Goofy and Pluto find a home in Haifa

January 5, 2011 - 10:31 AM by · 1 Comment
Filed under: A New Reality, Business, Entertainment, General, Israeliness, Life, Pop Culture 

Those who consider Israel to be a Mickey Mouse operation might get some more ammunition in the near future.

As reported on ISRAEL21c, the Walt Disney Company investment arm Shamrock Holdings and the Israeli New Lineo cinema chain have announced plans to build a $168 million amusement park and a multiplex movie center in the port city of Haifa near the Check Post exit of the city’s Carmel Tunnel.

The entertainment complex, slated to open in 2013, will include a 30,000 square meter amusement park and a 50,000 square meter compound with shops, 25 movie houses, and four theater auditoriums.
New Lineo already operates the Cinema City multiplex sites in Ramat HaSharon, north of Tel Aviv and with 25 screens, and Rishon LeZion, south of Tel Aviv and with 26 screens. The new complex will be near the already existing Cinemall, which has stores and a 23-screen Yes Planet multiplex.

Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav said that Donald, Goofy and the rest of the motley Disney crew would be more than welcome in Haifa. “This plan expresses confidence in our plans to turn Haifa Bay in a thriving business area.”

The area, which was a target of Hizbullah in the Second Lebanon War in 2006, and which is close to the devastating forest fires which decimated the Carmel Forest last month, sure deserves some good cheer. Many people think of Haifa as the country’s most attractive city, with its amazing vista overlooking the Mediterranean, the Baha’i Temple and grounds, the Technion and many other attractions.

Sure, Israelis have been able to hop over to Euro Disney for no small expense, but it looks like soon we’ll have our own Med Disney. How do you says ‘sufferin’ succotash’ on Hebrew?

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An Israeli shout out from Glee

December 9, 2010 - 9:52 AM by · 1 Comment
Filed under: A New Reality, Entertainment, General, Israeliness, Medical Breakthroughs, Pop Culture, Technology, tv 

The Christmas episode of the popular American TV series Glee that aired in the US Wednesday night also featured a gift to Israel on the last night of Hanukka.

Artie, a character confined to a wheelchair, took a few halting steps with the help of a machine called the ReWalk.

“It was invented by some guy in Israel,” he said, before using the ReWalk and crutches to move across the floor.

And, indeed, as ISRAEL21c reported in 2008, the ReWalk isnt’ some television fantasy. It’s made by a Haifa-based company, Argo Medical Technologies, that, according to its website, “develops and markets walk restoration devices for people with lower limb disabilities. The company’s flagship ReWalk product offers an ambulation alternative to wheelchair users, enabling paralyzed people to stand, walk and even climb stairs.”

Argo’s ReWalk system enables wheelchair users to stand and walk upright. The device was developed by Dr. Amit Goffer, an electrical engineer who was paralyzed in an auto accident. He developed the prototype at home, and then set up the company to take it commercial.

The 21c article about the ReWalk shot the company to worldwide attention, and since then, has been filmed by 12 TV networks around the world, including CNN. It has also featured in dozens of newspapers, from The Washington Post, to The Teheran Times.

The ReWalk was recently approved in the US for institutional use by the Food and Drug Administration which means that hospitals and rehab centers will be able to purchase the device, starting early next year.

When comedian Paul Reiser visited Israel last year, he and his family went to see the company. “A friend showed me the article and it looked like such a cool technology,” he said. “It looks like some cool Robocop mechanism. It’s a tremendous innovation and a remarkable piece of technology. It’s amazing to see such a cool innovation with fabulous commercial potential coming out of this tiny little office with just a handful of guys.”

Now, that’s something to sing about.

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Volunteering for the fire

December 3, 2010 - 9:17 AM by · 2 Comments
Filed under: A New Reality, Environment, General, Life, News, tv 

The dimensions of the tragedy are still developing, but the huge fire in the Carmel region near Haifa, which until now has claimed 41 lives, destroyed over 20,000 dunams of forest, and has forced the evacuation of over 13,000 residents, is already being called the worst fire disaster in Israel’s history.

Even with 23 international aircraft carrying firefighters, supplies and fire retardant chemicals on the way from Greece, England, Spain,
Russia, Turkey, Cypress, Bulgaria, Croatia and Azerbaijan, to join the entire 1,500-strong Israeli firefighting force, the blaze wasn’t expected to be under control for days.

The rest of the country watched in horror Thursday night as images of the carnage and destruction remained on TV screens throughout the evening, and a sense of helplessness spread over the viewers. But, while the professionals were doing their job, that helplessness turned into the kind of mobilization that Israelis have become known for around the world.

A forum on Ynet was opened to enable families in other parts of the country to offer assistance and open their homes to the evacuated families from the Carmel.

Within a few short hours, thousands of people had posted listings, and started the ball rolling to house, clothe and feed the 13,000 residents of the North who are suddenly homeless, hopefully only temporarily.
Social services have opened up phone lines for families needing assistance: 08 977-5717

As we enter Shabbat, let’s all pray and do our part in any other way to help bring an end to this worst natural disaster that Israel has ever seen.

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Nostalgia Sunday – Haifa’s Golden Age

November 21, 2010 - 4:19 PM by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: coexistence, education, Entertainment, General, History and Culture, Nostalgia Sunday, Politics, Profiles, Travel, War 

Haifa is one of Israel’s great unsung cities. Modesty being a Haifan trait, it rarely trumpets the fact that it is the largest city in northern Israel, the third-largest city in the country, has a mixed population of Jews and Arabs and is home to the Bahai World Center. Not to mention that it houses Technion – Israel Institute of Technology which, among its many, many claims to fame, begat Israel’s first high-tech park.

But it was under British rule that Haifa experienced its Golden Age, according to a exhibition now running at the Haifa City Museum. According to the curator’s notes: “This exhibition attempts to document the city’s development, from its occupation by the British on September 23rd 1918 until November 29th 1947 – the day on which the United Nations Assembly voted against the British Mandate and for the establishment of two independent states, Jewish and Arab, according to a partition plan. Two forces were involved in this process, the British and the citizens of Haifa, who created the city as it is still known to us today.”

The exhibition has two focal points: Haifa as an expression of the Empire’s vision of modernity and order, and the unique relations between the Jewish and Arab populations. “During the period of the British Mandate, Eretz Israel [pre-State Israel] underwent impressive changes, in the midst of which the city of Haifa achieved unique and remarkable status. This was due, in part, both to its strategic location and to the special relationship existing among its inhabitants.”

“From the beginning of the 20th century Haifa, its surroundings, and the bay area were a planning objective for the British. The city’s importance derived, even more than its local connotations, from its centrality to the general order in the Middle East. The British Empire saw itself as representing the pinnacle of these positive aspirations – the realization of progress. Accordingly, throughout the period of the Mandate, the British intention was to consolidate the infrastructure of Eretz Israel and of Haifa in particular.”

“Thus the first circle of the exhibition is an attempt to reconstruct the linear pattern of the Mandate regarding the city’s development. This part of the exhibition shows focal events and key figures connected with how the British viewed Haifa and its surroundings, its social groups and their lifestyles.”

“The second circle of the exhibition deals with the relationship between Jewish and Arab. During the British Mandate, a unique economical, social and political phenomenon arose in Haifa. Diverse population groups lived together, subject to a single authority, in an atmosphere of mutual acceptance, endowing the city with a cosmopolitan and multicultural outlook.”

More about the history of Haifa during the British Mandate is available on the municipal tourism board site – along with an archive of old photos and postcards.

The Haifa City Museum is located in the former Templar school and community center buildings in the city’s German Colony and features temporary exhibitions devoted to the history of Haifa. Museum hours are posted online and guided tours are available.

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What to do on the last week of summer vacation

August 27, 2010 - 10:43 AM by · 1 Comment
Filed under: Travel 

Camping at HaBonim Beach

As the school year is quickly approaching, I thought I’d share a little of what we did on our summer vacation. You don’t have to be on holiday, though, to enjoy little downtime in Israel: these tips are handy any time of the year – all the more so in the final week of educational freedom.

We were fortunate to have friends in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ra’anana who suggested a house swap. While nothing is terribly far in little Israel, being closer to the “merkaz” (the center of the country) enabled us Jerusalemites to take advantage of more of what the greater Tel Aviv region offers.

Truth be told, the real advantage to our arrangement is that by going away – even an hour from home – we were “forced” to take the time off. Sure, we could have done day trips, but we wouldn’t have. Email and Facebook would have been just too enticing.

Since our vacation coincided with the recent heat wave in Israel, we spent a lot of time in the water. The Herzeliya beach is perfunctory – it has the requisite sand, lifeguard and bathrooms. Nothing special, but it’s the closest to Ra’anana (with better parking than at the central beaches of Tel Aviv), so that’s where we headed on our first day.

For a second beach trip a few days later, we drove up to the HaBonim beach, not from Zichron Ya’akov and south of Haifa. We had been told it was the most beautiful beach in Israel. It was.

This is a “camper’s beach” and when we arrived, most of the pergolas were already filled with tents. We shared some open space with a mangal (barbeque) and several toddlers.

Since many of the beachgoers are there for more than an afternoon, HaBonim has a more laid back family-friendly feel than trendy teenager-centric Herzeliya. But the real jewel is the nature walk – an hour-long loop along a marked trail (the beach is actually an official Israeli nature reserve) where we could lap up the shore as the sun set. It was lovely.

Waterslide at Yamit 2000

We also hit the Yamit 2000 water park – not recommended. In the summer, there must be a billion screaming kids (and even louder teenagers). Waits for 30-second water slides stretched to close an hour. Definitely not laid back.

We also rented bikes in Tel Aviv and rode along the Yarkon River all the way to the namal (the old Tel Aviv port) which is one of our favorite hang-out spots. We had packed picnic lunches to keep costs down, but we did manage to scarf down some Aldo Ice Cream before returning on the route we came. Biggest surprise: this bike route is actually part of the Israel Trail, normally only for hikers. Who knew?

One other highlight: the Jaffa Flea Market which stays open late Thursday nights during the summer and is filled with merrymakers, musicians and street comics.. It’s also packed with people, but it’s a fun atmosphere. This one is time-limited: go before the summer’s over!

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