The End is Near

Well, we have made it through a year’s worth of holidays.  The next up is Tisha B’Av and that is where we started. And by then we will be back in the States.

Our final Yom was Yom Yerushalayim.  The festivities began before the actual date of Tuesday night, May 23, through Wednesday. Trump’s visit made the city very hard to get around; security was fierce and his arrival on Monday, May 22, competed with the preparations for the celebration which this year marked the 50th year of reunification of Jerusalem.  He left the following afternoon right before the celebration started but more on that later.

On Sunday the 21st, while Seth was still in the States and Zoe was at judo, I met up with Brad Bernstein and Aviva Cohen for a special Jerusalem evening.  The Australian Friends of Hadassah sponsored a conference with the hospital’s psychiatric department on trauma which was right up Aviva’s alley (she is a psychiatrist who hails from Melbourne.)  The opening event was a dinner with a talk by Amos Oz and Aviva finagled lucky me an invitation.  To make this event that much sweeter, it was taking place at Beit Shmuel which is located right across from the walls of the Old City with the most spectacular views.

So the three of us made our way there by foot.  Why you ask? Combination of Yom Yerushalayim celebrations and Trump.  So many roads were closed.  (If I had one of those fitbits from this Sunday until I returned home on Wednesday night after Yom Yerushalyim celebrations, I would have logged a ridiculous amount of miles.)  It was a nice walk, though, through Yemin Moshe (in my opinion, the most photogenic of all Jerusalem neighborhoods; every inch is postcard worthy)

where we kept getting redirected by security because of closed roads, but we made it.

We arrived in time for cocktail hour and got to take in views while Aviva caught up with all of Jewish Melbourne who was there.  When we sat for dinner and the talk, it became clear that a good part of the crowd was not Jewish and had never been to Israel before.  I sat next to an Australian doctor, originally from Sri Lanka, who used the conference as an excuse to visit Israel for the first times and there were many others there with similar motivation.  Amos Oz was an interesting choice for a speaker at this conference but a very good one, in part inspired by his mother’s suicide.  He was riveting, a speaker who captivated the room and made us all feel as if we were having a very intimate encounter.  Aviva noted afterward that you could not have had the same experience if you watched a video of his talk as he really cast a spell on the room.  He has a way of being able to speak about difficult subjects in the most casual way and he was just fascinating.  His talk focused on his book, Tales of Love and Darkness, which is on my nightstand but I keep avoiding because I know how heavy it is.  (Kudos to Ayelet Pollock who just read it in Hebrew!)   But, in truth, his talk was about so much more:  the country, Jerusalem, his life, the creative life, his family.  To see this world renowned Jerusalemite author speak two days before Yom Yerushalayim was a gift.

When he finished they quickly set up a buffet of the most amazing food.  One of the newbie Aussies next to me asked if all conference food was like this. I said only when the conference is in Israel.  He said it was some of the best food he has ever eaten.  And this is a man who has traveled all over the world.  They had vats of Mqluba that were beyond.  I actually knew what this dish was because I had it earlier in the year at a great restaurant called Eucalyptus which serves local indigenous food.  It is a rice, chicken and vegetable dish which puts a lot of importance on the pot in which it is cooked. In smaller amounts the pot is flipped and pounded on.  It is a whole thing.

And then we were treated to the most spectacular event put together for the 50th celebration -- the sound and light show on the Old City walls.  We had the best vantage point in the city on the Beit Shmuel balcony overlooking the walls.  There were fireworks and light projections accompanied by a multi group concert from Sultan’s Pool below us.  It is hard to describe how creative and beautiful it was.  Here is a link to a brief video of the event and here is another amateur recording of the crowd singing along to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah that was part of the show.  They love Leonard Cohen here.

The highlight for me was when a magen David (Star of David) appeared in the sky.  Out of nowhere.  I asked people how this was done and no one knew.  It was obviously not a light projection.  And then the magen David did a flip and disappeared.  Wow!  And then the number 50 appeared in the sky.  Out of nowhere.  I was baffled. Someone told me the next day that it was all done with drones. (Speaking of drones, during Trump’s visit, Allison and I were eerily accompanied on our park walk by a drone that hung mysteriously in the sky over the German Colony.  Security during this time was CRAZY!)

And when the show ended it was time to make our way home.  On foot.  No buses, cars, etc.  Tens of thousands of people were there and so all the streets around the main part of town were closed to traffic to accommodate for this. But we were prepared to walk and started down King David Street.  Things got more cramped as we approached the King David Hotel because the hotel was already in lockdown for Trump’s visit the next day.  We could not even walk on that side of the street.  (One of the hotel’s chefs comes to my spinning class sometimes and he told us on the previous Friday that the Secret Service was already ensconced and security was beyond tight, tougher than he had ever experienced for any previous head of state, including Obama.)  Aviva and I were walking with one of her father’s Melbourne friends who was here for the conference and regaled us with stories of his volunteering during the Six Day War. The weather was gorgeous and the streets were packed; it felt like the best holiday.  Magical night.  

Seth touched down a little after Trump the next day and we were all glad to have him back.  He wanted to be back for Yom Yerushalayim.  

So Tuesday, while Trump was making the rounds, I had a plan to visit Lauren Katz who was in town with the graduating seniors from Ramaz. She had the smallest of windows for a visit, as it happened between 2 and 3.  Hmmmmmm.  So I told her that I was not sure the buses were running but I would make my way to the Herbert Samuel Hotel smack dab in the heart of the city off of Ben Yehuda.  Miraculously, there was a #34 bus approaching my bus stop which normally takes me right to King George and Ben Yehuda.  Nice.  Hmmmmmm.

So I got on the bus.  We were making our way down Emek and low and behold right before Emek ends the street was barricaded and we were forced to make a left down a side street.  Let me sum up the issues:  the driver had not been informed that all major roads would be shut down between 2 and 3, thus he did not have an alternate route to take, thus he just followed traffic as it was directed from one barricade to the next further away from the center of town. My Hebrew and knowledge of the city’s landscape are both good enough now so that I understood exactly what was going on and where we were going.  Some guy in the front seat thought he knew where to go and was directing the bus driver.  Hmmmm.  By now I realized that I was not getting to Lauren soon and that my walk back to the city center was a long one.  When the bus was redirected away from Tchernichovsky Street and the passengers were talking about taking the Begin highway, I felt like I was being hijacked and thought it was time to leave. I felt bad for this rudderless bus of innocents being forced to ride out the barricades but I had to go. So I requested of the bus driver to be let off which left me at least a good half hour from Lauren and it was already almost 2:45.  

But I kept walking and as I approached Berlin and Azza I saw more barricades but now this was serious.  As I approached the intersection, a soldier took firm hold of his gun and told me to get back. I said I just wanted to ask questions, which he let me.  Long and short of it:  No cars, pedestrians, nothing allowed on Azza.  But this was only for the next 10 – 15 minutes.  Okay.  So I got a water from the makolet (convenience store) and decided to embrace the historic moment I was about to witness.  First of all, the military/security presence was crazy up Azza, dozens and dozens of soldiers and police.  People were being told they could not leave their apartments and when they exited their front doors they were sent back inside.  I glanced up at one point and discovered a sniper stationed on the apartment building across the street.  I took his picture.

See him up top there?  

I struck up a conversation with an American who decided to give into the situation and had his camera posed around his neck.  He said he used to live in DC on Pennsylvania Avenue so his whole life was like this for years.  We waited and then at a little after 3:00 we heard the sirens and Trump’s entourage was upon us. It took over 2 full minutes to pass; that is a lot of protection and accompaniment.  The final vans were press.  So now I can say “I was here when . . . . .”

When they released us, I texted Lauren to make her way to the Great Synagogue so we could still meet, otherwise, we would never have time.  And we made it.  We had an hour to catch up which was great although left us wanting more.  That entourage took Trump to a helicopter pad, and Lauren and I watched as the American helicopters took off for Ben Gurion Airport.  And then I made my way home on one of the buses, which were running now that Trump had officially left.  

That night, Zoe went to a Yom Yerushalayim celebration in town with friends, but Seth and I reserved our energy for the next day.  There were activities planned all over the city all day on Wednesday.  I was home for some of the day and put the tv on to see what I could understand and saw an interview with the three paratroopers captured in the famous 1967 photograph by David Rubinger.  You know it.  They are still around and friends.  I did not understand everything they said but I did understand when they said that it took them a little bit to realize where they were, but when they did everyone there just started crying.  Everyone.  Here is a little article about them.  

But we did not venture out until the dancing and marching in the late afternoon.  Zoe met friends in Sacher Park but Seth and I made our way to the Great Synagogue (On foot.  Uphill.  No buses again) where there was dancing in the streets before the parade.   The streets in that part of town were closed to traffic.  I shall show you what it looked like.    

This is Keren Hayesod in still life:  

There was crazy dancing and every yeshiva and seminary was there.

That big banner in the center is from the boys' counterpart to Zoe's school

There was a group from Madagascar

check out the traditional (?) headgear

and an Asian group from I have no idea where.  They traveled to be here to celebrate 50 years of the reunification of Jerusalem.  Crazy!

All of the previous yoms are truly national holidays.  Even Yom HaShoah feels like a national holiday when you are here, the State being so tied to our history.  But Yom Yerushalayim has a very different flavor.  First of all, a lot Israelis are not into it.  Especially, secular Israelis (living in and around Tel Aviv) who find Jerusalem so fraught with political tension that they do not feel it is anything to celebrate.  And Yom Yerushalyim is the one day of the Yoms that is very much about God and religion and peoplehood all rolled together.  Lots of kippot here.  The energy and passion of the young people was amazing to watch.  They danced and sang for hours before they started to march towards the Kotel.  

Seth and I decided to take a short cut and avoid the pace of the masses so we cut through Independence Park.  Even there there were large groups of revelers, overflow from the dancing in front of the Great Synagogue.  

Anyway, cutting through was a great idea, since on the way to Mamila we had the great fortune to run into Rabbi Schraeder who had brought his students from Yerucham for the day.  Here we are.  

A few of our friends, heading to the Kotel

Then Seth and I walked to the Jaffa Gate and just kept walking with everyone towards the Kotel. (Well, not exactly.  There is some controversy over this parade which we won’t go into here.  Suffice it to say, the parade takes two routes to the city, and we headed to the Kotel before the main group had really started.)

So, when we got to the Kotel it was getting crowded but still manageable.  

It would get more and more crowded by the minute.  The tekes wasn’t going to start for a while, but people were already dancing and celebrating.

Seth wanted to daven mincha so we separated and set a meeting place for half an hour later.  So I decided to also daven mincha and people watch.  In the women’s section, I came upon a group of women dressed beautifully who I knew were not from here.  Some had tshirts that said Nuvelle Caledonie which I recognized as New Caledonia so I looked it up on my phone:  A French territory in the South Pacific which obviously has people who cared enough about Jerusalem to get here on this day.  Christians are amazing in their devotion.  Later on I spotted them dancing when the band started.  Here is a video as the activities started to heat up at the kotel.  

The parade of people would keep arriving for another hour as they marched and danced through the streets of Jerusalem and the Old City but we left through the Dung Gate just as the big crunch was beginning.  

Seth and I had to walk around the walls to get back to Emek Refaim for our 9:00 meeting with Hannah and Zoe at the restaurant, Roza.  

Hannah had not seen Seth since before he left for Detroit.  She had gone with friends for a tiyul (hike) from Mivaseret back to Jerusalem in honor of the holiday and sported a new short haircut as she had been growing her hair to donate and finally cut it off.  She looks great.   Zoe had made a similar march and kotel visit as Seth and I with her friends.  We had all walked for miles but, happily tired, we were all together for the first time in weeks which was great. By the time we got home, Yom Yerushalayim was over.  What a privilege to be here for this.

Then last Shabbat we hosted Andy Zack and Bob Heinrich who were in town.  

Very fun to catch up! 

And then our final holiday for the year, Shavuot, took place Tuesday night, May 30.   Shavuot, that holiday of little respect at home that comes at a busy time of year when no one is in the mood to get excited.  Unless they like cheesecake.  Oh, this country does such a great job of preparing you for the next holiday. There were the cheesecake experts on the talk shows and discussions about whether cheese is healthy which was hard for me to follow so I never found out.  You always know what is coming up by the food that starts appearing in the stores and the pop up kiosks in the mall or by the signs posted all over the city for learning and concerts and plays and events.  You would have to try hard not to get excited.  So I got excited.

Plus we had visitors.  Eliana came in from Givat Shmuel with Hannah and stayed with us for the Chag.  In fact, most of young Givat Shmuel came in for the learning here.  When I say there was an embarrassment of riches for all night Shavuot learning that is an understatement.  For those who are not familiar, Shavuot is the holiday where we celebrate the receiving of the Torah and one of the ways we celebrate is to stay up all night learning Torah.  The learning in Hebrew around town filled an entire booklet.  For English learning we had our choice of Pardes, our shul Nitzanim, Beit AviChai, Yael Shul, the Begin Center and who knows where else.  And these talks were filled with heavy hitters.  Speakers who you would want to hear anytime of the year.  

After a minimal dinner with the five of us (highlight was the cheese danish cake Eliana bought us at Café Kadosh.  Can you imagine my happiness?) Allison came by and we grown-ups all started at Pardes where we divided up.  There were three speakers for every session.  Can you imagine?  Allison and I went to a talk by Judy Klitsner about why Moshe hit the rock and why he was punished. Great talk.  I wasn’t bored or tired for a second of the hour and a half that started at 11:30 PM.  Then we left for Nitzanim to catch the end of one talk, ran into Greenbaums, left Seth for the night, and we two giborot (heroes) made our way up hill to Beit AviChai at 1:15 AM to catch Daniel Gordis’ talk at 2:00 AM.  Long story short, when Allison and I got there, the session was closed.  Oh, we weren’t happy.  What to do?  So we two giborot turned around and walked home through this hopping city in the middle of the night.  At least it was downhill.  

After the learning sessions end around 4:00/4:30 many people make their way to the Kotel for the reading of the Book of Ruth and morning prayers.  None of us went to the kotel but the Goldmeiers did, which was a bucket list adventure for them.  (Well, at least for Laurie.)  This traveling to the kotel on one of the three festivals (Sukkot, Passover, and Shavuot) is called Aliyah b’Regel (literally, going up by foot) and mimics the ancient pilgrimage to the Temple. Phil and Laurie and anyone else who has done this say it is an amazing experience to be part of the gathering nation in this ancient ritual.  I was not up for it, but maybe one day.

And then after all the sleeping in, 11 Pierre Koenig, #1, was Detroit in Exile Central.  We had us, plus Eliana (honorary Detroiter), Yoni Nadel, 4 Greenbaums, Sanders (to whom we give no little credit for Hannah being in Israel) and, later, a Goldmeier visitation.  What fun. The younger people left for more evening learning but we mature folk stayed and schmoozed.

And now all the celebrations are over and we are in the home stretch.  We have made the definitive move of buying return tickets. But we are staying busy.  Seth and I are in ulpan.  I will be packing Zoe for her Drisha summer program in New York.  And I am starting to make those final meetings with people here.  Trying to get more time in before there is none to share.  We are looking forward to a few more visitors coming as well.

This was a long post but the next one will probably be my last.  Until then, Jerusalem continues to delight but it is all feeling a little bittersweet.  The pressure to savor things when they are fleeting feels too heavy for me, so I am a bit in denial.  It works.

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