The Real Jerusalem Streets

Only in Jerusalem could you find 

a small sukkah on a truck

and a small sukkah on a camel,

near the very large sukkah in Kikar Safra, Safra Square.

Mayor Nir Barkat hosted an Open House in this sukkah on September 27.

The music began at 5:00pm, but guests were not let in immediately.

As usual,

it was “who you know”, as the first guests entered the sukkah a few minutes after 5:00pm..

At 5:15 pm, a small, but loud protest group appeared in the plaza with signs;

while the mayor and his wife,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

received city residents and their invited guests 

in the beautifully decorated sukkah. 

Leaving the sukkah

 

people posed for pictures,

but it was hard to avoid the noisy protesters.

Some of the children, however, were able to ignore the disruptions

and not everyone was loud.

As the protest group moved back towards the entrance of the sukkah,

 

 they were able to keep the media’s attention.

Female demonstrators seemed to be leading the group,

 which was captured by many photographers from all angles.

The photographers were so busy, as usual, they missed the real Jerusalem streets.

 Not everyone had their evening ruined, as a few people were even able to enjoy the music.

While every bit of this protest was being recorded at Kikar Safra,

at the same time, the groups waiting for the traffic light to cross to Mamilla Mall were larger.

The number of visitors to Jerusalem for the holidays and the variety of events was amazing,

but as usual, a few noise makers made the headlines.

Next time… the Jerusalem Parade.

 

Sukkot

is the season of open houses.

The International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem

opened its gates to visitors.

The beautiful gardens

and provided a perfect setting for hundreds of international tourists.

A large sign welcomed visitors to the sukkah at the Beit Hanasi,

the President’s Official residence.

However, many visitors who had passed metal detectors and x-ray machines

were forced to wait outside.

People standing in the blazing sun while the doors to the building were shut

did not feel very welcome and

 the cloth-covered barriers made it impossible to leave.

As one man began to collapse, it was too crowded for him to fall down.

The barriers slowed emergency personnel,

but at last they were able to take him inside.

Before the office door was shut, some people got a glimpse of the president.

Finally, reaching the sukkah,

it was full of color and flowers and fruit and vegetables.

Out in the garden,

Science and Technology Minister Daniel Hershkowitz

seemed to be having a good time.

 

  Also many young people

            seemed to be enjoying themselves.

 For the majority of visitors, the photographs of

President Shimon Peres with former President George Bush and

the Pope were all they would see of him.

In the evening, Mayor Nir Barkat and his wife hosted an open house,

but More Open Houses will have to wait…time for the Jerusalem Parade.

Before the Sukkot holiday trees in Jerusalem are trimmed 

 

so that the branches can be used as schach to cover the tops of sukkot. 

There was no building freeze last week in Jerusalem as the city transformed itself for the Sukkot holiday; 

 

all kinds of sukkot — small ones on the rooftops 

 

and also large ones; 

 sukkot on the sidewalks 

 

and where the sidewalks are too narrow, in the streets; 

 

on poles off the ground 

 

and even built around trees. 

Some neighborhoods 

 

are crowded with sukkot 

 

while in others they stand alone. 

How many are there? 

 

Some are easy to see, 

 

while others are not so easy to see, 

 

and for some, well, you just have to know where to look… down. 

 

Some sukkot are very private 

others are hard to avoid. 

On Sunday there were crowds for hours after Birchat Hacohanim 

 

trying to get in to the sukkah on the plaza near the Kotel, the Western Wall 

and on Friday there were crowds of visitors at the sukkah 

 

on the grounds of the International Christian Embassy on Rachel Emenu Street. 

Whether the sukkah 

 

is a clever one on a small porch 

 

alone by the garage, 

 

or a sukkah as if on top of the world, another week and most will be gone until next year. 

 

Sukkat shalom, Sukkat shalom