Every Day a Circus Day!

This morning, everyone is pretty tired. The Arches did a workshop with a piece of equipment called a staff and Michael and I worked with the Galilee kids on globe, trapeze and minitrampoline. Then the man who runs the kibbutz gym set up this huge inflatable mat --- like a moon bounce without walls--- and the kids flipped and played on that. (Note: There is a dearth of pictures of some acts and activities because I am both teacher and photographer. But Alex, Howard and Richard are filming everything!)

It is both Renaldo and Rianna's birthdays and we sang Happy Birthday to them in all three languages. Then Gilad left for a few days and his teaching partner, Amit, took over. The other teacher who comes in the afternoon is a Russian woman named Irina.

After the lunch break, we watch a juggling show by some local jugglers, Netta and Yon. We set up the Spanish web and demonstrate it and let people try it. There is more practicing with the staffs. Mostly though, everyone is rather tired and some people nap on the mats. Rianna is the official hairdresser. Michael works with Noam on plates.

After dinner, we take a bus to meet some jeeps for a night tour of the Golan Heights. We split up into several jeeps. Each jeep has a search light that they use to look for animals. There are supposed to be gazelle. Mostly we see chameleons (the guides pick them off the trees to show us close up).

Misa, Menar, Menal and Keaton in jeep.

My jeep saw some jackals and another driver found a wolf spider and a dead scorpion for his jeep. The terrain is VERY rough and we go though some water as well. At the top of a hill, there are the ruins of an old temple. The view is stunning--- the Jordan river, twinkling lights of different villages, the stars above. We stop here and hear the story of the Temple. Inside, the Arches are thrilled to see graffiti that says "Afroman".

Amit makes a birthday presentation of a diabolo to Renaldo and 4 juggling balls to Rianna. Dan gives them some presents from the kibbutz store--- Israeli postcards for Renaldo and a Hebrew date book for Rianna--- along with Hebrew birthday cards signed by everyone. Then comes the floor show!!! Deon, Matt and Renaldo present a fire staff routine. It is really nice--- especially considering that they had only learned staff that day and had never done it with fire before! Then, Amit, performs his fire poi. A very memorable birthday celebration!