A JERUSALEM DAY OR EVENING

Gila Ansell Brauner, Barbara Weill

The following are a few examples of the spectrum of activities possible for a day and evening on Jerusalem.

Cultural Options :

Before we start with these activities, be assured that the group has access to essential information on Jerusalem. This information may be conveyed during your programme via films, audio-visual programs and conference-debates. In any case, there are enough ideas for activities (the mock surveys, for example) to occupy the entire day.

A Day in Jerusalem :

The morning will be dedicated to the decoration of the club building and to the cultural component. In the afternoon, the participants will take part in games that involve the history and monuments of the city. Interspersed with the games can be songs and poems as well as audio-visual presentations (prepared earlier that morning). The afternoon's activities will conclude with refreshments inn the form of a shouk.

A day centering on the "4 Alef Bus route" :

The morning will again be dedicated to decorating the club facilities and its various "bus stops", as well as to a study of certain prominent individuals in the Jerusalem community. In the afternoon, begin the distribution of roles and rehearsals of the skits, with the aim of presenting a play to parents at the end of the day.

An Evening in Jerusalem :

The groups can be subdivided into several teams that will take part in a quiz game that will incorporate the slides, audio-recordings and "surprize guests." At the end of the game, each team will be asked to present a skit on Jerusalem, on a theme assigned by the counsellor.

The theme of Jerusalem lends itself particularly to an evening of poems and songs that can be brought to life through a screening of mini audio-visual shows which are easy to make. In order to succeed, the evening also requires appropriate decorations to recreate the city's local color (see below). It might also be worthwhile to add excitement to the evening with a game leader who could impersonate a famous Jerusalem personality and tell stories relating to the city.

The Jerusalem Shuk :

The aim is to transform the clubhouse into a shouk--the oriental marketplace of Jerusalem's Old City. These decorations will sensitize of the youth to the character of the city, and enhance the activities.

Here are a few suggestions for the organization of your "shouk" :

- Cover the walls with paper on which you can sketch the ancient stones of Jerusalem.
- Dim the light from the outside by covering the windows with vibrantly colored paper.
- Attach military type blankets to the ceiling to give it the feel of a Bedouin tent.
- Make garlands of sky blue crepe paper on which you paste letters cut from gold-colored paper to spell the word, "Jerusalem" or "Yerushalayim."
- Cover the walls with posters and photos depicting Jerusalem.
- Ask the youngsters to bring in objects they have purchased in Jerusalem and exhibit them on tables placed alongside the walls in the style of the street vendors.
- Ask the youngsters to prepare costumes of various Jerusalem personalities, and to wear them during the activity. Some native Jerusalem notables might be: Oriental Jews, Hassidim, beggars, tourists, soldiers, Arabs, religious pilgrims to the city's holy shrines, etc.
- Scent the room with the smells of saffron, Turkish coffee, incense...
- Don't forget the Eastern music : Haim Moshe, Jo Amar, Zohar Argov and Shlomo Bar, for example.
- During the buffet, you might want to serve Turkish coffee, mint tea, houmous, falafel, loukoums, Oriental pastries, avocado and eggplant salad, and native Israeli fruits. Don't forget the pitas!

Editors & Authors: Gila Ansell Brauner, Barbara Weill. General Editor: Henrique Cymerman
1987.(C)