Israel touts its own little mermaid

August 12, 2009 - 1:00 PM by · 2 Comments
Filed under: A New Reality, Environment, General, Life, Travel 

ariel6I’ve found lots of things in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Israel over the years: a school of tomatoes floating ashore that had been dumped off a ship, assorted discarded rubbish, an abundance of jelly fish, and I even found a pair of my own sunglasses I had lost an hour before stuck in the sand (definitely a case of finding a needle in a liquid haystack).

But I’ve never spotted a mermaid – that mythical sea creature who I always envision to be a cross between Ariel in Little Mermaid and Daryl Hannah in Splash. And it’s a shame, because evidently I could be $1 million richer.

Whether it’s summer boredom or indeed there’s something out there, there have apparently been a number of mermaid sightings off the coast of Kiryat Haim, near Haifa. The town council is taking the rumors so seriously – or is taking the possibilities of becoming a major tourist attraction so seriously – that they’re offering the million to anyone who can provide proof as to the mermaid’s existence.

The mermaid, who is visible only at sunset, has already drawn lots of locals with cameras hoping to capture the friendly fishwoman in actions.

“Many people are telling us they are sure they’ve seen a mermaid and they are all independent of each other,” council spokesman Natti Zilberman told Sky News. “People say it is half girl, half fish, jumping like a dolphin. It does all kinds of tricks, then disappears,” Zilberman said.

The council denied its offer of a reward was a publicity stunt, but said it hoped to nurture the mermaid as something which could bring in more tourists.

Asked if the council can afford the payout, Zilberman said, “I believe, if there really is a mermaid, then so many people and tourists will come to Kiryat Yam, a lot more money will be made than $1 million.”

Whether there really is a mermaid out there, or it’s all just a fish story, it’s just another good excuse to head out to the sea on these hot August nights. Me, I’m hoping to spot Tom Hanks.

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Vote for Sisso

October 13, 2008 - 1:23 PM by · 1 Comment
Filed under: General, Israeliness, Politics 

The November presidential elections in the US aren’t the only game in town. Next month will also see municipal and mayoral elections in a number of Israeli cities and towns.

porush.jpgMost of the attention has been on Jerusalem, where incumbent haredi Mayor Uri Lupolianski has been replaced on his party’s ticket by longtime MK Meir Porush. Just a couple weeks ago, former Shas leader Aryeh Deri was barred from competing against Porush because the timeout by law following his 1999 conviction of fraud and bribery hadn’t finished yet.
barkat.jpgAnd of course, the great white hope, secular high tech candidate Nir Barkat is hoping to wrest the mayoralty out of the haredi hands. And on the side, Russian mega-rich businessman/shady character and Betar Jerusalem owner Arkady Gaydamak is also running on a ‘speak English only’ platform.

But lots of other cities and towns are also holding elections for mayors, with equally scintillating scenarios. Take the Haifa ‘burb of Kiryat Yam. The mayor there for the last 15 years has been one Shmuel Sisso. The veteran lawyer and former Israel consul general in New York been considered such a popular – or powerful – mayor that nobody had even bothered to register to run against him. That is, until just recently, Sisso’s younger cousin Alon, threw his hat in the ring.

According to a Ma’ariv report, Alon, who is running on a Likud ticket, was really only interested in gaining a seat on the local council, but national Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu advised the 38-year-old attorney to go for broke. Older cousin Shmuel, who is running under Kadima auspices, is not happy with the clan competition. Whatever the results in the Kiryat Yam mayoral elections, it will be all in the family.

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