Camp Blog

Greetings, we come in peace. Take me to your leader!

Outer space day was an uber sensation! Everyone was dressed up as aliens, Martians, and outer-spacemen. In the morning we had some out-of-this-world learning groups, followed by some workshop activities. After lunch, everyone went outside to enjoy the amazing carnival that was waiting for us out by the front gate. Once we had our fill of high-flying bungee acrobatics, fire truck rides, and dunk-the-counselor, it was time for an incredible show featuring a team of professional improvisational comedians who totally kept us clinging to our seats as it took off. It was then time to get ready for Shabbat which we always anxiously anticipate.

Hoooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwdy partner! Reach for the sky!!

These and other phrases were being tossed around and about all over camp today for our Wild Wild West theme. It was truly a day chock-full of awesome activities, with wood-working, leather-crafting, mosaic-making, and all sorts of other great stuff! The Uber Uproar at lunch was great Uber Fantastic! However, the true highlight of the day was a western-style corn husking and roasting over a huge campfire. Word ‘round town was that the corn was quite delicious and everybody enjoyed it. The evenin’ ended on a mysterious note with a fantastic night activity show featuring a mind reader! He ooh’ed and ahhh’ed the crowd with his amazing ability to read our minds and reveal what was hidden in our hearts. Afterwards it was off to bed to get ready for tomorrow’s exciting activities!

CAMP SIMCHA SPECIAL ARE YOU READY FOR UBER UPROAR!?!?

As the buses made their way around the last few bends and winds in the curvy road leading up to camp, the excitement was already buzzing in the air. However, we were let down slightly when we pulled into the driveway, and the whole staff was just standing there frozen in their places! When Dembi asked them the above question however, the music started playing and everybody went crazy! After a little dancing, check in at the infirmary, and a scrumptious dinner, it was time to head over to our amazing first night activity, The French Twins! These two incredibly talented young men amazed and wowed everyone with their acrobatic, juggling, and other fantastic feats. After a great start though, it was time to get a good night’s sleep for tomorrow’s exciting activities!!!

Oh, Camp Simcha… Oh, Camp Simcha…

Tears and smiles, crying and laughter, and hugs and embraces were this morning’s activity. From the first bus that left early in the morning, to the last one that left in mid-afternoon, there was an air of nostalgia, longing, and a slight melancholy as the two most dreaded and difficult words were said from camper to counselor, “good bye”. Nonetheless, real life does go on, so bags were packed, the yearbook is being prepared to be sent out, and the vans, cars, and busses all pulled away to wherever the destination. Camp Simcha 2010 was truly one of the best sessions ever, and it is our sincerest hope and dream that the magic, fun, and laughter that was felt and experienced by all, carries everyone through this coming year with joy and happiness.

Musical was of course a fantastic hit! Produced by Duvy “The Legend” Becker, it was about the aliens from planet Titer, who were inflicted with a horrible disease known as “Green Noses” which could only be cured by an injection of the Mumps from Planet Earth. With a few great performances by our very own British Invasion featuring Eli Skaist, David Hill, and Mordechai Massry, as well as some spectacular dance numbers, one of which even brought back Camp Simcha dance legend, Moishy Bienenfeld! For the grand finale, staff member Benjy Weintraub and Luke Weber sang a duet of “I Believe I Can Fly”, at the end of which, Luke actually flew right over the cheering crowd! It was quite an impressive show, and everybody there enjoyed it immensely. Many thanks go out to all of the cast, Eli Balsam, Duvy Becker, and everyone who worked tirelessly on the video editing and backdrop painting. After the musical was the annual slide show, which featured pictures of every single camper, and now we are on our way to the grand banquet! Stay tuned for more last day events!

Shabbat is the most awesome day in Camp Simcha. Hands down. Coby iPods, great singing, and camaraderie abounded. We started Shabbat a little bit late, due to a mild thunderstorm that came and went while we watched in utter fascination and awe. But the energy and excitement that electrified the air even after the lightning was done was amazing as counselors and campers sang and danced as Shabbat came in.

Shabbat continued in typical fashion, with campers giving moving speeches after the meals, and the Duvy Becker Show kept everyone riveted and laughing in their seats.

At the end of the day, the threatening rain held back its temper as everyone was singing and linking arms with each other, drizzling only slightly until we were done, after which the sky opened up with yet another incredible thunder and lightning storm.

Once Shabbat was over, the oldest division was treated to a special bonfire just for them, while it was off to sleep for everyone else in anticipation of our uber-packed day tomorrow!! Stay tuned!!

What a day, what a day! All of our campers were really high with excitement as they flew through the airspace around camp in a real helicopter! Decked out in special army fatigue t-shirts made special for this occasion, each child was treated to a ride a few hundred feet above camp in the helicopter.

After such an exciting morning, the psych just didn’t stop! From flying high in the air, we moved onto “deal”ing with the people from Deal, New Jersey for Deal Day! During lunch, we met and greeted our friends from Deal and received yet another t-shirt from them. After lunch it was straight on to the carnival, featuring blow up rides, moon-walks, rock-climbing, and even a Mission Impossible booth where you had to avoid criss-crossing lasers just like in the movie! Everyone enjoyed the carnival immensely.

Dinner was then served…outside! We had a BBQ picnic in the front lawn of camp, everybody all together enjoying a nice burger or hot dog on the grass.

Bellies full, it was time to hit the gym, to watch Camp Simcha take on the Deal team in an intense game of basketball. The crowd was cheering and chanting the whole time, and at the end, it was a close game, but of course Camp Simcha came out the victor, and the whole camp rushed out onto the court to congratulate our winners.

For the day’s finale, everybody, Camp, Staff, and Deal’ers alike got to relax under the stars and watch a spectacular array of fireworks. What a great way to end an even greater day.

There’s nothing greater than a Camp Simcha party. Except maybe a Camp Simcha party in one of the greatest cities in the world, NEW YORK CITY! After each camper and counselor received his awesome new 2010 edition Camp Simcha fitted baseball cap, we boarded the busses smoothly and on time to take us to NYC. Without any traffic, we arrived in the city pretty early, giving us some time to have a scenic lunch in one of the beautiful parks near the theater. We caused quite an uproar in the park, causing one of the park rangers to come out and see what was going on. As soon as we showed him how UBER AWESOME the campers of Camp Simcha are, he kindly agreed to let us finish our lunches quickly without any issues.

After lunch we took a nice stroll through Greenwich Village to the STOMP theater, where we were treated to an amazing show of percussion using random, everyday objects. The cast was kind enough after the show to sit on stage and answer questions from campers about their roles in STOMP and their lives in general. Even better though, they agreed to let everyone up on stage and take pictures with them, and Max G. was even treated to an arm wrestle with the “Macho Man”, which he won! The whole cast commented on what a well-behaved, yet most energetic and interactive crowd we were. They had never had an audience like us before, and honestly, it couldn’t possibly be otherwise, because we are Camp Simcha after all!

Moving along, we then boarded the busses to the South Street Seaport, where we ate dinner, went shopping a little bit in the mall there, and had a good time relaxing. A special kind of taxi ride was in store for us at the seaport, a big, yellow, water taxi ride to 34^th street! The specialty staff was kind enough to take their bus over to Times Square so that they could greet us there with pomp and fanfare. They even managed to get some of their pictures on the American Eagle billboard in the square! So cool! Once all of the busses had arrived and unloaded, it was time for what we had been waiting for all day long. After a few rounds of Holey Moley and other psych-up songs, Dembi announced that we were going to do the dance to the FIFA World Cup theme song “Wavin’ Flag” that we have been practicing since the beginning of camp. However, we did it with a twist, in classic, crazy, Camp Simcha style. Thanks to our talented recording studio staff, we produced our own version of the song, which was played and danced to by all of the campers and staff, right in middle of Times Square! It was quite a spectacle to behold, and everyone involved had a blast taking part.

By this time, everyone was exhausted after a long, fun, and fulfilling day, so it was time to get back up on the busses and head back to camp, where we are looking forward to another great day tomorrow!

(Attached is a link to a Youtube video of the event in Times Square, feel free to check it out and enjoy!)