After consecutive weeks of rainy weekends, Israelis flocked outdoors this weekend to feel the nature.

Several went to the beach. Some headed north to the Galilee and Golan Heights. But based on the traffic jams we encountered, the majority went to the North Negev to the Red South Anemone Festival.

Red South Anemone Festival (Photo: Viva Sarah Press)

With cameras at the ready you could hear “cheese” in just about every language.

The Anemone Festival is my favorite event of the year – and it takes place every weekend in February. These little red flowers carpet the northern Negev area (and can usually be found in the western part as well) and make getting in touch with nature all the more fun.

There are hiking options, biking routes, four-by-four tracks, guided tours and cultural activities.

Our group opted for just sitting down and enjoying a picnic. Our kids loved running and jumping among the flowers.

Jumping over anemones at Red South festival. (Photo: Viva Sarah Press)

And though there were thousands of other families at each field we visited, the flowers managed to keep the spotlight. It truly was a great day out.

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This month, Israel’s nature-lovers will take their annual trek through field and forest in search of their favorite flowers. The Society for the Preservation of Nature (SPNI) is hosting a series of tours in celebration of the season and the upcoming Tu b’Shvat holiday. As always, they will seek out the shy and elusive Persian Cyclamen…

Photo by Sara Gold – Wildflowers of Israel

Fields dotted with blood red Crown Anemones are always a magnificent sight, but their light purple cousins are no less lovely…

Photo by Amikam Shoob – Wildflowers of Israel

The Common Narcissus, whose fragrance is nothing if not controversial…

Photo by Sara Gold – Wildflowers of Israel

The elegant and stately Wild Hyacinth…

Photo by Sara Gold – Wildflowers of Israel

And of course, Tu b’Shvat wouldn’t be complete without the blossoming almond tree!

Photo by Mike Livne – Wildflowers of Israel

Aspiring nature photographers take note: Wildflowers in Israel, in conjunction with Jerusalem Botanical Gardens and FujiFilm, is holding a photo contest and there are still a few days left before the deadline closes on February 8. Information and a list of subjects (in Hebrew) is available here or submissions can be emailed directly.

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Eretz Nehederet actors portraying American-Jewish participants of a Birthright trip in ecstacy over learning they're going to visit Yad Vashem.

Only a few months ago, there was the controversy over the video campaign by the Ministry of Absorption to convince expatriate Israelis to come home. Whether due to lack of understanding by the makers of the videos (claim critics) or over sensitivity by those offended by the videos (claim advocates), the results proved that we don’t really see each other in the same we see ourselves.

That’s why it’s good for someone to come along once in a while and flatten the playing field by being so offensive that you can’t help but laugh. And that someone this time is Eretz Nehederet, the irreverent Channel 2 comedy/satire series poking fun at current events, national leaders, and in this case of the premiere of its ninth season last week, the Birthright/Taglit program.

As Haaretz put it, “In a rare jab at visiting Diaspora Jews, Israel’s premier satirical television show, Eretz Nehederet (A Wonderful Country), took on Taglit-Birthright Israel during its Monday night season premier.”

The skit in question follows a Birthright group as they travel by bus through the country accompanied by an Israeli guide.
You’ve got all the Diaspora Jewish stereotypes, as seen through Israeli eyes – the Jewish American Princesses, the partying, vulgar frat boys and the drug and the sex-addled South American participants.

Cynical to the nth degree, the skit – conducted in a mixture of Hebrew and English -manages to make fun of American Jewish allegiance to Israel, Birthright’s use of Holocaust guilt to encourage the participants to hit up their parents for contributions, and the cocky Israeli mentality as portrayed by the tour guide whose bravado gets him blown up by a land mine.

The skit (available here at least temporarily) loses steam half way through, but it’s still worth searching for in Hebrew on YouTube for its first few minutes for the setup, which provides some of the sharpest parody the show has created.

If American Jewish-Israeli ties were tenuous before this, I shudder to think where they’ll go after the sensitive American Jewish community views this.

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Some of the silliest examples: Talitakumi in front of Jerusalem’s HaMashbir LeZarchan, a strangely out of place wall-and-clock structure intended to replicate the front of a girl’s school that was razed to make room for the department store. The gate leading to Gymnasia Herzliya in Tel Aviv was thrown up by sentimental, well-meaning people in recognition of the original structure, demolished to make way for the Kolbo Shalom. And does anybody know that the Gan HaIr mall and residential complex was named for the municipal zoological garden that once stood there?

The most unsung of all are the movie houses, most of them shuttered for decades, fall deeper and deeper into disrepair until they are destroyed to make room for malls, tall buildings and parking lots. No one remembers Tel Aviv’s majestic Mugrabi Cinema or Jerusalem’s historic Edison.

Nonetheless, a small victory was achieved a little over a week ago when high-rise developers were forced to change a plan to tear down Bay Yam’s historic Savion Cinema. The victory belongs to a local activist group of Bat Yam residents, artists and the Society for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites who objected to the demolition and proposed a synthesis of old and new structures.

In its heyday, Bat Yam boasted six movie houses. The Savion Cinema was built in 1957 and — in line with the global trend – closed in the 1980s. “However it remained an architectural icon because of its facade which was characterized by a weave of concrete block units,” states The Marker.

Icon or not, the building was in bad shape. Its most recent tenant: a dollar store in what was once the movie-house’s lobby.

According to The Marker, the design for a 25-story tower by architect Ilan Pivko, will be modified in accordance with preservation plan for the building. The building — a luxury residence and prestigious office space — is a flagship project for the Bat Yam municipality which wants to develop the run-down neighborhoods adjacent to Jaffa. The preservation plan calls for the street-facing facade to remain intact.

One look at Pivko’s work and its clear that adapting his design to the new guidelines goes against his post-modernist grain. He does not favor keeping the facade as is and suggests a modular solution instead. “One can reconstruct, dismantle or in some other way create an interior element within the structure.” How Pivko handles this challenge remains to be seen… he has done this sort of thing before… but if he wanted to do it with the Savion, he would have worked it into the original design…

Hmmm… one gets the feeling that this issue isn’t over just yet.

Whether or not the Savion Cinema facade remains on the street level or whether, in the end, Pivko’s lobby will simply feature a bold construction of recycled concrete filigree, the real significance of the decision is a precedent set in curbing real estate developers’ ability to destroy old structures without recognizing their historic value. Hopefully, that means recognition not just in the form of an incidental plaque, statue or clock, but as part of the planning, putting real thought into paying homage to what came before.

The Savion Cinema photos were taken by architect Sharon Raz who is a one-man documentary powerhouse with a particular interest in Israel’s old cinemas. See his Disappearing Architecture and Disappearing Cinemas sites as well as his Natush blog for more photos and information.

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A little background: From posts I’ve gathered from Facebook, emails and YouTube comments, Broza was flying to New York — his fiance, clothing designer Nili Lotan, also Israeli, lives in New York — on January 3, and one of the flight staff, who are all generally young, out of the army, sometimes simultaneously in university, asked him for a song. And as he has before, and as he does in his often intimate concerts, such as one he recently did for
the Masorti center in Tel Aviv (he belongs to Kehillat Sinai, a Tel Aviv Conservative synagogue), he sat himself down in the galley, and sang an old favorite, Sigaliot, Violets:

Here are the lyrics, in English, for edification.

VIOLETS

She got married and she is happy
in spite her husband being wild
all the time he is in a bad mood
and even doesn’t know why
for the last three years, she receives
under the door, from an unknown man,
letters of poetry to her
they lighten up her youth.

Who is writing to you, girl, who sends you flags
a bunch of purple flowers when spring comes
who, every ninth of November,
with no name, greetings or hint,
sends you a wreath of violets tied with a bow

The whole night she can’t fall asleep
she day dreams about him
probably a man with a romantic heart,
good soul and simpatico smile
for three years she has been suffering in silence
yes sometimes she nearly screams
and what if her husband found out?
she hides her letters

When her husband comes home from work
throws a questioning glance
He doesn’t say anything,but he knows,
if she knew she would go crazy
Yes, it’s him that writes to her,
he is the lover, he is the subject of her dreams
And what if her husband found out?
She hides her letters.

Who is…

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This photo, of which there was a similar one in today’s Ha’aretz, shows deer walking around in the Odem or Red Forest, the largest nature reserve in the Golan Heights. I love the photo because it doesn’t seem like it could have been taken in Israel, as deer with antlers, romping in the snow, look so foreign to these parts. But Odem is a fairly magical forest, with deer, ibex and gazelles wandering around, overlooking views of the Golan mountains and Mount Hermon.

The forest and the moshav of Odem are located on Mount Odem, which is 3,580 feet above sea level, making it the second-highest town in Israel, after Neve Ativ, which sits on Mount Hermon. Odem, the moshav, has a few business concerns, but most interesting, perhaps, is its winery, Har Odem Winery, which is worth checking out, especially if the snow has melted by the time you get up there.

Why? It was a rainy weekend over here, and that rain translated into snow up there, where a meter of snow fell on the Hermon, Israel’s ski resort mountain, and nearly as much in other northern towns, including Tzfat and other peaks in the Golan Heights.

Of course, once there’s news of snow, the whole country heads up north to see it for themselves, as snow days are few and far between in these parts. The deer, however, get to revel in it as soon as it starts falling.

Lucky. I’m gonna try and join them this week.

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To bring things back to perspective, just go to ISRAEL21c or look at the website Gay Cities, and their ‘best of ‘11’ awards, a poll sponsored by American Airlines. Their readers named Tel Aviv as the ‘best Gay city’ in the world – and it wasn’t just by a thin margin.

Tel Aviv with its 43% of the votes bested the nearest competitor, a little-known backwater hole called New York City which garnered 14%. Other cities with smaller percentages of the votes include Toronto, Sao Paulo and Madrid.

“The gay capital of the Middle East is exotic and welcoming with a Mediterranean c’est la vie attitude,” the website wrote about our national place of pride, an opinion shared by many others.

While Tel Aviv has long been a favorite destination of gay tourists due to the above attributes, great nightclubs and beaches, and an up-all-night’ liberal attitude, the award is the result of efforts by government initiatives to specifically market Tel Aviv for gay tourism.

“The win is the highlight of six years of work and proof that the Tourism Ministry and the Municipality of Tel Aviv made the right decision to invest in gay tourism,” Shai Doitsh, brand manager of the Tel Aviv Gay Vibe tourism campaign, told Ynet.

The fact that we can be having fights about separate seating on buses and hearing women’s voices at army ceremonies on the one hand, and going wild on the beaches and in the clubs on the other hand, is part of the reason that as much as you can try to explain what Israel is, there’s just no way to do it. So you might as well just come and see it for yourself.

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Israel To Go is the name of a new cookbook slated for release in the coming months. The book, says Vardi, will present kosher Israeli cuisine with recipes and artwork solicited via crowdsourcing, which is an open call conducted mainly via online social networks, such as Facebook.

Photo: Untitled - Sasha Abramowitz

Contributing artists include Tali and Jonathan Korman, graphic designers with a sideline in fashion. Their T-shirt company, Bubulu Design, features images inspired by life in Tel Aviv — like this one, Hallo Artik, which pays homage to the humble beachfront popsicle vendor.

Photo: Hallo Artik – Bubulu Design

“We are looking for photos, artwork, drawings and graphic works documenting the Israeli culinary experience wherever it is. For example, a family dinner, people cooking, children playing with food, unique dishes, a special angle or places and situations that make your mouth water. Every artist has their own take on things, and their own taste.”

Photo: Israeli Breakfast – Orit Kovatz

“Israel To Go will be published in A6 (postcard) format – small, sweet and sassy. This size allows tourist to carry the book easily in their bag or pocket and take it home as a souvenir — a delicious gift for friends and family.”

Photo: Jerusalem – Benny Sharoni

Lunchbox is still soliciting artwork submissions and while the project does not pay it does offer exposure and, of course, copies of the book. In addition, Vardi says, “We also hope to organize an exhibition with the launch of Israel To Go in bookstores.”

Photo: Dining Room – Adi Kfir

Interested artists and photographers are invited to submit according to the following specifications: 1. Files in jpeg or eps in full color (CMYK) and print quality (dpi300); 2. Vertical work size: width: 11 cm, height: 16 cm, lateral work size: width: 22 cm, height: 16 cm. 3. Contact details: First Name (English only), Last Name (English only), email address and website (if any). Works should be sent to israeltogo1@gmail.com. Deadline is January 15th.

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But soon after checking in, and returning from a quick walk to the Dead, we returned to the hotel, and found tens of guests in the lobby with hotel staff lighting around 15 different hanukkiyot. We joined them – some observant, some not, some even non-Jewish tourists (and without any separation between men and women) – and then participated in singing a few Hanukkah songs. A hotel worker wheeled out a tray of fresh sufganiyot and passed them out to everyone.

Even though I appreciated the gesture, I’ve already eaten my share of fried dough and jelly for the next few years, so I passed, and headed to the hotel spa. Not a bad way to spend the sixth day of Hanukkah.

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Driving around Jerusalem the other day, my wife and started joking about what we would do if we were given citizen’s rights to give traffic violations. We decided to keep track of the various infractions Israeli drivers are guilty of on a daily basis.

Within a couple minutes, we witnessed one driver speeding up as a traffic light turned red and barreling through the intersection. “That’s a license revoking offense,” I offered.

A couple streets later, a car over on the right shoulder had just evidently mistakenly passed a side street and was backing up against the traffic in order to turn right. I think that should prompt taking their license away and also impounding their car and forcing the driver to take an IQ test. It’s probably the most dangerous thing you can do on the road besides driving blindfolded.

“This is too easy,” my wife said, as we continued to witness one violation after another – cyclists weaving in and out of traffic, drivers making right turns from the left lanes, and someone blaring thumping trance music from their open window – itself a capital offense.

We thought we had seen everything, and had handed out probably 20 tickers during our imaginary shift. However, driving up the highway incline to our neighborhood, a station wagon passed us containing what looked like Palestinian laborers on their way home. A quick glance came up with nine passengers in a six-seat car, and these guys weren’t tiny.

We couldn’t help but laugh at the negligence around us, but one more sight topped it all. Across the median on the shoulder heading downhill, a taxi was pulled over to the side. The driver was standing around the front of the car, facing away from the road and urinating for all to see.

After all we had witnessed on that trip, it didn’t seem to be so bad at all.

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