Israel – Page 4 – The Real Jerusalem Streets

New February Flowers and Flying Flags in Jerusalem

February 11, 2024February 11, 2024Sharon A

Another week wondering where to begin and what to include in what’s happening in Jerusalem, Israel.

When the rain stopped the clouds were impressive over the Israel Museum and the valley below. After the rain, green grass and wildflowers pop up from the ground to bask in the sunlight.

It’s always a good idea to take a moment to see the latest at the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens.

The pink cherry tree blossoms burst out last week.

New Israeli flags were posted on the fence around the soon-to-open Japanese Pagoda.

New flags line many Jerusalem streets.

Some new flags and a sign for a fallen soldier were put up across from his former home.

Sadly, too many new flags with the loss of another soldier, killed in the October 7 War.

Finally construction work is slowly resuming on the Jerusalem streets. The new path to the starting line of the Jerusalem Marathon has to be completed before the March 8 starting time.

The 13th Jerusalem Marathon will be held during these challenging times, “based on the spirit of struggle, perseverance, determination, and the victory of the human spirit, especially in times of war.”

On a visit to the Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem this past week, under this large welcome sign were smaller posters of hostages kidnapped on October 7.

Inside on the second level is a new exhibit ‘Splinter From the Storm’ where contemporary art is interspersed with ancient artifacts.

Jerusalem has creative works found both inside museums and along the Jerusalem streets.

The juxtaposition of old and new is constantly changing as new buildings tower over the old.

Some things in the Machane Yehuda Market, the shuk, appear the same and constant.

However, seeing bread and rolls packaged in plastic and not in the open is relatively new.

It’s time to sign up for next year in schools as signs along a busy Jerusalem street remind us.

No need for “Bring them home now” signs as a reminder, but they are posted in many windows.

Tens of thousands were at the Kotel, Western Wall on Thursday afternoon, before Rosh Chodesh Adar to pray for the return of hostages. It got less media coverage than other rallies even with both chief rabbis participating in the prayer service.

Some relatives were there also, Bring Him/Them Home Now! can be seen almost wherever you go.

As sad as much of the past four difficult winter months have been, the first lupins have appeared as another sign of spring, new growth, and hope as the days get warmer.

New Am Yisrael Chai banners have appeared on some Jerusalem streets.

It is a good time to get up and go out and appreciate the sunshine.

Seeing what’s new and what else is happening on Jerusalem streets can help improve your mood any day.

Jerusalem Streets See the Colors of February

February 4, 2024February 4, 2024Sharon A

Where should I begin to share a week where moods change as quickly as the weather?

It seemed every time I went outside the sun disappeared behind the clouds.

Often it rained, and rained hard.

But at least one evening I was in the right place at the right time to capture the colors in the sky, and with no filters, nature’s beauty appeared before the onset of darkness.

And look at this cactus, a wonder of nature growing so high and with new fruit.

The stalls at First Station were empty in the evening without the regular tourists in Jerusalem, Israel.

The carousel was wrapped in protective plastic and the Ferris wheel was not turning.

One Muslim man took advantage to say his nighttime prayers with no customers around.

I was on my way to the Menachem Begin Center for a program with Elliot Abrams and Dennis Ross.

Barbara Diamond moderated the live discussion as the two US experts discussed growing antisemitism.

A video with Bill Maher concluded the evening. His method of inserting humor while presenting historical facts that counter fictional narratives was greatly appreciated.

One of too many reminders of deadly attacks in Jerusalem is this memorial plaque listing the 11 names of martyrs murdered by a suicide bus bomber on January 29, 2004.

A reminder that 20 years ago, there were also calls for an intifada. Do people have such short memories?

Car-rammings became a new method of terrorism. Bigger, higher, and better bollards are now placed at Jerusalem bus stops to protect people waiting to board a bus.

But the Jerusalem streets, even during this October 7 wartime, are not shut down and dark.

The annual Shaon Horef, Winter Noise Festival is scheduled for the next four Monday nights on various Jerusalem streets.

The runners are out training for the Jerusalem Marathon set for the morning of March 8, 2024.

This week, at the Friends of Zion Museum, the Government Press Office held an evening event. Maayan Hoffman moderated a panel that included international journalists based in Israel.

CBN’s Chris Mitchell listened to Israel spokesperson Eylon Levy, while I was more focused on his socks.

Thousands of journalists came from around the world after the October 7 Massacre. I decided not participate in those early trips to see the death and destruction.

The panel with family members of the hostages was a somber conclusion to the evening. It boggles the mind that so many around the world deny the proof from videos and testimonies of survivors.

Some of the families of hostages have traveled the world to give testimony to get their stories told.

In the same place where the protest tents for the release of Gilad Shalit were, new are ones calling for the return of today’s hostages.

Frustrated after four months of captivity, protesters have taken to the Jerusalem streets calling for release.

The lights on Rivlin Street on the way to the Friends of Zion were twinkling on Thursday night.

I started on a positive note with colors in nature and want to end with one particularly colorful event.

Back on Thursday night, I was again at the FoZ for the opening of the Indigenous Embassy in Jerusalem with the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The program began with a moment to remember those murdered in the horrors of October 7.

Then we heard about the love of Israel coming from around the world, from Hawaii to Tonga.

Traveling thousands of miles to stand with and pray for the people of Israel.

IEJ is to become a hub for indigenous peoples visiting Israel and a tangible expression of their support. IEJ will also support and promulgate the academic work being undertaken to respond to false narratives.

However, IEJ does not purport to be an official representative of any of the governments that host nations of the respective indigenous peoples. It will engage in educational and cultural initiatives and mutually beneficial collaborative projects.

The Solomon Brothers added musical highlights to the event. But, when many participants got up to dance to Hava Nagliah, I thought it was my time to go home.

It’s over ten years since Ryan Bellerose shared his enlightening essay on Indigenous peoples. I thought of him throughout the evening even though he was not there in person.

Closing with a video also from 10 years ago, the prayer for Israeli soldiers.

At that time IDF tanks were lined up along the Gaza border.

Then, international opinion forced a ceasefire.

Hoping for the return of all the hostages and less gloomy days ahead on the Jerusalem streets.

See the Jerusalem Streets for Tu Bishvat

January 28, 2024February 1, 2024Sharon A

What is changing faster?

The weather over the Jerusalem streets–or the mood of the people, trying to move forward after almost 4 months since Hamas atrocities started a war on October 7?

From the horrors on Simhat Torah, it is already time for Tu Bishvat, the holiday called the ‘New Year of Trees’.

The almond trees were indeed bursting with flowers this week.

The sky at sunset was often filled with pink clouds.

Even the pink blossoms of the cherry trees in the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens were ready for the holiday.

A sign on the way to the gardens was for ‘raising a glass’ to celebrate Rosh Hashana before an election which was to be held at the end of October and is still on hold until the end of February.

Inside the gardens, the pond is ready for the spring and summer ahead.

The 75th-anniversary birthday celebration for the Knesset on Tu Bishvat was extremely low-key. Oh so very different than in 2016, when the current location celebrated its 50th year on Tu Bishvat.

No flags were flying on the street, and no tourists were admiring the menorah across from the entrance.

The row of carob trees across from the Supreme Court was fully green, a far cry from those old brown bokser pods we remember for the holiday “treat” that in Jerusalem litter the ground.

Back at Beit Hanasi, the Israel President’s Residence, the reception held was not for Tu Bishvat, but for the UN-mandated International Holocaust Remembrance, Day which falls on January 27th, and this year on Shabbat.

Inside the chairs were lined up for survivors of the Kindertransport, but the hostages in Gaza were not forgotten. There is an undercurrent everywhere thinking about the hostages held by Hamas.

These “children” who were saved 85 years ago by being sent to England, many never to see their parents again, were the featured guests of the President of Israel.

Germany’s Ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert attended and listened carefully to the survivors’ stories.

Sitting next to the moderator, he heard one of the survivors rescued from Nazi Germany in the Kindertransport operation in 1938, say that she was once again evacuated from her home – this time in Kibbutz Zikim on the Gaza border, after the community came under attack by Hamas on October 7.