11 Ways to Enjoy August in Jerusalem

I wonder if everyone slowed down this past week during the heatwave.

Days were so hot in the blazing sun, all I wanted to do was hide in the air-conditioned room and stay off the Jerusalem streets.

But it’s Rosh Chodesh Elul today and the weather person on the radio announced it should cool down to “regular” hot for the week ahead.

Season after season, there are some Jerusalem streets, no matter the hour, I want to stroll and share with you, like this one in Yemin Moshe.

It is fascinating that the new steps look the same after a major repair.

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New sections of King David Street renovations are challenging — they not only surprise drivers but also pedestrians.

The first section of King David Street’s renovation between the YMCA and the King David Hotel is passable now.

The new street is made to look old.

The classic view of the King David Hotel lit up at night – always impressive.

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Summer vacation and people are walking and shopping in Mamilla Mall.

Tourists are enjoying the view from the Montefiore Windmill Promenade. Groups are back on those Segway tours again.

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On hot summer days, the fountain in Teddy Park has been a favorite.

But on this warm summer night, the water was off in the Lions’ Fountain.

Israel has long been known as the land of milk and honey.

This summer at Jerusalem’s Islamic Museum, however, it’s all about coffee.

On a hot summer day, the extensive exhibit offers a good way to keep cool. Who knew of a coffee cup to protect your mustache?

We watched the preparations for the show to open with art,

and artifacts collected from around the world,

an impressive variety of items and displays.

All this is from the small beans originating from Ethiopia.

Not sure that young children would appreciate the rooms of coffee paraphernalia, but there is fascinating historical information on a display that took decades to curate.

The Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem, BLMJ, is also back with a new exhibit.

BIRDS from ancient sources is new in the temporary exhibition hall where YEMEN was last shown. Another extensive collection of valuable ancient relics with detailed explanations, but not recommended for young children.

However, outside on the BLMJ grounds, the site has been developed for children to learn about birds – in a fun and creative manner. Inside this structure, there are multiple activities for children. The bench outside is good for tired adults who are sharing the experience. Early in the day or at sunset are the best times to view live birds.

A flutist was performing for the gala opening event I attended.

The viewing slots are placed at various heights to accommodate multiple museum guests. Remember on one side of Israel is the ocean and the other the desert, so birds appreciate the Jerusalem landscapes and cooler temperatures just as humans do.

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Here is the new Ice Skating rink at First Station. I appreciated the cooler temperature inside the tented area one warm evening. However, it has gotten mixed reviews. The intense heat was not good for the ice. So go early before you find unwanted pools of water.

More of those bikes to rent are ready at stands, but no helmets.

I have not seen any on the road, but I have seen plenty of rental cars. Beware this time of year when drivers new to Jerusalem streets are making dangerous U-turns after making a wrong turn.

Want to get a view above and over the Jerusalem streets?

The Tower of David has the new option to fly high from the Citadel.

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The Jerusalem campaign to lure Israelis to Jerusalem for the summer holiday days features Miriam Peretz in video and print ads, here she is smiling on a Jerusalem street ad sign.

Not sure where to go and what to do? Tour guides are waiting to help you explore attractions.

The Jerusalem Film Festival will be back later in August. The municipality will show outdoor movie screenings in the city center. The Moonlight Cinema Project is to run all August on weeknights…and there’s more – it would be too long to add all the musical events for youth.

But it’s time to start training for the Night Run, August 29, 2021.

I hope we are finally returning to life in Jerusalem, Israel.

Shakespeare is back in Bloomfield Gardens! Friends at Theater in the Rough are performing – Henry IV in Motion. You have 9 chances to share in the fun and adventure – August 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, 19, 22, 23, and 24, 2021.

Will we see you all soon on the Jerusalem streets for these events?

Shavuah Tov and Chodesh Tov wherever you are, take care and say well.

7 thoughts on “11 Ways to Enjoy August in Jerusalem

  • August 8, 2021 at 10:03 am
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    Wow. Tired already just following the pictorial essay.

    Reply
    • August 8, 2021 at 10:09 am
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      Ha, ha. Chodesh tov

      Reply
  • August 8, 2021 at 11:02 am
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    Excellent photos as usual. You catch just the right moment, scene, or object. BTW, the mustache cup is also for tea drinkers – Jeff has had one for 50 years! Pain to clean and keep stain free, but it works very nicely. Thank you for your creativity, beautiful photography, explanations, and love for Yerushalyim – the most misunderstood city in the world. Chodesh tov!

    Reply
    • August 8, 2021 at 11:26 am
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      thank you. your comments are always appreciated. Chodesh tov.

      Reply
  • August 8, 2021 at 12:05 pm
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    We missed Shakespeare’s The Tempest in the Boston Commons and hoped to catch it in Israel if we get approved to go. We are scheduled to come September 12 before Yom Kippur but Jerusalem’s Shakespeare in the park will be over by then.

    We did drive three hours from Boston to Tanglewood to see Yo-Yo Ma teach what was billed as a master class of three pairs of Pianists/Cellists. The first pianist was also the pianist in the third pair. Each pair first played the piece. They were pieces of Prokofiev, Beethoven, and Dvorak. After each pair played the piece Yo-Yo Ma asked them probing questions about their analysis of the piece and had them play parts of the pieces again having their emotional reaction to his questions in mind. Some of his included: You are led by ideas and character and shape. You want to get to the skeleton. Be absolutely certain you know the character you are playing. Proud, heroic, batman style and then it it gets sentimental. You want to sow both the heroic and the doubts. This is what the music grows out of. You want to get lost. Hear the sound before you play it. You want to get us lost but don’t get us lost all the time. When you have energy forcing a line, you have that much more character. Never give up on the character you’re trying to portray. When you play it, you execute it? What is the role of audience? Think of rhythm, tone, and be focused on the open air audience in front of you. You can bury all kinds of things, but not the determination of character. You should hear the paragraph and not the sentences. Match up with each other’s instrument.

    Yo-Yo Ma was trying to show ambiguity in music, encouraging the musicians to take an idea and show it can have different ideas. He wants you to think how these things might be aligned. He encouraged the musicians to figure out what the composer was thinking by playing at different volumes. They were also encouraged to match the mass and density of a full orchestra, even though this evening they were only playing as a pair of two people.

    He shared a statement give by Leon Fleisher, may he rest in pace, a famous American classical pianist: The role of the performer has to keep three people in the head at all times. Internally being a parrot conversing with yourself, figuring out how you as the performer are articulating the music of the composer, Use the listener people’s ears. The third person is you the musician, the executer of the piece (keeping the audience reaction in mind) conversing with the composer.

    Reply
    • August 8, 2021 at 4:18 pm
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      Interesting maybe we can get Yo-Yo Ma here for the Piano Festival when the corona restrictions are over and people can plan ahead again. Stay well and chodesh tov.

      Reply
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