The last two to three weeks have been pretty trying for Israel. But I happen to want to talk about the two weeks before then, just to give a few highlights (fairly extensive highlights?) from my trip to Israel for my brother’s wedding. (more…)
So the year-and-a-day is over.
But I think it is remarkable that of those 366 nights, I stayed in a hostel / motel / hotel only:
That’s seventeen days in total!
I wanted to say an enormous thank you to everyone I’ve stayed with along the way, who have all been extraordinarily hospitable to me in finding somewhere for me to sleep, feeding me, taking me out occasionally, giving me their kids to play with… (more…)
There was some strange Runic-looking graffiti along the southern entrance to Efrat that I saw a number of times on the way to the Trampiada before finally identifying it. I eventually recognised the rightmost symbol of the large text as being the Hebrew letter yod (י) in an ancient Hebrew script (כתב עברי). The script we use today is a variant of the Assyrian script (כתב אשורי; or “square script”) adapted from that borrowed from Imperial Aramaic around the Babylonian Exile.
After recognising the first letter, I realised that I could identify (with confirmation online) that this large text was actually the Tetragrammaton, in Judaism the ineffable and most sacred name of God, albeit that its letters were highly stylised. Altogether, we have the phrase “יראת ה’“, “fear of God”.
Now because, for those who can read it, the graffiti includes the Name of God, does this mean it cannot be erased as would usually be the case with this four-letter name? (more…)
This trip to Israel was in many ways an altogether different experience of Israel to my last, when I was here for 11 months in 2002. Firstly, whereas that was for the most part an organised programme, here I was travelling in my own freedom. But mostly, whereas that was 2002, this is 2007, and the matzav (”situation”, a reference to Israel’s relationship with its neighbours) is on a practical level very different. Then I didn’t take buses, visit centres of town, markets or shopping centres, and barely entertained crossing the Green Line. These restrictions did reduce the risk of being blown up significantly (although I was near to many attacks in one way or another), and yet isolated us from some Israeli experiences. Maybe as a result of the increased freedom this time, I also tried to see places I did not explore much last time. For instance, some more eastern parts of Jerusalem’s Old City, Ramallah, Efrat, Hebron a little, and Tel Aviv.
Tel Aviv might seem like the odd one out there, the others all being hotly disputed and potentially dangerous territory. Nonetheless, the Jewish tourists to Israel tend to be divided into those who love Tel Aviv and those who avoid it. Some might say it’s a matter of Tel Aviv vs Jerusalem, and it seems I’ve been pushed into the latter camp. Thanks to Shimrit, my sister-in-law-to-be, I finally had somewhere to stay, if but for a few nights, to sample a little more of the city than I had known. (more…)
Well that’s what I imagine it is going to be like. From Jerusalem at 32 degrees to Sydney at 15 degrees. Then again, maybe not into the freezer. That was Montreal. Fridge, then.
A day’s flight awaits.
On one of my first few days in Israel, the idea came up between me and Ilana of going to visit some Palestinian area in the West Bank, partially because she would soon be becoming an Israeli citizen, and so legally forbidden from going there (without a uniform). In fact it would be my first time visiting anywhere in the West Bank (including Jewish areas). She had already been to Bethlehem in a group, so Ramallah was the prime option. We set it for Friday (1 June), when she wouldn’t have any work. Raf decided he would join us too… Although the day before he claimed that he would be too hungover from Thursday night’s parties to be able to join us, Ilana managed to convince him to take it back. (more…)
I thought I should give the world a few updates, now that I have the time and internet connection to do so. Firstly and most importantly, I have a phone number in Israel, where I’ve been since the 25th of May, thanks to Brucey’s generosity (it was her number previously):
+972 547 981 703
Secondly, my main goals in coming to Israel for 7-or-so weeks were to: (a) see friends and family, such as my cousin Harry and his wife of nearly four years, and my brother’s fiancée, both women I had not met before; (b) travel a little and see different sights, along with an Israel different from the one I saw in 2002; and (c) find somewhere to do some focussed traditional Jewish study, to improve my skills and knowledge in the area and have had some experience. (more…)
I don’t like writing about when I do stupid things, but sometimes I feel disloyal to what readers I have if I don’t. I have a couple of English friends who volunteered with me and the Hineni group in Karmiel in 2002. But both are now up in Manchester, rather than in London. So I have been trying to decide for many weeks whether it would be worthwhile going up to Manchester to see them and spend shabbat with them. They certainly couldn’t come down; it is exam time, and Heather has a three-month old baby (and a husband to take care of). But I hadn’t seen them in years, and when you’ve already come this far around the world, there’s no small amound of money that should stop you going a little further to spend time with people you love. (more…)
Today was a horrible day, as far as being a tourist goes. I had set aside the day to actually leave Paris and head to Versailles, seeing as until yesterday I was getting by on a weekly pass for the Paris metro and bus system. But the day started late, and the weather was looking poor (but it had done the same the past few days without a big problem). 
When I got off the RER train and walked to the famous Chateau, it was undergoing restoration works, so large portions of the building itself were covered in scaffolding. Then I found out that the building was closed on Mondays (well how was I supposed to know?), and although there was plenty to do just wandering around the enormous gardens as well as Marie Antoinette’s dominions, I was a little annoyed with myself. And before long my camera decided to break, so some of the stunning scenes I did eventually see (although it was pouring by then), might have to be found on Google Images instead of JoelNothman.com/Photos. At least, while the day was horrible, it only cost 5.40 Euros! (more…)
It may surprise some to know that Paris has more than twice as many kosher restaurants than Manhattan (or Brooklyn or Long Island for that matter; according to shamash.org, at least), despite having many less Jews in the neighbourhood. The French are known for their good food and their appetites for good food, so it’s not entirely surprising. But it also comes at French prices, so I haven’t had the opportunity to sample too much French kosher cuisine (the 4-Euro falafel wasn’t bad, though). Of course, many make the same mistake as with kosher restaurants around the world and are afflicted by not offering the quality of food and service expected from non-kosher equivalents. (more…)
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