Foto Friday – Israel Weathering the Storms
Filed under: Environment, Foto Friday, General, Life, Picture of the Week, Travel
Israel has quite a lot of weather these days – which is pretty amazing considering that only less than a generation ago, we had no weather at all.
Photo by Zohar Shachar
More accurately put, we had no weather report. Before the advent of Channel 2 and cute-as-a-button weatherman Dani Rupp, each evening we were treated to the following day’s temperatures, but were given no indication as to where the winds were blowing in from. There were no maps, no Arab countries to blame for making sandstorms or Russians and Europeans to accuse for sending in cold fronts. Not like today, when any Israeli can access a weather satellite view online — or just watch the evening news — and be treated to sights like this one. Here’s what the weather is like today… and it’s not getting any better. Look at what’s sweeping in from Europe. Thanks a whole lot, Europe!
Source: Sat24.com
Today, Israel’s amateur weather buffs (like Jessica’s niece) brave rain, thunder, lightening, hurricanes and flash floods — all in the hope of getting a snap of that perfect storm…
Photo by Prof. Haim Kutiel
They then upload them to sites like IsraelWeather.co.il, run by forecaster Boaz Dayan. The site has shots of unusual weather phenomena, like this squared-off lightening bolt…
Photo by The Chessmaster
…and this water spout.
Photo by Noam Halfon, Nahariya.
It’s worth checking out, especially as Israel is finally getting a good watering. Now we can look forward to a bright green spring.
Photo by Revital BA, Kiryat Shemona
Foto Friday – Sukkot in Jerusalem
Filed under: Art, coexistence, Foto Friday, General, Holidays, Religion, Travel
The awe-ful part of the Days of Awe are behind us and now it’s time to party! Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, is the holiday when Jerusalem gets itself all decked out…

© RomKri
…and small wooden sukkot, or tabernacles, spring up overnight…

© monti_clif
…dotting the urban landscape.

© Pes & Lev
The Municipality of Jerusalem gets into the act too, with a large public sukka – the perfect opener to this month’s Autumn Nights Festival…

© RomKri
…as well as the annual Jerusalem March, attended by walkers from all over the country…

© monti_clif
…and from all over the world!

© monti_clif
Another event taking place at this time: the International Christian Embassy’s Feast of Tabernacles festival, this year celebrating its 30th anniversary. The festivities begin today with a worship concert at Ein Gedi, continue with a week of prayer and Bible teachings, and conclude with the Jerusalem March on October 6th.
Below is a montage of photos from last year’s Feast of Tabernacles. The photos above are courtesy of the wonderful Jerusalem Shots website – always worth a visit. And here’s wishing a Chag Sameach (happy holiday) to us all!
Feast of Tabernacles 2008 Photo Montage from ICEJ on Vimeo.
Foto Friday – A Walk Down Nachalat Binyamin
Filed under: Art, Blogging, design, Foto Friday, General, Life, Travel
Every Tuesday and Friday, there’s a crafts fair on Tel Aviv’s Nachalat Binyamin Street.
There’s no end to the coverage about it, because it is a very good event that has managed to maintain high standards of quality for over a decade and a half — no mean feat, as so many other so-called crafts fairs start out in promising fashion, then sink quickly into a mire of cheap crap from India and China. But the TA municipality keeps close tabs the Nachalat Binyamin artisans and artists, many of whom staff their own booths.
Most visitors pay more attention to the products than the sellers, as is only natural when shopping. And that’s where the photographer’s eye comes in.
Photographer Jessica D. Korman, a recent new immigrant to Israel, took a stroll down Nachalat Binyamin and — aside from snapping shots of the wares for Tchochkes.com, where she is a regular contributor, she also took a look at what goes on around the booths.
Korman, who studied interior design, says she looks for architectural elements wherever she goes, “to present a different view of an object or event.”
“I like photographing everyday scenes,” Korman says, “always looking for a different angle or perspective to the mundane or even the ‘ugly’ side of things.”
A former picture editor for publications such as Scholastic, Star Magazine and Woman’s World Magazine, Korman now works as a Visual Communications Consultant in Jerusalem. “What I love about [photo editing] is that it is the marriage of written content with images. The proper choice of image will enable one’s work to have the greatest impact. Besides, what better job is there than getting to look at pictures all day?”
There’s inspiration everywhere. More of Korman’s work is available on her website, The F Stops Here.



















