Experience Israel through Palestinian Israeli and Jewish Israeli narratives. Be inspired by peace building initiatives from ice cream to pottery to politics.

Our narrative approach offers a framework for reaching across painful differences.

Going behind the scenes at joint ventures such as vineyards, an ice cream factory, even the pickleball court reveals the perspiration and inspiration of these shared society entrepreneurs. In settings from Nazareth’s cafes to Haifa’s ancient Turkish bathhouse to the Neve Shalom School for Peace, we will hone our compassionate listening skills, develop personal narratives, and acquire tools for change making. Time for reflection and contemplation in Haifa’s forests and beaches rounds out the program.

All programs begin on location and are subject to change.

For more information, email info@findingnorthllc.com or call 973-650-2784.

Sample Schedule:

Monday, May 1: Foundations

We launch our journey together with a rooftop breakfast followed by a walk through our home base port neighborhood. Orienting ourselves, we make our way to a 150-year-old Carmelite church where we will introduce the foundations of the FN approach.

With the assistance of our FN team everyone chooses their own lunch from the rich variety of local neighborhood options. After lunch we take Haifa’s funicular to Merkaz Hacarmel for a Haifa orientation led by the joint narrative group Haifa L’Kulanu.

We end our day with a celebratory dinner at Chamam El Pasha, a former Turkish bathhouse. 

Tuesday, May 2: Exploring identity and Self-expression

Beit HaGefen and Mural Painting

The multicultural Arab-Jewish Center in Haifa is the setting for an exploration of identity and cultural context, followed by a pluralism walk in Wadi Nisnas. After lunch, we head to Sira Design Cooperative where we will engage in an artistic expression of multiple narratives. We conclude the day exploring Shuk Talpiyot, Haifa’s produce market, with Chef Eitan Kiesler and cook dinner together, exploring food as cultural heritage.

Wednesday, May 3: Workshop 1 – Sindyanna and Nazareth

We head to Sindyanna of the Galilee, a nonprofit cooperative led by a team of Arab and Jewish women working to create change from the ground up promoting fair trade, assisting local growers and producers, and providing economic opportunity for Arab women. At Sindyanna, founder Nadia Giol leads the first of three workshops. After lunch we head to the Arab city of Nazareth to meet with activists and explore Nadia’s hometown. We enjoy dinner together in Nazareth.

Thursday, May 4: Workshop 2 – Street Art and Staircases

As we wander the street art and staircases of Wadi Salib, Galia Aviani, political activist, will walk us through its complex, layered, and painful intra-Jewish and interreligious history. After lunch in Wadi Salib, we gather at the Pyramida Center for Contemporary Art for a second facilitated workshop with Nadia Giol. After dinner, we experience music as a conduit for multiple narratives. 

Friday, May 5: Love for all, hatred for none: Can we live our lives without politics? Who are the Ahmadiyyas, and how do they navigate conflict?

We enter the world of the Ahmadiyyas, a tiny reformist sect of Islam, numbering between 10 million and 20 million, who settled in Haifa two hundred years ago. Visiting the complex at the heart of the neighborhood, meeting lay leaders and clergy, and experiencing the community Jummah prayer, we ask ourselves what we may learn from their approach.

After lunch we begin preparing for the rhythm of Shabbat on Finding North with a text study and personal midrash.

Liberal communal celebration of Shabbat is a work in progress in Haifa. We explore unorthodox congregations as well as creating our own space.

On this Friday night, we head to Kehillat Or Chadash, Haifa’s Reform congregation, for Kabbalat Shabbat services and dinner with congregants.

After dinner, those who would like to can walk back to our apart hotel as a group; those who prefer can take a shuttle together.

Saturday, May 6: Shabbat in Haifa

Breakfast on own (Note that most restaurants/coffee shops in the area are closed on Shabbat but we will have the option to order in advance from a local bakery)

Shabbat morning services at Kehillat Moriyah, Haifa’s Conservative congregation. Enjoy the traditional service with the community, or try a creative entirely non-traditional way to create space for Shabbat in an alternate location in the synagogue.

We enjoy Shabbat LUNCH together with congregants at Kehillat Moriyah followed by flexible time: visit a museum (all museums are open on Shabbat though some have reduced hours), take a nap, hang out at the Turkish market, or stroll through the Bahai Gardens (open on Shabbat). 

Late afternoon we gather on the roof for a “soundbox.” A soundbox is a chamber in the body of a musical instrument that modifies sound and helps transfer it to the surrounding air. We use this concept to collect and share our thoughts as we process our week’s encounters.

After seudah shlishit, we have a chance to learn with Rabbi Kerry Olitzky, followed by a musical havdalah on the rooftop.

Sunday, May 7: Akko: Persistence and Resilience

Spend the day in the mixed city of Akko with its current complexity and rich history. Begin at Or Torah Synagogue, a Tunisian synagogue known as the “Jariva,” literally covered in mosaics both inside and out. Meet with the director of The Shared Learning program, operating in Israel since 2014 and run by the Abraham Initiatives. Gain an insider’s view of the challenges and hopes. Flexible time to wander the alleyways of the shuk, views of the ancient port, or visit the museums of the old city. At Uri Buri for dinner, renowned chef and owner Uri Buri shares his story of optimism in the face of the very real consequences of conflict. The experience invites us to examine how we pick up the pieces when dreams go up in smoke.

Monday, May 8: Workshop 3 – Working within the System

House of Grace, the first rehabilitation facility in Israel for former prisoners, founded by a local Palestinian Israeli family, invites us to explore the inherent tension of working for change within the system. Nadia leads our third workshop followed by lunch together in the garden with text study and personal midrash.

In the evening we experience an Israeli Lag BaOmer. Israelis light bonfires to celebrate this minor holiday marking the 33rd day between the start of Passover and Shavuot.

Tuesday, May 9: Theory and Practice: Do We Walk the Walk?

Lag BaOmer at Neve Shalom/Wahat as-Salam School of Peace At Neve Shalom/Wahat as-Salam’s School of Peace, educators will facilitate workshops using their unique approach. We spend the day on site, exploring theory and practice of changing relations between Jewish Israelis and Palestinian Israelis. After lunch we visit Neve Shalom/Wahat as-Salam’s site for spiritual reflection, known as Beit Dumiya/Bayt Sakinah, the Pluralistic Spiritual Centre

Wednesday, May 10: Hope Valley: Fairy Tales and Action Plans

It was a chance meeting in the valley between Kibbutz Hannaton and Bir al Maksur, a Bedouin village that planted the seed for Rabbi Haviva Ner-David’s debut novel, Hope Valley. Meet the author at Kibbutz Hannaton and walk with her as we encounter the land and the people that inspired her work set against the backdrop of the second intifada. Nadia Giol reappears this day. A sometime collaborator with Ner-David in local activist groups, she joins our trek to share her own tale. The novel offers an unlikely story of friendship and reconciliation inviting us to consider the role of fairy tales in a change maker’s life.

We finish our day with dinner at Rola where we meet the owner, a shared society activist and restaurateur, and learn about Isha l’Isha, the oldest feminist center in Israel.

Thursday, May 11: Ice Cream, Wine, and Cognitive Dissonance

We start the day with a short early morning hike at Mount Meron, the second highest peak in Israel, providing a scenic setting for reflection. Lunch en route to nearby Kibbutz Buzza ice cream at Sasa offers dessert and a model of peace through ice cream. at Buzza, a commercial collaboration between a Jewish Israeli resident of the Kibbutz and a Palestinian Israeli restaurateur. A mountaintop ropes course at Sasa challenges us to gain insight into our personal dynamics of change. We finish our day at Ashkar Winery, founded by a second generation Palestinian Israeli winemaker in Kofor Yasif.

Friday, May 12: Ecology and Change Makers

An outdoor nature experience at Givat Ha-Ezim with Shomrei HaGan (Keepers of the Garden), whose change making programs are drawn from holistic ecology, tells us as much about ourselves as the natural world in Haifa. The workshop sets the stage for final reflections. 

After flexible time, we head to the home of Golan and Jenny for a soulful Kabbalat Shabbat service and dinner. 

Saturday, May 13: Shabbat in Haifa and a Spirited Farewell

Shabbat compilation on the rooftop with moments of spirituality, Torah storytelling and study. We enjoy a joyful Shabbat lunch together followed by flexible time in the afternoon. We gather in the early evening and head to Hadar for a final text study with Rabbi Kerry Olitzky, musical havdalah, and a spirited farewell dinner.

Sunday, May 14

Farewell breakfast and sendoff

The Diana Seaport Apartments

Community takes root organically under a shared roof with common space. At the Diana Seaport Apartments, each fully furnished room has everything you’ll need to feel at home: comfortable bed, sitting area, kitchenette, private bathroom and shower, flat screen tv, heat & air conditioning, and much more.

Located in Haifa’s lively downtown, a cultural and culinary hub in the vibrant Lower City, the Diana is right in the center of one of Haifa’s most interesting and diverse neighborhoods.

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PROGRAM COST

The nature of this trip enables us to offer a sliding cost depending on the number of participants.

Ready to register? Start the registration process with this form.
For more information, email info@findingnorthllc.com or call 973-665-4750.