Second day of חג? Pooh!

Rather than spend another enjoyable day in prayer and without hot water, today we shed our Diaspora traditions and spent our time flicking lights on and off, setting things on fire, and cooking for meals several days in the future. Once all that heretical fun was over, we walked to the Israel museum, which is free during Pesach. Even though their permanent exhibit is closed for renovations, there was plenty to see. The sculpture garden, in addition to its usual residents, was home to a wide array of performers and activities for children - clowns, painting, origami, musicians, and pottery stations filled the area. Even though it is Pesach, there were also food vendors (yes, they were selling shrink-wrapped matza).

We saw several exhibits, including one on contemporary Israeli art ("art", perhaps, is better). The highlight of the trip however, and our biggest reason for going to the museum, was a pair of exhibits entitled "Looking for Owners" and "Orphaned Art". Both exhibits featured works of art looted from Jews by the Nazis, now reclaimed through the work of several organizations. Much of the collection has been returned to the original owners, but the pieces on display either lack a recorded history or have not yet been claimed. In addition to its artistic merits, the display was interesting because it demonstrated a different side to the victims of the Holocaust, both their financial losses as well as their assimilation into European society. The vast majority of the works were not on Jewish topics or themes, but rather political or historical in nature, and painted by some of the world's most famous painters, not simply Jewish artisans.

The balance of the day was spent buying maps and provisions for our three day (we hope) hike from the Mediterranean to the Kineret, which we leave for at 5 a.m. tomorrow.