ISRAEL TREK 2011

ISRAEL TREK 2011 OVERVIEW • Dates: Wednesday, May 18th – Friday, May 27th

• Trip Capacity: ~50 people

− First-come, first-serve (spots go fast…)

− Open for Wharton Students and Partners

• Places We Will Visit:

− Dead Sea, Eilat, Golan Heights, Jerusalem,

Nazareth, Red Sea, Sea of Galilee, Tel Aviv

− Optional Extension: Jordan and/or Egypt

− Potential meeting with senior Israel officials

− Cost− To be finalized in the Spring

THE SCHEDULE

Eilat

Galilee

Dead Sea

Tel Aviv

Jerusalem

DAY 1 – TEL AVIV ARRIVAL

We will check into the hotel, spend time on the beautiful Tel Aviv beach and enjoy welcome dinner and drinks so we can start the trek drunk and happy!!

DAYS 2 – NORTHERN ISRAEL

We will travel through Haifa, Akko and Nazareth. Some of the most diversified and colorful cities of Israel.

Nazareth is described in the New Testament as the childhood home of Jesus, and as such is a center of Christian pilgrimage, with many shrines commemorating biblical events.

DAY 3 – NORTHERN ISRAEL

We will visit sacred sites around the Sea of Galilee and then start the extreme part of the trek as we raft through the Jordan river and take a jeep trip through the valleys and mountains of the Galilee. Keep your hands in the vehicle at all times, these are Israeli drivers!!!

At the evening we will visitone of Israel’s top wineries And will enjoy a gourmet dinner and fine wine in one of the most holistic sceneries in Israel.

DAY 4 – JERUSALEM

We drive our way from the north to Jerusalem, the capital of Israel and one of the mostsacred cities in the world.

We will visit the Knesset, the Israeli parliament house, continue to YAD VESHEMand take a night tour in theWest wall tunnels.

DAY 5 – JERUSALEM

We will visit the old city of Jerusalem and see the Muslim, Armenian, Christian and Jewish quarters. We will have time to shop in the old market and enjoy the colors, tastes and scents ofthe spices and traditional food and clothes .

Next, we will visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where Jesus was buried and then we will continue to the Wailing Wall, which is believed to be the last remaining vestige of the Jewish Temple. At night we will arrive in Tel-Aviv,settle in the hotel, and go PARTY!!!!!

DAY 6 – TEL AVIV

“Tel Aviv is the total flipside of Jerusalem, a modern Sin City on the sea rather than an ancient Holy City on a hill. Hedonism is the one religion that unites its inhabitants. There are more bars than synagogues, God is a DJ and everyone’s body is a temple. Yet, scratch underneath the surface and Tel Aviv, or TLV, reveals itself as a truly diverse 21st-century Mediterranean hub. By far the most international city in Israel, Tel Aviv is also home to a large gay community, a kind of San Francisco in the Middle East.”

- Lonely Planet, Ranked Tel Aviv 3rd Best City in the World in 2011

DAY 7 – THE DEAD SEA

The lowest place on earth . . . The DEAD sea

Please don’t try to dive In. This place is about relaxing; we will float and enjoy massages on the beach before we drive into the dessert and have an open fire Poyke dinner into the night.

DAY 8 – MASSADA & NEGEV

The adventurers of us will wake up earlyto climb the Mesadamountain and view thesunrise from the top.

We will then drive through the desert to the Ramon Crater, view the amazing scenery and go camel riding

DAY 9, 10 – EILAT

With its unique combination of desert and sea, Eilat is probably the vacation capital of Israel. This is the place to enjoy the hottest sun and Water activities, take a Sunset Cruise or just Relax on the beach and have fun.

At night, we will enjoy the great cuisine of the Eilat restaurants and party in the many clubs in the city

OPTIONAL – PETRA, JORDAN*

Petra meaning rock in Arabic was chosen as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007 and a World Heritage Site since 1985. Petra was chosen by the BBC as one of "the 40 places you have to see before you die".

Petra is an historic and archaeological city in the Jordanian governorate of Ma'an that has rock cut architecture and water conduits system. Established sometime around the 6th century BC as the capital city of the Nabataean’s. It is a symbol of Jordan as well as its most visited tourism attraction.

NEXT STEPS

• Sign ups for trek starting December 11th @ 8pm

• https://webcafe.wharton.upenn.edu/eRoom/mba/wga/0_b77fe

• Deposits will be due February

• Another information session will be held with exact details on itinerary, price and

logistics for trek in February/March

• Make sure to visit Israel trek website for additional info

• http://whartonisraeltrek.wordpress.com/