FIDF Staff Mission. Days 1 and 2.
And now for something completely different.
I’ve just returned from the first FIDF staff mission to Israel, where 20 employees from around the country were taken to Israel to view our work first hand. We laughed, we cried, we complained, we ate. We also (and most importantly) saw how our work truly has a lifechanging (and lifesaving) impact on our soldiers. Enjoy.
Sunday-Monday
Where do I start?
As if Purim isn’t crazy enough, it was made crazier by the fact that I had to be on an 830pm El Al flight. Finally going back to Israel – this time on a staff mission with my employer FIDF (Friends of the Israel Defense Forces). This is the first staff mission at FIDF and I’m lucky to be on it.
So, after Purim Seudah I said goodbye to the girls (which went better than expected) and Tzvi drove me to the airport. I checked in and they asked if I wanted to check my carry on, which I did. I will say the only reason I have a large suitcase AND a carry on is because we didn’t get an itinerary. How can you plan what you need if you don’t know what you’re going to do? They claim it’s because “things are fluid and always changing,” which is ok, but I need structure! Pre-check was open and SO helpful. I should mention that I’m on the “group” flight so 10/20 of us are flying together. I got through and met up with my colleague Sarah (you’ll hear a lot about her). We hung around, got snacks, found some other people, stumbled on the JFK Chabad and got ready to board!
We got on the plane and it was EMPTY. I sat down and waited for someone to sit in my row. I said so many prayers and then… the door closed! I had a row to myself! It felt emptier than when I went during COVID! And there were no families with children. The flight itself was really bumpy. I watched the Hunger Game prequel – the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes – which was good, but I’m happy I didn’t go see it in theaters. We landed around 1pm.
We found a man standing with an FIDF sign, bypassed passport control, got our bags, and were off! I was sad we didn’t make time for an Aroma stop at the airport, but I guess that’s what it is to be part of a group. One person on our trip has never been to Israel before, which is always exciting to see. I also should mention I have the most luggage of anyone in the group, which should surprise absolutely no one.
Omer Neutra, of Plainview, Long Island, who is still held hostage by Hamas
We are staying at the Hilton Tel Aviv. Apparently, Hilton is extremely supportive of our work and gave us a ridiculously cheap rate, which is very nice of them, but also smart because we will bring missions here. As we pulled up we saw the FIDF signs and the little FIDF check in station where we met our travel company. We were greeted by champaign, FIDF polo shirts, a knapsack, a welcome gift, and our room keys. They told us we had been upgraded to the Vista level rooms, which they bill as a “hotel within a hotel” – it’s basically club level and there’s a private lounge for Vista guests with food and drinks. The room is gorgeous and has a great bathtub and a fantastic view of Tel Aviv. I was also met by a bottle of wine and a fruit plate.
I showered and then met up with Sarah. We took a taxi to Hostage Square, an area near the IDF heart quarters where the families of the hostages have basically encamped and held rallies and protests. It’s the place where you often see photos of a shabbat table with an empty seat set for each hostage. It’s kind of become an exhibit of sorts. We saw the long table, the One Pita A Day exhibit, the Tunnel, and a bunch of other things. I bought some dog tags (Madeleine requested one).
We decided to walk to Foot Locker, because Sarah needed new sneakers. On the way we stopped at a Roladin for coffee, but when we walked in they told us the ice café machine was broken. I asked for a latte, and they said “what is latte?” We think they were just messing with us, so we left, but not without buying two hamantashen. It was still Shushan Purim after all. Then we kept walking and saw an Aroma in a mall and finally got an Iced Aroma. The Foot Locker was also in there. Sarah thought the guy there was really rude there as well. Somehow she ended up with two pairs of shoes and I got one, which is really all I need because I didn’t bring enough shoes.
We got back to the hotel and had our welcome reception in the Vista Lounge. It was like a dinner, except it was just “appetizers.” We met the rest of the group along with the people who run the hotel. Then we headed downstairs where we had dinner in a private room. The tour operator, Ortra, presented who they are, and then we had a keynote by Gadi Ezra on the Ethics of War who served in the Prime Minister’s office as the International Director of Public Diplomacy Unit. He also served in the IDF in a special forces unit. He gave several real-life examples of situations he faced over his service and posed them to us to ask what we would have done. It was fascinating. I was exhausted, but it was great. Then dinner came and it was delicious. There were appetizers, a salmon with soba noodles that could have been a main course, a meat and chicken, and then a dessert tower.
After dinner I obviously went back to the Vista Lounge. Loyal readers will remember how sad I was that the cruise buffet closed at 8:30. Thankfully this is open until 11, like a normal post dinner lounge should be. Anyway, we hung out there until it was time for bed. I went back to the room, made good use of the bathtub (which was amazing) and then went to bad.
I’m so tired. Good day.