Remembering
Filed under: General, History and Culture, Immigrant Moments, Israeliness
Strange things can happen on Holocaust Remembrance Day, which falls today, April 21, and Israel’s Memorial Day, which falls next Tuesday. And they often happen during the 
that is sounded at 10:00 am on both mornings as well as on the eve of Memorial Day. During those two minutes, everything stops, all action of all kind, wherever you may be. And whatever action doesn’t stop — cars on the road, bulldozers at building sites (which one friend of mine noticed today), people walking down the street — is more than noticeable.
In my earlier days in Israel, I would plan out where I was going to be at 10:00, in order to be in the busiest place I could think of and have the most extreme siren experience. That brought me to Jerusalem’s Machane Yehuda open market, to busy streets, malls, and on one memorable experience, the side of the road on Highway One. The longer I’m here, the lazier I’ve gotten about my 10 am location, or rather, the busier I’ve been in life, and therefore have less time to think these things through. But no matter where I am, even if it’s by my desk in my home office, that two-minute siren never fails to raise goosebumps on my arms, and make me think about why the siren is sounded.
Today I was standing next to the washing machine, sorting darks and whites and spraying stain remover on my six-month-old twins’ clothing. Not a particularly moving location. But I stood still for the entire two minutes, and the goosebumps were there as usual. I also noticed in the silence of the siren that the neighborhood dogs were barking up a storm, which makes you wonder what they think about the siren. And not to be out-yelled, my twin boys also raised their voices, waking up from their morning nap to hear a sound they’re never heard before.
So we remembered the six million in our own way, me and my boys. And I’ll always be able to tell them that the first time they heard the siren, they couldn’t ignore it either.
Yekev fun
It’s great to be reminded of certain, extremely Israeli cultural phenomenons. I headed straight into one of those last week for a friend’s 40th birthday party, which was held at a yekev in Holon. Technically, a yekev is a winery, and in these days of Israeli boutique wineries, one might think that they’re heading to an evening of wine tastings, with a side of smelly goat cheeses.
Uh uh. This yekev, like others of its kind, is a completely different animal. It’s the yekev of yore, a wine club of sorts, where diners sit at long wooden tables, drinking cheap wine and eating family-style platters of bread, spreads and fried fish. There’s one in nearly every Israeli city. But the real entertainment begins when the MC takes the stage, a guy in a leather cowboy hat takes the floor, and Israeli songs of yore are played, their words displayed on huge screens on either side of the room, visible to everyone in the place.
Everyone, and I mean everyone, sings along, and the dance floor quickly fills with people of all ages, types and sizes. They’re dancing in circles, in lines, as couples, slow and fast, pretty much oblivious to the others around them. And some diners stick to their tables, standing on the chairs and the tables, an act that’s absolutely encouraged. Fun, as you can imagine, is had by all.
Our evening didn’t end with Andrew’s birthday. We headed home, directions clutched in our hands, the map book open on my lap. We knew how easy it is to get lost in these parts, as we’d gotten lost on the way, asking a string of taxi drivers and Holonites how to get to where we were going. But the streets were empty by the time we headed out of there, and at one point we sat at an empty traffic light, trying to figure out if we should be turning right or left. I finally turned my head to the right, to ask the driver next to us how to get to the highway, and found myself looking into the grinning face of a policeman, who rolled down his window and said, “I saw you sitting here through three green lights, and I figured you’d realize sooner or later that we were sitting next to you.” And, shockingly, he actually knew how to send us on our way.
Holocaust Remembrance Day and Durban II
Filed under: A New Reality, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Israeliness, Life, Politics
Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins Monday evening here, is always a solemn occasion. But this year, with the ghoulishly ironic juxtaposition of the Durban II racism conference taking place in Geneva, there’s an added measure of stark sobriety.
Even as Israelis pause to ponder the memory of the six million Jews who perished during the Nazi regime from 1933-1945, the gathering in Geneva demonstrates that there are still people who would like Israel – and by association – Jews to cease to exist.
So while Iran, Libya and the other latter day plotters gather for their bash-Israel fest, we’ll be remembering. The theme of the annual state ceremony, beginning at Jerusalem’s Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial is ‘Children in the Holocaust.’ Some 1.5 million Jewish children were killed by the Nazis. As part of the theme, a 16-year-old musician will play a violin that belonged to a 12-year-old partisan, Mordechai (Motele) Schlein, killed in the Holocaust and whose violin is on display at Yad Vashem. The museum is also launching a new exhibition and material about children killed in the Holocaust – accessible on Yad Vashem’s Web site
According to a Hebrew University demographer – Professor Sergio Della Pergola – if not for the Holocaust there would be as many as 32 million Jews in the world today, instead of the current 13 million. Before the outbreak of World War II, there were an estimated 16.5 million Jews in the world.
Just imagine how the world might have been different if all the scientists, doctors, musicians and every other Jew who perished had gone on to live their full lives. We’ll never know what their impact would have been, but by refuting and condemning the lies which are going to come out of Durban II, we’ll be helping to insure that such wanton human destruction doesn’t take place again.
Nostalgia Sunday – Mekorot’s water portfolio
Filed under: Environment, General, History and Culture, Nostalgia Sunday
To celebrate Tel Aviv’s Centennial anniversary, Mekorot, Israel’s national water company, has dug into its photo archive and released images from the construction of the Tel Aviv water pipeline project. Check out the kovaei tembel, the soft cloth hats that once symbolized the Israeli pioneer worker.
These images are from 1963. The original Western Pipeline – Yarkon-Negev Plant pipeline was completed in 1955 but as Tel Aviv’s population grew, along with demand for water, it was decided to add the additional Dan pipeline to boost the water supply. The project was completed in the mid-60s.
Today, Mekorot is considered one of the world’s most technologically advanced water companies and a world leader in desalination, water reclamation, water project engineering, water safety, water security and water quality. Its all-important task is formulating and implementing the country’s national water policy.
Over the past 12 months, Mekorot has embarked on a number of major projects, including the construction of a fifth pipeline to Jerusalem…
…construction of the desalination facility in Ashdod with a capacity of 100 million cubic meters a year and linking of the desalination facilities along the coastline — such as the world’s largest such plant at Ashkelon, pictured here — with the national water system…
…plus other projects aimed at increasing the supply of water, for example, cloud seeding in the winter months. Mekorot has engaged in “rain-enhancement” for over 45 years and has managed to increase the annual rainfall in the Sea of Galilee catchment by 13%-18%.
Mekorot facilities have visitors centers with guided tours. As for the archive, it isn’t presently online but give them time. And, given their technological edge, it will be amazing to think of what pictures Mekorot will release when Tel Aviv’s 200th rolls along.
Bootylicious, Israeli style
Israeli choreographer Kobi Rosenfeld
According to Ynet, the Israeli toe tapper has been tapped to choreograph Mrs, Jay Z in her new video for the song “Scared of Lonely.”
Rosenfeld, who is the assistant to Andrea Fuentes – one of Britney Spears’ backup dancers – was tapped to work with Beyonce during the “Carnival,” which is a music industry choreography talent contest.
His performance caught the eye of Beyonce’s people, who asked him to come up with a presentation suitable for her new release. Once the routine was green-lighted, Rosenfeld went on to teach it to her seven backup dancers.
Rosenfeld was born in Rehovot and has been dancing and choreographing all his life. He performed in local Israeli productions of Fun Tazi, Caberet, Peter Pan and K’Mo Be Seret., and has choreographed the Israeli version of Little Mermaid. Rosenfeld has won contests in choreography at the International Carmiel Dance Festival and the Israeli Jazz Contest in Haifa, and choreographed thesteps for the videos and tours of singers Roni Superstar, Mali Levi and Shiri Maimon.
Since trying his luck in the US, he’s choreographed 11 pieces for the California-based Keshet Chaim dance troupe and has been teaching dance. But with Beyonce kicking heels on his side, it’s likely that Rosenfeld won’t have to be teaching classes any more. I wonder, though, if she’ll be dancing from right to left.
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