February 16: The flowers were blooming in the Ben Shemen Forest and the race was on as some five hundred visitors participated in KKL-JNF’s first Flowers Race navigation challenge. The challenge combined navigations skills, trivia and technology in an exciting game, which participants downloaded as an app on their smartphones in order to play.
KKL-JNF and the Hevel Modi'in Tourism Association have embarked on a special initiative to create an annual flower festival, with the aim of bringing the public closer to places in
Ben-Shemen Forest.
The first Flowers Festival in Ben Shemen Forest was launched on Friday, February 16. At each of the seven activity stations in different areas of the forest, participants used their phones to scan special QR codes, through which they could crack challenges and riddles. Once they accomplished the mission at each station they received a secret letter, which, arranged in the right order at the conclusion of the game, read in Hebrew: “Happy and Blossoming in the Forest.”
“We decided to take advantage of these beautiful days when the forest is full of colors and scents and blooming flowers to bring people in so they can get to know the lesser-known hidden corners of the forest through a fun and challenging smartphone game,” said
Mira Zer, director of special events for KKL-JNF.
“This year's festival is the first in a tradition we are creating here, to hold an annual flowering festival in the center of the country."
Neta Laska-Mizrachi, KKL-JNF Community and Forest Coordinator in the Judean Lowlands and Coastal Plain, noted that 500 people had responded to KKL-JNF's invitation to participate in the first Flowers Festival in the region, which aims to expose heretofore less-known corners of the forest to the general public, including a variety of wildflowers that carpet the forest in bold colors throughout the season. The participants received an entry code for the Treasure Hit application with the game "Flowering in the Forest - Color in Nature". At each station, KKL-JNF instructors dressed up as different flowers, conducted fun and educational activities with the visitors. One station in particular focused on red wildflowers – the anemone, the red buttercup and the poppy, which people often confuse.
Ben Shemen Forest is the largest recreational forest park for the Gush Dan area, but most people generally stay in the several well-known areas of the forest, explained
Merav Friedman-Lazar, Executive Manager of the Modi’in Region Tourism Association. But thanks to KKL-JNF and the support of its friends worldwide, the forest has many other beautiful picnic and recreational areas that people can visit. It was these lesser-known places that were introduced in this game.
The special spots included in the game were the Communities Recreation Area, the establishment of which was made possible by donations from Friends of KKL-JNF in Mexico, Peru and Argentina; a grove in the Valley of the Monks in memory of IDF Cavalry Lieutenant Yoav Har-Shoshanim contributed by his family in Israel; the Tel Hadid Observation point dedicated in honor of Ro’i Cohen by his family; the Families Recreation Area, which was created thanks to donations from friends of KKL-JNF in the U.S. and England; the Musical Garden, which was funded by friends of JNF USA; the Thai Pagoda, a gift from the King of Thailand to the State of Israel for the celebration of its 50th anniversary; and the Sculpture Garden on the Electric Company Road established with the support of friends of JNF Canada.
At most of the stations there were also KKL-JNF guides - some dressed up as characters such as King Solomon, and a monk - who helped participants along, and gave them riddles to solve.
“The best thing is to get the kids outside, and not have them sit in front of the computer all day,” said Rafael Zer-Aviv from Ranaana, who was among the first to register for the game with his son, Ro’i, 10. “The best thing is to be out in nature.”
Haim and Zehava Shamir of Petach Tikvah said that they loved all the green they saw in the forest and the blooming of the flowers.
“Everything is so beautiful, the green and the blossoming flowers, what more can you ask for?” said Haim.
“We’ve been to the forest many times but never got to the areas this game is taking us to,” said Zehava. “I wish we had brought our grandchildren with us.”
At the Sculpture Garden, Nili and Zvika Osterbach of Petach Tikva, together with their three children, were in search of a specific sculpture which would help them obtain the next clue they needed.
“It is a very nice game and it is good for the children not to have to sit and listen to explanations, rather that they can run around looking for clues,” said Nili.
As her daughter Noya was listening to a KKL-JNF guide dressed as a nun explain the name of a flower growing in the Valley of the Monks, Orit Hadad of Rosh Ha’ayin said they were definitely coming back to the forest to visit the new sites they had learned about during the game.
“We love it. I hadn’t known there were so many beautiful sections of the forest,” she said. “Next time we come to the forest we are going to go deeper in to explore. There is so much to see here.”
At the Musical Garden, 11-year-old Reut Glickman summed it all up:
“It is fun to learn new things that I didn’t know before and it’s fun to see all the flowers and it’s fun that it’s all done with technology and fun to spend special time with the family,” she declared, as her family were getting into the car to take off to the next station in their quest to complete the race.