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.