Today we spent our day visiting the Druze Village, the Old City of Akko, and finally our Mishpactonims, all of which fully immersed us in the rich essence of Israeli life.
Our day started at 8:30 am when we left with Tomer Hoffman, our very nice guide, to take a thirty-minute drive to the Druze Village in Yarka. This location is not only known for its unique Israeli ethnic group and their religion, but also the economic and educational dominance that is recognized throughout the nation. Once arriving in Yarka, the pace of the air even seems to pick up as everyone is bustling around to the countless shops, malls, restaurants, and businesses around. Tomer had told us that when Yarka was established, their agricultural industry was failing, but the main activities the people in the area participated in were eating and shopping. So, the mayor decided to transform Yarka into a place where both those industries ruled. Now, Israelis from around the country come to Yarka just to eat at amazing restaurants and shop in extravagant malls, allowing the local economy to skyrocket and the Village to thrive.
Additionally, the unique religion and people of the Druze Village certainly add to one’s excitement to visit. There are more than 104,000 practitioners of the Druze religion in Israel, with members of the faith also residing in Syria, Lebanon, and smaller groups in Canada as well. The Druze religion is different from many other faiths for several reasons. For one, no person outside of the Druze community is permitted to convert to the religion, as the faith can only be spread through the birth of the new generation from Druze parents. In relation to education, we visited the Darca School of Science and Leadership, an institution composed completely of Druze students from different cities and towns of Israel, though the staff consists of persons from all different backgrounds and religions. They presented the Druze religion as a faith revolving around several main events listed by the students as “birth and circumcision, engagement and marriage, death and burial” (Darca School of Science and Leadership). According to the Jewish Virtual Library, people part of the Druze religion consider their faith to be a modern view on Christianity, Islam, and Judaism (all monotheistic religions), and 93% Druze practitioners consider themselves to be proud to be part of the faith community. The Druze follow mainly the main principles represented in their symbol which is a multicolored star. The top fifth of the star is green which is thought to display “Universal Mind,” clockwise, the next section is red, representative of “Universal Soul,” the next is “Kalima the Truth” shown as yellow, “Sabq the Cause” is blue on the star, and lastly, white represents “Tali the Effect.” In fact, this star is on the Darca School’s flag and its beliefs are what the school’s students are taught to believe in as well.
Speaking of the students, every one of them were extremely talented and amazing. Many of them gave our group presentations about different aspects of the school, including why children from all over Israel want to attend Darca, what programs they offer, several fun activities, and even a short skit! Not only did every student appear extremely proud to be part of Darca’s community, but they were also very intellectual people. After hearing them speak and present, it became clear why Tomer had described their school as one of the best in Israel. Every child who wishes to attend must take 6 entrance exams, and they must also pick a major, or specific career-focused class, to continue with throughout their high school years. All students, however, must take required classes such as mathematics, English, and Hebrew. Majors included, for example, choosing between focusing on biology or physics, and chemistry or biotechnology or computer science. This was a fascinating aspect of the system in Darca because it significantly contrasts from the school systems often utilized in the United States. One might even go as far to say that the “major” system applied at the Darca School of Science and Leadership models more accurately colleges and universities in the United States rather than regular middle and high schools. Further, the school’s values were clear and displayed with pride as we all experienced through singing their anthem. It was an adaptation of the “We are the Champions” song, with the famous phrase that starts it: “I had a dream…”. Yes, Darca School takes great inspiration from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as they believe (just like Dr. King) in the importance of dreams and seeing them realized. In fact, a mural of the famous American figure is painted on one of the entrance walls of the school. While inside, we played very fun games including a Kahoot about Morse Code, “Guess the Picture” activity, a flower origami lesson, and a mind-riddle game!!! These experiences were all enjoyable, although the most memorable aspect of the Druze Village and Darca School was its people. These individuals not only opened up their school to us and taught us so much, but they also were visibly excited that we had come to see them, pleasantly engaged with us through intriguing conversations, and acted like we have all been friends for the last 5 years!!! We will always remember the kindness of the students at Darca School as one of the highlights of the fun visit to the Druze Village.
After visiting the Village, we traveled a short distance to the Old City of Akko, more than 6,000 years old to be exact, which had a beautiful landscape. The clear, light-blue water of the Mediterranean Sea lies just below the large stone walls that surround the city. One of its most famous tourist attractions and a location we went to is known as The Shuk. This place is an outdoor market that is full with vendors, small shops, and stores. A source called Israel21c stated that the shops don’t have official addresses; however, the varieties of items sold attract many people to come and visit the cool market. We walked through the whole of the Shuk, and we saw many shops selling foods such as spices, beans for coffee, candies, fish, sweets, and more. Further, there were shops that sold many toys, especially for younger children, and several stores selling more luxurious items such as purses and jewelry. Tomer had told us that most of the items sold at the Shuk were from China instead of authentically Israeli, as the products from China are cheaper. The market was crowded, though outdoors, and even when we thought there couldn’t possibly be another store around the corner, we would see people sitting inside their little shops everywhere. We exited the Shuk and proceeded to go on our boat tour. Outside the Shuk, there was a harbor with many boats that gave small rides, so we all boarded one and headed out on the Mediterranean with loudly blasting music that we all danced to! The splashes of the waves on the top of the boat and the sun made the day all the brighter. Once we docked, Tomer took us back to the Children’s Village where we had lunch of chicken, meat with potatoes, salad, soup, couscous, and bread. We then went to our Mishpachtonims at 4:00pm! We all did various activities outside, inside, and even spent time with our families together.
Finally, we all came home, had our evening announcements (which are always very fun), and got ready for bed. This day of the trips were very meaningful as we were able to fully immerse ourselves in the new knowledge and experiences that we learned at the Druze Village as well as appreciating the physical beauty of Israel and its culture by visiting the Old City of Akko. Our third day in Israel was spent fully becoming accustomed to wonderful country we are in, and grew to love all the different experiences Israel offers us.
Darca School Students in the Druze Village in Yarka
