While I am living in a college dormitory complex 34 parties does not indicate some change in my personal behavior. Elections in Israel are set for February 10th; there are currently 34 parties on the ballot. While we have several third parties in Alaska (for example the party Todd Palin registered for, the Alaska Independence Party), they almost never have candidates elected to office. In Israel however, where citizens vote for a party as opposed to a representative, any party receiving 3% of the vote or greater gets a seat in the Knesset. Among the parties, according to the Jerusalem Post, one was formed with a coalition of Holocaust survivors and advocates for legalizing marijuana.
There are a few similarities between Israel politics and Alaska politics. The Prime Minister is currently being investigated for corruption and influence peddling. The former mayor of Lod, Benny Regev, was indicted for bribery. The head of the Yisrael Beiteinu party (and former Deputy Prime Minister), Avigdor Lieberman and his daughter, are under investigation for fraud (bank accounts in Cyprus).
Another similarity is the cheesy political ads. While I barely understand Hebrew, I can comprehend the symbolism – a man dressed as a shepherd costume with a sheep on his back. Unlike the United States, the political commercials are funded by the government and are restricted time slots at the very beginning and the very end of prime time.
A very interesting voter web site is the voter’s compass (http://israel.kieskompas.nl). You begin by answering 35 survey questions, 30 about issues and five about the leaders of the three major parties. Your answers are then complied so that an icon representing your views is placed on a graph with four quadrants. The X-Y axes change depending on which combination of issues you want to examine: security issues, socioeconomic issues, or religious issues. For security-socioeconomic the X-axis goes from socioeconomic left to socioeconomic right (actually in Israel I should write that it goes from right to left) and the Y-axis extends from dove to hawk. For religion-socioeconomic the X-axis is the same as the previous graph while the Y-axis extends from religious to secular. (Note: for the test later in the blog you will have to figure out each axis on the remaining graph).
Only 15 of the 34 parties are on the voter’s compass. The graph is interactive so you can click on the icon of each party; those closest to you are understood as having positions similar to yours whereas those farther away have divergent positions. The compass also provides an overall percentage agreement with each of the 15 parties. As with the graphs the level of agreement is further broken down into the three categories of security, socioeconomic and religion. Finally you can also see how similar your position is to the three main party leaders, Barak, Livni, and Netanyahu.
Now for 15 points, what are the axes of the third graph?
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Windows and SPNI
On an absolutely beautiful day in Jerusalem I rode the number 19 bus from my neighborhood out to Hadassah Hospital. There are actually two Hadassah Hospitals in Jerusalem. I live down the street from one, the Mt. Scopus campus, and the other is an hour bus ride to the East in Ein Kerem.
I wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting off at the wrong location so I asked the man sitting next to me on the bus “Hadassah?” He initially responded to me in Hebrew. After my puzzled look and plea, “English?" he offered to show me, in his American accented English, exactly where to find the Chagall windows. He had lived in Israel for 30 years. He also expressed that the one time he visited the Chagall windows he had been underwhelmed.
After passing through security I found the tour office, a woman led me into the synagogue. I’ve learned to carry a Kippa with me so that I don’t have to use the paper ones. One of the advantages of being in Israel during the “off season” is that popular locations are empty. There was one couple in the synagogue. The woman started the pre-recorded message, in English, explaining the symbols embedded in each window.
Colorful, beautiful, intricate, vivid…simply marvelous. Chagall’s windows are grand and bold in a way similar to Monet’s water lilies (I’m not trying to pass myself off as an art connoisseur, I’m simply trying to compare the windows to other art I’ve viewed).
Hadassah Hospital sits atop a hill overlooking the valley that holds the village of Ein Kerem. Attempting to find a path down the hill I stumbled (it is very rocky here), onto a hiking trail. The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) has a series of hiking trails across the country. At the trailhead is a box containing a trail map (in Hebrew) and photographs of the sites along the way (presumably for those of us not well versed in Hebrew). While I didn’t explore the entire trail I did find my way to the village.
Christian traditions hold that Ein Kerem is both the birthplace of John the Baptist and site of a visit by a pregnant Mary. Hence this small village (less than a mile across) has a Russian Orthodox monastery, A Greek Orthodox monastery, five other churches, a Rosary Sister’s Orphanage, and a Sisters of Norte Dame convent. It is also reputed to have good restaurants, although the one I ate could be described as adequate. I can attest to the presence of a very good chocolate shop.
Walking around the village was partial fulfillment of the fantasy I had about traveling in Israel. Climbing up narrow streets, flanked by stone buildings with the hot sun on my face. The grounds of the Notre Dame of Sion Convent contained a very pleasant and peaceful garden. The churches all had nice detail, either tile work, mosaics, or paintings. While the Church of St. John is only 450 years old, it was built upon centuries of ruins dating back to the first century B.C.E.
If you are traveling to Israel, on a nice day I’d recommend a visit to Ein Kerem.
I wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting off at the wrong location so I asked the man sitting next to me on the bus “Hadassah?” He initially responded to me in Hebrew. After my puzzled look and plea, “English?" he offered to show me, in his American accented English, exactly where to find the Chagall windows. He had lived in Israel for 30 years. He also expressed that the one time he visited the Chagall windows he had been underwhelmed.
Chagall WindowsAfter passing through security I found the tour office, a woman led me into the synagogue. I’ve learned to carry a Kippa with me so that I don’t have to use the paper ones. One of the advantages of being in Israel during the “off season” is that popular locations are empty. There was one couple in the synagogue. The woman started the pre-recorded message, in English, explaining the symbols embedded in each window.
Colorful, beautiful, intricate, vivid…simply marvelous. Chagall’s windows are grand and bold in a way similar to Monet’s water lilies (I’m not trying to pass myself off as an art connoisseur, I’m simply trying to compare the windows to other art I’ve viewed).
Hiking path to Ein KeremHadassah Hospital sits atop a hill overlooking the valley that holds the village of Ein Kerem. Attempting to find a path down the hill I stumbled (it is very rocky here), onto a hiking trail. The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) has a series of hiking trails across the country. At the trailhead is a box containing a trail map (in Hebrew) and photographs of the sites along the way (presumably for those of us not well versed in Hebrew). While I didn’t explore the entire trail I did find my way to the village.
Looking across the valley at Notre Dame the Sion ConventChristian traditions hold that Ein Kerem is both the birthplace of John the Baptist and site of a visit by a pregnant Mary. Hence this small village (less than a mile across) has a Russian Orthodox monastery, A Greek Orthodox monastery, five other churches, a Rosary Sister’s Orphanage, and a Sisters of Norte Dame convent. It is also reputed to have good restaurants, although the one I ate could be described as adequate. I can attest to the presence of a very good chocolate shop.
Three of the churches in Ein KeremWalking around the village was partial fulfillment of the fantasy I had about traveling in Israel. Climbing up narrow streets, flanked by stone buildings with the hot sun on my face. The grounds of the Notre Dame of Sion Convent contained a very pleasant and peaceful garden. The churches all had nice detail, either tile work, mosaics, or paintings. While the Church of St. John is only 450 years old, it was built upon centuries of ruins dating back to the first century B.C.E.
If you are traveling to Israel, on a nice day I’d recommend a visit to Ein Kerem.
Steps leading to Church of the VisitationMonday, January 26, 2009
What is Old?
Sunrise from my balconyA friend commented that what we consider old is relative to our context. The British Cemetery across the street from where I live dates from WWI – that’s new for Jerusalem. In Anchorage it would be ancient. One of the oldest historic buildings in Anchorage is Oscar Anderson House built in 1915.
On a walking tour the other morning we were walking up Ha Nevi’im street, the street of the Prophets also known as the street of the hospitals. Most of the buildings had been built in the late 19th century or early 20th century. At one point the guide pointed to a small building to our left, it was a 750-year-old tomb.
Our group walked up to peer into the tomb. It was a bizarre scene. In front of us was the 750 year-old tomb. Behind us a modern playground with plastic climbing equipment, slides, and a merry-go-round. About a dozen Heredi children were running around the playground, dressed mostly in black, boys with sidelocks (payes), kippas, and ritual fringe undergarments. At the far side of the playground was a Mosque, shuttered since 1967 -- according to our guide, the government had not yet given the keys back to the Muslim leaders.
Graves on Mt. Olives Friday, January 23, 2009
The Sabbath
Makhane Yehuda Market Friday morningJerusalem does shut down on the Sabbath. On Friday there is a slow build-up to the Sabbath. As the day wears on there are increasing numbers of people in the streets, all carrying shopping bags. The busses get crowded and there are more cars on the road. At the Makhane Yehuda market (one of my favorite places in the city) the pace gets frenetic with crushing crowds. Then suddenly about an hour before sundown, around 3:30 this time of year, the streets are quiet and empty.
In my neighborhood, French Hill, I have discovered one business that is open on the Sabbath – Domino’s Pizza. The pizza chain from Michigan, the pizza chain I went to college with, the pizza chain that use to be owned by the religious conservative Tom Monaghan.
I’ve been told that there are establishments open in other parts of the city – the German Colony and Ein Kerem. Confirmation of this awaits my further exploration.
Makhane Yehuda Market Friday morningWednesday, January 21, 2009
What No Maps?
There are no printed maps of the Jerusalem bus system. I did find one on the Internet in Hebrew and lacking details. I see busses with numbers that aren’t on the Internet map. Bus drivers answer questions, but you have to know how to pronounce the location you are headed to. The bus signs are in both English and Hebrew and show the final stop for each bus. Not being that adept at Hebrew and not knowing the names of all the neighborhoods, these signs are only a bit helpful.
I was amazed to find a very complete list of Jerusalem busses on the Wikipedia web site. There are even night busses that I had no idea existed. However, I’m always skeptical of the accuracy of Wikipedia. Time will tell as to whether Wikipedia helps me navigate my way across this city.
I was amazed to find a very complete list of Jerusalem busses on the Wikipedia web site. There are even night busses that I had no idea existed. However, I’m always skeptical of the accuracy of Wikipedia. Time will tell as to whether Wikipedia helps me navigate my way across this city.
Looking North from Lutheran Church Tower in Old City. Red box is the area of the close-up in the next picture
Student Village from Lutheran Church TowerMonday, January 19, 2009
Fireworks
Yesterday (Friday 1/16/09) was beautiful; sunny, a slight breeze and temperatures in the mid 60°’s. I spend the day wandering around the Old City and going to the market to stock up on groceries. In the evening there were fireworks – sort of.
First, the weather. My Macintosh computer has a handy little program called the dashboard. Dashboard allows you to have instant information, in the form of widgets that pop-up on the screen with the touch of a button. I have widgets that convert Centigrade to Fahrenheit; that give me the time in Anchorage, Detroit and Kolkata; and one that gives me the weather forecast for Jerusalem. For the first week here I was puzzled because the weather widget was unreliable – it would say rain and we would have sun, it would say a low in the 20°’s and it went below 40°. After some dissection I discovered that I had the widget set for Jerusalem, Pennsylvania rather than Jerusalem, Israel. Now the widget is much more reliable (actually to use the correct research term, it is more valid, it was always reliable).
I arrived in the Old City about 8 a.m. It was very quiet, this was partly due to the hour and partly due to the Muslim Sabbath. I wandered for many hours around the old city, looking at the Cardo,
watching people at the Western Wall, examining the reconstruction of the Hurva Synagogue, finding my way up to the rooftops, and walking the Via Dolorosa. One of the highlights was climbing up to the tower of the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer for 360° views of the Old City and beyond.
There was a large police presence in the Old City, particularly in the Muslim Quarter. There were many groups of ten, fifteen and twenty-five police officers, most with full riot-gear. It was a bit unnerving, but at the same time it was also very quiet. As the morning wore on and the number of people in the Old City increased it still had a calm feeling. I later learned, from reading the Jerusalem Post, that the Government had prohibited Muslim men under age 40 from praying at the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Many hours later, sitting in my living room, with my aching legs propped up, I heard fireworks. Looking out my fourth-floor balcony to the South I saw flashes of light in the valley below, but no fireworks in the sky. In the valley below is the village of al-Issawiya. Then I heard a crowd shouting something. This disturbance carried on for a couple of hours. The “fireworks” were firebombs and likely tear gas. A news brief in the Sunday Jerusalem Post described the incident as a “150 torch-carrying residents” protesting the war in Gaza. A brief search of the Jerusalem Post and Haaretz revealed that this neighborhood has been a scene of conflict over the years.
Without a doubt it was scary. Rationally I was not in any real danger. When I spoke about this with other Jerusalem residents, Israelis and ex-patriots, no one else had heard about this. In their own ways they said to me, “This is Jerusalem, so what, get use to it.”
While the evening alarming, the day was how I envisioned spending time in Jerusalem. Here are some pictures from my day.
First, the weather. My Macintosh computer has a handy little program called the dashboard. Dashboard allows you to have instant information, in the form of widgets that pop-up on the screen with the touch of a button. I have widgets that convert Centigrade to Fahrenheit; that give me the time in Anchorage, Detroit and Kolkata; and one that gives me the weather forecast for Jerusalem. For the first week here I was puzzled because the weather widget was unreliable – it would say rain and we would have sun, it would say a low in the 20°’s and it went below 40°. After some dissection I discovered that I had the widget set for Jerusalem, Pennsylvania rather than Jerusalem, Israel. Now the widget is much more reliable (actually to use the correct research term, it is more valid, it was always reliable).
I arrived in the Old City about 8 a.m. It was very quiet, this was partly due to the hour and partly due to the Muslim Sabbath. I wandered for many hours around the old city, looking at the Cardo,
watching people at the Western Wall, examining the reconstruction of the Hurva Synagogue, finding my way up to the rooftops, and walking the Via Dolorosa. One of the highlights was climbing up to the tower of the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer for 360° views of the Old City and beyond.
There was a large police presence in the Old City, particularly in the Muslim Quarter. There were many groups of ten, fifteen and twenty-five police officers, most with full riot-gear. It was a bit unnerving, but at the same time it was also very quiet. As the morning wore on and the number of people in the Old City increased it still had a calm feeling. I later learned, from reading the Jerusalem Post, that the Government had prohibited Muslim men under age 40 from praying at the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Many hours later, sitting in my living room, with my aching legs propped up, I heard fireworks. Looking out my fourth-floor balcony to the South I saw flashes of light in the valley below, but no fireworks in the sky. In the valley below is the village of al-Issawiya. Then I heard a crowd shouting something. This disturbance carried on for a couple of hours. The “fireworks” were firebombs and likely tear gas. A news brief in the Sunday Jerusalem Post described the incident as a “150 torch-carrying residents” protesting the war in Gaza. A brief search of the Jerusalem Post and Haaretz revealed that this neighborhood has been a scene of conflict over the years.
Without a doubt it was scary. Rationally I was not in any real danger. When I spoke about this with other Jerusalem residents, Israelis and ex-patriots, no one else had heard about this. In their own ways they said to me, “This is Jerusalem, so what, get use to it.”
While the evening alarming, the day was how I envisioned spending time in Jerusalem. Here are some pictures from my day.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Security
Whomever has the magnetometer concession in Israel must be making a great deal of money. I’ve passed through the devices to enter the university, the Western Wall, the central bus station and several other locations. In addition, I’ve been scanned by hand-held magnetometers at restaurants and stores. My backpack has been handled by multitudes of security people.
According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) the United States is currently operating at security level orange (whatever that means). Israel then must be at security level blue—that would be about three levels higher if the scale follows the colors of the spectrum (remember the acronym ROY G BIV?). Besides the Airport, the only locations in Anchorage that have levels of security comparable to Israel are the courthouses.
A few days ago when touring the Old City we were delayed in getting through security at the Western Wall. A suspicious package had been found. A few minutes later the
Police carried out a small controlled explosion to destroy the package. Likely some student’s backpack or tourist’s souvenir was destroyed. One of the young American adults on the tour remarked that his mother would be “freeked out” if she knew about this. My advice to him, don’t tell your mother.
In my first week here I’ve passed two memorials to people killed in terrorist attacks. One was on the University campus where 9 people were killed in 2001 by an explosion. Another memorial was on the Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall to another group of people killed in 2001.
About 30 years ago, when I was an undergraduate student at Michigan State University, a faculty member offered a course on terrorism. It wasn’t a “how to” course, but rather a survey of the history of terrorism across the world. One of my enduring understandings from that course is that the goal of terrorism is to terrorize. If we don’t allow ourselves to be terrorized then the terrorists can’t succeed. I used this on 9/11. After watching the World Trade Towers collapse my initial reaction was that we should all stay at home. The fighter jets screaming over Anchorage reinforced my fear and sense of danger. I just wanted to stay at home with my wife and children. However, if we did that then the terrorists would have won (sounds a bit too much like George Bush). So we went to work and school that day. Similarly, the Israeli people who have a reputation (perhaps unfounded) for being rude, pushy, brash, yet they patiently accept the high level of scrutiny and security. I think that the Israeli’s are accepting of this because it keeps them safe and it doesn’t let the terrorists win.
According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) the United States is currently operating at security level orange (whatever that means). Israel then must be at security level blue—that would be about three levels higher if the scale follows the colors of the spectrum (remember the acronym ROY G BIV?). Besides the Airport, the only locations in Anchorage that have levels of security comparable to Israel are the courthouses.
A few days ago when touring the Old City we were delayed in getting through security at the Western Wall. A suspicious package had been found. A few minutes later the
Police carried out a small controlled explosion to destroy the package. Likely some student’s backpack or tourist’s souvenir was destroyed. One of the young American adults on the tour remarked that his mother would be “freeked out” if she knew about this. My advice to him, don’t tell your mother.In my first week here I’ve passed two memorials to people killed in terrorist attacks. One was on the University campus where 9 people were killed in 2001 by an explosion. Another memorial was on the Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall to another group of people killed in 2001.
About 30 years ago, when I was an undergraduate student at Michigan State University, a faculty member offered a course on terrorism. It wasn’t a “how to” course, but rather a survey of the history of terrorism across the world. One of my enduring understandings from that course is that the goal of terrorism is to terrorize. If we don’t allow ourselves to be terrorized then the terrorists can’t succeed. I used this on 9/11. After watching the World Trade Towers collapse my initial reaction was that we should all stay at home. The fighter jets screaming over Anchorage reinforced my fear and sense of danger. I just wanted to stay at home with my wife and children. However, if we did that then the terrorists would have won (sounds a bit too much like George Bush). So we went to work and school that day. Similarly, the Israeli people who have a reputation (perhaps unfounded) for being rude, pushy, brash, yet they patiently accept the high level of scrutiny and security. I think that the Israeli’s are accepting of this because it keeps them safe and it doesn’t let the terrorists win.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Jerusalem with Palin and Cats
The Palin Curse
While traveling in Ireland a couple of years ago, would introduce ourselves as being from Alaska rather than simply as Americans. In that way we could distance ourselves from George Bush.
Over the past few days while traveling around Jerusalem my standard introduction has consistently been met with, “Ah Palin.” The name Palin was spoken by Arab shopkeepers in the Old City, by Dutch ex-pats living here, by cab drivers, University employees, and American tourists. What use to imply something about my character or chutzpah is now linked with the failed vice-presidential candidate.
I guess that after January 20th I’ll start introducing myself as an American.
The Cats of Jerusalem
Jerusalem’s symbol is the lion. Lions are on the flag and lion statues can be found around the city. Does that explain why this city has been over-run with cats? New York has its pigeons, Anchorage has its Moose, Varanasi has its monkeys and Jerusalem has its cats. The explanation I have heard is that when the British took over Jerusalem in the early 1900s they brought in cats to control the rodent population. About 3000 years ago the Egyptians used the same method. On one hand it seems to work, I haven’t seen a mouse or a rat. On the other hand I have seen some mangy and skinny cats. The cats are everywhere, today walking through the University buildings there were cats inside and outside.
While traveling in Ireland a couple of years ago, would introduce ourselves as being from Alaska rather than simply as Americans. In that way we could distance ourselves from George Bush.
Over the past few days while traveling around Jerusalem my standard introduction has consistently been met with, “Ah Palin.” The name Palin was spoken by Arab shopkeepers in the Old City, by Dutch ex-pats living here, by cab drivers, University employees, and American tourists. What use to imply something about my character or chutzpah is now linked with the failed vice-presidential candidate.
I guess that after January 20th I’ll start introducing myself as an American.
The Cats of Jerusalem
Jerusalem’s symbol is the lion. Lions are on the flag and lion statues can be found around the city. Does that explain why this city has been over-run with cats? New York has its pigeons, Anchorage has its Moose, Varanasi has its monkeys and Jerusalem has its cats. The explanation I have heard is that when the British took over Jerusalem in the early 1900s they brought in cats to control the rodent population. About 3000 years ago the Egyptians used the same method. On one hand it seems to work, I haven’t seen a mouse or a rat. On the other hand I have seen some mangy and skinny cats. The cats are everywhere, today walking through the University buildings there were cats inside and outside.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Traveling and My First Few Days in Israel
I use to have more fun traveling on airplanes. Now it is boring and uncomfortable, usually tolerable, but not fun. Maybe I simply haven’t learned how to successfully travel long distance by airplane? If you have a method please let me know.
I spent almost as much time waiting in airports as I did in the air. It was like being in the movie Terminal, except I was confined to three different terminals—Anchorage, Seattle and London. London’s Heathrow Terminal 5 was very nice. Interesting shops, many people, and food choices ranging from a Gordon Ramsey restaurant to pub food to sushi.
I obtained a student visa while in the United States so I was able to breeze through passport control in Israel. (One of my contacts here at the University told me that I was issued the wrong type of visa, however it worked). I had read that there might be a fee associated with bringing electronic equipment into Israel (computer and camera) but no one at customs even checked my bags.
My pre-arranged taxi was waiting at the exit. The weather was cool, in the 40’s, but much warmer than the -7 degrees in Anchorage. It was a smooth highway to Jerusalem and we arrived in less than 45 minutes. The driver had my apartment key and helped me get my bags to the 4th floor of the building.
My Housing
The apartment is in a complex of 8 or 10 buildings, 5 to 10 stories each. This is student housing for Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and is referred to as the student village. Residents are required to show a Hebrew University ID when entering the complex.
The apartment is similar to a dorm suite with three identical bedrooms, a shower room with a sink, a toilet room, a small sitting room with a balcony and a kitchen.
The furnishings are in a style I would describe as institutional modern. One of the bedrooms has an additional steel door that closes over the wood door. The window also has an additional steel shutter in addition to the aluminum shutter. My impression is that this is a safe room or a shelter of some kind.
The kitchen has a full size refrigerator, gas range, small counter top oven and a microwave. There are enough dishes to keep a kosher kitchen although there is only one set of flatware and one set of cookware. There also seems to be enough towels, blankets, and sheets for when my family arrives to join me.
The cold shower motivated me to figure out that there were two switches that activated the hot water heater. I’ve been advised to turn it on 30 minutes prior to wanting a hot shower. I haven’t figured out how to adequately regulate the heat, but I only seem to need that some evenings.
First Day Activities
I was determined to stay up as long as possible my first day, a brutal way of forcing the body to adjust to the new time zone. It was also a bright sunny day in the high 50s or low 60s, after 10 days of below 0 temperatures in Anchorage I also wanted to warm my bones and get a dose of vitamin D.
It also occurred to me that this secure housing complex required an ID to enter; while I had the keys to the apartment I had no University ID. I guess my mind wasn’t too addled by the time change. I followed the stream of students walking to the South, figuring that they would lead me to the University. In less than 10 minutes I was at the entrance to the Mt. Scopus Campus of Hebrew University. After showing my letters of appointment to University Security I was allowed to pass through the magnetometers, my bag was also examined. I met an anthropology professor who guided me to the office of visiting faculty.
The extremely helpful and friendly woman from the office of visiting faculty said that she deals with 150 visiting faculty and post-doctoral students each year. Thus the University has information and systems in-place to orient and accommodate people like me. I easily obtained a picture ID. The Office of Visiting Faculty also made arrangements for me to get further settled by meeting with the Director of the Lady Davis Fellowship (my sponsor) and the Director of Housing. These offices are at the other Hebrew University campus across town in Givat Ram.
On my walk to the University I had my first glimpse of the Old City. The iconic Dome of the Rock was right in front of me. Nearly every picture of Jerusalem features the
Dome of the Rock; television reporters often have the Dome over their shoulder as they discuss some event in Israel. It was exhilarating to see it, similar to seeing the Eifel Tower or the Empire State Building for the first time. Now I can see those classic pictures of Jerusalem and say, “I’ve been there.” At the same time I couldn’t help but think, “I thought it was bigger.”
A Country at War
Arriving at Ben-Gurion airport I had no sense that this was a country at war. I breezed through passport control and no one at customs looked at my bags. I saw no soldiers or weapons. The same is true for the drive from the airport to Jerusalem.
I’d say the same is true for Jerusalem. There are some soldiers and other uniformed personnel on streets and they carry large weapons, but I’ve seen that in Europe also (e.g. Italy). There were a large number of soldiers at the Central Bus Station; they appeared to be traveling somewhere. I don’t have previous Israel travel experience to answer the question as to whether there are more soldiers around than usual.
I have heard, but not seen, fighter jets in the sky (but I hear those in Anchorage). Also a few military helicopters have flown over, but again that happens in Anchorage. From my naive perspective in Jerusalem, it doesn’t seem like a country at war. I’m sure the situation is much different in the South.
Editorial Digressions
While observing the multilingual, multicultural, multi-clothed crowd at Heathrow I thought about how Americans view the rest of the world. It is easy to become insular in the United States. This may be partly geographic, to the North a country very similar with the same roots, to the East and West large oceans, only to the South a population who is culturally different and speaks a language other than English (but we are building a boarder fence to keep them out). Within the US the indigenous people have been colonized and marginalized. At its extreme (hopefully extreme) the United State’s insularity is expressed in jingoistic or xenophobic rhetoric. A result is that some people develop the belief that they don’t have to travel outside the United States (think Sarah Palin), that foreign travel is only an elitist luxury, rather than a civic responsibility.
On a scale of religious attentiveness, with 1 being not attentive and 10 being zealously attentive, I would place myself at a 2 or 3. Therefore I was surprised at my reaction as the plane was descending into Ben-Gurion airport. I felt an unexpected exuberance arriving at a place full of “my people” – what my grandfather referred to as landsman. While some of the elation may have been due to simply knowing my long air travel was ending and my journey in Israel beginning, landing in Israel was different than arriving in Dublin or Luxembourg or Paris after long flights.
I spent almost as much time waiting in airports as I did in the air. It was like being in the movie Terminal, except I was confined to three different terminals—Anchorage, Seattle and London. London’s Heathrow Terminal 5 was very nice. Interesting shops, many people, and food choices ranging from a Gordon Ramsey restaurant to pub food to sushi.
I obtained a student visa while in the United States so I was able to breeze through passport control in Israel. (One of my contacts here at the University told me that I was issued the wrong type of visa, however it worked). I had read that there might be a fee associated with bringing electronic equipment into Israel (computer and camera) but no one at customs even checked my bags.
My pre-arranged taxi was waiting at the exit. The weather was cool, in the 40’s, but much warmer than the -7 degrees in Anchorage. It was a smooth highway to Jerusalem and we arrived in less than 45 minutes. The driver had my apartment key and helped me get my bags to the 4th floor of the building.
My Housing
The apartment is in a complex of 8 or 10 buildings, 5 to 10 stories each. This is student housing for Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and is referred to as the student village. Residents are required to show a Hebrew University ID when entering the complex.
The apartment is similar to a dorm suite with three identical bedrooms, a shower room with a sink, a toilet room, a small sitting room with a balcony and a kitchen.
The furnishings are in a style I would describe as institutional modern. One of the bedrooms has an additional steel door that closes over the wood door. The window also has an additional steel shutter in addition to the aluminum shutter. My impression is that this is a safe room or a shelter of some kind.
The kitchen has a full size refrigerator, gas range, small counter top oven and a microwave. There are enough dishes to keep a kosher kitchen although there is only one set of flatware and one set of cookware. There also seems to be enough towels, blankets, and sheets for when my family arrives to join me.The cold shower motivated me to figure out that there were two switches that activated the hot water heater. I’ve been advised to turn it on 30 minutes prior to wanting a hot shower. I haven’t figured out how to adequately regulate the heat, but I only seem to need that some evenings.
First Day Activities
I was determined to stay up as long as possible my first day, a brutal way of forcing the body to adjust to the new time zone. It was also a bright sunny day in the high 50s or low 60s, after 10 days of below 0 temperatures in Anchorage I also wanted to warm my bones and get a dose of vitamin D.
It also occurred to me that this secure housing complex required an ID to enter; while I had the keys to the apartment I had no University ID. I guess my mind wasn’t too addled by the time change. I followed the stream of students walking to the South, figuring that they would lead me to the University. In less than 10 minutes I was at the entrance to the Mt. Scopus Campus of Hebrew University. After showing my letters of appointment to University Security I was allowed to pass through the magnetometers, my bag was also examined. I met an anthropology professor who guided me to the office of visiting faculty.
The extremely helpful and friendly woman from the office of visiting faculty said that she deals with 150 visiting faculty and post-doctoral students each year. Thus the University has information and systems in-place to orient and accommodate people like me. I easily obtained a picture ID. The Office of Visiting Faculty also made arrangements for me to get further settled by meeting with the Director of the Lady Davis Fellowship (my sponsor) and the Director of Housing. These offices are at the other Hebrew University campus across town in Givat Ram.
On my walk to the University I had my first glimpse of the Old City. The iconic Dome of the Rock was right in front of me. Nearly every picture of Jerusalem features the
Dome of the Rock; television reporters often have the Dome over their shoulder as they discuss some event in Israel. It was exhilarating to see it, similar to seeing the Eifel Tower or the Empire State Building for the first time. Now I can see those classic pictures of Jerusalem and say, “I’ve been there.” At the same time I couldn’t help but think, “I thought it was bigger.”A Country at War
Arriving at Ben-Gurion airport I had no sense that this was a country at war. I breezed through passport control and no one at customs looked at my bags. I saw no soldiers or weapons. The same is true for the drive from the airport to Jerusalem.
I’d say the same is true for Jerusalem. There are some soldiers and other uniformed personnel on streets and they carry large weapons, but I’ve seen that in Europe also (e.g. Italy). There were a large number of soldiers at the Central Bus Station; they appeared to be traveling somewhere. I don’t have previous Israel travel experience to answer the question as to whether there are more soldiers around than usual.
I have heard, but not seen, fighter jets in the sky (but I hear those in Anchorage). Also a few military helicopters have flown over, but again that happens in Anchorage. From my naive perspective in Jerusalem, it doesn’t seem like a country at war. I’m sure the situation is much different in the South.
Editorial Digressions
While observing the multilingual, multicultural, multi-clothed crowd at Heathrow I thought about how Americans view the rest of the world. It is easy to become insular in the United States. This may be partly geographic, to the North a country very similar with the same roots, to the East and West large oceans, only to the South a population who is culturally different and speaks a language other than English (but we are building a boarder fence to keep them out). Within the US the indigenous people have been colonized and marginalized. At its extreme (hopefully extreme) the United State’s insularity is expressed in jingoistic or xenophobic rhetoric. A result is that some people develop the belief that they don’t have to travel outside the United States (think Sarah Palin), that foreign travel is only an elitist luxury, rather than a civic responsibility.
On a scale of religious attentiveness, with 1 being not attentive and 10 being zealously attentive, I would place myself at a 2 or 3. Therefore I was surprised at my reaction as the plane was descending into Ben-Gurion airport. I felt an unexpected exuberance arriving at a place full of “my people” – what my grandfather referred to as landsman. While some of the elation may have been due to simply knowing my long air travel was ending and my journey in Israel beginning, landing in Israel was different than arriving in Dublin or Luxembourg or Paris after long flights.
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