On the road again to Ma’aleh Adumim
Filed under: A New Reality, coexistence, General, Israeliness, Life, News, Travel
Cutting the ribbon in Ma'aleh Adumim.
Thus this week witnessed the opening of a new entrance to the city of Ma’aleh Adumim, the city east of Jerusalem on the way to the Dead Sea – a road that actually benefits the Palestinians in the neighboring town of Ezeriya.
Until now, residents of both locations used the same traffic circle that fed the entrances to both towns, causing traffic jams, and long delays for the Palestinians in particular. While that entrance will remain open, the traffic into Ma’aleh Adumim is going to decrease significantly because of the new entrance. It bypasses the main road and takes motorists through a picturesque incline, past a new Keren Kayamet man-made lake and park (with a Caffit restaurant) and into the heart of the city.
At the official ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday, Mayor Benny Kashriel was joined by Housing Minister Ariel Attias and other officials, touting the improvement to the quality of life of the area’s residents. Kashriel noted that for the last six months or so, he hadn’t failed to meet someone from Ma’aleh Adumim without being asked when the new road was going to open.
A few minutes after the modest ceremony, the orange cones were taken away, and the new road saw its first motorist. Attendees grabbed the last rugelach and drinks and made their own way back up the hill into the city. And life in a settlement goes on.
Under Bar
Filed under: Business, design, Entertainment, General, Israeliness, Pop Culture
Bar in her new underwear
According to blog SheFinds, Refaeli is following the success of her colleagues, Elle Macpherson and Gisele Bundchen, and recently launched her own underwear line, under.me, because “underneath my clothes lies the real me. Nothing else…”
The line includes Under Her (for women) and Under Him (for guys). And soon there will be underwear subscriptions, one would assume so that you never find yourself in holey, tatty underwear ever again, as well as underwear gift certificates.
Finally, to see what the underwear looks like, and what Bar looks like wearing it, watch this video, and women, know that this sports bra will not really work like that for most women.
Reconciliation through music challenged
Filed under: A New Reality, coexistence, Entertainment, General, Israeliness, Life, Music, Social Justice
Ahinoam Nini
However in the week since the event, a Facebook group calling for the boycott of Nini has gained more than 3,500 members, who apparently think that such events provide moral equivalency between the deaths of Israelis and Palestinians. Nini dismissed such claims, writing on her Facebook page that “I am just shocked by this stupid and ugly distortion. I sang at an alternative ceremony, at which Jews and Arabs remember and cry together for their loved ones who were lost in the ongoing war between us.”
Neshama Carlebach, the Jewish spiritual singer and daughter of the late Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, also stirred some feathers with her reworked version of Israel’s national anthem, ‘Hatikva’, recorded for Israel’s 64th Independence Day, and performed on Sunday at The Jerusalem Post Conference in New York.
The song, suggested by the Jewish paper The Forward, contains some new lyrics aimed at allowing both Jews and Arabs to relate to the words. Rather than singing “A Jewish soul still yearns” in the anthem, Carlebach sings, “An Israeli soul still yearns,” and instead of “An eye still gazes toward Zion,” she sings “An eye still gazes toward our country.”
Some attendees to the conference apparently were offended by the changed lyrics, and whether due to the late hour or in protest, Carlebach’s show with the Green Pastures Baptist Choir was sparsely attended.
Who said music soothes the savage beast? Here’s Carlebach’s reworked version of the anthem.
When I’m 64
Filed under: A New Reality, education, Entertainment, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Israeliness, Life, Technology
As the transition from the somber mood of Remembrance Day makes way for the celebration of Independence Day, there’s a plethora of inspiring video clips to help us mark Israel’s 64th birthday.
We’ve already focused on ISRAEL21c’s great ‘What does Israel mean to you’ clip, (now augmented by the top 64 innvoations from Israel) and here’s a few others.
Here’s a photographic appreciation of the natural beauty of the country by Efrat-based photographer Yehoshua Halevi, featuring the song “Desert Call” by Eden Mi Qedem.
No Independence Day would be complete without a tribute to our fighting forces that protect us day in and out. Here’s a well-done one created and filmed by Aviv Vana Post Production in collaboration with shooteast.com
Here’s a unique take on the country’s birthday – done in animation. According to the creators, it attempts to portray the complex reality that Israelis live in on a daily basis.
And how could we not include a message from Mr. Israel, our venerable president Shimon Peres, who gives his independence greeting in his inimitable English.
Go enjoy the next 24 hours, with the ubiquitous barbecue, outdoor singing and dancing, and fireworks. Happy birthday, Israel.
Celebrating independence with a Seder
Filed under: A New Reality, education, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Israeliness, Life
I just returned home from my first Yom Ha’atzmaut (Independence Day) Seder. And it was pretty cool. The trend toward having seders besides the Passover one for other holidays like Tu Bishvat has been on the rise in recent years – a nonsectarian but traditional seder with four cups and readings but without religious content.
The Yom Ha’atzmaut Seder that we attended for our son’s fifth grade classes was devised by the Tali Foundation, the organization that brings traditional themes into largely secular schools.
The Seder table was lined with bottles of juices and water for the four cups, bowls of humus, olives and dates and plates of pita. Led by a trained professional, the Seder included blessings over the food, readings from such Zionist stalwarts as Natan Alterman and Haim Goury, quotes from David Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Rabin, and songs by Naomi Shemer and Uzi Hitman.
Less than an hour in length, it kept the 11-year-olds’ scattered minds at attention and engaged them in telling the story of their country and why Yom Ha’atzmaut is more than breaking out the new barbecue and spraying that disgusting foam on each other.
Maybe next year, every school will incorporate a Yom Ha’atzmaut Seder in their curriculum – it’s good for the students and it’s good for the parents.
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