Washington Congregation Visits Beit Shemesh-Yehuda Plain.

Some 30 families from the Beit El Congregation in Washington have completed a visit to the Beit Shemesh-Yehuda Plain region. This is one more in a series of successful visits to the region by synagogue congregations from Washington.

Members of the congregation visited the winery on Kibbutz Nachshon and the nearby vineyard. The Nachshon winery is one of thirty on the Yehuda Plain Wine Route, which was established with the support of Partnership 2000. They learned about the methods of winemaking during Biblical times while visiting an ancient winepress from the First Temple period.

While the adults were tasting some of the splendid wines, the children took part in a particularly enjoyable activity - crushing grapes in a reconstructed winepress to produce grape juice.

Later, the families toured the city. They were impressed by the scenery and the development of the city. At the Beit Shemesh Midrasha, they heard about the "This is my Home" project, a center for the heritage of Beit Shemesh and the surrounding region which is supported by Partnership 2000. The project documents the early years of Beit Shemesh and is located in the first synagogue that was established in the city in the 50's.

Both children and adults were invited to play games with wooden blocks at the David Goodman workshop. David, a local artist from Moshav Tzafririm, participated in Partnership 2000's professional exchange program. The puzzles presented to them required concentration, thought and creativity. The participants got totally involved in solving the puzzles.

The wonderful evening was capped off with an ethnic home cooked meal on Moshav Tsafririm together with families from Beit Shemesh and Yehuda Plain. Members of the delegation described the visit as a unique and enjoyable experience that increased their familiarity with the region and its residents.

Last Updated October 19, 2005