Waiting Games
The big news story coming out Israel today is, of course, the arrival of President Bush. The mainstream media and the local blogosphere have been all abuzz, and my inbox has been inundated with emails from the Government Press Office and Foreign Ministry, detailing not only every aspect of his itinerary, but also providing members of the press with logistical details such as contact information, photo opportunities, and a multitude of other resources.
While the role of the journalist is to cover such visits, and only a select “lucky” few are have been given approval to cover the various functions taking place, I have to say that I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes, as the name of the game for the duration of this visit is “the waiting game”. Gideon Lichfield over at fugitive peace is in full agreement, and shows his readers why.
“11:55 – Official reception at Ben-Gurion International Airport… entry via Terminal 1 by 09:00… MBU’s [ie, mobile broadcast units] to enter… by 07:00;
Thursday:
Meeting and Press Conference of the Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas with President of the United States of American (sic), George W. Bush… Press conference will begin at 11:30 a.m… All Press MUST arrive at the Press Gathering Point BEFORE 06.30.
Friday:
08:10-09:40 – Visit Yad Vashem…. Pool members at PM’s Jerusalem Office by 06:00”
At 6am, I’m usually rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, stumbling down the dark hallway towards the kitchen, silently cursing my son for wanting his morning hot chocolate at such an ungodly hour of the night. I can barely open the container of chocolate powder, let alone be coherent enough to gain entrance into any venue where heads of state can be found.
Read the rest of Gideon’s post here.
Focus: Israel
Filed under: Blogging, Food, General, Israeliness, Life, Pop Culture
Lately I’ve been noticing that a number of our local English-writing bloggers have opted to write theme-based blogs, with each one focusing on different aspects of Israel.
Designist Dream is a blog written by Ziva, who defines her blog as being the place where art and design and the Holy Land meet”. Her entries cover everything from “architecture and industrial design to print media and photography to jewelry and handmade crafts”.
Israeli wine is a hot topic these days, as wineries seem to be popping up all around the country at an alarming rate. HaKerem: The Israeli Wine Blog, serves as an excellent one-stop shop for all things wine-related in Israel, from links to most local wineries to wine reviews to current events in the world of Israeli wine.
Looking for information about the Israeli job market? Check out JobMob. This site provides a treasure trove of information about the local market, offering a veritable plethora of tips and tricks and sharing links to timely, relevant job-related topics.
Check ‘em out, folks!
Israel’s Newest Immigrants
Filed under: A New Reality, General, Immigrant Moments, Life, Politics, Travel
Several months ago, I had the pleasure of meeting with people who had recently been in Iran. It was a fascinating conversation, and I remember feeling distinctly “reporterish” as I asked question after question about what life was like there, touching on subjects that were both serious (what is it really like to be Jewish/female in Iran – difficult) and lighter (there are, apparently, at least two sushi restaurants in Tehran).
In the months since that discussion, I’ve often found myself thinking about the Jewish community in Iran, imagining the life described by the people I’d met, and wondering about the courage required, both to remain as part of the community as well as to leave it behind. For those of us lucky enough not to have to dwell on such decisions, the choice must seem easy, but for those Jews still living under the Iranian regime, the decision is much harder.
On Tuesday, Israel’s 40 newest immigrants landed in Israel, joining a community that has anywhere from 75,000 to 135,000 Persian Jews. They came from Iran via a third, unnamed country – the largest group to come from Iran since the fall of the Shah in 1979. This year alone, 200 Iranian Jews have made aliya, more than doubling the total number who came to Israel in 2006 – an impressive feat given the difficulties, the bureaucracy and the secrecy that must be involved in such an operation. According to an article on the Haaretz website, “the immigrants, from Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan, each received a $10,000 grant from international Jewish organizations.
Relatives screamed in delight and threw candy at the newcomers as they emerged into the airport reception hall after a long bureaucratic procedure. Two brothers, Yosef and Michael, said they were glad to be in Israel. They declined to give their family name in order to protect relatives.”
Welcome to Israel, my Persian friends. “Chetori! Halet hubeh?”
Read the rest of it here.
Rites of Passage
Filed under: A New Reality, General, Immigrant Moments, Israeliness
One of the most (if not the most) deeply ingrained rites of passage in Israel involves sending one’s children to the army. I imagine that the feelings of parents run the gamut, and the only thing I can think to compare it to at all would be the emotions that American parents get when they send their children off to college (though obviously, the dangers inherent in sending one’s child to the army are usually far greater than those involved in sending children to college).
If teenagers today are anything like teenagers were in my time (oh dear – I’m dating myself with a statement like that…), I’m guessing that this event probably has a more profound effect on the parents than on the children (who are probably more concerned with keeping Mom and Dad from making fools of themselves in front of their peers). If I were to hazard another guess, I’m going to assume that the occasion is even more alien for immigrants, parents who missed out on the army experience themselves, parents who don’t know exactly what to expect from the situation. A Soldier’s Mother began her blog shortly before her eldest son went into the army earlier in the year. She writes,
“”Bye, Ima,” Elie called out as he passed the window with his backpack strapped on. That’s all. Too much for a 20-year-old to give his mother a kiss or hug goodbye. It’s not the done thing at all, and sure enough, no other boys did either. At this hour and at this location, it is all business, all movement, and no time for sentiment. They all walked into the big building and disappeared. I sat for a second watching other parents drop off their sons, watched the boys walk to the building, pull out their security passes and enter as the parents drove away. It was my turn and I pulled out, leaving behind other parents to take my spot.
For some reason, the sight of all of these young soldiers touched me and my eyes filled with tears as I stopped at the first light, my mind still seeing these soldiers and their backpacks enter the building.”
I loved this post. Check out the rest of it here.
Try it! You’ll like it!
Filed under: Food, General, History and Culture, Holidays
Believe it or not, when I was growing up in the US, I had no idea that sufganiyot (jelly donuts) were a Chanukah treat. Everyone I knew had latkes (potato pancakes). Latkes with sour cream, latkes with apple sauce, and especially, latkes with latkes. Sure, I’d certainly had my share of jelly donuts, but no one ever let us know that sufganiyot were the main Chanukah snack in Israel.
Of course, that all changed when I came to Israel for a year after high school, and discovered the joys (and perils) of the sufganiya. Dripping with jelly (if you were lucky), glistening with oil and sinfully caloric, the sufganiya quickly replaced latkes as the culinary star of my festival of lights.
Over the years, I’ve cheerfully (though not without a certain modicum of guilt) joined in sufganiya fest, debating the virtues of the various flavors (my favorite filling is caramel) and bakers (Roladin seems to be everyone’s perennial fave), and thanking G-d that for the miniature sizes that allowed me to feel marginally less guilty.
Fast forward to Chanukah, 2007. My sufganiya habit is more or less under control, and I’ve managed, with one exception, to avoid the latkes. I wasn’t doing too badly, when suddenly, it all came crashing down. Somehow, it took me sixteen years in the country to come face-to-face with Sfinge. Sfinge is the Moroccan answer to the sufganiya. Despite the fact that it has no filling (though it’s often dipped in syrup), it’s just as tasty and just as oily, and I have the distinct misfortune of having a neighbor who can feed my habit.
Sadly, the internet seems to have a serious dearth of information regarding sfinge, so I suppose you’ll just have to make due with one of the pictures I took. Needless to say, the photos are all I have left, following a little sfinge binge…
As my grandmother used to say, “try it! You’ll like it!”
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