Jerusalem photos – Page 157 – The Real Jerusalem Streets

Malha Mall Rioters Drown out the Music

March 27, 2012rjstreets

Malha Mall in Jerusalem is a large shopping center, busy day and night.

Typical scenes like this one show no hint of apartheid.

Last week a group of Beitar football (soccer) fans made quite a scene

in Malha Mall that caught international attention.

In no way do I condone their rowdy and obnoxious behavior,

but sports fans have rioted in Canadian and US cities also.

Was the entire country condemned for their miserable behavior?

An Israeli diplomat in Rabat, Morocco had to be rescued from a mob

of tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators.

I did not hear of human rights activists writing essays against these events.

Once again, an isolated, repulsive incident has been blown out of proportion,

and has drowned out the other sounds coming from Jerusalem:

the sounds of a three-night music festival called “Sounds of the Old City.”

The city of Jerusalem offered free musical entertainment

to bring more visitors to enjoy the beauty of the Old City at night.

Throughout the Old City and Mamilla Mall,

there were also video art displays…

much better for a photo blog than music played in the dark.

It was easy to follow the lights and art

through the narrow alleyways of the Old City.

The Hurva Synagogue in the Rova, the Jewish Quarter, was lit up.

Musical performances were scheduled from 6-11:00pm;

sorry, I only got a program on the way out and missed the shows in the Rova.

Musicians performed inside the Cardo

and out, two of many dramatic backdrop locations.

Shows were also performed in the Christian and Muslim Quarters

and along many of the Old City streets.

Comfortable seats were impossible to find,

but the food for sale near Jaffa Gate was hard to miss.

The crowds grew larger as the night went on.

On the way home, this drum circle near Jaffa Gate caught my attention.

One boy got up and started to dance

to an audience which gathered to watch and included smiling Arab families.

The sounds of music from the Old City went unnoticed by the media,

drowned out by the noise of a few trouble makers.

There was no violence during the festival…so it is not news.

The “Sounds of the Old City” was happening in Jerusalem last week.

What did you hear?

Terror Triumphs

November 30, 2011rjstreets

Mea Shearim, an ultra-religious Jewish neighborhood over a hundred years old,

is a popular tourist stop and shopping center.

When you turn the corner

from Strauss Street,

you enter another world,

where Pashkavillim, not the internet provide the latest news.

On Mea Shearim Street discounted books can cause an instant crowd to gather.

For over a year the Or Chaim Bookstore on Mea Shearim Street

has been the target of repeated and increasing terror attacks.

This English modesty sign now hangs outside as a result of those assaults.

Metal doors, security, and police did not protect the owners from the thugs,

who vandalized the store and threatened the owners for over a year.

A group called Sikrikim, extremists who want to control women’s dress and

to decide which books are appropriate to sell and to read.

However, in store

after store,

after store,

after store,

after renovated store on Mea Shearim Street,

no such modesty signs were posted today.

Feldheim bookstore had the sign in Hebrew only.

Despite unending major building and renovation,

and unwelcoming signs

posted at the entrance to the neighborhood, the tourists still keep coming.

A few violent people caused The Or Chaim Bookstore’s shades to be closed,

so from the street no one can see they sell English books.

The damage caused by the Sikrikim was NIS 250.000 (over $65,000) ,

forcing them to give in.

Now they have the signs up.

They will not sell books the Sikrikim disapprove of.

Terror has triumphed in Mea Shearim…

Save the Nature Museum

July 27, 2011rjstreets

Doctors are striking.

Protest tents are popping up like mushrooms in the parks.

The price of gas, electricity and temperatures are rising.

With so many serious issues at once, it was easy to miss a protest meeting

to save the Nature Museum in Jerusalem.

Thousands of visitors drive down this little street leading

to the Moshava Germanit, German Colony parking lot,

and probably never noticed the main entrance to the Nature Museum.

This old Armenian house and sprawling grounds are home

to the Nature Museum in Jerusalem,

where thousands of children have been exposed to nature and animal life.

In spite of the heat, a crowd gathered in the afternoon on July 26, 2011

to protest its threatened closure.

Professor Ariel Hershfeld was the first of several speakers.

City council member Meir Turgeman, who grew up in the neighborhood,

was the last speaker and called for the city to listen to its residents.

It was hard to gauge the attendance at the protest, as the many activities,

entertainment,

and animals provided constant distractions.

The soft music of this protest was quite a contrast to the loud demonstrations.

Will Shalem College get the grounds for its new campus?

The grounds of the Hanson Hospital are near by and could be restored

to offer a new and improved neighborhood Nature Museum.

There was mumbling in the crowd of another Holyland

where the interests of business and money

win over the interests of the people.

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