This will likely be the last post for Divrei Wek until April, when the WK has his Bar-Mitzvah in Jerusalem. Overall, this has been a good trip for us. It was harder than I thought it would be at times, especially because I have been missing Dad, and know how excited he would have been as we prepare for the WK's Bar-Mitzvah. But it was also hard being away from Pentheus and the CK. I'm not sure I can explain it, but when I travel, I usually rely on Pentheus to take care of things like directions while I focus on destinations. I was outside of my comfort zone a little being the "only grown up" for 10+ days. I had to be okay with wandering around a bit lost while we tried to find a certain store or street. However, it was great to spend so much time with the WK, and I'm so happy we had a good time together. Apparently, I must have shared how I was feeling with the WK because every once in a while he would say, "I know, Ima. You're glad that we're here together. You don't have to tell me all the time!" I feel like I need to finish blogging about the trip itself and stop carrying on about my feelings. So here goes.
Sunday morning, Shmulik picked up the WK and me, and drove us to the Old City, so that we could go to the Western Wall, the Kotel. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Wall and https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/Western_Wall.html) The WK and I had talked about going to the Kotel last Thursday when we went back downtown to go to Machaneh Yehudah and pick up some more gifts. Later Thursday night when we were with Jessie's family for sushi, suddenly the WK declared, "Ima, we forgot to go to the Kotel!! I agree with the WK; you can't be in Jerusalem without visiting the Kotel. The WK put on his new watermelon kippah ( skullcap, yarmulke http://www.myjewishlearning.com/practices/Ritual/Prayer/Ritual_Garb/Kippah.shtml) took his siddur (prayer book), and parted ways with me as he went to the Men's section, and I went to the Women's. I walked up to the Kotel, inserted my handwritten note amongst the many, many notes filling up every nook and opening in the huge wall, and offered my silent prayer. I stood on a plastic chair to look over the barrier into the Men's section, and I watched the WK pray, bowing at the appropriate moments. I got chills watching him; the Kotel is always an emotional experience.
From the Kotel, Shmulik drove us to the Dan Panorama in Tel Aviv. Along the way, Shmulik and I had a lot of interesting discussions, one of which I recounted in my Conversations post. We talked more about the matzav (situation) in Israel and about our families. Shmulik offered to help in any way to prepare for the WK's Bar-Mitzvah, and it was very sweet. The WK and I were glad to spend some time talking with Shmulik.
We arrived at the Dan Panorama to a long check-in line. When we went to our room, the WK and I were both exhausted but wanted to do something. We ended up watching a little TV and then heading out to get some lunch. Although the Dan Panorama hotel is beautiful, the beach area next to it is fairly rocky and there is no access to the sand or the water. The WK and I bought lunch from some place on the strip (I had a pita with humus, and the WK had a hot pretzel and some gummy candy. I know, not the healthiest lunch, but we're on vacation!), and sat on the rocks while we ate and watched the water. It was actually pretty relaxing. As much as I am *not* a water person (ask anyone in my family about the "George Story"), I love being near the sand and water.
We changed in to our bathing suits after lunch, and headed for the pool at the hotel. The pool was huge, and quite crowded, but we found a chair in the sun. I went in the water (the WK was shocked, but it felt great!) with the WK and then read the Jerusalem Post while the WK stayed in the water. After showering and changing into clean clothes, the WK and I walked North along the beach tayelet (boardwalk, I guess) until we reached Yotvata B'Ir, one of my favorite restaurants in Tel Aviv. (When we were in Israel in 2012, I think we ate at Yotvata B'Ir for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every time we came to Tel Aviv!) Dinner was great. One of the reasons I love the restaurant is because of its location - across the street from a beautiful beach of sand and the Mediterranean Sea.
The service at the Dan Panorama wasn't so fabulous. I had requested a blow dryer from Guest Services and it never arrived. Around 9 pm on Sunday night, we ordered a brownie and some natool from Room Service.After almost an hour and another phone call, the food was delivered but it wasn't exactly what we had ordered. We stayed up watching some TV for a bit and then settled in for a good night's sleep. Unfortunately, the good night's sleep was interrupted by an azaka early the next morning. We and a lot of hotel guests and employees from our floor moved into the merchav mugan ("protected space") for the duration of the siren and ten minutes more. (Ten minutes is the standard time to wait for an "all clear".) Monday was also my birthday, so I especially appreciated the early morning present. (We found out the following day that the azaka was a false alarm, but it sure felt real enough at the time.)
The buffet breakfast at the hotel on Monday morning was pretty expansive with a million options including typical Israeli fare like shakshuka, yogurt and cheeses, fresh fruit and Mediterranean specialties, as well as lots of different breads, pastries and cereals. I was disappointed because the only natool available was instant that I had to pour from the package into hot water. Regardless,the WK and I had a nice breakfast.
We knew we had friends (husband, wife, and 3 kids) from Toronto who were visiting Israel for 3 weeks, and we were trying to make plans to get together on Monday. We decided that late morning we would meet at the Tel Aviv Port to walk around and grab lunch. The Port is in an industrial area (kind of like Tile Mile in Watertown, MA) with all sorts of wholesale design shops, and it took the WK and me almost 35 minutes to find the restaurant after the cab dropped us off. We, apparently, had it easy because our friends took almost an hour and a half to find parking and to meet us at the restaurant. By the time we met up, it was after 1 pm, and the restaurant wasn't that appropriate for the kids. Everyone was cranky and frustrated, and I knew that the WK and I were supposed to meet another friend, Rachel, who made aliyah from Boston 7 or 8 years ago, mid-afternoon. No one knew what to do so I made the executive decision that we were going back to the beach area to dine at Yotvata B'Ir again. It's a great place for kids and adults (like me). I called Rachel and asked her to meet the WK and me at the same restaurant. The family had parking problems again, and Rachel arrived before our friends from Toronto!
After a nice lunch with everyone, the WK went to the beach with our friends while Rachel and I walked a little bit and got some cold drinks from a nearby cafe. (I was so happy the cafe had iced natool!) Rachel and I chatted for about an hour and it was great! I had seen her 2 or 3 times when we were in Israel in 2012, and we have kept up with each other. I felt badly that our plans with Rachel had been messed up so many times that day; it wasn't really fair of me to change everything at the last minute. Rachel was super about it though - Rachel said she figures that if I made the effort to see her in Tel Aviv, then she'll do what she needs to do to see me.
Rachel and I parted around 4:00, and I went back to the beach to claim the WK back. Everyone was in the water, including the adults, and I was persuaded to go in, too, though I didn't have my bathing suit with me. The water was amazing, just the perfect temp, and it was so much fun riding the waves, even in my jeans and Boston Red Sox shirt. I am so glad I went into the water! It was amazing! We felt totally gross as we walked back to the Dan Panorama, where we had stored our suitcases for the day. It was wicked hot (low 90's) and humid, and the salt from the water was sticky. We bought perhaps the two most expensive towels in history from some beach shop (90 shekels) but it was worth it! We changed into clean clothes but didn't take showers, and hopped into a cab to see the Sela Family in Ra'anana, a suburb of Tel Aviv.
Pentheus has known Tami and Yaron Sela since 1991 when Pentheus convinced Digital to hire Tami as an engineer in Hudson, MA. Tami and Yaron had come to the States from Israel, so that Tami could work and Yaron could study. Although Tami and Yaron returned to Israel after a few years, Pentheus has stayed close with them, and when I married Pentheus, I became friends with them as well. We've made sure to see them every time we've been in Israel, and they often came to Jerusalem to visit with us in 2012. Tami and Yaron have 4 kids, 3 boys ranging from ages 17 to 12, and 1 little girl, Zohar, age 5. I am crazy about Zohar!!
The WK and I spent two night with the Selas in Ra'anana. On Monday night, for my birthday, they took us to Moshav B'nei Tzion, near Moshav Batsra, (east of the city of Netanya),where there is an amazing restaurant, Daniel and Gouje, for an awesome dinner. The views were beautiful, and the food was great. They even served me dessert with a sparkler as a candle. It was very sweet. The next day and a half, we pretty much hung out with the family. We watched a few movies. I played a lot with Zohar and the WK played way too much Playstation FIFA with Ori, the 12-year old. The WK swam in the pool with Ori, and one evening we went to the mall and did errands.It was fairly low-key while we were there, but it was good just to hang out and talk with friends.
At 6:30 am the first morning we were there (Tuesday morning), another azaka woke us up. It's frightening and hard to realize that the azakot were part of Israeli daily life, even for us in on vacation. We all moved into Yaron's study which is specifically designed to be the merchav mugan. Zohar was crying, and the WK and I were pretty startled as well by the azaka. I hadn't expected another azaka. This time, however, the azaka was not a false alarm. A little bit after the sound of the azaka ended, we heard two "booms"as the Kippat Barzel (Iron Dome. "kippa" is the same word as the head covering) intercepted the missile. From that point, we all went back to bed, as if nothing had happened. It felt very strange. Later that day, a hafskat-aish (cease-fire and truce) was declared, and at that point, Operation Protective Edge ended. Apparently, right before a hafsakat-aish has been announced, there have often been additional rockets, as if Hamas wanted to show that they could still fight and were undeterred in their goals. Somehow that isn't a very comforting thought. The prevailing view of everyone with whom I spoke is that there will be another war in a few more years and that there will not be a real peace. I find that so depressing and bleak.
The WK and I left Ra'anana early Wednesday afternoon and headed to Ben Gurion Airport. Along the way, Tami called to tell me that we had left some things at their house, including some presents and the WK's beach/shower shoes. The cab driver tried to convince me that we had enough time to turn around, go back to Ra'anana, and retrieve the stuff, but I was too nervous about arriving at the airport late. Of course, we ended up having plenty of time at the airport, but that's okay. Tami will send the things via doar (mail).
I was very sad to leave Israel but glad to know that we would be returning in 8 months. (Yikes! A lot to do before then!!) The WK and I had an uneventful flight from Tel Aviv to Frankfurt. We had intentionally booked our return flight so that we had almost a full day layover in Frankfurt. We arrived in Frankfurt around 8:30 pm but by the time we got our luggage and walked a very, very long way to the Hilton Garden in the Frankfurt Airport it was after 9:30. We grabbed a pretty bad and way too expensive dinner in the hotel restaurant, but had a good night's sleep (although not long enough) in their very comfortable beds. (The WK wanted to make sure I put that part in!) The WK and I spent the day in Frankfurt. We had buffet breakfast at the hotel, exchanged a little money, and figured out how to buy train passes for the day. The train ride was around 15 minutes from the airport station to Hauptwache (pronounced "Hopt-swatche"), the heart of downtown shopping district. We (and by "we" I mainly mean the WK) used the German map of the city and found our way to the Jewish Museum. The Jewish Museum was okay. I am not sure if we didn't love it because of the museum itself, or because we were tired and at the end of our 10 day trip, probably a combination of things. I was very glad we went though. I must admit, it felt strange to be in Germany, especially after having been at the Jewish Museum and reading about all of the restrictions and difficulties in being Jewish in Germany, not to mention, of course, the Holocaust. The Jewish Museum had a temporary exhibit about the Jewish Attorney General Fritz Bauer, who prosecuted Nazis for war crimes following World War II.
From the Jewish Museum, the WK and I took a few different trains back to the airport station We picked up our luggage being stored at the Hilton Garden and headed to the airport terminal. After checking our bags and eating some lunch, we found a way to use up the rest of our Euros (fancy liquorice and chocolates, plus a neat gift for the CK) before we boarded the plane to return to Boston. Pentheus and the CK met us at the airport. So good to see them! So that's it for now. I know this blog hasn't been as interesting or as insightful as when we lived in Jerusalem, but I've enjoyed writing it. Hopefully someone has enjoyed reading it!
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Conversations
I am in Ben Gurion Airport with the WK, and we are waiting for our flight to Frankfurt. It's hard to believe that we are leaving Israel. It feels weird because we were here for such a short time, and because we know we will be back in April for the WK's Bar-Mitzvah. I want to write about Sunday and Monday, and some of the things that happened, but I don't think I have the cheshek (energy) to remember and type it out. Maybe I will try to write from the hotel in Frankfurt. (The WK and I are staying in Frankfurt overnight and doing some touring before we leave for Boston around dinnertime tomorrow night.) Actually, I am hoping to post this blog entry when we get to the hotel because I am astonished that there is no WiFi in the airport. I connected to it for a few seconds only and haven't been able maintain the connection.
Meanwhile, here are some stories from the week that I wanted to share. Interestingly, many of these stories happened while we were in cabs going from place to place. Yes, most of the time, but not all of the time, I initiated the conversation. I think it's fascinating to hear what "regular" Israelis think about the matzav ("situation") and about daily life in Israel:
On the taxi ride from our friends' house in Ra'anana to the airport, the cab driver and I chatted a bit in Hebrew. To be fair, this time the cab driver started the conversation; I just responded to him. At any rate, we were listening to the news on the cab radio (in Israeli, there is a news report at the top of every hour), and I understood some of it. Our entire conversation was in Hebrew but I am going to recount it in English. The cab driver asked what I thought about what was going on in Syria. I answered that I thought it was horrible, and that I felt terribly about all those children who had been killed. He responded that why should we feel badly for the children. Once those children grow up, they will just get weapons and try to murder Israelis. No, he said, he didn't feel badly about the children at all.
An example of typical Israeli interaction: On the taxi ride from Tel Aviv to Ra'anana, Pentheus and the CK called on the cell phone to speak to the WK and me. I spoke for a little bit, and then the CK specifically wanted to talk to the WK. The WK wouldn't talk because he was tired and cranky. I told the WK (in Hebrew) that he had to speak to his brother and that he should be nice; after all, the WK is in Israel and the CK isn't. The cab driver responded to me (in Hebrew), saying, "Mom, the boy doesn't want to speak to his brother. He's just a boy. What do you want from him? Leave him alone. He doesn't have to speak if he doesn't want to!" Hmm, not sure a cab driver in the States would interfere like that!
In the ride from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv with our friend, Shmulik, (before there was a shvitat neshek (on strike - think labor strike - with a we talked about how Jersualemites (people from Jerusalem) think differently than other Israelis. Shmulik thinks it's because those living in Jerusalem aren't exposed to the danger of rocket attacks as people in the South, and, to some extent, people in Tel Aviv and the surrounding areas. I think it's also because residents of Jerusalem tend to be more dati ("religious") than other, more secular Israelis. Anyway, Shmulik thinks that Israel needs lachkoch et harosh mehanachash (to cut the head off of the snake) in order to stop Hamas. A woman in line at the Dan Panorama felt the opposite way - her fear is that if we cut the head off of the snake, shyihiyu od roshim (there will be more heads). She specifically worried that is Hamas is held at bay, then ISIS or some other group will take over where Hamas left off. She also thought it was easy for someone in Jerusalem to offer an opinion when that person doesn't live in fear of missiles and has more than 15 seconds from the time the tzeva adom (code red) begins to get to a bomb shelter.
Our friend, Yaron, in Ra'anana, is my age (mid-to-late 40's), and he told me a story that happened to his friend, also our age, who was fighting in Gaza as a member of the meeluim (military reserves) with the younger soldiers currently in the army (at ages 18-21, approximately). They saw a group of young children in Gaza who were running towards them screaming, "Help me! Help me! I'm boobytrapped!" and 'I don't want to die!" The soldiers saw that the kids had been outfitted with suicide vests attached to their bodies. The kids kept screaming and screaming, and the younger soldiers didn't know what to do. The Israeli army values life and soldiers are told not to kill civilians or women and children, but they knew that if they didn't kill the children, they would die from the blast along with them. The young soldiers froze, but Yaron's friend knew what to do: he shot each child once with a bullet to the head. The children died instantly and the suicide vest did not explode. But, as he shot each child, Yaron's friend had tears running down his face. He may have known what to do, but he thinks he will be haunted forever by the faces and screams of those little kids. (By the way, I asked Yaron for his explicit permission to recount this story in my blog, and he easily gave it to me. Yaron, and most Israelis, in my opinion, are worried about the misinformation that has been presented by the media throughout this conflict. I would not have told this story without such permission.)
I know I have written in the blog about my friend, Jessie, who used to be the Executive Director of B'tselem, the Human Rights Organization for the Territories. And, I know that Jessie knows and has told me directly that many Israelis find the work B'tselem does controversial, to say the least. Depending on whom I am around in Israel, I am careful not to focus on my relationship with Jessie. I have some Israeli friends and acquaintances, though, who know I am friends with Jessie, but disagree strongly with how B'tselem operates. Specifically, one friend asked me earlier this week if Jessie and I were still in touch. He then told me that he thought the B'tselem workers could (note: not should) be hung for war crimes because of the publication B'tselem prepares and distributes. He believes that while working for human rights is important, that the reports that B'tselem publishes is "airing dirty laundry" for the world to see. He believes that Israel works hard to value life and to act righteously, but that even when Israel acts inappropriately, even atrociously, the world need not hear about the actions so prominently. I guess it goes back to the discussion of the media reports from Israel and Gaza - his thought is that Israel has a hard enough time with its reputation - it doesn't need Israelis making it worse.
Finally, when we were in Tel Aviv, both generally and in the Dan Panorama Hotel specifically, I was surprised by how many tourists there were. We had heard so much about how tourism was down dramatically, and all of the cab drivers and a bunch of the shop owners had thanked us profusely for coming to Israel. Most said, kol hakavod ("all the honor") to us. It took a while, but at breakfast in the Dan Panorama the morning we left, I realized that most of the other guests in the huge dining room were speaking French. I said something about how I was surprised there were many French people at the hotel, to the cab driver when she drove us to a restaurant to meet friends (I'll write about that in another entry, hopefully). She (only the second female cab driver we ever saw this trip) said, "mahpitohm" (literally, "what suddenly," but more like "what are you talking about?"), and that all of the Jewish French were vacationing in Israel this summer because of the rampant anti-semitism in France. (To be honest, except for the "mahpitohm" I paraphrased what she said. I understood what she meant when she talked about all the terrible things that happened to Jews in France during Operation Protective Edge. I don't know that she used the Hebrew word for anti-semitism, but certainly that is what she meant.) I guess that makes sense - I hadn't thought about that. Then, on this plane ride (I am on the plane now), I read an article in The Week about how for the first time, more Jews are expected to leave France for aliyah to Israel. This year there will be more than 5,000 French Jews who make aliyah, ahead of both Russia and the US, which have larger Jewish populations than France. In a quote from the article, "They don't speak Hebrew and they're not religiously observant, yet they 'feel more welcome in Israel' than in the France of their birth.
We've just now checked into the Hilton Garden Hotel at the Frankfurt Airport. The WK is relaxing in a bath while I try to get the WiFi to work. Once I have WiFi, I will push "publish" and we'll get something to eat! Aufwiderzain!
Meanwhile, here are some stories from the week that I wanted to share. Interestingly, many of these stories happened while we were in cabs going from place to place. Yes, most of the time, but not all of the time, I initiated the conversation. I think it's fascinating to hear what "regular" Israelis think about the matzav ("situation") and about daily life in Israel:
On the taxi ride from our friends' house in Ra'anana to the airport, the cab driver and I chatted a bit in Hebrew. To be fair, this time the cab driver started the conversation; I just responded to him. At any rate, we were listening to the news on the cab radio (in Israeli, there is a news report at the top of every hour), and I understood some of it. Our entire conversation was in Hebrew but I am going to recount it in English. The cab driver asked what I thought about what was going on in Syria. I answered that I thought it was horrible, and that I felt terribly about all those children who had been killed. He responded that why should we feel badly for the children. Once those children grow up, they will just get weapons and try to murder Israelis. No, he said, he didn't feel badly about the children at all.
An example of typical Israeli interaction: On the taxi ride from Tel Aviv to Ra'anana, Pentheus and the CK called on the cell phone to speak to the WK and me. I spoke for a little bit, and then the CK specifically wanted to talk to the WK. The WK wouldn't talk because he was tired and cranky. I told the WK (in Hebrew) that he had to speak to his brother and that he should be nice; after all, the WK is in Israel and the CK isn't. The cab driver responded to me (in Hebrew), saying, "Mom, the boy doesn't want to speak to his brother. He's just a boy. What do you want from him? Leave him alone. He doesn't have to speak if he doesn't want to!" Hmm, not sure a cab driver in the States would interfere like that!
In the ride from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv with our friend, Shmulik, (before there was a shvitat neshek (on strike - think labor strike - with a we talked about how Jersualemites (people from Jerusalem) think differently than other Israelis. Shmulik thinks it's because those living in Jerusalem aren't exposed to the danger of rocket attacks as people in the South, and, to some extent, people in Tel Aviv and the surrounding areas. I think it's also because residents of Jerusalem tend to be more dati ("religious") than other, more secular Israelis. Anyway, Shmulik thinks that Israel needs lachkoch et harosh mehanachash (to cut the head off of the snake) in order to stop Hamas. A woman in line at the Dan Panorama felt the opposite way - her fear is that if we cut the head off of the snake, shyihiyu od roshim (there will be more heads). She specifically worried that is Hamas is held at bay, then ISIS or some other group will take over where Hamas left off. She also thought it was easy for someone in Jerusalem to offer an opinion when that person doesn't live in fear of missiles and has more than 15 seconds from the time the tzeva adom (code red) begins to get to a bomb shelter.
Our friend, Yaron, in Ra'anana, is my age (mid-to-late 40's), and he told me a story that happened to his friend, also our age, who was fighting in Gaza as a member of the meeluim (military reserves) with the younger soldiers currently in the army (at ages 18-21, approximately). They saw a group of young children in Gaza who were running towards them screaming, "Help me! Help me! I'm boobytrapped!" and 'I don't want to die!" The soldiers saw that the kids had been outfitted with suicide vests attached to their bodies. The kids kept screaming and screaming, and the younger soldiers didn't know what to do. The Israeli army values life and soldiers are told not to kill civilians or women and children, but they knew that if they didn't kill the children, they would die from the blast along with them. The young soldiers froze, but Yaron's friend knew what to do: he shot each child once with a bullet to the head. The children died instantly and the suicide vest did not explode. But, as he shot each child, Yaron's friend had tears running down his face. He may have known what to do, but he thinks he will be haunted forever by the faces and screams of those little kids. (By the way, I asked Yaron for his explicit permission to recount this story in my blog, and he easily gave it to me. Yaron, and most Israelis, in my opinion, are worried about the misinformation that has been presented by the media throughout this conflict. I would not have told this story without such permission.)
I know I have written in the blog about my friend, Jessie, who used to be the Executive Director of B'tselem, the Human Rights Organization for the Territories. And, I know that Jessie knows and has told me directly that many Israelis find the work B'tselem does controversial, to say the least. Depending on whom I am around in Israel, I am careful not to focus on my relationship with Jessie. I have some Israeli friends and acquaintances, though, who know I am friends with Jessie, but disagree strongly with how B'tselem operates. Specifically, one friend asked me earlier this week if Jessie and I were still in touch. He then told me that he thought the B'tselem workers could (note: not should) be hung for war crimes because of the publication B'tselem prepares and distributes. He believes that while working for human rights is important, that the reports that B'tselem publishes is "airing dirty laundry" for the world to see. He believes that Israel works hard to value life and to act righteously, but that even when Israel acts inappropriately, even atrociously, the world need not hear about the actions so prominently. I guess it goes back to the discussion of the media reports from Israel and Gaza - his thought is that Israel has a hard enough time with its reputation - it doesn't need Israelis making it worse.
Finally, when we were in Tel Aviv, both generally and in the Dan Panorama Hotel specifically, I was surprised by how many tourists there were. We had heard so much about how tourism was down dramatically, and all of the cab drivers and a bunch of the shop owners had thanked us profusely for coming to Israel. Most said, kol hakavod ("all the honor") to us. It took a while, but at breakfast in the Dan Panorama the morning we left, I realized that most of the other guests in the huge dining room were speaking French. I said something about how I was surprised there were many French people at the hotel, to the cab driver when she drove us to a restaurant to meet friends (I'll write about that in another entry, hopefully). She (only the second female cab driver we ever saw this trip) said, "mahpitohm" (literally, "what suddenly," but more like "what are you talking about?"), and that all of the Jewish French were vacationing in Israel this summer because of the rampant anti-semitism in France. (To be honest, except for the "mahpitohm" I paraphrased what she said. I understood what she meant when she talked about all the terrible things that happened to Jews in France during Operation Protective Edge. I don't know that she used the Hebrew word for anti-semitism, but certainly that is what she meant.) I guess that makes sense - I hadn't thought about that. Then, on this plane ride (I am on the plane now), I read an article in The Week about how for the first time, more Jews are expected to leave France for aliyah to Israel. This year there will be more than 5,000 French Jews who make aliyah, ahead of both Russia and the US, which have larger Jewish populations than France. In a quote from the article, "They don't speak Hebrew and they're not religiously observant, yet they 'feel more welcome in Israel' than in the France of their birth.
We've just now checked into the Hilton Garden Hotel at the Frankfurt Airport. The WK is relaxing in a bath while I try to get the WiFi to work. Once I have WiFi, I will push "publish" and we'll get something to eat! Aufwiderzain!
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Shabbat and Amazing Riba (Jam)
Hello from the birthday girl in Ra'anana, just outside Tel Aviv! It's Monday night. I'm sitting on our friends' couch and am watching "The Other Woman" while I type. The WK is downstairs playing Playstation FIFA with our friends' son, so he's happy, too. So much has happened over the last 3-4 days, that no matter what I do, I don't seem to be able to keep current with the blog, but I'd rather experience what's going on here than try to write daily.
That being said, I have some time while I watch the movie and while the WK plays FIFA. I know Shabbat was only 3 days ago, but it feels like a million days ago. We had a very nice Shabbat in Jerusalem. We went to Friday night services at the synagogue, and it was nice to see some of our female friends again because I hadn't seen any women at any of the morning services. Once again, I was touched because after the Mourner's Kaddish, a total stranger approached me and offered me condolences.
After services, we went to Rabbi Pear's house for dinner. The Pear Family was hosting a group of law review editors from top law schools around the US for a mission sponsored by the American Israeli Friendship League. Every Friday night, Rabbi Pear has everyone go around the table and offer his/her name, a little background, what happened that was nice this week, and "words of wisdom" The conversation was very interesting, and we enjoyed the evening. We knew we would see the Pear Family and other friends at synagogue Saturday morning, so it was easier to leave their house that night.Saturday afternoon, the WK and I went to an older couple's house for Shabbat lunch. They are an interesting pair - he grew up as a religious Jew and she did not. When they married, she became observant and they lived in an orthodox community in North Hollywood. After 35+ years and the death of their parents, they decided to make aliyah (move to Israel).
On Saturday afternoon, we met my friend, Jessie, her twin sons, and another boy, and went to the Jerusalem Skate Park. I posted some pics on Facebook from the excursion. According to Jessie's son, the Skate Park is the 4th largest in Jerusalem. There were lots of people, mostly from age 4 or 5 to 17 or 18, at the Skate Park, on both skateboards and rollerblades. The WK borrowed skates and a helmet from our friends, and he had a great time. It was also nice to see the WK hang out with other kids around his age. The WK and I get along very well, but I imagine he's a bit tired of only seeing and talking with his Ima (Mom) over the last 9-10 days. To be honest, his Ima is a bit tired of only seeing and talking with him! :-)
The WK and I set an alarm for Sunday morning. We didn't go to services, but we wanted to check out one of our favorite cafes, Cafe Katamon Hayeshana. It was about a 10 minute walk from our dira. The WK had loved Katamon Hayeshana, primarily because of the amazing jam that he used on his toast. The WK is right - they have the *best* jam! I also love their natool! We are hoping to have a small brunch at the Cafe after the WK's Bar-Mitzvah service. Anyway, we walked into the Cafe, ordered breakfast, and then asked to see the owner. When the owner came over, we spoke in Hebrew. I told her I was sure she didn't remember us but that we had lived in Jerusalem a couple of years ago and that this was one of our favorite restaurants because of. She then cut me off and answered in Hebrew, "hu ohev et ha riba! Ani zocheret oto!" ("he loves the jam. I remember him!") We spoke to her about using the Cafe after the Bar Mitzvah, and she was very interested. In Israel, everything is much less formal, and the owner couldn't begin to plan for an event in April, after Passover. Instead, we exchanged email and phone numbers, and we will certainly be in touch when the date is closer. Even though I knew we wouldn't be able to finalize anything, I still wanted to meet with her face-to-face and to discuss the possibility. We hope something works out!!
For those of you who followed the blog in 2012, you may remember Shmulik, our cab driver and friend. Shmulik was the cab driver who drove us (especially when my Dad and sister were visiting) back and forth to Tel Aviv and to tourist places. Shmulik also drove us to the airport when we returned to the United States, and he was the one who took that great final picture of us at the dira. Anyway, we had spoken to Shmulik a couple of times when we were in Cambridge and had called him when we returned to Jerusalem last week. After the WK and I returned from the Cafe, Shmulik met us at our hotel. I'll go into more detail in my next post about our time with Shmulik!
On Saturday afternoon, we met my friend, Jessie, her twin sons, and another boy, and went to the Jerusalem Skate Park. I posted some pics on Facebook from the excursion. According to Jessie's son, the Skate Park is the 4th largest in Jerusalem. There were lots of people, mostly from age 4 or 5 to 17 or 18, at the Skate Park, on both skateboards and rollerblades. The WK borrowed skates and a helmet from our friends, and he had a great time. It was also nice to see the WK hang out with other kids around his age. The WK and I get along very well, but I imagine he's a bit tired of only seeing and talking with his Ima (Mom) over the last 9-10 days. To be honest, his Ima is a bit tired of only seeing and talking with him! :-)
The WK and I set an alarm for Sunday morning. We didn't go to services, but we wanted to check out one of our favorite cafes, Cafe Katamon Hayeshana. It was about a 10 minute walk from our dira. The WK had loved Katamon Hayeshana, primarily because of the amazing jam that he used on his toast. The WK is right - they have the *best* jam! I also love their natool! We are hoping to have a small brunch at the Cafe after the WK's Bar-Mitzvah service. Anyway, we walked into the Cafe, ordered breakfast, and then asked to see the owner. When the owner came over, we spoke in Hebrew. I told her I was sure she didn't remember us but that we had lived in Jerusalem a couple of years ago and that this was one of our favorite restaurants because of. She then cut me off and answered in Hebrew, "hu ohev et ha riba! Ani zocheret oto!" ("he loves the jam. I remember him!") We spoke to her about using the Cafe after the Bar Mitzvah, and she was very interested. In Israel, everything is much less formal, and the owner couldn't begin to plan for an event in April, after Passover. Instead, we exchanged email and phone numbers, and we will certainly be in touch when the date is closer. Even though I knew we wouldn't be able to finalize anything, I still wanted to meet with her face-to-face and to discuss the possibility. We hope something works out!!
For those of you who followed the blog in 2012, you may remember Shmulik, our cab driver and friend. Shmulik was the cab driver who drove us (especially when my Dad and sister were visiting) back and forth to Tel Aviv and to tourist places. Shmulik also drove us to the airport when we returned to the United States, and he was the one who took that great final picture of us at the dira. Anyway, we had spoken to Shmulik a couple of times when we were in Cambridge and had called him when we returned to Jerusalem last week. After the WK and I returned from the Cafe, Shmulik met us at our hotel. I'll go into more detail in my next post about our time with Shmulik!
Sunday, August 24, 2014
First Bar-Mitzvah Planning Meeting
The WK and I are now sitting and cooling off in our room at the Dan Panorama Hotel in Tel Aviv! We arrived a little while ago. after waiting almost 30 minutes to check in. While we were annoyed to spend the time waiting in line, I didn't mind too much because I love people watching and hearing what Israelis and other guests are saying. I struck up a conversation (I know, you are *shocked*!) with a family from Beer Sheva (in the southern part of Israel) in front of us in line. We had a big discussion about how to say "check-in" in Hebrew, as in checking into a hotel. The woman initially said, m'kabel heder ("receiving a room") but also thought we could use, laasot check-in ("to do check-in"). The woman and her husband started to laugh because together they couldn't figure out what the right word was. About 2 seconds later, an orthodox man,wearing black hat. white shirt, black suit, with peot (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Payot), said "efshar check-in" ("is it possible to check-in?") which made the family, the WK, and I laugh even more. The woman said, oolai zot hamilah nachona ("maybe that is the correct word")!
We also talked to the family about the matzav ("situation") in southern Israel, including in Beer Sheva where they live. They think that Prime Minister Netanyahu is making the right decisions about what force to use with Hamas in Gaza. The woman said that if Netanyahu strikes too hard, that the other terrorist groups (like Hezbollah, ISIS, etc.) will come together, and that the whole conflict will start over again. They think there will be about two weeks left of the war and that there will be some sort of "permanent' cease-fire until there is a haskem ("agreement'). They were upset that many people in Jerusalem think the government should take out Hamas and use stronger offense against Hamas in Gaza. It was interesting that they thought that, considering the population in Jerusalem is certainly not subject to rocket attacks the way that Israelis in southern Israel are.
Going back to what we did on Friday: we set the alarm early again, ate some breakfast, and then walked to Shir Hadash for the morning service. We arrived around 8:15 and the service ended before 8:45-8:50. It felt good to have said the Mourner's Kaddish 3 days in a row. (I have tried to go to minyan for Dad in Cambridge, but it's been hard to coordinate it. I make sure to go at least twice a week though.) After the service ended, the WK and I met with Rabbi Pear, the spiritual leader of Shir Hadash. I just realized that I think I hadn't written in the blog that one of the reasons the WK and I are here is to do some preparation and arranging for the WK to become a Bar Mitzvah in Jerusalem in April 2015. The WK had requested of Pentheus and me that he become a Bar Mitzvah in Israel and specifically at Shir Hadash. We had done some emailing with Rabbi Pear about our general plans, but hadn't discussed specifics. We wanted to do more than just meet with the Rabbi here - we wanted to re-strengthen (I know that is not a word) the WK's connection with Jerusalem - we didn't want the WK to go from Dec 2012 (when we left last time) until April 2015 without being in Israel and feeling connected again to Jerusalem. The meeting with Rabbi Pear went well, and we discussed what the service(s) might be like, where we could have meals for out-of-town guests (and I guess, Israeli guests, too). Rabbi Pear asked the WK some questions and they talked for a little bit about what it means to become a Bar-Mitzvah. They discussed the Torah portion that the WK will chant and the opportunities the WK will have to give a dvar torah (word of Torah) - to offer his insights and thoughts on what the Torah portion means, especially to us today. We also discussed where the women may sit and how women can participate in the Bar-Mitzvah overall. We will definitely continue to be in touch with Rabbi Pear, as our plans progress, but it felt good, although overwhelming, to think about all of the details that will need to be finalized.
From Shir Hadash, the WK and I returned to the hotel for a while. We both had terrible headaches, probably from the heat (although we really have been drinking a lot of water) and lack of sleep. We relaxed for a while - I think the WK read a little, and we watched some TV. We left the hotel for a late lunch at Tomas Masyrk, an Italian restaurant on Emek Refaim. (The WK has had plain pasta from almost every restaurant in the German Colony!) We took a walk to Gan Hapaamon (Liberty Park) and watched the people there. Gan Hapaamon has a Skate Park where people of all ages, although mostly teens and early twenties, rollerblade and skateboard. The WK watched some men play soccer, and he played a little at the "exercise stations" in the Park. We wandered through Hatachana Harishona (the First Station), a sort of outdoor amusement park with games, rides, snack food, and water park, right at the end of Emek Refaim, across the street from Gan Hapaamon. We then went to the hotel to prepare for Shabbat.
I was initially a bit upset that the WK and I have been spending some time in the hotel each day, but eventually learned to let it go. We've been up early most days, and if we are hot, tired, and cranky, we won't appreciate where we are and what we're doing. We've tried to do something "historical" and/or "touristy" each day, as well as to do everyday things, like eat out, take walks, etc. I think we're both pleased with the decisions we've made about what to do. It really has been a great chofesh (vacation) so far!
Next post will be about Shabbat and leaving Jerusalem!
We also talked to the family about the matzav ("situation") in southern Israel, including in Beer Sheva where they live. They think that Prime Minister Netanyahu is making the right decisions about what force to use with Hamas in Gaza. The woman said that if Netanyahu strikes too hard, that the other terrorist groups (like Hezbollah, ISIS, etc.) will come together, and that the whole conflict will start over again. They think there will be about two weeks left of the war and that there will be some sort of "permanent' cease-fire until there is a haskem ("agreement'). They were upset that many people in Jerusalem think the government should take out Hamas and use stronger offense against Hamas in Gaza. It was interesting that they thought that, considering the population in Jerusalem is certainly not subject to rocket attacks the way that Israelis in southern Israel are.
Going back to what we did on Friday: we set the alarm early again, ate some breakfast, and then walked to Shir Hadash for the morning service. We arrived around 8:15 and the service ended before 8:45-8:50. It felt good to have said the Mourner's Kaddish 3 days in a row. (I have tried to go to minyan for Dad in Cambridge, but it's been hard to coordinate it. I make sure to go at least twice a week though.) After the service ended, the WK and I met with Rabbi Pear, the spiritual leader of Shir Hadash. I just realized that I think I hadn't written in the blog that one of the reasons the WK and I are here is to do some preparation and arranging for the WK to become a Bar Mitzvah in Jerusalem in April 2015. The WK had requested of Pentheus and me that he become a Bar Mitzvah in Israel and specifically at Shir Hadash. We had done some emailing with Rabbi Pear about our general plans, but hadn't discussed specifics. We wanted to do more than just meet with the Rabbi here - we wanted to re-strengthen (I know that is not a word) the WK's connection with Jerusalem - we didn't want the WK to go from Dec 2012 (when we left last time) until April 2015 without being in Israel and feeling connected again to Jerusalem. The meeting with Rabbi Pear went well, and we discussed what the service(s) might be like, where we could have meals for out-of-town guests (and I guess, Israeli guests, too). Rabbi Pear asked the WK some questions and they talked for a little bit about what it means to become a Bar-Mitzvah. They discussed the Torah portion that the WK will chant and the opportunities the WK will have to give a dvar torah (word of Torah) - to offer his insights and thoughts on what the Torah portion means, especially to us today. We also discussed where the women may sit and how women can participate in the Bar-Mitzvah overall. We will definitely continue to be in touch with Rabbi Pear, as our plans progress, but it felt good, although overwhelming, to think about all of the details that will need to be finalized.
From Shir Hadash, the WK and I returned to the hotel for a while. We both had terrible headaches, probably from the heat (although we really have been drinking a lot of water) and lack of sleep. We relaxed for a while - I think the WK read a little, and we watched some TV. We left the hotel for a late lunch at Tomas Masyrk, an Italian restaurant on Emek Refaim. (The WK has had plain pasta from almost every restaurant in the German Colony!) We took a walk to Gan Hapaamon (Liberty Park) and watched the people there. Gan Hapaamon has a Skate Park where people of all ages, although mostly teens and early twenties, rollerblade and skateboard. The WK watched some men play soccer, and he played a little at the "exercise stations" in the Park. We wandered through Hatachana Harishona (the First Station), a sort of outdoor amusement park with games, rides, snack food, and water park, right at the end of Emek Refaim, across the street from Gan Hapaamon. We then went to the hotel to prepare for Shabbat.
I was initially a bit upset that the WK and I have been spending some time in the hotel each day, but eventually learned to let it go. We've been up early most days, and if we are hot, tired, and cranky, we won't appreciate where we are and what we're doing. We've tried to do something "historical" and/or "touristy" each day, as well as to do everyday things, like eat out, take walks, etc. I think we're both pleased with the decisions we've made about what to do. It really has been a great chofesh (vacation) so far!
Next post will be about Shabbat and leaving Jerusalem!
Saturday, August 23, 2014
A Shofar, Begin Bobblehead Keychain, and Sushi - Must Be Thursday!
It is very late on Saturday night, but I want to write a bit more. I don't like being behind on the blog, especially because we are only here for 10 days total. A bunch of stories and ideas are running through my head, and I don't want to forget to get them out!
Thursday morning, the WK and I got up early again, had some breakfast, and made it to the synagogue by 8:15 for the morning service. I was more composed during the Mourner's Kaddish, and spent the service thinking about when my Dad visited us here in Israel in 2012. Dad was in Israel with us for almost 3weeks, and I remember how excited he was that we were here. I felt good when Dad told me that not only was he was impressed with my Hebrew skills, but that he was impressed that I was continually trying to speak Hebrew and to learn more vocabulary. Dad said that some of his friends thought we were crazy for living in Israel for 5 months. When Dad's friends asked him if he agreed with them (that we were crazy), Dad said that he didn't think we were nuts - we were Zionists. Dad did a lot of hiking with us, and even when the going was slow, Dad enjoyed the adventure and being with the WK and the CK.
After synagogue, the WK and I took a bus downtown. From the center of downtown, we took the light rail 2 stops up to Machaneh Yehudah, the outdoor market. We had such fun roaming the alley ways. We bought four kilos (8.8 pounds) of gummies to take back to the States. some gifts for family members, and even a couple of things for ourselves. Being at Machaneh Yehudah is always a trip - from the cut-up chicken parts on display, to barrels and barrels of spices, to live fish for the choosing (and killing), to gift shops, huge displays of fresh vegetables, plus all of the bargaining that goes on.
We walked back down from Machaneh Yehudah and did some more shopping. We stopped at a store that had a huge sign in front "Big Discount for Brave Tourist!" (I can't figure out how to put pictures in the blog this time, so you'll have to take my word for it!) When we walked in, the shop owner remembered me - he told me that he remembered my sister and my coming in to buy a ring with her Hebrew name and about what we had talked to him. Not sure if I am flattered or nervous... While at the shop, the WK wore me down and I agreed to buy him a shofar (http://judaism.about.com/od/holidays/a/whatisashofar.htm). G-d help me when we have to hear it for the next 4+ weeks. We took the bus back from downtown (that was the eventful bus trip about which I wrote the other day), grabbed some lunch, and hung out in our hotel room for a while. We really needed the rest and some downtime.
At 4:00, the WK and I had a reservation for an English tour of the Begin Center. The Begin Center is set up kind of like a time travel through Begin's life, starting from being born in Europe and losing family members in the Holocaust to becoming a Zionist to coming Israel to be an underground fighter to help establish the State of Israel. Of course, there was a huge section on the peace accords with Anwar Sadat of Egypt at Camp David with then-President Carter. Begin's life and principles were fascinating, and we enjoyed the Begin Center. I, of course, had to buy something at the gift shop: I added to my mug collection and also purchased a kind of miniature Begin bobblehead key chain. (Yeah, that's what I wrote...)
Thursday night, the WK and I met my friend, Jessie Montell, and her kids for sushi dinner. As always, it was great to see Jessie and to catch up. Jessie is starting a fellowship at Hebrew University next month; she will be researching the history of human rights in Israel over the past few decades. At the end of dinner, a woman at the next table turned around to look at us because she said our voices were familiar. Turns out it was our friend, Brenda, in whose book group I had been when we were living in Jerusalem. It was so funny to see her, especially because she had commented "Welcome" on Facebook after my entry about the azaka on Tuesday night. Small world, indeed!
Jessie's family, the WK, and I bought some gleeda (ice-cream) down the street from the sushi place, and ate our ice-cream on the old train tracks behind Emek Refaim Street. The boys got along wonderfully, and it was so nice just to sit and talk. I definitely miss Jessie when I am in the States!
Thursday morning, the WK and I got up early again, had some breakfast, and made it to the synagogue by 8:15 for the morning service. I was more composed during the Mourner's Kaddish, and spent the service thinking about when my Dad visited us here in Israel in 2012. Dad was in Israel with us for almost 3weeks, and I remember how excited he was that we were here. I felt good when Dad told me that not only was he was impressed with my Hebrew skills, but that he was impressed that I was continually trying to speak Hebrew and to learn more vocabulary. Dad said that some of his friends thought we were crazy for living in Israel for 5 months. When Dad's friends asked him if he agreed with them (that we were crazy), Dad said that he didn't think we were nuts - we were Zionists. Dad did a lot of hiking with us, and even when the going was slow, Dad enjoyed the adventure and being with the WK and the CK.
After synagogue, the WK and I took a bus downtown. From the center of downtown, we took the light rail 2 stops up to Machaneh Yehudah, the outdoor market. We had such fun roaming the alley ways. We bought four kilos (8.8 pounds) of gummies to take back to the States. some gifts for family members, and even a couple of things for ourselves. Being at Machaneh Yehudah is always a trip - from the cut-up chicken parts on display, to barrels and barrels of spices, to live fish for the choosing (and killing), to gift shops, huge displays of fresh vegetables, plus all of the bargaining that goes on.
We walked back down from Machaneh Yehudah and did some more shopping. We stopped at a store that had a huge sign in front "Big Discount for Brave Tourist!" (I can't figure out how to put pictures in the blog this time, so you'll have to take my word for it!) When we walked in, the shop owner remembered me - he told me that he remembered my sister and my coming in to buy a ring with her Hebrew name and about what we had talked to him. Not sure if I am flattered or nervous... While at the shop, the WK wore me down and I agreed to buy him a shofar (http://judaism.about.com/od/holidays/a/whatisashofar.htm). G-d help me when we have to hear it for the next 4+ weeks. We took the bus back from downtown (that was the eventful bus trip about which I wrote the other day), grabbed some lunch, and hung out in our hotel room for a while. We really needed the rest and some downtime.
At 4:00, the WK and I had a reservation for an English tour of the Begin Center. The Begin Center is set up kind of like a time travel through Begin's life, starting from being born in Europe and losing family members in the Holocaust to becoming a Zionist to coming Israel to be an underground fighter to help establish the State of Israel. Of course, there was a huge section on the peace accords with Anwar Sadat of Egypt at Camp David with then-President Carter. Begin's life and principles were fascinating, and we enjoyed the Begin Center. I, of course, had to buy something at the gift shop: I added to my mug collection and also purchased a kind of miniature Begin bobblehead key chain. (Yeah, that's what I wrote...)
Thursday night, the WK and I met my friend, Jessie Montell, and her kids for sushi dinner. As always, it was great to see Jessie and to catch up. Jessie is starting a fellowship at Hebrew University next month; she will be researching the history of human rights in Israel over the past few decades. At the end of dinner, a woman at the next table turned around to look at us because she said our voices were familiar. Turns out it was our friend, Brenda, in whose book group I had been when we were living in Jerusalem. It was so funny to see her, especially because she had commented "Welcome" on Facebook after my entry about the azaka on Tuesday night. Small world, indeed!
Jessie's family, the WK, and I bought some gleeda (ice-cream) down the street from the sushi place, and ate our ice-cream on the old train tracks behind Emek Refaim Street. The boys got along wonderfully, and it was so nice just to sit and talk. I definitely miss Jessie when I am in the States!
Wednesday, Wednesday (a few days late)
It's almost 5:30 Friday afternoon, and I have some time to write before we leave for synagogue for Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath, which starts shortly before sundown on Friday night and ends after sundown on Saturday night) evening services and then Shabbat dinner with Rabbi Pear of our synagogue here and his family. At the moment, we are watching "Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince" on cable TV in English with Hebrew subtitles.
So, to catch up on the last few days... We've been doing so much walking around (my FitBit is registering in the 14-17,000 range each day!) during the day and going to sleep later than usual at night that it really has been hard to get up in the morning! Wednesday morning, we did manage to get up and ready, eat breakfast, and make it to synagogue for services by around 8:15 am. We went to Shir Hadash (literally, "New Song"), the synagogue we joined when we lived here for 5 months in 2012. We were welcomed warmly, and it was great to see some familiar faces.
As many of you know, my Dad passed away in mid-June, and, according to Jewish tradition, I am in mourning period for the year following his death. One of the mourning actions involves saying the Mourner's Kaddish. (See http://divreiwek.blogspot.co.il/2012/09/merle-barbara-weiner-wekstein-zl.html for more information on the Mourner's Kaddish.) At any rate, I was the only woman at the service, and one of only 2-3 people who was in mourning. I'm emotional enough on a regular basis, but add being in Jerusalem again and grieving for my Dad, and it's not hard to believe that I was crying during the prayer. I made it through the Kaddish, and when the service ended, several of our friends came to me to ask for whom I was saying Kaddish. My Dad had visited us in Israel and had been to synagogue with us several times. It felt good to talk about Dad and share the grief, if only for a little while. What was weird was that I hadn't seen or spoken to any of these people in almost 20 months, but, still, I was comforted. Just as Rabbi Pear had asked me for whom I was mourning in Sept 2012, these people asked me for whom I was mourning now.
After services, the WK and I walked around the old 'hood for a while. We visited our old dira (apartment) and even saw our next door neighbors, who had just returned from a trip to London. It was great to see them and to catch up - it felt as if no time had passed. The WK and I then walked to the boys' old school, the Henrietta Szold, about 15 minutes from the dira. Although school doesn't start until September 1, we were thrilled that the principal of the school and the gym teacher (who had been the coach of the WK's soccer team) were meeting to prepare for the next year. When we walked into the office, they recognized us immediately and kept saying in Hebrew how sweet it was of us to come visit! They, of course, asked after the CK as well. We chatted for a bit with them, and it was really nice.
The WK and I then took my oft-walked route up HaG'dud Ha'Ivri Street and then down Palmach Street to Cafe Duvshaneet, my favorite coffee house in Jerusalem (and quite possibly in the world, too). Uriel, the owner, instantly recognized me and welcomed me back to the Cafe. The WK and I had a danish and some natool and read the day's Jerusalem Post (in English) to catch up on the news.We were both tired and hot, and it was delightful to sit and read in the Cafe.
It's now late Saturday afternoon when I am continuing this post. I didn't have a chance to publish this before we went to Shabbat services. At services last night, though, I realized that I realized that I hadn't yet mentioned the azaka (siren) that went off about midnight Tuesday night. You'd think that having a rocket aimed at my son and me would be something I would remember to put in the blog! The WK and I had come back to the hotel after dinner at Roza's and, although we were exhausted, we were trying to unwind after a busy day. We finally fell asleep around 11:30 or so, and I woke up to a long, monotone, high-pitched sound. It took me a few seconds to realize that it was an azaka and that we needed to get up and to a safe place. I heard a lot of people outside our hotel door, and when I opened the door, the majority of hotel guests were there, all of us in our pajamas. It turns out that there is no heder mugan ("protected room") in the hotel or a miklat (shelter) nearby. Because the hotel building is many years old, there was no building code in place then (like there is now) that required there to be a designated area. The safest place in our hotel is either under the stairs against the far wall (away from the windows) or under the stairs on the first floor. Everyone was very calm and almost blase about the azaka. Everyone else was Israeli, I think, and they were talking amongst themselves about how the hafsakat-aish (cease-fire) had been broken. After a few minutes, everyone went back into the rooms. When I woke up on Wednesday morning, it was almost as if I had dreamed the entire thing. The WK barely remembered the azaka. I haven't decided whether that is good or not. Certainly, thank G-d, we (and everyone else in Jerusalem) were okay, although they did find pieces of shrapnel shot down by Iron Dome on Derech Hevron (Hebron Street) a few blocks from the hotel.
So, anyway, now back to late Wednesday morning at Cafe Duvshaneet.... I had planned to take the WK to Yad Vashem (the Holocaust Memorial and Museum or "Hand and Name" literally). It would be a huge understatement to say that Yad Vashem is an intense experience - a museum filled with photographs, histories, artifacts, stories, etc. about the Holocaust. We wouldn't have gone with the kids when were here in 2012 because both boys were too young. The WK is almost 12 1/2, and he's old enough probably to understand (as much as anyone can understand) what he is seeing. However, while we sat in the Cafe, I decided it wasn't a good idea to bring the WK there. He didn't need to see that yet, and I asked if it would be okay if we went somewhere else instead.
I pulled out my phone to see if there were tours of the Knesset (Israeli parliament) available for that day, but, unfortunately, the Knesset was not in session and the building is being renovated. I looked up the Israeli Supreme Court to see what its hours were. There was a tour in English slated to begin in an hour, so we decided to go to that. We took a cab over to the Israeli Supreme Court, which is next to the Knesset and near the Bird Sanctuary where the CK had been with his guitar teacher right before we left Israel in Dec 2012. In the cab ride over, we chatted with the driver in Hebrew. When I mentioned that we had wanted to go to the Knesset, he commented that the Knesset was filled with ganavim v'shakranim (thieves and liars) anyways, so it was better to go to the Supreme Court!
The Supreme Court is a beautiful building - Jerusalem stone, lots of windows, natural light streaming in. We were on a tour with 2 OU (Orthodox Union) Birthright (http://www.birthrightisrael.com/) groups. As I looked at those "kids" it made me think about my first trip to Israel in 1985 when I was 18. A French couple and an orthodox man from Williamsport, PA joined us on the tour. Our guide was very knowledgeable, but it was clear from what he said that there was a spin to his tour. He mentioned Supreme Court cases that involved controversial issues and "left-wing" topics, including Palestinian rights, Women of the Wall, payment to settlers who have left areas turned over to the Palestinian Authority, etc. He talked about how all of the natural light and windows are intentionally symbolic of the "transparency" of the Israeli government and rules of law. It was as if our guide couldn't possibly imply that Israeli society or law was flawed in any way, despite the many difficult issues involved. We enjoyed the tour a lot. We had hoped to sit in on a session, but, unfortunately, the Court was not hearing cases then. (For those of you who are interested, there are up to 15 Supreme Court Justices in the Israeli Supreme Court. A minimum of 3 Justices hear a case, but for big issues or complex cases, the Chief Justice can order that up to 15 of the Justices preside. Currently, there are 3 female Justices, although until 2 months ago when one of the female Justices retired, there were 4 out of 15.)
Wednesday night, the WK and I walked to our old favorite "fast food" place, Mana v'Hetzi ("Manna and a Half), for schwarma and lemonade. We then bought some gummies from another store in the shopping strip and hopped into a cab to meet our friends for a game of Mini Golf Extreme on the roof of a shopping mall in the Talpiyot neighborhood of Jerusalem. The mini golf course was in terrible condition, and we were the only people there, but we had a great time. We cabbed back to the hotel and went to sleep. It was the end of another long day!
(Yikes, I am only up to Thursday - more later, I hope!)
So, to catch up on the last few days... We've been doing so much walking around (my FitBit is registering in the 14-17,000 range each day!) during the day and going to sleep later than usual at night that it really has been hard to get up in the morning! Wednesday morning, we did manage to get up and ready, eat breakfast, and make it to synagogue for services by around 8:15 am. We went to Shir Hadash (literally, "New Song"), the synagogue we joined when we lived here for 5 months in 2012. We were welcomed warmly, and it was great to see some familiar faces.
As many of you know, my Dad passed away in mid-June, and, according to Jewish tradition, I am in mourning period for the year following his death. One of the mourning actions involves saying the Mourner's Kaddish. (See http://divreiwek.blogspot.co.il/2012/09/merle-barbara-weiner-wekstein-zl.html for more information on the Mourner's Kaddish.) At any rate, I was the only woman at the service, and one of only 2-3 people who was in mourning. I'm emotional enough on a regular basis, but add being in Jerusalem again and grieving for my Dad, and it's not hard to believe that I was crying during the prayer. I made it through the Kaddish, and when the service ended, several of our friends came to me to ask for whom I was saying Kaddish. My Dad had visited us in Israel and had been to synagogue with us several times. It felt good to talk about Dad and share the grief, if only for a little while. What was weird was that I hadn't seen or spoken to any of these people in almost 20 months, but, still, I was comforted. Just as Rabbi Pear had asked me for whom I was mourning in Sept 2012, these people asked me for whom I was mourning now.
After services, the WK and I walked around the old 'hood for a while. We visited our old dira (apartment) and even saw our next door neighbors, who had just returned from a trip to London. It was great to see them and to catch up - it felt as if no time had passed. The WK and I then walked to the boys' old school, the Henrietta Szold, about 15 minutes from the dira. Although school doesn't start until September 1, we were thrilled that the principal of the school and the gym teacher (who had been the coach of the WK's soccer team) were meeting to prepare for the next year. When we walked into the office, they recognized us immediately and kept saying in Hebrew how sweet it was of us to come visit! They, of course, asked after the CK as well. We chatted for a bit with them, and it was really nice.
The WK and I then took my oft-walked route up HaG'dud Ha'Ivri Street and then down Palmach Street to Cafe Duvshaneet, my favorite coffee house in Jerusalem (and quite possibly in the world, too). Uriel, the owner, instantly recognized me and welcomed me back to the Cafe. The WK and I had a danish and some natool and read the day's Jerusalem Post (in English) to catch up on the news.We were both tired and hot, and it was delightful to sit and read in the Cafe.
It's now late Saturday afternoon when I am continuing this post. I didn't have a chance to publish this before we went to Shabbat services. At services last night, though, I realized that I realized that I hadn't yet mentioned the azaka (siren) that went off about midnight Tuesday night. You'd think that having a rocket aimed at my son and me would be something I would remember to put in the blog! The WK and I had come back to the hotel after dinner at Roza's and, although we were exhausted, we were trying to unwind after a busy day. We finally fell asleep around 11:30 or so, and I woke up to a long, monotone, high-pitched sound. It took me a few seconds to realize that it was an azaka and that we needed to get up and to a safe place. I heard a lot of people outside our hotel door, and when I opened the door, the majority of hotel guests were there, all of us in our pajamas. It turns out that there is no heder mugan ("protected room") in the hotel or a miklat (shelter) nearby. Because the hotel building is many years old, there was no building code in place then (like there is now) that required there to be a designated area. The safest place in our hotel is either under the stairs against the far wall (away from the windows) or under the stairs on the first floor. Everyone was very calm and almost blase about the azaka. Everyone else was Israeli, I think, and they were talking amongst themselves about how the hafsakat-aish (cease-fire) had been broken. After a few minutes, everyone went back into the rooms. When I woke up on Wednesday morning, it was almost as if I had dreamed the entire thing. The WK barely remembered the azaka. I haven't decided whether that is good or not. Certainly, thank G-d, we (and everyone else in Jerusalem) were okay, although they did find pieces of shrapnel shot down by Iron Dome on Derech Hevron (Hebron Street) a few blocks from the hotel.
So, anyway, now back to late Wednesday morning at Cafe Duvshaneet.... I had planned to take the WK to Yad Vashem (the Holocaust Memorial and Museum or "Hand and Name" literally). It would be a huge understatement to say that Yad Vashem is an intense experience - a museum filled with photographs, histories, artifacts, stories, etc. about the Holocaust. We wouldn't have gone with the kids when were here in 2012 because both boys were too young. The WK is almost 12 1/2, and he's old enough probably to understand (as much as anyone can understand) what he is seeing. However, while we sat in the Cafe, I decided it wasn't a good idea to bring the WK there. He didn't need to see that yet, and I asked if it would be okay if we went somewhere else instead.
I pulled out my phone to see if there were tours of the Knesset (Israeli parliament) available for that day, but, unfortunately, the Knesset was not in session and the building is being renovated. I looked up the Israeli Supreme Court to see what its hours were. There was a tour in English slated to begin in an hour, so we decided to go to that. We took a cab over to the Israeli Supreme Court, which is next to the Knesset and near the Bird Sanctuary where the CK had been with his guitar teacher right before we left Israel in Dec 2012. In the cab ride over, we chatted with the driver in Hebrew. When I mentioned that we had wanted to go to the Knesset, he commented that the Knesset was filled with ganavim v'shakranim (thieves and liars) anyways, so it was better to go to the Supreme Court!
The Supreme Court is a beautiful building - Jerusalem stone, lots of windows, natural light streaming in. We were on a tour with 2 OU (Orthodox Union) Birthright (http://www.birthrightisrael.com/) groups. As I looked at those "kids" it made me think about my first trip to Israel in 1985 when I was 18. A French couple and an orthodox man from Williamsport, PA joined us on the tour. Our guide was very knowledgeable, but it was clear from what he said that there was a spin to his tour. He mentioned Supreme Court cases that involved controversial issues and "left-wing" topics, including Palestinian rights, Women of the Wall, payment to settlers who have left areas turned over to the Palestinian Authority, etc. He talked about how all of the natural light and windows are intentionally symbolic of the "transparency" of the Israeli government and rules of law. It was as if our guide couldn't possibly imply that Israeli society or law was flawed in any way, despite the many difficult issues involved. We enjoyed the tour a lot. We had hoped to sit in on a session, but, unfortunately, the Court was not hearing cases then. (For those of you who are interested, there are up to 15 Supreme Court Justices in the Israeli Supreme Court. A minimum of 3 Justices hear a case, but for big issues or complex cases, the Chief Justice can order that up to 15 of the Justices preside. Currently, there are 3 female Justices, although until 2 months ago when one of the female Justices retired, there were 4 out of 15.)
Wednesday night, the WK and I walked to our old favorite "fast food" place, Mana v'Hetzi ("Manna and a Half), for schwarma and lemonade. We then bought some gummies from another store in the shopping strip and hopped into a cab to meet our friends for a game of Mini Golf Extreme on the roof of a shopping mall in the Talpiyot neighborhood of Jerusalem. The mini golf course was in terrible condition, and we were the only people there, but we had a great time. We cabbed back to the hotel and went to sleep. It was the end of another long day!
(Yikes, I am only up to Thursday - more later, I hope!)
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Taking City Buses
It's now Thursday afternoon in Jerusalem. I didn't blog yesterday but will try to catch up today. Before I do that, though, I want to write about the experience of taking city buses in Jerusalem. There have been periods, particularly during the first and second intifadah (1987-93 and 2000-05), when many thought it might not have been wise to travel via city buses. I initially was going to list some Google references about the intifada, but decided not to do so. Every reference had a political spin and a "simple" analysis would be impossible. Anyway, although there is certainly political instability and Operation Protective Edge is not over, Pentheus and I discussed whether the WK and I would be taking buses in Jerusalem. We decided we were not worried about the buses, so the WK and I have been taking them. We even had a few bus fares left on the old rav kav (literally "many lines" but think along the lines of a bus pass or a Charlie Card in Boston)! By the way, bus fare is almost 7 shekels (about $2).
After a lot of shopping downtown, the WK and I were waiting at a bus stop to take a bus back to the hotel. We were sitting on the bench at the stop with a few other people, most of whom were older women. An elderly man walked by holding out an empty can of Coke Zero (not important to the story, but I figured people might be interested to know that there is Coke Zero in Israel, too) and begging for money. When he asked one of the elderly women for money, she responded, "Lama," meaning "why"? His response back to her, "l'ochel" ("for food"). Her final retort, "Ayn l'cha yeladeem?" ("don't you have children")? The whole conversation took about 1 minute, but it really struck me. First of all, I've not heard someone question a beggar as to why he/she needed the money (although I guess if I am honest with myself, sometimes I think that when a beggar asks for money, I perhaps inappropriately wonder if the money will be used for alcohol or cigarettes.) And, the fact that the woman inquired about the beggar's children meant to me that helping the man was the responsibility of his children, not her responsibility. It just made me think about the mindset.
A few minutes later, when the #77 bus arrived, the WK and I boarded on the bus. We were struggling to carry our packages (I did write that we did a lot of shopping!), and I had a hot, full cup of natool to manage as well. I had a lot of coins in my pockets (Israeli shekels come in 1, 2, 5, and 10 shekel coins). I tried to navigate getting the WK and me on the bus. While carrying the packages, shifting the natool from hand to hand, and after giving the bus driver the money, I needed to get some change from the driver. The WK put his hand out to take the change from the driver to help me, and I put my hand out as well. The driver didn't see the WK's hand, and when I took my hand away, the coins fell on the bus floor while other passengers were still getting on. I said to the bus driver, "ayn ba'aya" ("no problem"), meaning that I would lean down to pick up the change because I knew I had made him drop it. The bus driver looked straight at me, and said to me in not a very pleasant voice, "Gveret, yaish ba'aya! Ba'aya gadol!" ("Lady, it's a problem! Big problem") The driver was not very happy with me. Not sure why but the WK and I both thought it was hilarious, and the bus driver liked us even less when we burst out laughing!
The WK and I made it back to the hotel (with only minor burns to my hand because of the natool!) around 1 or 1:30. We ate a small snack and watched a bit of television while we rested a little. We spoke to Pentheus and the CK for a few minutes, and it was great to hear their voices. (We have really missed them this trip. The WK and I keep remembering things that happened when the whole family was here, and we're sad that we are reminiscing without them.)
We're going to leave the hotel in a few minutes to arrive on time for our 4 pm English tour of the Begin Center (as in Menachem Begin, a former Prime Minister of Israel).The Begin Center, located near Gan HaPa'amon (Liberty Park), a public park just at the end of Emek Refaim, is kind of like a President's Library (think Bush's Library in Texas or the JFK Museum in Boston). The Begin Center has an educational center, a museum, and a place for lectures/events. We are looking forward to going there.
After the Begin Center tour, the WK and I are meeting my friend, Jessie. who recently left her position as the Executive Director of B'tselem (http://www.btselem.org/), and her twin sons at Sushi Rehavia for a sushi dinner. Jessie and I have known each other since I was 16, and we were roommates when I was on an Israel program in 1985-86 (between high school and college for those of you who are trying to do the math!) Jessie and I have stayed close friends, and I saw her a lot when we were here in 2012. I am looking forward to this evening! More later!
After a lot of shopping downtown, the WK and I were waiting at a bus stop to take a bus back to the hotel. We were sitting on the bench at the stop with a few other people, most of whom were older women. An elderly man walked by holding out an empty can of Coke Zero (not important to the story, but I figured people might be interested to know that there is Coke Zero in Israel, too) and begging for money. When he asked one of the elderly women for money, she responded, "Lama," meaning "why"? His response back to her, "l'ochel" ("for food"). Her final retort, "Ayn l'cha yeladeem?" ("don't you have children")? The whole conversation took about 1 minute, but it really struck me. First of all, I've not heard someone question a beggar as to why he/she needed the money (although I guess if I am honest with myself, sometimes I think that when a beggar asks for money, I perhaps inappropriately wonder if the money will be used for alcohol or cigarettes.) And, the fact that the woman inquired about the beggar's children meant to me that helping the man was the responsibility of his children, not her responsibility. It just made me think about the mindset.
A few minutes later, when the #77 bus arrived, the WK and I boarded on the bus. We were struggling to carry our packages (I did write that we did a lot of shopping!), and I had a hot, full cup of natool to manage as well. I had a lot of coins in my pockets (Israeli shekels come in 1, 2, 5, and 10 shekel coins). I tried to navigate getting the WK and me on the bus. While carrying the packages, shifting the natool from hand to hand, and after giving the bus driver the money, I needed to get some change from the driver. The WK put his hand out to take the change from the driver to help me, and I put my hand out as well. The driver didn't see the WK's hand, and when I took my hand away, the coins fell on the bus floor while other passengers were still getting on. I said to the bus driver, "ayn ba'aya" ("no problem"), meaning that I would lean down to pick up the change because I knew I had made him drop it. The bus driver looked straight at me, and said to me in not a very pleasant voice, "Gveret, yaish ba'aya! Ba'aya gadol!" ("Lady, it's a problem! Big problem") The driver was not very happy with me. Not sure why but the WK and I both thought it was hilarious, and the bus driver liked us even less when we burst out laughing!
The WK and I made it back to the hotel (with only minor burns to my hand because of the natool!) around 1 or 1:30. We ate a small snack and watched a bit of television while we rested a little. We spoke to Pentheus and the CK for a few minutes, and it was great to hear their voices. (We have really missed them this trip. The WK and I keep remembering things that happened when the whole family was here, and we're sad that we are reminiscing without them.)
We're going to leave the hotel in a few minutes to arrive on time for our 4 pm English tour of the Begin Center (as in Menachem Begin, a former Prime Minister of Israel).The Begin Center, located near Gan HaPa'amon (Liberty Park), a public park just at the end of Emek Refaim, is kind of like a President's Library (think Bush's Library in Texas or the JFK Museum in Boston). The Begin Center has an educational center, a museum, and a place for lectures/events. We are looking forward to going there.
After the Begin Center tour, the WK and I are meeting my friend, Jessie. who recently left her position as the Executive Director of B'tselem (http://www.btselem.org/), and her twin sons at Sushi Rehavia for a sushi dinner. Jessie and I have known each other since I was 16, and we were roommates when I was on an Israel program in 1985-86 (between high school and college for those of you who are trying to do the math!) Jessie and I have stayed close friends, and I saw her a lot when we were here in 2012. I am looking forward to this evening! More later!
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Hello from Jerusalem!
Hello from Jerusalem! The WK and I arrived yesterday afternoon after an uneventful, if tiring, trip from Boston. We are flying Lufthansa for this trip, and I have no complaints so far. The WK was psyched because on the flight from Boston to Frankfurt, each seat had its own entertainment screen. The WK watched three movies - Mr. Peabody and Sherman; Muppets Most Wanted, and Planes. For some reason they didn't have a kids meal for him, so instead they gave him the grown up meal and FIVE small bags of candy. You can imagine how devastated the WK was... I watched Divergent and read some magazines and a book on my Kindle. We had a 4 hour layover in Frankfurt, and we were exhausted. We fell asleep on some chairs that looked like lawnchairs (but padded with pillows - pretty comfy, actually), but I was very nervous we would sleep too long. I set an alarm but ended up waking up every 20 minutes anyway. We boarded our connecting flight around 9:30 am Frankfurt time and landed in Tel Aviv around 3:15 Israel time. We both slept almost the entire second flight until just before we landed. We were sitting next to a man who is spending the next 2-3 years in Madison with his wife and children, and it was interesting to get his take on what's happening in Israel right now, especially because he has been hearing about it primarily via non-Israeli media.
After landing, we went through Passport Control with no problems. We got our luggage and headed to catch a ride to Jerusalem. We took a sheiroot - a large, shared taxi with room for 10 passengers. It's 64 shekels (a little more than $18/person). We only had 9 passengers for a long time, and we ended up each paying an extra 6 shekels, so that the driver would go already. We got a nice tour of Jerusalem in the sheirut. We were dropped off last, so we saw a lot of the city along the way. The WK and I were glad about that though; we kind of remembered places as we drove around. We arrived at the hotel (Little House in the Colony on Lloyd George Street) around 6-ish, checked in, and went to get some dinner along Emek Refaim, the main drag in the German Colony, where our hotel is.
I set the alarm to wake us up at 7:10, so we could get up, eat breakfast, and go to our synagogue we joined when we were here in 2012 for an 8:15 am service. We both woke up when the alarm went off, and I asked the WK if we should sleep a bit longer or start our day. The WK suggested we sleep a bit more (I knew there was a reason I brought him on the trip!!), and the next thing we knew it was after 10 am! We hopped on the 77A bus and went downtown to look around, do errands (like figure out the cell phone), and buy some presents. It was so much fun just to walk around downtown Jerusalem again! We did a lot of reminiscing of when we were here last, and probably bought too many things.
We did accomplish our main task of the day, which was to buy t'fillin for the WK to use when he becomes a Bar-Mitzvah at age 13. http://www.myjewishlearning.com/practices/Ritual/Prayer/Ritual_Garb/Tefillin_Phylacteries_.shtml It was a neat experience. We went to a store called Sofer (which means "scribe" in Hebrew) where everyone told us to go. The man wrapped the leather appropriately and measured using the WK's head to make sure it was long enough. I had also brought my great-great-grandfather's t'fillin from Cambridge to have it checked to see if it is still "kosher" - if all the letters in the parchment are still readable and accurate and if the leather boxes that "house' the parchment are intact. Unfortunately (and as I had expected), the old t'fillin is not usable. The WK can still use the velvet bag that Grandpa Harry's t'fillin was in, and that will be special.
Tonight we dined with good friends from Cambridge who are also in Israel for vacation. It was great to see them and eat with them in Jerusalem! Very special. While we were sitting on a bench and waiting for them to arrive at the restaurant, a man came up to me and said my name. Turns out it was a friend from 14 years ago in Boston! He is now married with a family, and they are here for a couple of weeks vacation as well. It was so fun to catch up with him, and, of course, so funny to run into him here in Jerusalem. And, while I was catching up with him, another woman who had been in my ulpan (intensive Hebrew class) 2 years ago came up to me as well. I am not sure whether the WK was impressed or embarrassed (probably both) that I saw 2 people I knew within about 5 minutes! Dinner was good. We walked with the other family to buy an artik (the generic name for an Israeli popsicle/ice-cream bar) for each kid and some water for all of us. (It's very hot here - upper 80s to 90 today.)
Just so it's clear, the WK and I are, of course, bummed that Pentheus and the CK aren't with us on this trip. We tried to figure out a way for them to be here, too, but schedules just didn't work out. The CK was very unhappy that he's not going with us, but I know 11 days with Pentheus will be a lot of fun for him. I am told there will be bowling, frozen yogurt, Made by Me (ceramic painting), and Little League World Series on ESPN.
I'll end for now, even though I know this wasn't a very exciting entry. We're hoping to go to sleep soon and then wake up around 7 am - take two for the breakfast-synagogue plan!
After landing, we went through Passport Control with no problems. We got our luggage and headed to catch a ride to Jerusalem. We took a sheiroot - a large, shared taxi with room for 10 passengers. It's 64 shekels (a little more than $18/person). We only had 9 passengers for a long time, and we ended up each paying an extra 6 shekels, so that the driver would go already. We got a nice tour of Jerusalem in the sheirut. We were dropped off last, so we saw a lot of the city along the way. The WK and I were glad about that though; we kind of remembered places as we drove around. We arrived at the hotel (Little House in the Colony on Lloyd George Street) around 6-ish, checked in, and went to get some dinner along Emek Refaim, the main drag in the German Colony, where our hotel is.
I set the alarm to wake us up at 7:10, so we could get up, eat breakfast, and go to our synagogue we joined when we were here in 2012 for an 8:15 am service. We both woke up when the alarm went off, and I asked the WK if we should sleep a bit longer or start our day. The WK suggested we sleep a bit more (I knew there was a reason I brought him on the trip!!), and the next thing we knew it was after 10 am! We hopped on the 77A bus and went downtown to look around, do errands (like figure out the cell phone), and buy some presents. It was so much fun just to walk around downtown Jerusalem again! We did a lot of reminiscing of when we were here last, and probably bought too many things.
We did accomplish our main task of the day, which was to buy t'fillin for the WK to use when he becomes a Bar-Mitzvah at age 13. http://www.myjewishlearning.com/practices/Ritual/Prayer/Ritual_Garb/Tefillin_Phylacteries_.shtml It was a neat experience. We went to a store called Sofer (which means "scribe" in Hebrew) where everyone told us to go. The man wrapped the leather appropriately and measured using the WK's head to make sure it was long enough. I had also brought my great-great-grandfather's t'fillin from Cambridge to have it checked to see if it is still "kosher" - if all the letters in the parchment are still readable and accurate and if the leather boxes that "house' the parchment are intact. Unfortunately (and as I had expected), the old t'fillin is not usable. The WK can still use the velvet bag that Grandpa Harry's t'fillin was in, and that will be special.
Tonight we dined with good friends from Cambridge who are also in Israel for vacation. It was great to see them and eat with them in Jerusalem! Very special. While we were sitting on a bench and waiting for them to arrive at the restaurant, a man came up to me and said my name. Turns out it was a friend from 14 years ago in Boston! He is now married with a family, and they are here for a couple of weeks vacation as well. It was so fun to catch up with him, and, of course, so funny to run into him here in Jerusalem. And, while I was catching up with him, another woman who had been in my ulpan (intensive Hebrew class) 2 years ago came up to me as well. I am not sure whether the WK was impressed or embarrassed (probably both) that I saw 2 people I knew within about 5 minutes! Dinner was good. We walked with the other family to buy an artik (the generic name for an Israeli popsicle/ice-cream bar) for each kid and some water for all of us. (It's very hot here - upper 80s to 90 today.)
Just so it's clear, the WK and I are, of course, bummed that Pentheus and the CK aren't with us on this trip. We tried to figure out a way for them to be here, too, but schedules just didn't work out. The CK was very unhappy that he's not going with us, but I know 11 days with Pentheus will be a lot of fun for him. I am told there will be bowling, frozen yogurt, Made by Me (ceramic painting), and Little League World Series on ESPN.
I'll end for now, even though I know this wasn't a very exciting entry. We're hoping to go to sleep soon and then wake up around 7 am - take two for the breakfast-synagogue plan!
Thursday, August 14, 2014
She's baaaaaaaaaack!!!
Shalom, Everyone! It's Katamom, about to return to Israel for a short visit and about to begin Divrei Wek again! So much has happened since I last wrote 19 months ago!! My goal is to write an official blog entry on the airplane trip to Israel, and hit "publish" once we arrive at the hotel in Jerusalem (where we have WiFi). I'll be in Israel for about 10 days, and the now-12-year-old WK is coming with me. We are very excited about our trip, and I looking forward to telling you all about it. Five more days until I have my natool at Cafe Duvshaneet!
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