Day 7

This very busy started off with an interesting discussion with Michael Kelman who is a foreign correspondent for several publications including the Boston Globe and Time Magazine. The theme of the day was "Israel Today" and we certainly covered that topic investigating the contrast and challenges of this very special city. My father always says a visit to Israel is like taking a walk through history. This is quite true as witnessed on Saturday, but, at the same time a visit to Jerusalem is taking a walk through current events.

Our first stop took us to Hadassah Medical Center where we toured the facility and saw the building of the newest building on the campus. It is an impressive place. We then met with a physician who is one of the chief medical researchers in gene therapy who is investigating cutting edge treatments for many diseases including cancer. We learned about his work and about the process of how studies are done in this particular institution. Following his talk we were brought through the Pediatric Oncology Department where we learned about the treatment in this area. From there we took a tour of the state of the art trauma unit built during the height of the homicide bombings in Israel. This facility was built in a completely secure manner that can be sealed off in case of chemical warfare. The technology of the center, the kindness and openness of the staff and the infrastructure was incredible. What struck me the most was the diversity of the people who are serviced by the hospital, work there and support the institution.

Our lunch was set in a lush garden of a moshav. After a brief visit back at Yad Vashem to see the Children's Memorial, a site that so poignently remembers the 2 million children killed by the Nazis and their potential too, we went onto a facility called Mabat. It was really an honor to see this center in action. Mabat was built in 2000 and serves as central command for the police department in the Old City of Jerusalem. Through a series of 300 cameras in 1 square kilometer, Mabat is able to watch all that is happening in the old city, communicate between the center and the police and record everything that transpires. We were shown several video clips of incidents that were caught on tape - or monitored as they happened - so that people could be apprehended successfully.

From Mabat we were taken on a seam line tour of Jerusalem with a man named Amir Cheshin who was one of Teddy Kollack's right hand men when he was mayor of Jerusalem. Amir explained in depth and showed us on the ground the complicated geography and hence politics of Jerusalem. We toured the area that was recently disputed in the news and caused a flurry of press during Vice President Biden's visit, but more importantly, we saw all the areas that could be problematic at the negotiating table. There is no doubt that we all finished our afternoon with Amir more confused than we started. But what came away clearly from this program was that the issues in Jerusalem are so complex and intertwined with US politics and global politics that the city is in a precarious position from every vantage point.

After another long day we finished with a delicious dinner and a well needed rest.