Mamilla Mall

A Different Perspective

rjstreets

Those who predicted that Gaddafi would be overthrown by his own people

were correct…only it took 42 years for those predictions to be fulfilled.

One has to wonder about what will happen to Libya,

a society where children are taken to view a dead dictator’s body,

now that Sharia Law will become the law of the land.

Turkey has another earthquake and turns down offers of help.

Headlines are of knife attacks and a new security alert in Jerusalem.

The holiday season is finally over and before the November events begin,

it seems like a good time to share some of the art and beauty

that you can find on the Jerusalem streets.

On a path near a main road is this sculpture, one of many around the city.

On the sides of  buildings

 large murals can be seen.

While there is a new initiative to decorate the Machane Yehuda market, the shuk,

 noncommissioned street art or graffiti

can be found

in many locations around Jerusalem.

Brightly painted and decorated

boxes for electrical and phone wires

 are scattered throughout the city.

Some of the art displayed in Mamilla Mall is colorful and whimsical,

and Biblical themes are common… Noah is timely for this week.

Sculptures have included the large and holy

and the small and mundane.

However, it is the interaction of the public with these works of art

that makes them more

than just something to view

and appreciate from afar.

The pieces are constantly being changed

and then photographed by visitors.

Some request to have their picture taken with a piece of art,

while others may not be aware they are being photographed.

Wonder if these people realized they were sitting on an art project?

One of many city benches painted with a gold lion by two local artists.

This was probably not meant to be a work of art,

but on the streets of Jerusalem you can never be quite sure…

things often are seen from a different perspective.

Racist State

rjstreets

This September, the opening sessions of the United Nations in New York

are to host “Durban 3” and a Palestinian bid for statehood.

The United Nations seems to have forgotten that,

it voted on November 29, 1947 to partition the British Mandate of Palestine

into two states, one Jewish and one Arab.

Jewish people rolled up their sleeves, collected funds to buy land and built the land.

The Arab nations rejected the partition plan and attacked the new state of Israel.

In May 1948 the Jordanian legion captured and occupied Jerusalem,

the land to the east toward the Jordanian border became known as the West Bank.

Most of the land in the West Bank is hilly, rocky and until after 1967 was empty.

In 1964 when the Palestine Liberation Organization was founded,

there were no Jews allowed

to live in “East” Jerusalem,

which includes areas to the north, south and west of Jerusalem.

Mamilla was a no man’s land, needed to protect Israel from Jordanian snipers.

Today Mamilla is a shopping mall,

busy day and night

offering employment to many.

Under Jordanian occupation in 1948, all the Old City’s synagogues were destroyed

and all Jews were forced to flee their homes in the Jewish Quarter.

The recently restored Hurva Synagogue is no longer a hurva, a ruin,

and stands in the center of the re-established ancient Jewish neighborhood.

The Kotel, the Western Wall Plaza is now open to everyone.

 Arab families make use of the new light rail, when trains are working,

or ride the bus which is usually faster.

An Arab woman can walk alone unafraid in the center of Jerusalem.

Young Arab women sit and eat in the center of a main street crowd.

While the Palestinian Authority prepares to go to the UN for a state

which insists that it will not allow Jews and homosexuals,

Arabs live and work freely in Israeli Jerusalem.

At this new UN conference on racism,

will Israel once again be singled out as a racist state ?

Does the UN care at all about the truth?

Feeling Festive

rjstreets

Over 130 missiles, rockets and grads were fired from Gaza

into southern Israel last week and major cities were hit.

People were killed, injured, shocked, and left homeless.

Meanwhile, 81 US congressmen arrived in Israel and left rather quietly.

With a Hamas request for a cease-fire came a security alert in Jerusalem.

But it is festival season in Jerusalem:  how did the real streets respond?

The last night of annual wine festival at the Israel Museum was held,

though many were not in a much of party mood after hearing

that 8 Israelis were murdered in ambushes that afternoon near Eilat.

Infected Mushrooms performed on Thursday night as scheduled.

The massive stage in Gan Sacher, Sacher Park remained in place until

 for a free concert for young people which lasted until midnight.

The Friday Arts and Crafts Market on Bezalel Street was open for business,

  while the tent protest was nearby and the light-rail had its first public runs.


The 26th Kite Festival at the Israel Museum got off to a slow start.

At noon the water over the Dome of the Book

was the only thing that could be seen in up in the air,

but later in the afternoon breeze there were dozens of kites

and hundreds of families enjoying the annual festival.

The annual Puppet Festival is over,

but the Children’s Film Festival has just begun at the Cinemateque.

The end of August also means that it is time for

The International Arts and Crafts Fair.

 The International exhibits and sales, food, music and performances

fill the area known as the Sultan’s Pool below the Old City walls

and Khutzot Hayoser, The Artists’ Colony comes to life.

It will take more than a security alert to get people to miss

 this popular end of summer event

or to keep them out of Mamilla Mall.

The 5th End of Summer Celebration has begun at the Jerusalem Theater,

with various performances taking place outside on the plaza.

If these events are not enough, 

 the Beer Festival is to be held next week in the Old Train Station.

The security alert may not be readily perceptible on the Jerusalem streets,

but it could be felt in synagogue service this past Shabbat,

with the quiet attention of worshipers during the prayer for the State of Israel

and especially for the prayer for the safety of its soldiers,

and the loud unified response by the congregation of

  “Amen.”