philly-stands-with-israel-resources/) - [Emergency Allocations](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/donate-emergency-response-fund/emergency-allocations/) - - [Advocate](https://jewishphilly.org/philly-stands-with-israel-resources/advocate/) - [Israel in the News](https://go.jewishphilly.org/israel-in-the-news) - [Sign up for Israel Emergency Emails](https://go.jewishphilly.org/israel-emergency-emails) - [Who We Are](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/) - - [About](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/about/) - [History](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/history/) - [Our Impact](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/our-impact/) - [Financials](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/financials/) - [Program Evaluation](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/program-evaluation/) - - [Leadership & Governance](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/leadership/) - [Ethics and Organizational Oversight](https://jewishphilly.org/ethics-and-organizational-oversight/) - [Careers](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/careers/) - [Contact Us](https://jewishphilly.org/who-we-are/contact-us/) - [Sign Up for Emails](https://go.jewishphilly.org/jewish-federation-email-sign-up) - [Ways to Give](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/) - - [Donate Now](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/donate-now/) - [Give Monthly](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/give-monthly/) - [Donate a Vehicle](https://jewishphilly.careasy.org/HOME.html) - [Jewish Community Foundation](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/Jewish%20Community%20Foundation) - [Life & Legacy Program](https://jewishphilly.org/life-and-legacy/) - - [Philanthropic Donor Advised Funds](https://jewishphilly.giftplans.org/index.php?cID=247) - [Tribute E-Cards](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/tribute-cards/) - 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[COVID-19 Relief](https://go.jewishphilly.org/combatting-covid-19) - [Population Study](https://jewishphilly.org/communityportrait/) - [Mitzvah Food Program](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/mitzvah-food-program/) - [Teen Programs](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/teen-programs/) - [Jewish Camping](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/jewish-camping/) - - [Scholarships](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/scholarships/) - [Jewish Community Relations Council](https://jewishphilly.org/get-involved/public-affairs/) - [Israel Engagement](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/israel-engagement/) - [Holocaust Education](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/holocaust-programming/) - [Apply for Grants](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/apply-for-grants/) - [Security](https://jewishphilly.org/resources/security/) - [News](https://go.jewishphilly.org/news) [Donate](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/donate-now/) [Donate](https://jewishphilly.org/ways-to-give/donate-now/) [Newsletter](https://jewishphilly.org/get-involved/newsletter/) [Login](https://jewishphilly.org/login/) [Board Login](https://jewishphilly.org/board-login/) Search Search the site: Search the site: [Newsletter](https://jewishphilly.org/get-involved/newsletter/) [Login](https://jewishphilly.org/login/) [Board Login](https://jewishphilly.org/board-login/) Search ## Jewish Philly Blog ![Israel360 VIP Trip Day One](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/israel360-vip-day-one-5.jpg) ## July 3, 2017 # Israel360 VIP Trip Day One 5:00 p.m. – meet at JFNA. Board the bus, Newark bound. United Flight 90 – small treats, small seats, 11 hours try to sleep. Laughing, learning, sharing. This is the Summer 2017 VIP360 cohort. A group of mostly strangers, come together to travel, learn, experience, and bridge Jewish community between Israel and the Mid-Atlantic. For any group of like-minded travelers, spending 11 hours on a United flight can make or break lifelong bonds. Thankfully, by the time we landed in Israel, fast friends had been made. And this is where our journey really started. Off the plane, making our weary and bleary-eyed way towards customs, only to be stopped by a sea of travelers shifting impatiently in the slowest customs line that ever existed. EVER. As if the Universe was telling us to delay gratification just one more hour. And so we did. And maybe for the better as we internalized where we were. We were HERE. In the Promised Land! What we’ve talked and sung about every Shabbat, every High Holiday, every day in our Jewish communities back home. And by the time it sunk in – Israel! Here! OMG! – we’d gotten through customs, regrouped, and headed out the airport doors, into the intense July heat, and onto the bus. We’d left at 11:00 p.m. on Saturday and arrived at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. We’d gelled as a group. We smelled. We were tired. And our fearless leader, Melanie Gerchberg, who had herded us like cats for the last 15 or so hours, gently broke the news that we would be going straight to dinner. And so as we wound our way from Ben-Gurion International Airport into the historic city of Jerusalem, Shai Goren, comedy-historian extraordinaire, entertained our muddled minds with humorous geopolitical, historical, and cultural commentary. Jerusalem. Bustling even at 9:00 p.m. The smells of foods cooked with oil, salt, heat and citrus. Languages on every corner competing for sound space. Lights, some soft and some sharp, sprinkling streets lined with clay buildings. This desert, this city of over four thousand years old, this land of milk and honey – our 200 year old country across the ocean can’t compare with the energy and history held here. Off the bus and into Jacko’s. Up the stairs into a lamp-lit room filled to the corners with tables. We sit, and are served one delicious course after the other. Warm-from-the-oven bread with a number of sweet and savory eggplant dips. Roasted goose on focaccia. Salted salad with oil and citrus – more delicious than you can imagine. Tuna tartare, mushroom gnocchi, herb roasted chicken with blanched asparagus, creamy couscous, roasted salmon, and more. We laughed, we ate, we talked with participants of sister programs happening in Israel – the possibilities for connections seemed limitless. Ending with a plate the size of a four-top, scattered with pinafores, decadent brownies, marshmallow cream sauce, ice cream and other sweets. Satiated beyond comprehension, full of food and ideas and new knowledge and experiences, we made our way to the David Citadel Hotel – a hotel so luxurious, this hob-knob group of weary travelers couldn’t imagine a more delightful way to sink into sleep after our journey. ![](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/israel360-vip-day-one-1.jpg) ![](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/israel360-vip-day-one-2.jpg) ![](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/israel360-vip-day-one-4-576x1024.jpg) ![](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/israel360-vip-day-one-5.jpg) Share [Share on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://blog.jewishphilly.org/israel360-vip-trip-day-one&title=Israel360%20VIP%20Trip%20Day%20One) [Share on Twitter](http://twitter.com/home?status=Israel360%20VIP%20Trip%20Day%20One+https://blog.jewishphilly.org/israel360-vip-trip-day-one) [Share by Email](mailto:?subject=Israel360%20VIP%20Trip%20Day%20One&body=Israel360%20VIP%20Trip%20Day%20One%20-%20https://blog.jewishphilly.org/israel360-vip-trip-day-one) ### Sign up for the *Jewish Philly* E-Newsletter [Back to The Latest](https://blog.jewishphilly.org) [Tweets by JFedinPhilly](https://twitter.com/JFedinPhilly?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) ## Find us on ![JFGP_KO_rgb](https://blog.jewishphilly.org/hs-fs/hubfs/JFGP_KO_rgb.png?width=300&height=84&name=JFGP_KO_rgb.png) Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia Two Commerce Square 2001 Market Street, Suite 2300 Philadelphia, PA 19103 [215.832.0500](tel:1-215-832-0500) | [info@jewishphilly.org](mailto:info@jewishphilly.org) *The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia welcomes the participation of Jews across the religious spectrum, interfaith couples and families, and people of all abilities, backgrounds, gender identities, and sexual orientations. 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