Presidents

The President’s Conference for Tomorrow was held on October 20-22, 2009.

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There were circling helicopters, flashing blue lights and sirens at times,

but most of the city was not involved unless you worked for a top tier hotel or

at the Jerusalem Convention Center, or had the job to hang the signs.

Last year, when President George Bush was in Jerusalem, street closings were the norm,

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there was no way to not know he was around.

Sunday morning radio reported riots near the Kotel, the Western Wall.

There were reported injuries and arrests, but……..

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see for yourself the real Jerusalem streets leading up to

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and around the Old City early Sunday afternoon.

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Thousands of tourists had no idea that there was any reason to be concerned.

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Near the Kotel, Western Wall entrance

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and inside at the Kotel Plaza, all appeared quite normal.

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People strolled the alleyways as usual.

More presidents with the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency also meeting.

and more signs…

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At The Hebrew University, the Truman Institute hosted sessions,

“15 Years Since the Peace Treaty Between Israel and Jordan.”

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Not open to disagreement, it has been 15 years,

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General Mansour Abu Rashid did offer a glass of water to fellow speaker Israeli Supreme Court Justice Elyakim Rubenstein and Harry S. Truman was a President.

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Warm greetings,

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and signing the guest book.

 

 

 

However, Updated: February 25, 2020, Israel and the US have had new Presidents, and 25 years after agreements with Jordan, perhaps another few glasses of cold water.

Summer is Over?

Most of the American visitors have returned to the cold, wet Northeast.

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The winter legislative session in the Knesset began last week, university students finally have returned to class, and we have a heat wave!

With no beach nearby, what do people in Jerusalem do to cool off if they cannot get out of town?

1. Since many of these old buildings have no air conditioning, people open their windows, put on a fan and try not to move.

2. If they are lucky enough to have a porch,

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no matter how small, Jerusalemites  sit on porches,  talking, eating, maybe reading.

3.  Or they go outside, try to find some shade and hope for a breeze.

One of the most popular of Jerusalem’s few open green spaces is Gan Sacher…

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pronounced “soccer” and sometimes people even do play the sport, but as with many places in Jerusalem, it is named for the family who donated the money to develop it.

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Gan Sacher is often crowded,IMG_0250

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but not always.

 Jerusalem’s parks are free and open to the public.  Family outings and “mangals”,  BBQ in the United  States,  “barbie” in  Australia, can be elaborate or extremely simple.

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Soon all the smoke will fade to a memory,  the weather will turn…and we will begin to complain how cold it is!

If there is snow this winter…. most of the country will try to get to Gan Sacher before it melts.

Holiday Crowds in Jerusalem

The autumn holiday season is coming to an end.

This past week “crowd” was the keyword.

Temporary dwellings called “sukkot” crowded in every tiny space,

on a little balcony or a small piece of land.

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Crowds of people seemed to be everywhere as thousands of visitors gathered in Jerusalem. International groups gathered by the tens of thousands to march in the Jerusalem Parade..

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Also this week, all day long thousands of people of all religions arrived to go to the Kotel, the Western Wall.

They lined up at Beit Hanasi, the Israeli President’s House

President Shimon Peres greets Israelis on Sukkot open house at Beit Hanasi

a few people even got to shake Shimon Peres’ hand.

Every night large crowds attended musical events. At one annual event, the mayor was speaking, but without a ticket I could not get close enough to get a good photo of him…along with the other poor ticketless folks, having a great time. No seats, they danced or talked all night.

The multitudes came despite and in spite of any threat of terror. There was security out in force, but the feeling of danger was not in the air,  just celebration.

A few scenes from the real Jerusalem streets!