How to become a tour guide in Israel. Telman is a guide from Israel. When did you begin to realize that you are a Jew

The first guide to Israel - he is like a father. Your first, and by the way, your second, and in general impression of the new world, the world of Israel, depends on it. For me, Israel is not just a country - it is a whole universe, where every time I come for a new piece of happiness and a portion of inspiration. Vlad is probably one of the best guides in Israel that I know. You can listen to it for hours, days, months. He begins to speak, and you seem to plunge into a fairy tale - the interweaving of historical facts and your own imagination. Traveling with Telman in Israel is priceless.

I first saw Vlad in Ben Gurion, he was our Taglit guide. He met us - a motley group of 40 Moscow tourists, quickly gathered us in a circle and taught us our first words in Hebrew - "akhim" - brothers and "simcha" - joy. We sang them loudly and circled around.

How did you come up with the idea to stand in a circle with groups right at the airport? I still remember it.

My two colleagues and I came up with this about ten years ago to immediately show that Israel is a different country, and you can do a lot in it - even singing and dancing in the lobby of an international airport.

What did you do in Russia?

I'm from Peter. He graduated from the Herzen Institute, worked as a teacher of Russian language and literature for two years while he was a student. Then it quickly became clear that this did not bring money at all, and I began to do completely different things. By the age of 25, I immigrated to Israel. This was in 2000.

When did you begin to realize that you are a Jew?

At the age of 14 I found out that I was a Jew, but until 25 I had absolutely no idea what it was. The very word "Jew" was familiar, it was often pronounced, but I only learned what it was in Israel. Initially, I began to perceive myself as an Israeli, and only then came the understanding of what Jewry and Judaism are.

What does it mean to you to be Jewish?

Responsibility, no matter how grandiloquent it may sound, is initially before oneself, responsibility before the people of Israel and responsibility in fulfilling the commandments of the Almighty.

What did you do when you arrived in the country?

On the advice, I came to Ashkelon for the Taka program - this is a preparation program for studying at the university, where I lived and studied, but spent all weekends and free time in Jerusalem. I knew right away that this was my place. And then, 10 months later, he moved.

How did you understand that Jerusalem is your city?

There is no logic in this. If you can explain why you like this place or person, then you just like them. There is no logic in love, it cannot be explained.

What did you do after the program?

I began by all means to seek to be drafted into the army. In practice, I achieved this by tediousness - for a day and a half I simply tormented various commanders and thus got to the head of the military table, and he no longer had anywhere to run. I told him that I want, I must, I must, I have rights. And in the end - he served in the landing.

What is the army for you?

The army is not only a service, but also an educational organism. In Russia, this role is played by the school, and rather even the university. When two Israelis meet, the second question is “Where did you serve?”. This is where a bunch of mutual acquaintances, buddies, and friends are revealed, and if a person says that he did not serve, then there is always a second hitch. Most likely, they will not ask why he did not serve, but this pause - a slight misunderstanding will remain.

There are such words as duty and patriotism. Here they are not pronounced, but they are lived. This is exactly what sent me to serve. I believe that I still owe my country in one form or another. By and large, the army is a public conversion, but in the sense of an Israeli, and not in the sense of Judaism.

How did it happen that you became a guide?

After the army, I went to study at the Adassah College in Jerusalem and during my studies, despite the fact that the state paid for three years of study, I worked part-time - after all, you have to live on something. I began to accompany tourist groups in terms of logistics, and work as a madrich, engage in non-formal education. At some point, the guys I worked with saw me as a guide, and said - go and get a special education - that is. professional courses. The fact that I became a guide is more the merit of my then colleagues than my own. They really guided me to this path.

Where and how do you study to be the best guide in Israel?

There are specialized courses from the Ministry of Tourism. I studied in Jerusalem, but from the University of Haifa. Guide courses are two years of study - twice a week classes from five to nine in the evening, and one day a week - a full day excursion to different places in Israel. During these two years of study, you need to get a general base, as well as study geography, world history, politics, geology, botany, archeology, geomorphology, religion, not only Judaism, but also Islam, Christianity and its various directions, Catholicism, Protestantism, Orthodoxy as well as the Baha'i and Druze religions. You also need to study the history of Israel and everything that is connected in one way or another with the Jewish state. This is a very large historical layer: from the creation of the world, the Ottomans and the Crusaders, Byzantium, Ethiopia, the Queen of Sheba, various tribes to the present day. All you need to know is basic. For the first time I studied in a place where it was unpleasant for me if for some reason I missed classes. We had a very strong group of students and teachers, and interesting lessons.

Then all the time you study, study and study again. Each graduate of the course is sent to two exams - written and oral. First, a written exam: in the first part, you need to answer a considerable number of questions according to the American system, and in the second, according to the given data, build a two-day excursion, where the examinee fully describes the route, places of visit and topics of stories, logistics, the history of this place and everything that may be related to it.

If you pass the written part, then you are admitted to the oral exam, where 4 examiners from really working guides sit. The examinee prepares his topic and speaks with it for 5-7 minutes, and then answers questions on all topics of the two-year training. There are no pre-training tickets, you don’t know in advance what will be asked and you must be ready to answer everything. I still remember this exam - everything is very serious, two years of study and the possibility of obtaining a license are at stake. Now I am an examiner myself and I know how strict we can be. But fair.

How did you become the best guide in Israel? And how do you find clients?

I started working with educational companies even before I became a guide, then I worked with a travel company where I was engaged in logistics, from which acquaintances came. I never advertised myself, information passed from mouth to mouth, and there was no shortage of clients.

How is the tourism market doing now? How much does this tour cost?

I read excursions in Russian and Hebrew. And the flow of Russian-speaking tourists has now collapsed, and even those who come are not always ready to pay a guide. The official price of the excursion, appointed by the Ministry of Tourism, starts, depending on the route, from 200-250 dollars, if without a car. If I drive by car, it turns out more expensive. At the same time, 250 dollars is not an amount that goes entirely into the guide's pocket, I pay taxes and deductions from this money. That is why there is a rather pressing problem - hackers.

Who is this?

Hapers are people who have been somewhere with a guide or group, and believe that they are able to conduct excursions and illegally work for money. The Ministry of Tourism is now starting to fight this, because it is believed that the guides are direct representatives of Israel. And the hackers and guides, I don’t even know what to compare with, probably, it’s like a Chinese lighter and branded Zippo.

Do you love your job?

I love my country very much, I am wildly interested in everything related to history, religion, changes. This work does not allow me to slow down in development for a second, stop in studying - I just can’t do it. Now, for example, I completed another degree at the University of Haifa, where I had courses for guides such as "marine archeology". In general, studying in Israel is both interesting and accepted. Ironically skeptical “what are you, an eternal student?” - They just don't get it.

What did you learn, for example, from the course "marine archeology"?

In 2014, divers found a considerable treasure in Caesarea, about two thousand gold coins minted from the Fatemid era - and this is cool, because everything they found in Israel belongs to the country. Now these coins are exhibited in the Museum of Jerusalem.

Tell me what is worth visiting, for those who have been to Israel many times, and have already looked at everything that is recommended in guidebooks?

There are not many such places. At the foot of the Jerusalem mountains there is a considerable accumulation of man-made caves from the time of the uprising against Rome (132-135 AD). The Jews lived in the caves and partisans against the Roman troops. In this uprising, the Jews, under the leadership of military leader Bar Kochba and spiritual leader Rabbi Akiva, liberated Jerusalem. Everyone knows the uprising of 66-73, because Josephus Flavius, as an eyewitness, described it in some detail. Data on the second uprising is an order of magnitude less. In the second century, Bar Kokhba liberated Jerusalem - they minted money, and developed the region in every way, but then Rome again takes its toll, and Jerusalem falls under the rule of the empire.

Jerusalem is destroyed, and Judea is not only destroyed and burned, but also renamed Palestine by the emperor Hadrian. Some of these caves are open to the public, and I often take tourists there to crawl through secret passages and feel like a part of ancient history.

You can also visit one of the most beautiful Jewish necropolises - Beit Shearim. There are amazing caves, sarcophagi and stories.

It is very interesting to see with my own eyes Makhtesh Ramon - yes, it is this Hebrew word that has become the term that all scientists of the world use - this is an erosional formation in a crater in the Negev desert, a washout not far from Mitzpe Ramon. There, on the cut, you can see all the layers of the earth, from the first day after the lava hardened to the present day.

What else do not usually visit tourists?

The ancient people of the kings of the desert, the Nabataeans, who disappeared, left behind several cities. The capital is Petra in Jordan, and the rest are in Israel, in the desert. These cities are Shifta, Nitzana, Avdat, Mamshit, Halutsa. You can come there and see - now these are national reserves, which are protected by the state. There are buildings up to and including the Byzantine and early Muslim periods. Among the buildings, you can also see early churches that organically fit into the cultures of previous eras. Being in these cities, even a person who is far from history can easily understand the choice of a place to build a city, a defensive strategy, a planning system, and so on. In the city of Avdat, for example, there is a system of caves that were used as storage facilities, parts of houses, and water collectors.

The ancient city of Avdat is located in the Negev desert, near Kibbutz Sde Boker. And by the way, another point of visit, which few people get to. There is a very bright, wild natural beauty. From the hill, you can see a desert of completely unusual colors - from black and red to ash-gold.

Kibbutz Sde Boker is known not only for its natural beauties, but also for the fact that, according to his will, the first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion, is buried there. He spent considerable time in Europe, America and Turkey, but saw the future of the Jewish state in the Land of Israel and the development of the desert. That is why he lived in Sde Boker for the last years and was buried there together with his wife Paula.

Not far from this kibbutz is the longest hiking trail in Israel, which in Hebrew is called Shvil Yisrael, or Israel trail. It starts from Kibbutz Dan in the north and ends in Eilat. It takes 2-2.5 months to complete this route, 1040 km long. The trail captures most of the beauties of Israel: streams, rivers, desert, mountains, forests, castles of the Crusaders. Some make it in pieces, but almost anywhere, it goes through absolutely magical places.

Crusader castles, it's very interesting, where are they located?

For example, in the north of Israel, 35 km from Haifa, there is the Monfort castle, which was the residence of the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order. Another point associated with the Crusaders, which is usually not reached, is Karnei Hittin, which is located next to Lake Keneret or, as it is also called, the Sea of ​​Galilee. On July 4, 1187, the famous Battle of Hattin took place at the foot of this hill. The troops of the great warrior Sultan Salah ad-Din and the army of the Crusaders, led by the King of the Kingdom of Jerusalem Guy De Lusignan, clashed in battle. That battle ended with the victory of the Muslims and, in fact, the beginning of the decline of the kingdom of the crusaders. In the same year, the troops of Salah ad-Din took Jerusalem.

After capturing the holy city, Richard the Lionheart realized that he needed to strengthen his position in the ports of Acre and on September 7, 1191, during the Third Crusade, the Battle of Arsuf took place. There were about 40 thousand people in the army of the crusaders, and about 50 thousand people in the army of Muslims - the Ayyubids of Salah ad-Din. The city of Arsuf, not far from modern Herzliya, the site of the last decisive battle between the army of the crusaders and Muslims, in which the latter won, is also interesting to visit. Now there is the Archaeological Park of Apollonia.

Another point is located on the road from the Dead Sea to Jerusalem, literally a ten-minute drive from Jericho. The place that Muslims mark as the tomb of the prophet Moses - in Arabic - Nabi Musa. According to Jewish and Christian tradition, the location of Moses' burial is unknown. The Torah ends with the words - “And Moshe, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord; and he was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-Peor; and no one knows his grave to this day” (Deut. 34:6). According to one version, based on political motives: Muslims created in the 13th century a place marking the grave of the prophet: since in Islam and Judaism the lunar calendar is used, which moves, and the day of memory of Moses is fixed, this balanced the number of Muslims, Christians and Jews in Jerusalem during the spring holidays Easter and Pesach.

If we talk about cultural heritage, the Museum of Jewish Music has recently opened in Jerusalem. There are collected instruments that Jews have played at all times and all over the world.

Tell me, please, your favorite guide tale?

I used to run LiveJournal, from which someone once ripped out all the stories, put them together and gave the title “From the Notes of an Israeli Guide” and sent them to roam the Internet. But, since you are asking for one that was not published, then here is one of the most relevant.

I had a group of American Jews, we were in the Judean desert, on Masada. The dominant character in the group was Sarah, a very large and very noisy woman. And here we are standing in front of the descent from Masada, and suddenly we notice that Sarah's husband, a quiet, little peasant, is gone. And then Sarah begins to shout to the whole Judean desert:
- Moses, where are you? People walk in the desert and want to go to Jerusalem, but you don’t understand where you are wandering! To me, Moses!!!

My name is Anna Berova. I am a journalist, diver, marketer and PR specialist. Now what I do is fashionable to call "communication specialist". I love to write, and even more - Israel. I don't even know which order is correct. Writing about Israel, talking about its beauties, mysteries, secrets, people, customs, traditions is a real pleasure for me. I am sure that you will find it interesting, pleasant and useful to read.

Arie Parnis, tour guide in Israel, I lead individual tours and
group tours in Israel in Russian,
I show Israel through “Jewish eyes”.

I was born in Moscow, I came to Israel in 1989 at the age of 15.
Served as a paratrooper. Education - degree
MA in Israeli History from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Certified tour guide of the Ministry of Tourism, and host
guide of the City of David in Jerusalem in Russian.
Married, father of three, living in Tkoa
on the edge of the Judean Desert, not far from Jerusalem.

All this changed when we started learning Hebrew as a family and attending our first Torah lessons. Then the circumcision union, in an underground apartment with closed curtains. At the age of 14, he began teaching Hebrew at a Sunday school for children of refuseniks. Zionist activity in the USSR was still banned, but they were no longer imprisoned for it.

Aliya to Israel became a natural continuation of this process. Be in your place, live with your people and deal with your problems. This country has become a real home for me.

After leaving school, I studied in Israeli Zionist yeshivas for 8 years. Served in the paratroopers. He completed his first degree in Torah teaching and his second degree in the history of the Jewish people.

Israel tour guide

The connection with excursions in Israel appeared to me almost immediately. My class teacher was a professional guide, and one of the school circles was "Excursions in Jerusalem". Then, I took all our relatives from abroad to these same places. After school, hiking around the country began, in small companies, with a backpack on my back.

In 2000, the hobby turned into a profession. After graduating from the Jerusalem Guide Course, I began to lead tours from Yad Ben Zvi and from the City of David, Israel's leading tourist organizations in Jerusalem. Gained a lot of experience as a guide with school and army groups, with Israeli families and with new repatriates from the CIS countries. In 2006 he graduated with honors from the school of guides from the Ministry of Tourism of Israel, at the Lander Institute. For me, this is not only a job, but also a calling.

Over time, I increasingly began to feel the shortcomings of Russian-speaking tourism in Israel. Unlike the wide cultural range of Hebrew and English group tours, the Russian-speaking street is mostly Christian-themed. Jewish tourism, with a few exceptions, is practically non-existent.

Many Russian-speaking Israelis and tourists from abroad who are interested in the history of the Jewish people and want to experience Israel from the inside often find it difficult to find someone to turn to. It is to these people that my excursions and the activities of this site are addressed.

I offer you private and group tours of Jerusalem (I especially love), individual tours throughout Israel (including Judea and Samaria), private.

I will be glad to show you our country!

The condition for admission is, of course, knowledge of the language necessary to understand the entire body of knowledge. The exam is quite difficult, but at the initial stage, they accept almost all those who applied and paid. The course costs approximately $6,000. Includes 2 days of classroom instruction and 80 field trips. For admission, it is enough to have a secondary education, that is, to complete a general secondary school. There are no advantages for holders of the second degree (that is, a complete higher education, like mine). As for foreigners, I don’t know, but I’ll try to find out.

Classes - 2 days a week for 5 hours in the classroom and a full day excursion - up to 12 hours or more. A total of 80 excursions. Classes are controlled very strictly, for 2 years it is allowed to miss 4 excursions. After each - a report. I did half of it (in the full sense of the word) in Hebrew, then I was allowed to take it in Russian. Internal exams are held on all topics - they are compiled by the professor who taught the course, and as a rule, they are not repeated - you can tell. There are also about 20 of them (from prehistory to the present). We had a very strong group, only 1 out of 30 dropped out during our studies, as a rule, 3-4 people give up earlier. Money is not returned, only if you leave almost in the second week.

The license is issued for the right to work in any museum, only in some restrictions, for example, in a memorial dedicated to the Holocaust, I will not be able to lead a tour for schoolchildren or soldiers. There are guides there.

As a rule, guides are not particularly eager to conduct a tour themselves, this is a time for a break. (I know for myself).

The license is renewed every 2 years, it is necessary to take part in some additional seminar. How much does it cost - I'll find out. Attendance is mandatory, a list of seminars is provided, and payment is also mandatory.

In fact, a tour guide in Israel must know the whole history, culture, all the main tourist places (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), animals, plants, geology, geomorphology, main feeding and snacking places, toilets, etc. Therefore, in theory, I can lead a tour anywhere, but as a rule, guides choose an area or specialization.
I can go to any tourist place for free. Plus discounts at restaurants. Theater and cinema - for a fee.

As for the police tour, I don’t know yet whether they are catching it or not, I also don’t know yet. There were two guys in our group who led excursions for several years, I think one of them was caught and OBLIGED to get a license, because there was a story with a tourist injury and our guy did not have compulsory insurance. In my opinion, something there was connected with a large fine in court.

As a rule, guides work from a company, the salary is at least $ 220 a day. There is no hourly pay.

My friend works both from a company (on the bus) and privately - from an agent directly. He has a mini-van for 7 people, he charges from 500 to 700 dollars a day. He is a member of the guides union, has parking benefits, and the entire social package. He pays taxes regularly.
I think that you can work privately "with friends", but you will have to pay for all paid places and for yourself too. And again, all the responsibility is on you, if anything.

The Arabs are now dumping - they are ready to take 2 or even 3 times less for work, but this is an English-speaking market. It is not controlled in any way, (as far as I know) the Arabs who graduated from the Israeli state course have the right to work, the same as the Israelis .

But in the Palestinian territory, for example, in Bethlehem, I, as an Israeli guide, cannot work in Hebrew (English), but in Russian, I can))).

The final exam is very difficult, 2 parts, written, and if you pass in 2 months, it’s oral. In any case, such cases are not known to me, maybe there were in history.

Guide-interpreters abroad (in the alphabet of countries)

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In 2014, the Israeli Ministry of Tourism carried out 250 operations to identify guides operating without a license. 11 people were fined

Israel is a country of immense tourist opportunities, which means that the profession of a guide is popular. But in order to become a professional guide, you need to be trained and get an official license from the Ministry of Tourism. It is no secret that not all those who show sights to tourists have the necessary document and level of training. A lot of people work "on the black", violating the law.

In recent years, the Israeli Ministry of Tourism has strengthened its control over compliance with the established rules: last year, the supervision department of the Ministry of Tourism carried out 250 operations to identify "black" guides. As a result, 11 violators were fined.

There is another innovation: now the guides themselves will be able to report their non-professional colleagues "where they should be." They will need to fill out a special form, which will later be used as evidence when imposing a fine.

According to the Minister of Tourism, Dr. Uzi Landau, “order in this area is as important as the role of the guides themselves”: “It is from the guides that tourists receive information directly, therefore it is necessary that only professionals be employed in this area.”

In 2014, the supervision department of the Ministry of Tourism carried out about two hundred operations to identify guides working without a license. As part of this activity, 1,500 tourist groups throughout the country were checked by inspectors of the Ministry of Tourism. Also, by special order of the minister, during the autumn holidays (holidays of the month of Tishri), another 50 operations were carried out and about 500 groups were checked. As a result, 11 people working without a license were detained and fined last year. According to the guides themselves, the number of "black" guides has significantly decreased. In addition, ten travel agencies were audited and were reported to have hired non-professional tour guides. According to the law on the provision of tourist services, a guide working without an official license can be fined 3,000 shekels, and a travel agency will have to pay 9,000 shekels.
Thousands of licensed guides working at various tourist sites on a permanent basis provided significant assistance to the Ministry of Tourism in identifying violators of the law. This week, a cooperation agreement was signed between the Ministry of Tourism and the Israel Guides Association, according to which representatives of the Association will participate in such operations on an equal basis with the police. In addition, for the first time, the Ministry of Tourism has made it possible to report illegal activities through a special form, which will also serve as evidence in the event of a fine.

For reference. About 5,000 guides operate in Israel, while 7,000 people have an official license to provide such services from the Ministry of Tourism. To obtain an Israeli guide license, you must study for two years in special courses at an academic level, including more than 600 hours of study and 83 days of practice, and then pass an exam. On average, about 65% successfully pass the exam and receive a license that must be renewed every two years. In addition, guides are required to take refresher courses every year. As part of the curriculum, future guides get to know the country, master professional skills, learn the basics of tourism, and receive general knowledge necessary for work. To enter the courses, you must provide a full matriculation certificate, as well as pass an individual interview.

Due to the shortage of Chinese-speaking guides and the increase in the number of tourists from China (direct flights have recently been opened), the Ministry of Tourism decided to take part in financing the recently opened courses for guides who will work with tourists from China. By the way, back in 2009, an adapted course was opened for Russian-speaking guides, the final exam at the end of which could be taken in their native language.

Text and photo: Eleonora Khrizman