Off to Morocco!

Um...read the title.

Tmol Shilshom

In order to end the semester (the first version of the first semester, anyways*), tonight the Senior Educators Program was taken out to dinner by the staff, and for the first time spouses were invited. We met at Tmol Shilshom, a coffee house/restaurant/used book store in the center of town. The rooms were full of eclectic and cozy atmosphere - mixed wooden chairs, books, brass furnishings, whitewashed limestone walls, and an open kitchen full of dreadlocked employees. The company and the food were great.

The activity for the evening was a meeting with the owner of the restaurant. After telling us about the history of the venue and his vision for its purpose, he read us a short story by an Israeli author, and then began a discussion about it. As the founder of Tmol Shilshom and a published author he has a clear love for the written word, but was also impressive with his easygoing manner and ability to discuss every aspect of the story we brought up.

All in all, the evening was fulfilling - intellectually, gastronomically, and socially. Not a bad way to start or end a vacation.

*The way Hebrew U has resolved the Senior lecturers' strike borders on ridiculous, and will be covered in another post, once we figure out what to do about it.

Pardes Tiyul to Southern Israel

Rina is back and is too tired to explain the rigours of hiking, touring, and eating her way through southern Israel, so here are some pictures - build your own story.

Eat in Joy

Rina still being away, I sought comfort during lunch from another shwarma stand, this one named אכל בשמחה, and I did. The portions were generous, and the salad bar was very different from others sampled so far. Firstly, there was a self-serve eggplant bowl. Secondly, there was a salad I've never before seen but which was clearly all of the leftover salads from previous days mixed together (and yes, it was as delicious as it sounds). Lastly, they had an assortment of sauces, and the hot sauce was actually hot! It's too bad that this joint is more expensive than some of the other top-rated locations, and has almost no seating. But for a quick stop it was great.

The night's activity was watching a series of skits at Hebrew U. One of my classmates took a course in theater, and this presentation was their final project. I'm certain that I missed some of the jokes and cultural references, but it was still fun and entertaining.

Happy Tu b'Shvat!

While it is very exciting the the seasonal decorations put up in the grocery store are Tu b'Shvat themed, does anyone else think they look like Halloween leftovers?

Rina Gone? Shwarma!

Rina has abandoned me for yet another exciting trip with Pardes, so I went out for Israeli comfort food - shwarma. This time I visited a store near the shuk, which for some bizarre reason was just as clean and orderly as the stand on campus. What won me over despite the 20 shekel price was their vast salad selection, each salad with its own utensil (it seems inconsequential, but it is impressive that they care to keep the flavours distinct). The taste was average, but the laffa was packed and the service was superb - the servers joked around, danced, and even let me swap out french fries in favour of felafel, something no other establishment has yet allowed. I wish I could remember the name of the stand so I could send them business, but I imagine that the above description really only matches one location within several blocks of the shuk.

The State of Modern Orthodoxy

This evening we attended a lecture and panel discussion hosted by the Mandel Institute, featuring Y.U. President Richard Joel, on the topic of the growing divide between Modern Orthodoxy in the United States and in Israel. The speakers and audience all had difficulty talking in any sort of direct manner, but what seemed to come out of the debate was:
1. People interested in the state of Modern Orthodoxy are all about 50 years old.
2. Modern Orthodoxy lacks any solid definition, but seems to have something to do with combining modernity and orthodoxy, and perhaps Israel and Hebrew, but not necessarily aliyah.

Headline: Teachers' Strike Becomes Comedy

From the Jerusalem Post, following the Senior Lecturers' solving their labour dispute:

Head of the Coordinating Forum of Junior Academic Staff Associations in Israel Eli Lohar told the Post Saturday night that the group had sent an urgent letter to the Committee of University Presidents (CUP) demanding talks over their working conditions.

"We are not striking yet, but we have called on the CUP to begin talks with us in the coming days. If they decline, we will weigh our options carefully. So far we have not heard from them," he said.

Lohar said the junior faculty's demands focused on pensions, seniority, severance and the other benefits they feel they should receive from the universities but do not.

AND

"After a war, a student strike and a lecturers strike, we will not raise tuition," she said.

שבת שירה

Friday night we spent with Rina's cousin Tammy and her family. The conversation was lively, the kids adorable and playful, and the food fantastic (is there some weird Cult of the Kitchen in the Tenenbaum family?). We felt right at home, playing on the floor with the kids (Jon learned the most popular Israeli school game, a weird card game left over from 1920) and recapping our lives to this point. It was a great way to spend the start of Shabbat.

This morning we tried out what we'd heard to be a great minyan. The organization is halachically progressive and meets once a month, usually in a member's home. This weekend was their first in a new location*, which they'd moved to to celebrate a Shabbat Chatan v'Kallah. Once again Jon was underwhelmed, but Rina wants to give them another try. The individual who invited them to the club-meeting called it "shorter and sweeter than Shirah Hadashah", which responded to our likes and dislikes exactly, but the service wound up taking just as long, with extended pauses for procedural issues, and had almost no singing. This being our third trip to a minyan of this sort, of which we liked only one, Jon is reminded once again of the statement made by Richard Dawkins, that "organizing atheists is like herding cats" - by nature religious innovators stray from the norm and prefer to be individuals, making institutionalization difficult.

After Shabbat we got a lift from Tammy and Uli to a Tenenbaum Bar Mitzvah in Tel Aviv. While we knew only a portion of the guests, the event was a lot of fun. We got to meet some family for the first time, reconnect with others, and dance some crazy circle dances.

*Of limited interest to some of you may be that the new location is inside the Goldtein Youth Village, the home of both Ramah Seminar and TRY. When I remarked that it was the same as when I visited 10 years ago, someone nearby responded that it is the same as it was 20 years ago. I mean, with wood panelling like that you have to be in either a basement or a camp, nowhere else.

Friday Brunch

To celebrate 30 months of marriage (it's the Scooter Libby Sentence Anniversary!) we went out for brunch today. We chose an isolated cafe nearby, ShoshCafe, which is several streets away from any major roads, and in the middle of a quiet residential neighbourhood. The interior was bright and lively, and the service was friendly. Oh, and the food (cheeses, eggs, house-bread, juices, coffees, pastries, fish, yogourt and granola) was great and reasonably priced. Hurray for more reasons to eat out!

חבל על הזמן

It's hard to believe that Parent month is over, and you have no idea how much those guys will be missed. Before they came, we thought that the 21 days would last forever, but they were gone in a blink, and with them went a seemingly endless parade of meat meals. I realized this morning that, by lunchtime, I would have gone 48 hours without eating meat, and I nearly broke down in tears. But then I realized that there is a shwarma place on campus, and so I dried my eyes. I justified this lunch when Rina told me that she would be having a party at Matan and eating dinner at Pardes; why should she have such a gastronomically pleasing day while I suffered with sandwiches and fruit? Never!

The place was fantastic. Maybe it was because I was the only customer (why didn't anyone else want shwarma at 10:45 in the morning?), but this was the most packed laffa I've ever received, and most of it was meat (of which they had two choices!). Also, instead of the thicker, more pizza-like laffas found at most places, here they used a wrap, maximizing stuffing and minimizing bread. The server was very kind, and only smiled an understanding smile when I came up - repeatedly - for salads, instead of shooing me away with a frightening Israeli stare-down or shouting match. Lastly, the eating and serving areas were disturbingly clean, but the product still tasted delicious (contrary to my previous understanding of shwarma stands, where there seems to be a direct link between dirt and deliciousness). The only drawbacks were the absence of eggplant (although, as I stated, it was before 11 a.m. so they probably weren't fully prepared yet) and the price (7 shekels more than Melech HaFelafel and its neighbour). Still, if for some reason you are making the trip up to Mount Scopus this is well worth a visit.

Israeli Culture Vignettes

Last night, when Rina called the restaurant to make reservations, they responded that "we don't reserve tables."
Rina countered, "but you did a month ago!"
"Oh, o.k. then." And they reserved us a table.

This morning we awoke to having no running water. We called the utility company, and they calmly explained, "don't worry - nobody has water." Gee, thanks. In Toronto we would have received a coloured announcement taped to our door if there was a chance that maybe a portion of the day's water would be interrupted, along with a timetable and an apology.

In the middle of Jon's Talmud class there was a sudden loud buzzing heard throughout the room, followed by half the class pulling out their cellphones to check their SMS inbox. As if that wasn't Israeli enough, the SMS informed us that half the remaining lecturers were joining their striking brethren for the day.

On a side note, tonight we said goodbye to the Parker-parents, ending our 21 days of Parental Visitation. Now begin the unfortunate months of weeks without steak nightly, and along with them the return of our ability to fit into our pants.

Relaxing Sunday

After school, Jon met his father near the Old City. After walking through the gentrified Mamilla and picking up some sachlab in the Old City, they went to the Davidson Center and the Southern Wall excavations. Even though both have done the tour many times previously they still enjoyed it a lot, as there is always something forgotten or something new to see. They spent much of the time latching onto different passing tour groups and hearing various explanations of the significance of the area (a Bar Mitzva tour, a Birthright group, and a Christian Mission discussed the stairs to the Temple as spiritual rising, historically interesting, and the location of Jesus' confrontation with the money lenders, respectively).

For dinner we met up with Abba and Ima, as well as Shai and Layla Mintz and a family friend from Detroit. Jon ordered the mixed grill, which is supposed to be a pile of random animal bits, but it came with no explanations so it might as well have been plain chicken. Oh well.

Shabbat Shira (a week early)

Friday night we went to services at Yakar, the Karlebach synagogue behind our apartment. We tend to avoid their downstairs minyan, as the tunes are dirge-like and haunting, and the Rabbi's speeches tend to be rambling and difficult to hear. All of these things happened, but the trip was worth it because Abba Parker got to see Rabbi MIntz, a long-time friend from Buffalo who now spends half of each year in Israel. We then had dinner with the entire Melton convention at the Prima Royale.

For Saturday's davening we finally made it to Shirah Hadashah, a progressive halachic minyan that gives women the opportunity to participate in many leadership and prayer roles closed to them in standard Orthodox synagogues. While the singing was perhaps the most beautiful collection of tunes and harmonies we have ever heard in a service, Jon was very disappointed that there wasn't a minyan for the first twenty minutes, and there wasn't a minyan of members until at least שמע. To our thinking, if you are going to express commitment to pushing the borders of Orthodoxy into the modern era, you should be committed enough to show up to shul on time, and to making sure there is a minyan. That Friday night services garner greater and more timely attendance than those Saturday seems to indicate that what brings people together here is socializing and song, not a commitment to a religious ideal, which is fine, just not how they advertise themselves.

Meeting the President's Motorcade's Security

Today was uneventful except for getting to experience the joys of our esteemed visitor's proximity to our neighbourhood. On our way home from grocery shopping an intersection was roped off and dozens of police lined the streets, refusing all pedestrians requests to cross the two empty lanes to the other side. Every so often the riot police, dressed entirely in black and carrying rifles, would zoom by on motorcycles. When asked, the police would tell us that the President would pass by in just a few minutes. The minutes elapsed and the crowds grew, but no Presidents passed. After half an hour, the more antsy people began crossing the street in trickles, and when several mothers pushing their infants in strollers arrived the police gave up and the mass-crossing began. None of us ever got to see Mr. Bush, and I'm not sure that any of us really care.

Tagging Along on Other Peoples' Vacation

This afternoon Jon got to have lunch at school with his parents, as the English-speaking Senior Educators were invited to talk with the gathered Melton staff in the Faculty Club, which has a great view of Jerusalem and a fantastic fleishig buffet. Jon was worried that he spent too much time talking to the 'rents and too little time talking about the program, but a quick look around the room showed that he was talking about the S.E.P. about as much as anyone else.

After lunch Jon and his mother caught a bus to Yad VaShem to see the new exhibit. The concrete, steel, and glass building is shaped like a prism, with the sharp angles of the exterior mirrored by angled walkways within. The theme of the museum is a microcosmic look at the Holocaust, and how it affected individual communities in Europe from the prosperous pre-war era through to the founding of the State of Israel. There is very little freedom to roam though the space, as you must follow a strictly defined path - there is a definite feel of inexorable movement toward some end (the establishment of Israel and the rise of Jews as a physical power). The museum is well arranged, making good use of design, media, artifacts, and the printed word, and closes with a breathtaking Hall of Names, which contains millions of names and bits of biographical data about the Holocaust's Jewish victims, as well as a three story sculpture that integrates photographs, lighting, and a limestone well. In the 90 minutes they had in the exhibit, the Parkers got through only about a third of the space, and would gladly (weird word choice, we know) go back again.

The museum was followed by some wandering around Ben Yehuda (which had only recently re-opened after the President's thoughtless visit there) while waiting for Abba and Rina. All four of us eventually met up at El Goucho for dinner, to enjoy some Argentine cuisine. We don't think that the South American country has discovered vegetables yet, as none appeared on the menu, but we won't complain. From the enchiladas and carpaccio (raw meat!) eaten as appetizers to the 2.2 pounds of steak eaten as an entree, all was magically delicious. Not too healthy, though, but that is what other peoples' vacations are all about.

Two Conversations

1. This morning Jon went to a meeting with Marc Brettler, an author and professor from Brandeis. The topic of the meeting was Brettler's book "How to Read the Bible", which espouses the use of the Historical-Critical method starting at a very young age. This means using the Documentary Hypothesis, archaeology, comparative literature, etc. to teach the Bible instead of classic rabbinic texts and religious approaches. Jon proposed to Brettler that this course of action would undermine the formation of Jewish identity and invalidate Jewish ritual, but the author disagreed. Disconcerting but still interesting.

2. Jon asked the guard at the bank, with whom he has become friends, what he thinks the traffic will be like due to President Bush's impending visit. The guard replied, "if you don't have to leave your house, don't."

Eilat - A Landlocked Cruise Ship

Friday
Breakfast consisted of five tables laden with cheeses, salads, pancakes, regular cakes, breads, cereals, and an omelette station, all of which were kosher. After gorging, Rina, Jonathan, Eric and Mitch went on a jeep/hiking tour of the mountains that surround Eilat. The guide explained the city's background in terms of geography, history, and politics, and gave pertinent examples of each as we passed them by. Highlights included a tour of the Egyptian border, fossil-sightings, and a view of granite mountains and the three Arab nations closest to the city from atop a windy peak with winding 4x4-only accessible roads. Without a doubt the best part of this event was the hike through the Red Canyon, a (relatively) level section between the mountains where high concentrations of different chemicals and whose location along a fault line have rendered some breathtaking natural rifts, shapes and sculptures. Following all this we headed back to the hotels for some relaxation and swimming.

Shabbat began with services at the hotel's shul, which, like all other synagogues in the area, was Sephardi, meaning extra long, loud, and weird. Aside from all of the different tunes and additions, the minyan also included a shouting match between attendees over whose tunes and additions were right. Once the ruckus was finally concluded we all met at the Parker-parents' hotel for a monstrous dinner, one whose scope easily eclipsed the massive breakfast. Soups, salads, breads, desserts, ten types of meat - wedding planners should take notes from this hotel. Dinner was followed by a peek in at the hotels' free entertainment, which was groups of over-excited teens in awkward costumes lip-synching and dancing to Israeli music of the past four decades.

Saturday
Wiped out by the festivities of the day before, everyone but Eric slept in, then got together for a Shabbat-themed breakfast of the same proportions as Friday. Today the pancakes and egg-products were replaced with kugels, jach'nun, and cakes. The balance of the day was spent lounging around poolside. When Shabbat ended and the Godlbergs were seen to their cab, the remaining folk had dinner at an Italian restaurant and wandered the boardwalk.

Sunday
Breakfast as above, then Daddy-Parker, Rina and Jonathan went on a glass-bottomed kayak tour of the Red Sea's coral reefs. The water is too cold for snorkeling to be comfortable, so this was an excellent substitute. We got fantastic views of the many colours and shapes of the coral, and even saw schools of fluorescent fish swimming by. After tired out by paddling, we were loaded into a boat and taken to see the dolphins playing in their enclosure. Lunch with Cheryl, another walk around the boardwalk, and it was off to the plane home for us.

In typical Israeli style our plane was massively delayed but we were not informed. The plane eventually delivered us to our destination of Sde Dov, a secondary airport in Tel Aviv. While we knew it wouldn't be an impressive structure like Ben Gurion airport, we were shocked when we discovered that Sde Dov is nothing more than a landing strip with a tent - an actual fabric tent - next to it. We collected our single bag, and began the search for a way back to Jerusalem. After some quality eavesdropping we found a family heading to Ben Gurion, and some sad-faces and forward questioning won us a place on their minibus to the airport. The group was six people large, with four Chicagoans headed by a Brotherhood-type who had come to celebrate their daughter's Bat Mitzva on Massada, and two Phillipinos. Eventually we got to the actual airport where we caught a sherut home, ending our vacation within a vacation.

Experiences en route to Eilat

Our day began at 6 a.m., the time we had to wake up for our 6:45 taxi to the airport. Our flight wasn't until 11, but the cab refused to come between 7 and 10 because of the traffic. The fabulous service continued when we received a call from the driver at 6:20, saying he'd be there in five minutes. We disagreed and won. We won again when, at the airport, he nearly refused to take us to the correct gate, insisting that we could just wait and take the free shuttle. Once we were dropped off, he overcharged us and ran away.

At the check-in for your flight, we found out that the control-tower staff had gone on strike, leaving all planes grounded. Planes arriving still managed to land somehow, as the Parker parents showed up from Detroit on time and managed to get their tickets changed to an earlier flight only moments before the strike ended and the plane took off.

The Goldbergs and Parkers reunited in Eilat, where some went to take a nap and others toured the city. Those of us touring got to witness a French wedding on the beach as the sunset, which was beautiful both in terms of the view and the interesting ceremony (a bedekin at the chuppah, lots of songs and clapping, and a clergyman more showman than rabbi). We then reunited again for dinner at a nearby restaurant.

On the way home we stopped off at the Parker-parents' hotel room, which had been upgraded to a suite with a fruit platter, chocolate cake, and truffles (apparently their room wasn't ready when they arrived, two hours before check-in, so they were upgraded). Then we (the Parkbergers) hit up an Israeli disco at our hotel and passed out (not at the disco, but shortly after).

Quick Recap

1. Monday night we went out to Buffalo Steakhouse with the 'rents and some friends from Toronto. Excellent chicken wings and even better steak (sirloin!).

2. On the bus through Ge'ula/Me'ah She'arim after lunch with the Lazars, Jon saw his first anti-immodesty mob. It was unclear if the police-woman was the cause or the solution to the mob.

3. Tuesday was Aryeshe's birthday, so we went to a restaurant called 1868 (after the historicity of the building). Fanciness! A sampling of what was eaten - goose liver, foie gras with truffles, smoked goose breast, and various cuts of steak. Who knew that Jews ate things other than potatoes and onions?

4. Wednesday lunch at Macaroni with the Goldbergs and the Cormans - still the best lunch in the city.

5. Wednesday dinner with a crew of Torontonians, both visiting and permanent. Even though it was Joy, an upper-end eatery, half the table got burgers and fries.