Skip to main content

Israeli street food – the magnificent and humble boureka

The square shape of the bourekas tells us that they are filled with a potato filling One does not have to spend a long time in Israel to get your first introduction to a boureka. These savory stuffed pastries are everywhere You'll find them for breakfast in hotel dining halls, in countless bakeries and coffee shops, on picnics and even at restaurants that only serve bourekas. They are often eaten in Israeli homes as part of a 'light' or diary meal in the evenings. (Most households in Israel usually serve the large cooked meal at lunchtime.) More often than not, bourekas are also an integral part of the wonderful Friday or Shabbat brunch table. To be really honest however, you basically eat a boureka whenever you encounter one. They are that irresistible. If you stop to grab a quick coffee at a coffee shop, the comforting smell of the bourekas will convince you to upgrade to a 'café ve'ma afe' (coffee + pastry). Wandering through street markets, the sight of fres
Post a Comment

Yom Kippur in Israel

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ronalmog/
When you look for images on the Internet for Yom Kippur in Israel - you will either see photos of empty highways, cycling children or masses of praying religious Jews dressed in white.

And yes, I guess that what a lot of people experience during Yom Kippur. But it so much more than that. Yom Kippur is the day of Atonement and one can say that the entire previous year leads up to this single day.

In the days following up to Yom Kippur, Jews are supposed  to reflect over the previous year, look at what they have done wrong and set it right. Family and friends are asked for forgiveness for any hurts that you may have caused them, grudges are finally put away and everyone tries to enter to new year with a clean a slate as possible.

According to Jewish tradition, God's writes down each person's destiny for the new year during Rosh haShanah. At Yom Kippur the verdict is finally closed and sealed. Just before and after Yom Kippur people wish each other a "G'mar Chatima tova" or a 'good final verdict'.

The day of Yom Kippur itself is spend by fasting for 25 hours (no food or water) and many people attend synagogue. For many Israeli Jews, Yom Kippur is the only day of the year that they do go to the   synagogue.

The country also comes to a total standstill, the television stations are closed, the borders, restaurants and shops are closed. The entire country becomes a ghost town. Many people do not use any form of electricity. No computers and no telephones.

Of course not everyone is religious and may watch DVDs or cable TV quietly in their own homes. But still, the entire country is quiet. Nobody but nobody drives their car. On Yom Kippur the roads and highways belong to the ambulance drivers and the children on their bicycles.

It is not easy to fast for 25 hours, to not take a bath and to stay away from electrical appliances. But it is wonderful to sleep for as long as you like without traffic waking you up, to chat quietly to neighbors in empty streets and to have some time to just think.

Yom Kippur may be hard on the body, but is is definitely good for the soul. :)


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Israeli street food – the magnificent and humble boureka

The square shape of the bourekas tells us that they are filled with a potato filling One does not have to spend a long time in Israel to get your first introduction to a boureka. These savory stuffed pastries are everywhere You'll find them for breakfast in hotel dining halls, in countless bakeries and coffee shops, on picnics and even at restaurants that only serve bourekas. They are often eaten in Israeli homes as part of a 'light' or diary meal in the evenings. (Most households in Israel usually serve the large cooked meal at lunchtime.) More often than not, bourekas are also an integral part of the wonderful Friday or Shabbat brunch table. To be really honest however, you basically eat a boureka whenever you encounter one. They are that irresistible. If you stop to grab a quick coffee at a coffee shop, the comforting smell of the bourekas will convince you to upgrade to a 'café ve'ma afe' (coffee + pastry). Wandering through street markets, the sight of fres
Post a Comment
Read more

Sarah Aaronsohn - the 100 year-old heroine of Zichron Yaakov

Wikipedia Public domain Well, actually she has been around for more than a 100 years now. Sarah was born on the fifth of January 1890 and in 1917 died from the gunshot wounds of an attempted suicide. Our common home town, Zichron Yaakov, recently held the 100-year old anniversary of her death. In the suicide note she wrote: “I no longer have the strength to suffer, and it would be better for me to kill myself than to be tortured under their bloodied hands.”
Post a Comment
Read more

The wild mustard flowers of Israel

The wild mustard is growing yellow and everywhere in Israel at the moment. But not the kind of mustard that you eat with ketchup on your hotdog! Wild mustard as in wild mustard plants! :) I am talking about  Sinapsis Arvensis , a tiny yellow flower that grows in masses in fields, along road sides and abandoned building sites. Up close the wild mustard flower does not look like much - a bit on the puny side actually. But just come across a field filled with mustard flowers and you will be enchanted - just as I am every spring.
6 comments
Read more