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Showing posts from 2019

Watching the sun go down into the sea

Yesterday evening after work, my family and I went swimming at our nearest beach. Our nearest beach is Nasholim beach. One of the most amazing beaches in the world, it has everything a sea-lover might wish for. Small and large sea coves to explore, baby fish that you can either chase between the rocks or allow to nibble on your dead skin, a huge collection of sea shells and waves that are often large enough for surfing. You can look for the hidden mermaid's chair to make a sitting wish, catch some fish or sift for ancient archeological treasure. Our favourite bay at Nasholim is just big enough for a tiring swim from to one side to the other and back again. If you'd rather do beach instead of sea - the sand is white and soft and made for lazing. I usually stay in the water as much as possible. Life in Israel can be tense, so it is nice to float aimlessly without any thoughts in the Mediterranean sea. The summer is slowly coming to an end which means that the water is finally coo

The amazing clock collection in Jerusalem

In the attractive and characteristic neighbourhood of Rehavia in Jerusalem, not far from the president's residence, there is this a small museum called the Museum For Islamic Art .  It is a gorgeous museum filled with amazing artifacts. Personally though I think that the museum should be called the Museum of Eastern Art. Most of the artifacts pre-date Islam and/or originate from non-Arab speaking countries such as Turkey, India and Iran.  It is very likely that this watch was part of the loot of one of the greatest robberies in the art world

The subtle art of standing in a queue in Israel - a survivor guide

This is NOT queue in Israel, it is waay to calm and orderly If you visit Israel as a tourist, or are a new immigrant you may get the conclusion that Israelis do not have the queue-standing gene. They just seem to stand around in a bunch and then use their elbows to move forward when the train or bus arrives or when going through a building's security entrance. This is one part of life in Israel that can be difficult for new immigrants that I do not have an issue with at all. I mean, WHY do we have elbows? 😁 Just watch out for small old ladies though, they have a really mean shove in those tiny bodies of theirs. The REAL art of queue standing, or rather let me rephrase, the real art of queue moving is more like a contact sport here in Israel. And this is where all those newbies are mistaken. They may think that Israelis do not have the queue standing gene but they just have not yet been exposed to an extreme level of standing in a line.  Here in Israel queu

Praying for rain

As a South African living in Israel, I cannot help but constantly compare the two countries. Of course there are many differences but one of the major similarities is our dependence on rain water.  And since most of South Africa (though not the Cape area) gets its rain during the summer months and Israel gets its rain during the winter months, we are waiting for the rainy season at the same time. More or less during the month of October. It is then autumn in Israel and springtime in South Africa.

Timeline of a 'situation' in Israel

The word 'situation' has a special meaning in Israel. It is usually used when talking about the security situation in Israel but actually compass quite a wide range of things. Such as the situation that Israel is surrounded by not too friendly neighbours. Or the situation that there are a network of sirens throughout the country to warn us about incoming missiles. Two weeks ago another type of situation unfolded in Israel and this blogpost describes my own personal experience.

The Rockefeller Archaeological museum

For some odd reason, the Rockefeller Archaeological museum is NOT on the list of must-see museums in Israel. And it definitely should be.

10 reasons why it is easy to be a vegan in Israel

Israel has been known as the Vegan Nation for quite a while now and has apparently the highest number of vegans per capita. Even McDonalds Israel have started to serve vegan burgers .   So when a recent vegan Instagram acquaintance visited Israel and posted how easy life in Israel is for vegans, I did some looking around. 

The time of the jellyfish

Photo credit: Wikipedia commons It is right in the middle of the summer  in Israel. The temperatures are often touching the 40’s and everyone is irritable and grumpy. So maybe it is a good idea to go and cool off in one of our beautiful beaches? Noooo!!

With help from the heavens

Life in Israel is pretty much similar to life anywhere on the planet. People die and get born, go to school and university and we celebrate birthdays and weddings. We are also confronted daily by numerous billboards trying to sell us anything from cars to sunglasses.

The Badass Women of the Bible

Ruth picking up left-over wheat by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld In February, during the activities of international women’s day, a friend sent me a meme that mentioned some of the amazing women of the Bible. It concluded with a sentence that said something like: “Women have ALWAYS been strong”.  I totally loved the sentiment, so in admiration to all the badass women we have always had here in Israel, I want to highlight these women from the Tanach.

When the almond trees flower

    The almond blossoms have a special place in the hearts of Israelis We are right at the entrance of spring now in Israel. Luckily we had a lot of rain this winter and everywhere is clean and green. We are already enjoying the spring flowers but one cannot talk (okay write..☺) about spring flowers without mentioning almond blossoms. These trees always bloom the first in Israel and is a wonderful reminder that the winter is about to come to an end. One has to really pay attention to see the almond blossoms though. They blossom only for a short time. One blink and they are gone until next year.                               The almond blossoms always bloom the first Even as I am writing this post, I know that the glorious white/pink flowers have already disappeared and the almond trees are already covered in fresh new leaves. Soon the small baby almonds will grow into the nuts that I love to snack on. The almond tree, just like other indigenous plants and trees of Israel, are often men

1001 objects from Israel - The Suspicious Object

Introducing the "1001 objects from Israel" project! As a push to get myself to write more on my blog, I am trying to make my monthly (cough...actually every once and awhile) newsletter a bit more interesting and content rich for my readers. More readers = more writing on my part because I would be too ashamed to send out boring newsletters!

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Israeli street food – the magnificent and humble boureka

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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.”

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.