for college students by college students
Meaningful Trip
AJC program gives student a view of Jewish India.
Shelley Rosenberg I jewish@edu staff writer
Ann Arbor
A
fter completing their army service,
our group coined the "trilateral" relationship
between the American Jewish community, Israel
and India.
many young Israelis travel to
India to unwind before beginning
college or seeking employment. I
have always been intrigued by the "Israeli inva-
sion" to India. It is a country few of my Jewish
As AJC Asia Pacific Institute Director Jim Busis
explained, "The US-India-Israel strategic rela-
tionship, linking three great democracies that
share the same values and similar concerns, will
friends have visited or have on their to-do travel
lists.
be an increasingly important factor in global
politics in the coming decades."
When I learned about the American Jewish
Committee (AJC) trip to India early last month,
The group also had the opportunity to meet
with Mark Sofer, Israel's ambassador to India, as
well as Orna Sagiv, Israel's consul general.
I seized the opportunity to find out what the
Israeli attraction to India was all about.
As part of AJC's ACCESS New Generation
Program, a national initiative geared to up-and-
We resolved to wake
up at 5 a.m. and be
part of the first cohort
of tourists to view the
"Taj" that day. Our
exhaustion and frustra-
tion was allayed after
one look. Its beauty and
splendor is truly stag-
gering. For a typically
talkative bunch, we fell
largest English news source in the world; tour-
ing the Dharavi slum where Slumdog Millionaire
was filmed; visiting the Observer Research
Foundation, the premier nonprofit in India;
with Indian political leaders, diplomats and jour-
nalists. Beginning in bustling Mumbai and end-
meeting with officials at the Indian Ministry of
External Affairs, the Indian equivalent to the
ing in the capital, New Delhi, we also interacted
with the Indian Jewish community. And we also
U.S. State Department; and celebrating Holi, the
Hindu festival of colors where the streets are
came in contact with many Israelis.
While I recognize my short trip to India was
filled with strangers splattering each other with
bright-colored paint to collectively welcome
spring.
ture. Further, I have come to understand what
pm. The gates to the Taj
Mahal closed at 6!
Other highlights included meeting with edi-
tors and reporters from the Times of India, the
coming Jewish leaders ages 20-40, I traveled
with a delegation of 12 young Jewish profes-
sionals. During our 10-day trip, we engaged
vastly different from that of my Israeli peers,
I share an appreciation for India's unique cul-
was disappointed when
we finally arrived at 6:15
The delegation also lit memorial candles at
the Chabbad House of Mumbai in memory of
Shelley Rosenberg at the Taj Mahal while
on an AJC trip.
the 165 individuals who perished during the
infamous 2008 terrorist attack.
Of course, a visit to India would not be com-
plete without the Taj Mahal, one of the Seven
Wonders of the World. After a two-hour delayed
flight the previous day, coupled with a truly
indescribable traffic jam on the way, our group
WHEN THINGS GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT
DON'T DEPEND ON A SECURITY SYSTEM
THAT DEPENDS ON A PHONE LINE.
The truth is phone lines are less reliable then ever. Many of us are now using, or switching
over to VoIP or digital phone service. Do you want to rely on limited, or no alarm service
when you really need it?
Vigilante Security provides high-quality alarm monitoring without a phone line, using high-
speed internet or built-in cellular. The cost to switch is affordable. Call Ron Ross, President
of Vigilante Security to upgrade or install the most advanced security system available.
Call 1-800-589-7100
www.vigsec.com
s wag,
goaffrk
Commercial I Residential I High Quality Security Systems
52
April 1 • 2010
silent and listened as our
tour guide relayed the
story of Emperor Shah Jahan
and Mumtaz Mahal. When we
think back on our trip to India,
the structure's image is indelibly sketched into
our memories.
If you are interested in AJC's ACCESS pro-
gram, contact Kari Alterman at (248) 646-7686
or Detroit@ajc.org .
Shelley Rosenberg of West Bloomfield is a senior at
the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.