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- Written by Simon Wiesenthal Center
Stories of Jewish resistance, courage, heroism and inspiration during the darkest of times. Unforgettable accounts of courage, resistance, and survival during a world gone mad. Stream Unlikely Heroes and Liberation from two-time Academy Award-winning Moriah Films today.
Unlikely Heroes: Narrator, Ben Kingsley
Unlikely Heroes Unlikely Heroes
Narrated by Academy Award®-winner Sir Ben Kingsley, Unlikely Heroes chronicles the yet untold stories of Jewish resistance and individual heroism throughout the Nazi Holocaust. The documentary feature presents previously unknown stories of extraordinary men and women who exemplified the highest level of courage and human dignity during the most desperate days of the Holocaust. Unlikely Heroes highlights seven extraordinary people whose unique and inspiring stories will add a new chapter to the story of Jewish resistance
Streaming now on:
Amazon, iTunes, GooglePlay, InDemand/Comcast, AppleTV, Pluto, Xumo
Upcoming: The Roku Channel, Dish
Liberation: Narrator, Sir Patrick Stewart, Producer, Director, Arnold Schwartzman, Executive Producer, Richard Trank
Liberation tells the dramatic story of the battle waged on two fronts during World War II – the Allied campaign to liberate Europe and Hitler’s genocidal campaign against the Jews. Narrators include Academy Award®-winner Sir Ben Kingsley, Sir Patrick Stewart, and Whoopi Goldberg. The World War II documentary uses film footage, radio broadcasts, and period music gathered from archives around the world. Interwoven throughout the film are the compelling stories of the Jews of Europe – unforgettable stories of tragedy, courage, resistance, and survival.
Streaming now on:
Amazon, iTunes, GooglePlay, InDemand/Comcast, AppleTV, Xumo
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About Us
Moriah Films is the Jack and Pearl Resnick Film Division of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. Our documentaries focus on the 3,500 year old Jewish experience as well as contemporary human rights and ethical issues.Moriah’s goal is to produce theatrical documentaries on a regular basis that both enlighten and educate while at the same time reach national and international audiences. Two of Moriahs’ films have been recipients of Academy Awards™ for Best Feature Documentary, Genocide (1981) and The Long Way Home (1997).
In-House Production Facility
The Moriah Films’ Studio houses its own in-house production facility with state-of-the-art equipment. It is also the repository of the film and video archives of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, totaling millions of feet of film and tens of thousands of hours of materials.
Narrators
Many noted actors have narrated Moriah’s productions including the late Orson Welles, Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Douglas, Sir Ben Kingsley, Nicole Kidman, Kevin Costner, Brooke Shields, Morgan Freeman,
Anne Bancroft, Martin Landau, Richard Dreyfuss, Sean Astin, Michael York, Richard Dreyfuss, Patrick Stewart, Whoopi Goldberg, and Ed Asner.
Moriah’s films have been screened theatrically and broadcast around the world on HBO, Showtime, Starz/Encore, Channel 4 in the UK, ORF in Austria, RAI in Italy, as well as on German, French, Russian, Chinese, and Israeli television outlets.
The Wiesenthal Center has had a strong interest in films since its inception and benefits from the ongoing advice and counsel of some of the leaders in the film industry who serve on its Board of Trustees.
Contact Us
1399 South Roxbury Drive
Los Angeles, California 90035
310 553.9036
800 900.9036 (toll-free from within the U.S.)
310 553.4521 (fax)
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Photos Simon Wiesenthal Center site
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- Written by Talma Gotteiner
Some of the sites in Jerusalem are planning holiday activities for tourists and visitors.
Trip Itinerary
- The Menachem Begin Heritage Center
- Plugat HaKotel Museum
- The Jerusalem Botanical Garden
- Beit Mazia Theater Jerusalem
Trip Details
The Menachem Begin Heritage Center
The Menachem Begin Heritage Center has a unique multi-sensory audiovisual tour that takes visitors on a fascinating journey through time into the life of one of the most significant leaders in the country's history. The experience appeals to all the senses through interactive touch screens, rare films, the accompanying soundtrack, multiple restorations, dramatic lighting, and original items.
The museum tours are suitable for the whole family and require prior registration to a guided tour. They take about an hour and 15 minutes with a 30-minute break between each tour.
In addition to the museum experience, the Menachem Begin Heritage Center has an archeological garden, the "Hinnom Shoulder" that is part of an ancient necropolis, surrounding the old city of Jerusalem.
Finally, the Menachem Begin Heritage Center serves as a cultural and educational tourist center in Jerusalem offering a range of activities for individuals and groups including lectures, singing evenings, workshops and tours.
Plugat HaKotel Museum
The Plugat HaKotel Museum is located within a walking distance from the Menachem Begin Heritage Center inside the Jewish Quarter. The museum tells the story of the Western Wall Platoon, a group of youngsters from the Betar revisionist movement that volunteered to maintain the Jewish presence at the Western Wall, during the period of British mandate before the State of Israel was established.
The museum was founded on the actual location of the platoon's former building and includes a 35-minute audio-visual film that recounts the activities of the platoon.
Both museums are included in the J-Ticket, a combination discount ticket for the attractions and sites in the Jewish quarter. Registration to the Plugat Hakotel Museum is through the Menachem Begin Heritage Center.
The Jerusalem Botanical Gardens
The Jerusalem Botanical Gardens are owned by the Hebrew University and are next to the Givat Ram campus. They are the largest botanical garden in Israel, covering an area of 150 hectares, with the a plant collection of over 6,000 species of plants from around the world.
The gardens are featuring a new tropical greenhouse that was opened to the public a few weeks ago, after a year and a half of preparations, an investment of 7 million NIS.
In order to get to the greenhouse and enjoy all the variety that the garden has to offer, our tour took the children's train. The train takes you through the six geographical plots in the botanical garden, each simulating the landscapes in each region. The regions include South Africa, Europe, North America, Australia, Southwest and Central Asia and the Mediterranean respectively. The train is included in the entrance fee and is available to visitors on Sundays through Thursdays at any hour on the hour leaving from the garden entrance.
The greenhouse is divided into two areas: a tropical region and a desert region displaying plants adapted to their respective ecological environments demonstrating a large range of habitats.
In the tropical area, we were exposed to the special rain forest with tall trees, climbs and plants growing on the trees and a large pool with aquatic plants. There are even remains of an ancient columbarium carved in the rock that dated to the Second Temple period that was exposed during construction of the site.
In the desert area, we saw some of the plants that have adapted to extremely arid conditions, including the Jericho rose and several fragrant bushes that are used to produce perfumes.
The greenhouse is open to the public on Mondays and Wednesdays from 14:00 to 15:30 and there are guided tours.
The Jerusalem Botanical Gardens are leading a new educational campaign to save extinct wildflowers in Israel. The campaign is dedicated to Nechama Rivlin, the late First Lady of Israel, a true nature lover, who contributed greatly over the years to Israeli society and nature conservation. The botanical garden workers, as well as dozens of volunteers, have collected 12,000 wildflower seed bags that they are distributing to visitors. The purpose of the campaign is to enable people to integrate the wildflowers into their home gardens, thereby making them more widespread.
Beit Mazia Theater Jerusalem - The International Jewish Festival for Contemporary Art
A new festival entitled "International Jewish Festival of Contemporary Culture" produced by the Jerusalem Theater Group, is taking place between Dec 3-10, 2019.
Osnat Gispan, the festival's artistic director, reviewed this year's highlights. She explained that the festival has been successful these past three years, due to its integration of music, dance-theater, film and literature creators. It examines Jewish origins as sources of inspiration making the festival a pioneer in its field.
The rehearsals for the opening performance of "Rega, Rega" a theatrical musical world premiere by director Shahaf Berger and musical director, Ronit Roland based on Sasha Argov's songs were ongoing.
For more details on the activities and registration to the tours this Hannukah, please refer to the full article.
https://www.israel-best-trips.com/post/jerusalem-a-preview-trip-for-hannukah-2019
Photos Silvia G. Golan
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- Written by Silvia
Over the years, archaeological excavations in the Old City and its surroundings have become an inspiring national endeavor and have generated enormous public interest in Israel and around the world. The Jewish Quarter Reconstruction and Development Company, headed by CEO Herzl Ben-Ari, is working to renovate the Jewish Quarter and make these incredible findings accessible to visitors from around the world.
Trip Itinerary
- A Rooftop Breakfast at the new Ibis Styles Hotel
- Plugat HaKotel Museum (i.e. The Museum of the Western Wall Platoon)
- The Burnt House
- Tiferet Israel Synagogue: Under Restoration
- The Western Wall Elevator: Under Construction
- "Chavayat Hatanach" or The Bible Experience
- Lunch stopover at Hummus Haviv
- The Menachem Begin Heritage Center
Trip Details
A Rooftop Breakfast at the new Ibis Styles Hotel
The Ibis Styles Hotel is the second hotel after Ibis Red to have opened in Jerusalem belonging to the international IBIS hotel brand that is part of the Accor International Hotel chain. The new hotel has a spectacular location. It is located in the middle of the pedestrian mall on 4 Ben Yehuda St. near Zion Square, a few minutes' walks from the Old City, the light rail, Mahane Yehuda market and a variety of tourist attractions in Jerusalem.
The hotel design, led by Aryeh Dvilansky Architects was inspired by the nearby Mahaneh Yehuda Market and is full of cheerful, colorful illustrations. The new Ibis Styles is set in a historic building and has 104 different rooms including standard rooms and family rooms, mini-suites, and rooms with balconies. Children receive a gift kit at check-in and have a children's menu.
On the 8th floor of the hotel, guests can enjoy a restaurant and bar with scenic views, where a large breakfast buffet is served daily from 6:30 to 10:00. You can enjoy the breakfast buffet separately from the accommodation. Every day between 18:30 and 19:30 the hotel has a happy hour in the restaurant. The restaurant itself will be open for three meals after Passover. All meals at the hotel are kosher.
Plugat HaKotel Museum (i.e. The Museum of the Western Wall Platoon)
Around 80 years after it was closed by the British, the Museum of the Western Wall Platoon was opened last year to the public. The museum tells the heroic story of the young members of the Betar revisionist movement who decided to stay in the Old City.
The museum is located inside the original house that was used by the platoon for residential purposes. It tells the story of the young men and women who went to work in the mornings and trained at night in an effort to guard the safety of the Jews who used to pray at the Western Wall. The presentation is about 35 minutes long and tells about their life under the British rule and about one of the most famous heroic activities that they undertook on the Yom Kippur of 1928.
Registration is through the Begin Heritage Center's office.
The Burnt House
The burnt house is the familiar name of an archeological site that is one of the homes of a wealthy Jerusalemite dating back to the period of the Second Temple around the destruction in 70 CE.
The visit includes a view of the house and some of the archeological findings as well as a spectacular film that carries you back in time to the events preceding the fall of the Second Temple. The burnt house has already completed its renovation and the film has been translated into Chinese, Spanish, English, French, and Russian.
Tiferet Israel Synagogue - Under Restoration
One of the landmarks of the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem until its destruction in 1948 was the Tiferet Israel Synagogue. Archaeological excavations began about four years and only recently the restoration work has begun. In the first stage, the construction work is focused on three underground floors that go down ten meters below street level. Once these three levels are complete, the Tiferet Israel synagogue will be restored and is expected to reach a height of 25 meters high.
The Western Wall Elevator - Under Construction
Between the Jewish Quarter and the Western Wall plaza in Jerusalem are several staircases that limit access to people with disabilities. The Western Wall Elevator project is designed to create a convenient and accessible passage for the entire population. The project covers a total area of about 2,000 square meters and the cost is estimated at 57 million NIS.
"Chavayat Hatanach" or The Bible Experience
The Tourism Department of the Company for the Reconstruction and Development of the Jewish Quarter, in cooperation with the Bible Experience, is launching an interactive game in the Jewish Quarter. The game presents a series of challenges and riddles that lead you through hidden underground passages and excavations in the Jewish Quarter. It takes about an hour and a half and is conducted with tablets and laminated reality technology that generate a fun modern tourist experience.
Lunch at Hummus Haviv
Hummus Haviv is named after the owner Tzach Haviv, an entrepreneur who has managed two other businesses in the Jewish Quarter and the center of Jerusalem. It is the first hummus restaurant that opened in the Jewish quarter in Sept.2018. The kosher certificate is provided by Rabbi Rubin and with which the restaurant is able to serve tourists as well as some of the ultra-Orthodox residents alike.
The restaurant serves vegetarian/vegan food based on fresh raw materials daily with no preservatives. The hummus is served hot and ground thinly, based on a personal recipe together with gluten free green falafel, homemade fries and Chef Moshe's "Father's Shakshuka" that is unique in its intense flavor. The pita bread is freshly baked at the restaurant. The menu also includes soups, a rice and lentil dish called "Majadra", cooked vegetables and salads to complete the meal. The atmosphere is updated even though the building is preserved as an authentic building of the Quarter and seats up to 40 people.
The Menachem Begin Heritage Center (Tripadvisor)
The Menachem Begin Museum is a building dedicated to the 6th Prime Minister of Israel. The multi-sensory audiovisual experience includes rare films, interactive touch screens and a whole set of reconstructions and original items to take you through a journey into the life of one of the most prominent leaders in the country's history.
The museum is divided into four major periods of his life. The first period starts with Begin's childhood in Europe including his arrest for Zionist activity.
The second period is dedicated to his command of the Etzel and describes some of the main activities of the Irgun.
The third is dedicated to his political years in the opposition and the fourth focuses on his achievements as Prime Minister - the peace treaty with Egypt, the Nobel Peace Prize, the bombing of the nuclear reactor in Iraq, and more ...
The museum is an experience for the whole family and is done only by guided tour. The tour takes about 75 minutes with a waiting period of half an hour in-between tours. The museum conducts the guided tours in Hebrew and English, but you can also receive headphones for Spanish, French, Russian and Arabic.
In addition to the tour about Menachem Begin within the building, visitors are invited to enter the archeological park that lies within the museum's compound. The park is part of a necropolis of burial complexes that dates back to the First Temple period, the days of the Kings of Judah. Other findings include remains of a Byzantine church, rock-hewn shaft tombs from the Roman period and burial ground of the 10th Roman legion. The most fascinating find is a burial cave from the First Temple period in which an exciting discovery was made - a silver cylinder bearing the familiar verse from the Birkat Kohanim: "May the Lord bless you and preserve you." This finding is the oldest biblical text to date.
The park has recently been renovated with appropriate signs and walking paths that connect it to a sequence of parks between Bloomfield Garden and the Biblical Hill. Admission to the park is free between 10:00-18:00, Sunday - Thursday, even after museum hours, but requires advance notice.
For contact details to each of the sites, you are welcome to enter the full article on:
https://www.israel-best-trips.com/single-post/Jerusalem-The-Jewish-Quarter-Makeover-Part-1
Photos by Silvia G. Golan
- Details
- Written by Talma Gotteiner
The Piano Festival is the largest music festival in the country, which for 21 years has already produced several winning combinations and performances that continued afterward outside the festival and were recorded in special albums and video.
This year, the Piano Festival is again taking place at the beginning of winter between November 13-16th, 2019 with a diverse program representing the multicultural aspect of contemporary Israeli music.
The festival's performances will take place in ten auditoriums throughout the city. The central location will take place in the Tel Aviv Museum of Art: Recanati Hall, Kaufman Hall, Asia Hall, Mizna Blumental Gallery, Contemporary Israeli Art Gallery and in the Cameri Theater.
Other performances will also take place at the Noga Hall in the Gesher Theater, Jaffa and the Enav Cultural Center.
Due to the abundance of artistic and musical styles the festival has taken care to balance mainstream artists producing special festival performances alongside indie artists. Multiple musical techniques, a variety of languages, cultural styles, and musical experiments are the foundation of the festival. Spoken, ethnic, indie, pop, rock, and electronic alongside the Mediterranean, beautiful Israeli and Jewish-faith music, classical, poetry combined together for five days of excellent music by the best Israeli artists and creators.
The festival allows artistic freedom to the participating artists and as a result, the audience fills the halls with over 90% occupancy every year! The festival exposes the concert comers to Israeli classics alongside novel surprising productions, special musical formations and even to new musical instruments.
This year, the festival is dedicating a special homage to musician and pianist Alona Turel who passed away in May this year and had been an integral part of the festival throughout previous years. In the concert dedicated to her memory, the best artists who worked with her will perform onstage alongside young artists who were influenced by her. Performers include Chava Alberstein, Nurit Galron, Yoni Rechter, Shalom Hanoch, Dori Ben Zeev, Alon Adar, Meir Yisrael, The Platina, Doron Talmon, Vered Picker, Moshe Levi, Alon Hillel, Miki Shaviv, Alon Olearchik, Yurai Oron, Shmulik Budgov, Nadav Hollander, Ariel Horowitz.
The 21st festival is also paying tribute Nathan Alterman in three special shows: "Ha'Layla Shelach" new songs by Rami Harel and Naama Nachum - a discourse between Alterman and his daughter Tirza Atar, "Magash Haketzev" a special show of Alterman's songs for children and "When Wilensky met Alterman" in which Tzipi Zarenkin and Nathan Slor perform the beautiful hits of Alterman and Wilensky and host Ran Eliran.
Festival Director: Shabi Mizrahi, Deputy Director Culture and Arts Division and Director of the Performance Department
Production: The Department of Performances in the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality in collaboration with Hamon Volume and Zappa.
Artistic Director: Etti Anta-Segev
For more details on the festival performances, tickets and prices please refer to the full article on:
https://www.israel-best-trips.com/single-post/Tel-Aviv-Jaffa-A-Preview-of-the-21st-Piano-Festival
Photos by Silvia Golan
- Details
- Written by Talma Gotteiner
The International Mediterranean Tourism Market Exhibition (IMTM) is an international event that brings together Israeli tourists, tourism operators, their colleagues and clients from abroad and the general public, and is the main annual meeting point of the Israeli tourism industry.
The 25th IMTM Exhibition will be held on February 12-13, 2019 at Pavilion 2 at the Tel-Aviv Exhibition Grounds.
This is the second year in which the exhibition is being held in Pavilion 2, following the constant growth in the number of participants and the desire to improve and renew the exhibition's visibility. Pavilion 2 is a flexible space covering a total area of 6,000 square meters and a height of 20 meters.
The international tourism exhibition has gained momentum in recent years and is considered the flagship event of the tourism industry in Israel. Each year, the number of participants and countries that register is increasing. This year 50 countries will arrive, including European countries such as Russia, Romania, Hungary, Spain, Malta, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Serbia and more. Asian countries such as India, Japan, Korea, Philippines, Taiwan, Myanmar, Vietnam, Australia and more. Countries from Africa Botswana, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Latin American countries such as Panama, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador, and Brazil.
In addition, representatives of the Brazilian airline LATAM, who announced direct flights from Israel to Sao Paulo, China Airlines and Azerbaijan airlines, will also arrive for the first time.
The exhibition will also include a medical tourism conference at an international level, where experts from medicine and body health from all over the world can meet.
IMTM is the annual and oldest event of the tourism industry in Israel. It was organized by "Ortra" Ltd. and Israel Travel News, in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and is sponsored by the Israel Hotel Association, the Israel Tourist Association and the Association of Travel Agents in Israel.
For more information on the event you are welcome to read the full article on:
https://www.israel-best-trips.com/single-post/A-Preview-of-the-IMTM-HYPERLINK "https://www.israel-best-trips.com/single-post/A-Preview-of-the-IMTM-2019-Exhibition"2019HYPERLINK "https://www.israel-best-trips.com/single-post/A-Preview-of-the-IMTM-2019-Exhibition"
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