Saying L'Hitraot to Israel

It is our last full day in Israel, and we have tried to make the most of it. This morning we went to Tiberias, to meet with the Jewish Agency's Sovev Kinneret branch. This is the partner agency to the UJFC (St. Paul Federation) through the Partnership 2000 program. They took us on a tour of a marvelous high school that includes special classes for at-risk teens, teaching them life skills and vocational trades. We had lunch with several lay leaders and discussed how we can strengthen the relationship between our communities. We also went through the oldest kibbutz in Israel and saw how it is modernizing. But the best part of the day was going to the chocolate factory on the kibbutz, where we got to see them making chocolate candies and then got to make some of our own. It was a very fun way to end a very fun trip.

We have had a wonderful time and don't want to leave, although it will be nice to sleep in our own beds again. We are already looking forward to our next trip back here. L'hitraot! See you again soon!

Visit to the Clandestine Immigration and Naval Museum (blog by Avery)

We went to the Clandestine Immigration and Naval Museum and the Maritime Museum. The Clandestine Museum is about Israel’s navy and the illegal immigration of Jews into Israel, before it became a country. The Maritime Museum is about the history of boating within Israel and the Mediterranean.

In 1939, the British government issued a policy, known as the White Paper, which allowed only 75,000 Jews to immigrate to Palestine for the next five years, after which Jews would only be allowed to immigrate if permission was given by the Arabs. In response to the persecution by the Nazis and the immigration limit imposed by the British, European Jews were forced to enter Palestine illegally. Even though the British blockaded the Palestine coast, tens of thousands of Jews were smuggled in.

At the Clandestine Museum, we saw an exhibit about the ships used to bring Jews into Palestine. Some of the boats used contained thousands of people, with the largest carrying over 7,600 people.

We saw a model of the Exodus, which held over 4,500 people. Of all the boats, only seven were sunk. However, many of the boats were stopped by the British, and the Jews onboard sent to prison camps, primarily in Cyprus.

Elsewhere in the museum, we saw sculptures made by the Jewish prisoners in the Cyprus prison camps.

Also in the Clandestine Museum was an exhibit about Israel’s navy. The exhibit told about how Israel converted old passenger ships and World War II ships purchased as salvage. They combined these ships with weapons acquired by purchasing scrap parts from naval ships of other countries into a navy which it used to defend itself from the surrounding countries after it declared its independence. They even sneaked 5 warships out of France when the French reneged on a deal to sell them.

Outside on the grounds of the museum, we walked through a submarine and a destroyer. The boats were very cool.

The Maritime Museum was less interesting. It was mainly a history of boating in the Mediterranean Sea. However, there was an exhibit about pirates downstairs, which was more interesting. According to the exhibit, the pirate Jean LaFite was Jewish as were a few other captains and a small percentage of crew members.

The Clandestine and Maritime Museums were, for the most part, fun to visit.

The exhibit on illegal immigration was interesting, the boats were cool, and the exhibit on pirates was okay. I liked going to the museums.

We went to a kibbutz (blog by Noah)

"A kibbutz is a form of communal living that combines Socialism and Zionism" (see explanations below). Ein HaShofet is among the oldest kibbutzim in Israel. Actually, Ein HaShofet began in 1937, eleven years before Israel became a state. The kibbutz has over 700 people, including its members and those studying in ulpan. Unlike many of the kibbutzim in Israel today, Ein HaShofet remains very traditional in its communal organization.

Other than food, laundry and electricity, everything remains largely communally funded. At the same time, the kibbutz is building beautiful new townhouses for its members with new families.

Originally, the kibbutz used children's homes. The children would live separate from their parents and barely see them. Instead, the children now live at home and go to school on the kibbutz.

Ein HaShofet operate two factories, one manufacturing screws and the other electronic appliances. It also has a large farm with dairy and meat cows, a large dairy producing cheese and ice cream, and a poultry farm. As we left, we watched the dairy cows being led into the barns for their afternoon milking.

New members can still join the kibbutz. Some start in the ulpan and wish to stay. Others wish to join the community. If you want to join the kibbutz, there is a vote by all its members to see if you will be invited to join.

קיבוץ קִבּוּץ kibbutz

A kibbutz is a form of communal living that combines socialism and Zionism. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities and have gradually embraced a more "scientific" socialist approach. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Less than five percent of Israelis live on kibbutzim. A member of a Kibbutz is called a Kibbutznik (Hebrew: קִבּוּצְנִיק‎).

(Wikipedia)

אולפן ulpan

An ulpan is an institute or school for the intensive study of Hebrew. Ulpan (אולפן, plural ulpanim - אולפנים) is a Hebrew word meaning basically studio or teaching, instruction.

The ulpan is designed to teach adult immigrants to Israel the basic language skills of conversation, writing and comprehension. Most ulpanim also provide instruction in the fundamentals of Israeli culture, history, and geography. The primary purpose of the ulpan is to help new citizens to be integrated as quickly and as easily as possible into the social, cultural and economic life of their new country.

(Wikipedia)

Elijah's Cave

We went to see Elijah's Cave, one of the few religious sites in Haifa. Nestled at the foot of Mount Carmel, next to the sea, it is in this cave that the Prophet Elijah came to pray before challenging the prophets of Baal and calling down fire from heaven. This cave is also said to be where the Prophet Elijah lived in hiding while fleeing from the wrath of King Ahab and his wife, Jezebel.

Like Elijah himself, the cave has been sacred to Christians, Druze and Muslims as well as Jews, and one wall inside is covered with ancient Greek inscriptions, and as well as some in Hebrew. Today the cave has become a synagogue of sorts, with an Ark hewn into the front wall for the Torah, a mechitza down the middle (separating the men from the women) and many spaces in the ceiling and walls where visitors insert prayer notes, like at the Kotel.

A courtyard outside the cave has several memorial altars where you can light candles, strangely like a Catholic church, and I decided to light in memory of Sasha, whose Hebrew name is Eliyahu (Elijah), so it seemed appropriate.

Yarden Winery - a Parent's Perspective

Avery's post (immediately below) does a very nice job describing the process at the winery, but the highlight of the visit was the wine tasting. Yarden uses its own name for its premium wines and has won a great many awards since it opened in 1982 - on the heels of the official (but not quite complete) annexation of the Golan Heights into Israel. The middle-priced labels use the Gamla name, while the relatively less expensive table wines use the name Golan.

Many within Israel suggest that Yarden transformed the Israeli wine industry, pushing all the other wineries to improve their quality. As a result, there are a tremendous number of high quality wines available, ranging in price from under $10.00 to well over $75.00 in the local grocery stores.

As a special treat, the Yarden Vintner brought out a bottle of the 2005 Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon which had just received the top prize in a French wine competition.

Both Noah and Avery were served tastings along with the others on the tour. Avery was not impressed by the wines, and really did not like the complex taste of the award winning wines.

Noah shared some of Avery's attitude regarding the Cabernet Sauvignon , but enjoyed the Golan "ice wine" traditionally made by allowing the grapes to remain on the vine and freeze until harvested in February. Israel has no winter freeze, so Yarden picks the grapes and stores them frozen, resulting in a very sweet, thick dessert wine.



Noah has quickly developed a sophisticated palate, though I think that the similarities between Ice Wine and Grape Juice are sufficient to keep him off the alcohol at least until his bar mitzvah. Avery has learned to appreciate Coke Zero and I can happily report he will be staying away from the red wines for a long time to come.

Cheers,
Jon

Yarden Winery (by Avery)

On Sunday, we went to a winemaking company, called Yarden, in the Golan Heights. We learned about the process used to make wine, and then we tasted various types of wine.

The first step in making wine is the crushing of the grapes. We were not able to see any grape-crushing, because we were in between harvesting times. After the juice is extracted, it is placed in giant steel barrels to ferment. After the first fermentation, the wine is cleaned and placed into air-tight oak barrels.

Inside the building containing the oak barrels, the air was chilled to near freezing. We saw rows and rows of barrels, stacked upon each other, stretching all the way to the ceiling. A man on the floor was transferring wine from one barrel to another, and a different man was driving a forklift, stacking the barrels.

After fermenting and aging (anywhere between a few months and twenty years), the wine is poured out of the barrels. The wine is tasted and blended, until the wanted taste is acquired. The wine is filtered once more, and bottled.

The bottling process is completely automated, with a machine that fills the bottles, a machine that corks them, a machine that labels them, a machine that packages them, a machine that stacks the boxes, and a machine that wraps the boxes together. It was very cool watching all the machines working in unison (for the most part).

After our tour of the factory, our guide brought out a cart with different wine bottles on it. We finished the day with a tasting of some of their wines. My parents liked the wines, although I did not like most of them.

Our trip to the Yarden wine company in the Golan Heights was interesting. We saw how wine is made, and then we went to a wine tasting. It was very fun.

Tzefat (Safed)

This past Sunday, we went to Tzefat, or Safed, the highest city in the Galilee. (It is located next to Mt. Meron in the Golan Heights, the highest point in Israel.)

Safed rose to fame in the 16th century as a center of Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism. After the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492, many rabbis found their way to Israel, although they were not permitted to go to Jerusalem. These rabbis included Isaac Luria (teacher of the Zohar, the original book of the Kabbalah) and Joseph Caro (author of the Shulchan Aruch, the Code of Jewish Law, written in Safed). The beautiful hymn "L'chah Dodi," sung on Friday night to welcome the Sabbath, was written in Safed: standing in the courtyard of the Ari Ashkenazi Synagogue, the rabbis could look out to the west, see the sun setting over Mt. Meron, and know exactly when Shabbat was coming.

Safed has many beautiful synagogues, both old and new, and is known for its Artist's Quarter. In fact, we met famous microcalligrapher Leon Azoulay, whose seriograph "Bereshit" adorns our dining room. We now are proud to own his "Bamidbar" as well.

Akko

On Monday, we went to the ancient city of Akko (Acre in English), about 30 minutes north of Haifa by train. Akko is a very strategic port that has been ruled by Canaanites, Phoenicians, Alexander the Great, the Greeks, the Romans, the Crusaders, Saladin -- even Napoleon tried to capture it but failed.

Today, the remains of the citadel of Akko are from the original Ottoman fortification, built on the foundation of the older Crusader Hospitaller citadel. The citadel was part of the city's defensive formation, reinforcing the northern wall. During the 20th century the citadel was used mainly as a prison and as the site for a gallows. During the British mandate period, activists of Jewish Zionist resistance movements were held prisoner there; some were executed there. This was the basis for Leon Uris' book "Exodus."

These still remain in the citadel of Akko, and we walked through most of them:

• Ottoman fortifications (including a tower and moat)
• The Acre Old City Visitor Center, built right into the ancient walls
• The "enchanted garden": a garden planted in keeping with the historical description of the Crusader garden that existed there
• British prison and the gallows
• A museum and memorial to the Jewish resistance fighters executed during the British Mandate
  
• Prison cell of Bahá'u'lláh, founder of the Bahá'í Faith
• Knights' Halls, including a dungeon and a refectory
• The Templars Tunnels, used as escape routes in times of war

Akko also has many mosques, walled plazas built by the sultans, Arab souks, and a beautiful little synagogue named after the Italian sage Rabbi Moshe Haim Luzatto, known by his acronym the Ramhal, who arrived in Akko in 1743. He was a student of the Kabbala, very controversial in his time (he was chased out of many cities because of his teachings), who has since become very revered for his brilliant writings. The shul features an underground bima (which the caretaker very kindly let the boys climb down into), as well as as an original Torah scroll written by the Ramhal in pomegranate juice on deerskin -- it took him a year to write it, working 8 hours a day. You can see the dark scrolls in the photo below. The shul was fascinating -- one of the highlights of our trip.

The Technion -- blog by Avery

We went to the Israel Institute of Technology, known as the Technion, on Monday. The Technion was founded in 1912 by the German-Jewish fund Ezrah. The Technion was one of only two universities in Ottoman Palestine, the other being the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem, founded in 1907. The Technion opened in 1924, after a long debate about whether to use German or Modern Hebrew as the language of instruction. However, after World War I and the decline of Germany's power, Hebrew was adopted. The first class was made up of sixteen students, majoring in architecture and civil engineering.

The Technion awarded its first PhD in 1953, for electrical engineering. Until the opening of the engineering school in Ben Gurion University in the early 1970's, the Technion was the only university in Israel offering engineering degrees. The Technion now offers courses in eighteen areas, including electrical engineering, biotechnology, mathematics, and urban planning, among others.

While at the Technion, we learned about their close connection with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. Rafael is the main developer of Israeli weapons and military technology. It has developed unmanned military airplanes and tanks. It has also developed the most accurate anti-ballistic missile in use today. Most of Rafael's engineers and faculty are Technion graduates, and the Technion and Rafael exchange research and work on each other's advances.

The Technion started as a small school in a small country. One of the things that helped jumpstart the Technion's popularity was Albert Einstein's involvement. After he visited the Technion in 1923, Einstein founded the first Technion Society, in Germany. There are now Technion Societies in seventeen countries, including the United States and the Netherlands. “Israel can win the battle for survival only by developing expert knowledge in technology,” is one of Einstein's most famous statements.

Visiting the Technion was both fun and interesting. We learned about the history of the school, the school's interaction with the military through Rafael, and the Technion Society, founded by Einstein. I would like to go back.

The Grand Canyon

While Jon was lecturing in Jerusalem today, the boys and I went to the Grand Canyon (yes, you read that correctly). The Grand Canyon is the largest mall in Israel, and luckily for us, it's located in Haifa, about 15 minutes away by bus. The name is a cute play on words: "kenyon" is the Hebrew word for mall, the mall is pretty grand, and it's actually located at the bottom of a canyon, although it doesn't quite live up to its American namesake. There are close to 200 shops and kiosks, a food court and restaurants, movie theatres, and even a little amusement park, so it's like having our own little Mall of America right here in Israel.

First we had lunch at the food court. I couldn't decide between kosher Chinese, kosher Japanese, or kosher burgers (I love it here!) and decided to go with the Chinese. The boys wanted pizza from Sbarro's. Yes, we traveled 6000 miles so they could eat the same food they get at the mall at home (although of course they don't offer sausage or pepperoni here. You can, however, get corn and olive pizza if you want.).

We did some shopping and then we went to the movies ("Monsters vs Aliens," in English with Hebrew subtitles). The funniest part of the movie was the intermission halfway through -- a 5-minute break followed by very loud bells warning the audience that the movie was starting again. Apparently this is typical in Israel, because we could hear it happening in the other theatres.

After the movie, we stopped at the supermarket on the first level (MOA could use one of those), and then caught the bus home. Another fun day in Israeli paradise for the Garons.

The Yoms

I meant to blog about the Yoms last week, but I haven't had a chance until now. Better late than never.


Last week we celebrated Yom Hazikaron (Remembrance Day in honor of fallen soldiers and victims of terror) and then Yom Ha'Atzmaut (Independence Day). As of Yom Hazikaron 2009, Israel honored the memory of 22,570 people who were killed in the line of duty and and 1,723 civilian terror victims since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. In fact, just up the hill from our apartment, there is an inset wall with an inscription and a list of names of people who died here during a bomb attack. On Yom Hazikaron, the City of Haifa and families of the victims laid wreaths and flowers there. It was very moving and a little scary.

Yom Hazikaron begins with the sounding of a siren and a minute of silence. All restaurants and forms of entertainment close. An official ceremony takes place at the Kotel, which we watched on TV. All flags are placed at half-mast.


A two-minute siren is heard the following morning, at 11:00, which marks the opening of the official memorial ceremonies and private remembrance gatherings which are held at each cemetery where soldiers are buried. We went out to the street to watch. (Across the street from us was a group of schoolchildren -- apparently their teacher had the same idea that we had.)


The day officially draws to a close at about 8:00 p.m. and goes immediately into the official ceremony of Israel Independence Day on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, when the flags are returned to full mast.

Yom Ha'Atzmaut is celebrated throughout the country with fireworks, just like the Fourth of July at home. We watched from the top of Mount Carmel, looking down at the fireworks display on the port. I have never looked down on fireworks before. It was very cool.


On the day of Yom Ha'Atzmaut, there are ceremonies featuring ritual marches by soldiers carrying combat units flags (one for each year of the anniversary). We were able to see them practicing when we were in Jerusalem last month. They also light 12 torches, one for each of the Twelve Tribes of Israel.
It was a wonderful experience to be able to celebrate these Yoms (as well as Yom HaShoah the week before) in Israel. They will be much more meaningful to us from now on.

Druze Village

We went on an expedition to Daliat-el-Carmel, a very old Druze village about 20 minutes south of Haifa. The Druze are a non-Muslim Arabic community found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. They practice a secretive monotheistic religion with no sacred rituals or special holy days (although Friday is their Sabbath). They are also known for their handicrafts, especially weaving and embroidery, glassware, and baskets.

The main street of Daliat-el-Carmel is like one giant shuk. Shops, stalls, restaurants and cafes line the street, and shoppers are everywhere. The shopkeepers are very polite and welcoming (for the most part), and the stores offer everything from beautiful handmade Druze goods to clothing to Judaica to children's toys. I have never seen so many hamsas for sale in my life, not even in Jerusalem. We were very successful in our gift shopping.

To regain our strength, we went for lunch at Abu Ramzi, a lovely Druze restaurant. As soon as we sat down, we were served olives and pickled vegetables (see Noah's blog about food), as well as Druze pita. This is a large, thin bread, almost like an oversized crepe. The dough is tossed in the air like a pizza and then cooked very quickly on what looks like an upside-down wok. It is served very hot and is delicious.

We also ate fuul: broad, dark beans cooked in lemon and olive oil and served with tehina; roasted eggplant, cut like potato chips and cooked with lemon and garlic; and the Druze version of shakshuka, a popular Israeli dish made of eggs, tomatoes, peppers and onions, served in a sizzling skillet like fajitas. Everything was wonderful.

For more information about the Druze, read this interesting article.

Visiting the Eretz Yisrael Museum in Tel Aviv (blog by Avery)

We went to the Eretz Yisrael Museum in Tel Aviv on Wednesday. Three of the exhibits we went to were the Tel Qasile archaeological dig, the Kadman Numismatic Pavilion, and the Land of the Baron Rothschild exhibit.

The Tel Qasile dig was started during the 1940's, when two potsherds were discovered with Hebrew writing on them. (The museum was built in the 1950's to incorporate the dig.)

A Philistine city dating from the 12^th century BCE was uncovered, containing three temples built on top of each other, a large house, a pottery workshop with a kiln, storage silos, and a street. Twelve strata of artifacts were uncovered. We saw where the Philistines had made pottery, where they made sacrifices, and where they lived. Tel Qasile was the coolest part of the museum.

The Kadman Numismatic Pavilion was an exhibit about the origin of coins as money. Coins were first invented in Greece during the 6^th century BCE. The exhibit contained coins from the Greek, Persian, Roman, Byzantine, Crusader, Muslim, Ottoman, and British eras of control in Israel, along with Chinese coins and paper money.

My favorite coin was the Greek drachma, printed in Aegina, which had a tortoise on the front.

The Land of the Baron exhibit was about Baron Edmond Benjamin James de Rothschild, and how he, along with the Zionist movement, helped create the State of Israel. Baron Rothschild was a wealthy Jewish banker and philanthropist from France.

He helped fund many small Israeli villages that have since grown into full-sized cities, as well as organizations that still work for the good of the Jewish people such as PICA, and a famous vineyard and winery. There was also a movie in the exhibit about what he would think of modern-day Israel. The video was interesting, but overall, I thought that the exhibit was boring.

The Eretz Yisrael Museum in Tel Aviv was an enjoyable, interesting excursion. The Tel Qasile archaeological dig was interesting, the Kadman Numismatic Pavilion was fun, and the Land of the Baron only so-so, but overall it was fun to visit the museum and Tel Aviv.

Foods in Israel (blog by Noah)

Israel has many interesting foods that are different from those at home.

Most of the foods are typical throughout Israel. Some are only found in certain places, like St. Peter's fish near Lake Kinneret, and both Haifa and Jerusalem bagels. (Jerusalem bagels are long and thin, with thicker crust; Haifa bagels are shorter and sweeter. Personally I like Haifa bagels better than Jerusalem bagels.)

These are some of the typical Israeli foods that I have tried:

1. Felafel – this is the most common Israeli food. It is served different ways: in pita bread, or rolled up in big pieces of laffa bread, which I like better. Felafel is made of fried balls of ground chickpeas, plus lots of salad, hummus, tehina, and french fries, right in the sandwich!
2. Shawarma – this is like felafel, but made with grilled lamb instead of chickpeas.
3. Hummus – this is a thick dip made of ground chick peas.
4. Tehina – this is a thinner dip or sauce made of ground sesame seeds (I like tehina better than hummus)
5. Israeli Salad – this is made up of diced tomatoes, cucumbers and sweet onions
6. Pickled salads – Israelis eat a lot of pickled vegetables. We've had pickled carrots, cabbage, cucumbers, beets, onions, tomatoes, and many others.
7. Shnitzel – Most felafel and shawarma places also sell shnitzel, which are breaded chicken cutlets eaten like a steak or in a pita.
8. Ice cream – Israeli ice cream is a lot like Italian gelato, with lots of really cool flavors. And the clerks are really nice about giving tastes to try.
9. Fruit juices and shakes – There are lots of stands and stores that sell fresh-squeezed fruit juices and blended fruit shakes. We've had pomegranate juice, melon juice, melon-berry-mint smoothie, kiwi-melon smoothie, etc. It's fun to try new flavors.
10. Burgers – We've eaten these several different ways: with American-style buns, without any buns, and in a pita like a felafel (my favorite). We even had burgers on Passover on potato buns (but these weren't so good).
11. Rugelach and baked goods – These have all been really yummy. I like the cookies with halvah inside best. In Jerusalem, at the shuk, we got freshly baked chocolate rugelach still hot from the oven. So good!

Tel Aviv

Yesterday we took the train down to Tel Aviv. It took just over an hour from the Haifa central station.

Tel Aviv is a big, metropolitan city with a very different feel to it from either Jerusalem or Haifa. We went first to the Eretz Yisrael Museum, one of the best in the country. Fabulous exhibits on ancient coins, olive and wine presses, very modern ceramics, 6th century mosaics, and an archeological dig right in the middle of the museum complex, showing a town from the Canaanite period and Philistine temples from 3,000 years ago.

Unfortunately for us, everything closed early because it was Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israel Independence Day), so I could not go shopping at the big Dizengoff Center (somehow, Jon was not as disappointed as I was). Also, the big shuk was closed. So we walked down to the beach instead.

Now, here was the kind of promenade I had been looking for! Lots of hotels, restaurants, shops, cafes, music, and people everywhere. And apparently they came from everywhere, too, because we heard a huge range of languages.

The boys got tired and we took the train home (riding on the upper level of a double-decker train -- very cool). We decided to get off at a different Haifa station: Hof HaCarmel, which is Carmel Beach, and lo and behold, here was a miniature version of the Tel Aviv promenade! We knew there had to be something like this somewhere in Haifa. So this is where we will go to the beach, hopefully tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Comparing Haifa and Jerusalem -- by Avery

I have noticed many differences between Jerusalem and Haifa. Three of these differences are how religious the cities are, how touristy they are, and how tight security is.

Jerusalem is a much more religious city than Haifa. Nearly every restaurant in Jerusalem is kosher, with a large certificate in the window saying so. In Haifa, very few restaurants have certificates, but it seems like not very many restaurants are kosher. During Shabbat in Jerusalem, most stores are closed. But in Haifa, fewer stores are closed during Shabbat. Also, the people in Jerusalem are more religious, with most Jews wearing kippot. In Haifa, I have seen almost no one wearing kippot.

Jerusalem is a city full of tourists. There are many holy sites, so many tourists come to visit. More tourists leads to more tourist shops. However, there is almost nothing for tourists in Haifa except a few museums, the Baha'i gardens, and the Mediterranean Sea, and that is only open for swimming between the start of summer and the start of jellyfish season, two months later. And while Jerusalem has the Western Wall, the Dome of the Rock, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the only religious site in Haifa is the Baha'i gardens (which are not even part of one of the three main religions). As such, there is not much for us tourists to do.

Security is much tighter in Jerusalem than in Haifa. In Jerusalem, most large buildings, such as malls and theaters, not to mention the holy sites, have security guards with metal detectors at each entrance, who search through all bags before allowing you in. Also, you can see soldiers with Uzis walking around in most busy places, and most locals have guns as well. In Haifa, however, while the guards are still there, they are much more lax. And I have not seen any soldiers in Haifa, or citizens with guns.

Three large differences between Haifa and Jerusalem are how secular Haifa is compared to how religious Jerusalem is, how tourism is much more low-key in Haifa than in Jerusalem, and how security is much more lax in Haifa than in Jerusalem.

Bat Galim

Friday morning we went down to Bat Galim, the main beach and promenade at the northern end of the city. The season doesn't officially begin until next week, after Yom Ha'Atzmaut (Israel Independence Day), so it wasn't very crowded.

The water was gorgeous -- deep blue with crashing waves. The promenade -- not so much. There were a couple of restaurants and very few stores. We had expected something more. We've learned that Haifa isn't a tourist town, but there wasn't even a t-shirt shop. Maybe other things open up once the season starts, but it was pretty empty. Still, we enjoyed walking down the beach and climbing out on the rocks. It was also fun to watch the men fishing, using huge expanding poles with no reels.

We also noticed a curious division of populations on the beach. The Russians were swimming, the Israelis were surfing (or at least trying to), and the Arabs were fishing. There were no apparent exceptions to this. We seemed to be the only tourists.

There are a couple of other beaches to the south that are supposed to be nicer. We'll check those out next week.

Yom HaShoah

Today is Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Memorial Day. Ceremonies began last night at the Yad Vashem memorial in Jerusalem, televised throughout the country. (All other television programs and forms of entertainment -- movies, theatre -- are suspended for the evening by law). It was a beautiful ceremony, featuring speeches, the lighting of 6 torches by survivors who told their stories (thankfully subtitled), music played on violins belonging to children who perished, an extremely moving rendition of El Malei Rachamim (a prayer for the dead) by an army captain, and the singing of Hatikvah by a chorus of schoolgirls. For more about the ceremony, read this article in the Jerusalem Post.

Then this morning at 10 AM, sirens were sounded throughout Israel for two minutes. During this time, people cease from action and stand at attention; cars stop, even on the highways; and the whole country comes to a standstill as people pay silent tribute to the dead. I walked up from our apartment to a nearby major street to see this. Cars and trucks come to a stop on the street and the drivers get out. People stop walking right were they are. Everything is silent. Then, when the sirens stop, everyone resumes what they were doing. It was amazing to see.

For an idea of what this looked like, watch this video on YouTube.

Shalom from Haifa!

We have left Jerusalem and traveled north to Haifa. You can tell immediately how different this city is. First of all, as you drive up the highway, with the sparkling blue sea on your left, you see a huge city sprawling over the hills. Second, the buildings are not all made of Jerusalem stone (in Jerusalem, it is the law that all buildings must be made of or at least faced with Jerusalem stone). Third, this is an obviously secular city. Not many men with kippot walking around, and even fewer with black hats. We've seen very few kosher restaurants in our neighborhood. Our landlady was astonished when we asked if the apartment's kitchen was kosher (she was even more astonished when she found out we didn't have a car -- this is not a walking city like Jerusalem).

We started to explore a bit yesterday, but the boys were tired after traveling, so the first big expedition will come today, probably to the famous Baha'i Gardens. Stay tuned!

Visit to the Israeli Supreme Court

Yesterday we visited the Israeli Supreme Court and the Knesset. Unfortunately neither body was in session, but we had excellent tours that highlighted the roles of these important political bodies in modern Israel. Since this is rather long, I will leave the Knesset for another post.



The Supreme Court building is relatively new, having been finished in 1992. When you walk into the building, the first thing you see is an expansive staircase leading from the ground to a panoramic window looking out to the sky and the city of Jerusalem.

The entrance was inspired by Psalms 85:11-12, "Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth will spring up from the earth and justice will be reflected from the heavens."

The building design embodies the precepts that truth -- a factual reality, grounded and unaltered -- is transformed into justice only by looking to heaven and seeking mercy. One is physically drawn from the ground to look into the heavens while ascending the stairs.

As our guide brought us through the building, he repeatedly stressed the openness of the Courts. Every person (not merely citizen) has the legal right to petition the Supreme Court sitting as the High Court of Justice for violation of one's rights by the State. He pointed out that no identification is needed to enter the building (unlike the high security and passport requirements of the Knesset). He also pointed out that with few exceptions (such as matters involving minors or security issues), all court proceedings are open to the public.

The building has been designed to reinforce the values of the Israeli judicial system and the importance of Jerusalem. An Israeli brother and sister team won the international competition for the design. Ram and Ada Karmi incorporated Jerusalemite stone and the sweeping power of the Western Wall into the design that captured austere but inspiring arches, lines and circles. The design was inspired from Psalms: "You are righteous ... and Your laws are straight (Psalms 119:137) and "He leads me in circles of justice (Psalms 23:3).

The court system itself is an interesting example of historical precedent and political compromise. The modern court system grew out of the British court system used during its occupation as well as the religious Bet Din traditions. Juries were disfavored by the British outside of the commonwealth to avoid juries siding with the locals and nullifying British law. Instead, a system of magistrate courts for lower offenses and less valuable civil matters were established throughout the territory.

Israel adopted the system. It has thirty magistrate courts, six district courts and the Supreme Court in Jerusalem. The district court has original jurisdiction for cases involving criminal sentences that may exceed seven years or civil matters exceeding approximately $600,000. Cases below this threshold are heard by the magistrate courts. District courts also serve as intermediate appellate courts for the Magistrate Courts. From the Bet Din tradition, District Courts sit in panels of three.

The Israeli Supreme Court serves two functions. It is the highest appellate court for cases from the Magistrate and District courts and it is the High Court of Justice. As the High Court of Justice, it has original jurisdiction for cases against the State, including administrative agencies, government authorities and individuals in public office. The Supreme Court generally does not meet as a single body, but rather operates in panels - randomly assigned panels of three or more Justices. All panels have an odd number of Justices. Because the present Court has twelve members, it cannot meet in full. Our guide reported that three additional Justices will be appointed soon, raising the number to fifteen and creating the potential for the entire judiciary to meet as an en banc panel.

The stress placed by our guide on the access to the court by every person in Israel made a strong impression. Coming out of the courtroom, Avery and Noah asked many questions about our Justices and Judges in Minnesota and the United States. They wanted to go onto the bench as they had been allowed last year when I was sworn into the Minnesota bar, but I told them that to do that we needed the permission of one of the Justices (as Justice Meyer had so graciously allowed last year.) Walking out, they asked me if I would begin collecting the autographs of the Justices I know.

The power of the visit taught them who are the real heroes in this world. Psalms captures this beautifully: "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Thy throne; mercy and truth go before Thee." (Psalms 89:14).

Birkat HaKohanim

This morning, we went to the Kotel for the Birkat HaKohanim (the Priestly Blessing), along with 50,000 of our closest friends and neighbors. Hundreds of Kohanim stood in front of the Wall, covered themselves in their taleisim (prayer shawls), lifted their hands and blessed the people with the ancient blessing: "May G-d lift his countenance upon you and may he grant you peace." I bowed my head, covered my eyes and was transported back in time. I could believe it was 2,000 years ago, when the same Kohanim were reciting the same blessing, just on the other side of the Wall, on the actual Temple Mount. When I opened my eyes, I actually had to think for a minute to remember where I was. It was truly a transcendent moment.