Page 1
Note: An optional pre-arrival package in Warsaw, Poland from Tuesday, April 30 to Thursday, May 2nd, is available. Please find all related details in the appendix to this itinerary. Thursday, May 2, 2019 Arrival in Krakow, Poland Arrival of participants in Krakow, Poland, and check-in at the Sheraton Krakow Hotel. 6:30 pm Opening delegation dinner alongside concentration camp survivors and IDF officers Witnesses in Uniform delegation at the hotel. (Participant dress code: Business casual) Overnight: Sheraton Krakow Hotel 7 Powisle Street, Krakow Phone: 48-12-662-1000 Friday, May 3, 2019 Breakfast at the hotel Hear firsthand stories from a Holocaust survivor, who will share his/her personal memories and experiences. Tour of Tarnów, the town that was home to thousands of Jews who ultimately faced unspeakable suffering at the hands of the Nazis. Depart for Zbylitowska Gora Village and Buczyna Forest to retrace the steps where many Jews, including over 800 children, were executed by the Nazis. Participate in a stirring memorial ceremony at the Children's Grave with the IDF Delegation. Lunch. Page 2
Return to Krakow. Free time to experience Krakow, get to know members of the delegation, or prepare for Shabbat. Saturday, May 4, 2019 Inspiring Kabbalat Shabbat dinner and singing led by the IDF Chief Cantor, shared with the IDF Witnesses in Uniform Delegation at hotel. (Participant dress code: Shabbat clothes) Overnight: Sheraton Krakow Hotel Commemorating Jewish heritage in historic Krakow Breakfast at the hotel. Walk with delegation to Kazimierz for Shabbat morning service at Izaak Synagogue. Lunch. at the Galicia Museum, which commemorates the victims of the Holocaust and celebrates the Jewish culture of Polish Galicia. Visit the Jewish Quarter in the Old City of Krakow and learn about its significant Jewish community which thrived from the 14th century until its decimation in the Holocaust. Tour the Krakow Jewish Ghetto, where Jews were forced to live during the Nazi occupation. Shared witness accounts by concentration camp survivors leading into group discussions with the IDF officers. Delegation dinner at the hotel. (Participant dress code: Business casual) Experience an uplifting Havdalah service. Overnight: Sheraton Krakow Hotel Page 3
Sunday, May 5, 2019 Remember the past, marking the present, and looking towards the future at Auschwitz-Birkenau Breakfast at the hotel. Depart to Auschwitz 2 Birkenau. Auschwitz, a complex of several camps, was the largest Nazi killing center. Birkenau, also known as Auschwitz 2, was the largest and most lethal of the Auschwitz camps. We will take an historic and unforgettable march into Birkenau, led by survivors, and IDF officers. This first-time shared experience of three sets of heroes dedicated to the survival of the Jewish people will be the emotional highlight of the delegation and the opportunity to be part of a moment that will be handed down as a legacy to future generations. A powerful continuation of our accompanying survivor s testimony, who will share his/her experience and memories of the concentration camp and liberation. A memorial ceremony in Birkenau remembering those who perished in the Holocaust, led by the commander of the IDF delegation. Lunch. Enter the main Auschwitz Concentration Camp, where 1 million Jews perished. Page 4
Participate in small-group guided tours of the camp. The delegation will then reunite to hear moving personal testimonies and memories from the survivors. Return to the hotel. Free time. Group dinner at the hotel marking the transition from Holocaust to Independence and formally beginning to the inspirational journey to Israel, alongside the IDF delegation. (Participant dress code: Business casual) Overnight: Sheraton Krakow Hotel Monday, May 6, 2019 Depart for Israel, accompanied by the IDF officers Breakfast at the hotel and check-out. Private flight to Israel accompanied by IDF officers and Holocaust survivors. Welcome ceremony in Israel Page 5
Arrive at the King David hotel Festive Welcome to Israel dinner celebrating the transition from darkness into light with our arrival in Jerusalem. (Participant dress code: Business attire) Overnight: King David Hotel 23 King David St., Jerusalem +972-2-620-8888 Tuesday, May 7, 2018 Experience the Pride of a Nation: The IDF. Leading into Yom HaZikaron, Israel s Memorial Day Breakfast at the hotel. Depart the hotel. Visit the soldiers of a heroic infantry unit for an unforgettable, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see how soldiers serve to keep Israel safe under any circumstance. Return to the hotel. Early dinner at the hotel Attend the official memorial ceremony dedicated to fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism at the Kotel with state officials, including the President and Chief of Staff. (Participant dress code: Business dress/white top recommended) Page 6
FIDF ǀ FROM HOLOCAUST TO INDEPENDENCE ǀ 2019 ITINERARY Return to the hotel. Overnight: King David Hotel Wednesday, May 8, 2018 Experience Yom Hazikaron as Israelis do, Remembering Fallen Soldiers Breakfast at the hotel. Depart the hotel. Participate in an unforgettable Memorial Ceremony during which we will mourn, remember, and honor the brave IDF soldiers as one with the people of Israel. (Participant dress code: white top recommended) Visit to the 9/11Memorial, the only place outside of the United States that recognizes the names and countries of origin of the people who were killed on 9/11. Page 7
Return to the hotel. Join the Israeli people in transitioning from mourning into joy and celebration as we mark Israel s 71st Independence Day at a special dance party for the delegation. (Participant dress code: Business casual). Overnight: King David Hotel Thursday, May 9, 2018 Celebrate Yom HaAtzmaut, Israel s Independence Day Israeli-style Breakfast at the hotel. Depart hotel. Celebrate Israel's 71 st Independence Day with an incredible visit to a premier IDF Unit. Enjoy a barbecue lunch, singing, and dancing with the brave men and women who protect the independence we celebrate. Free time. Page 8
FIDF ǀ FROM HOLOCAUST TO INDEPENDENCE ǀ 2019 ITINERARY Depart for the official residence of the President of the State of Israel, Beit HaNasi. TBD (Passports required) (Participant dress code: Business attire) Take part in an official diplomatic reception at the residence of the President, Mr. Reuven "Ruvi" Rivlin, the charismatic and beloved head of the state of Israel. Celebratory farewell dinner at the King David Hotel, as we conclude our remarkable and unforgettable experience together. (Participant dress code: Business Casual) Overnight: King David Hotel Friday, May 10, 2019 Official conclusion of the FIDF Delegation to Poland and Israel and our journey from Holocaust to Independence. Itinerary is subject to change Page 9
APPENDIX Optional Warsaw Pre-Mission Tour April 30 May 2, 2019 Tuesday, April 30, 2019 Daytime Arrival in Warsaw Opening dinner Wednesday, May 1, 2019 Overnight: Bristol hotel, Warsaw We start the day with to the Old Town quarter, Market Square, the Barbican, and medieval defense walls. We continue to the Monument to the Warsaw Ghetto Heroes that memorializes the tragedy of the Ghetto (where the German chancellor, Willy Brandt, unexpectedly knelt down in 1970). We will continue to Zamenhofa Street and through the remains of Nalewki Street which once buzzed with business life, Mila Street (including the bunker where the commander of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Mordechai Anielewicz, committed suicide), the Um Schlagplatz Wall (where 300,000 people were deported in cattle trucks for Treblinka death camp in 1942). We will visit the Nozyk Synagogue (the only remaining synagogue in Warsaw), and the Jewish Theatre (the only professional Yiddish-language theatre in Europe). Page 10
APPENDIX Next we will visit the Jewish Cemetery (where Zamenhof is buried, the creator of Esperanto language), and the former Orphanage of Dr. Janusz Korczak, who refused to be saved and accompanied his Jewish children to meet his death in Treblinka. The tour will end the with a visit to a truly unique place, the Jewish Cemetery at Okopowa Street, where we will visit several graves and return to our hotel. Depart for dinner outside the hotel. Overnight: Bristol hotel, Warsaw Thursday, May 2, 2019 Visit to the newly opened Jewish museum in Warsaw, The Polin Museum of the History of Polish Jews is a modern cultural institution a narrative museum that presents a 1000-year history of Polish Jews. Lunch. Transportation to Krakow. Opening celebratory dinner with the Witnesses in Uniform delegation at hotel Overnight: Sheraton hotel, Krakow Page 11