From Destruction to Love (Peace & Love)

1291 unique visitors in less than 3 days can’t be wrong.

Make sure you visit the soon to be award winning (I hope) guest blog post at:
http://jobmob.co.il/blog/israeli-job-search-survival-tips

The blog post talks about my Job Interview experience in Israel and has received rave reviews.
And now…. back to our regular programming…..



Destruction

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about Commemorating Rosh Hodesh Av 5769 and how the first days of Av are of great sadness (technically it’s actually 3 weeks before) getting us to the 9th of Av (last week) which among many other things marks the destruction of the two Batei Mikdash (Holy Temples) and is remembered with a 25 hour fast. This year about 3 hours away from breaking the fast I decided to visit the Kotel (Western Wall) to pray right next to where it happened on 586 BCE and again on 70 CE. Why? Because I live here and I can do it whenever I want!
It was an unbelievable experience to be among thousands of people praying and in lamentation.
It was also an unforgettable experience to see thousands of people breaking their 25 hour fast at the same time. I thank Liora for preparing a cheese sandwich for me to take with me that every time I would open my bag I would get the smell of fresh baked bread waiting for the clock to turn to 8:05pm. After sundown there was a big bus giving away cold drinks and pastry, however I was not brave enough to get one for myself, I just sticked to my sammich (as they say in Pittsburgh).
It is amazing to see how Jerusalem has been rebuilt, alive and full of light. It’s happening! May we witness the reconstruction of the 3rd temple speedily and in our days.
Enjoy some of the pictures by the wall and the breaking of the fast.



Day of Love (Tu b’Av)

From Other

Yesterday we celebrated Tu b’Av (15th of Av), which marks a "high" to counter the "low" of the Three Weeks leading up to Tisha B'Av. In today’s Israel it has become the Day of Love and a chance for stores and manufacturers to capitalize on selling flowers, chocolates and gifts.
During the day and taking advantage of Liora’s day off we went to the City of David’s archeological park where David established the city of Jerusalem aprox. 1000 BCE. It was an amazing experience to see the guide using a Bible to walk us through all of the discoveries, the tour also included going through the tunnels that King’s Yechizkiyahu built to channel the water in defense from the Assyrian threat. We had a great Day of Love, take a look at the pictures below.



Peace & Love – From Woodstock (‘69) to Jerusalem (‘09)
40 years wondering in the dessert, 40 days waiting to receive the Torah by mount Sinai, 40 days of the flood, many times the number 40 figures in our history. This summer it’s actually 40 years of the Woodstock Festival and what better way to celebrate it with the spirit of Peace and Love (love from 15 of Av) than by going to a Woodstock Revival in the holy city of Jerusalem. By the way on August 8 it will be 40 years since the shooting of the picture for The Beatles Abbey Road Album.

I went with my good friend Ari and had a great time and a very unusual experience. The crowd was mostly American, there were babies, children, adults and older people just like in the real Woodstock but on a much much much smaller scale, there were probably a couple of thousand people. You can read about the event HERE. The lineup included some apparently famous guys that interpreted songs from Crosby, Steels & Nash, Hendrix, Neil Yong and The Doors (although they did not attend to the original Woodstock). If I heard right one of the performers did play in Woodstock.

Our sages explain that the temple was destroyed because of hatred among the Jewish people, that night showed a beautiful state of love among so many different kind of Jews (OK, they were mostly American but nevertheless from different religious denominations).
The performers were excellent and most probably not under the influence (?) like 40 years ago. I was amazed particularly by one of the groups headed by Lazer Lloyd who has a long beard, black hat, hanging tzitsit. They did Hendrix in an unbelievable way. You can watch one of his videos HERE (for Hendrix lovers only). One of the songs he performed was imitating Hendrix legendary Star Spangled Banner however he did the Hatikva (Israel’s national anthem) instead and was beautifully played, I recorded part of it but the sound quality is not too good (it was too loud) and apparently I was not meant to record it all because the battery died in the middle. Enjoy (I apologize for the sound quality) .


There was time for Mincha prayer (afternoon prayer) in a corner and Lazer Loyd even gave a quick Dvar Torah (short sermon) about Tu B’Av in between songs. For an interview he said "It's not just a concert; it's like being at Mount Sinai all over again". I love this country!
The atmosphere was beautiful, full moon, and the night was cooling down. I felt once again part of “the people” just like I did and described on the blog Paul in Tel Aviv. By the way I missed you at this concert Dani and hope you did well on your exam.
Enjoy with me the memories of this wonderful Peace & Love experience with some pictures of the event below.

Peace, Love & Shabbat Shalom.

5 Israeli Job Search Survival Tips

I promised it for a while.... well here it is.

Here are my top Israeli job search tips based on personal experience. Hope they help you or at least make you laugh!
Read more here:

http://jobmob.co.il/blog/israeli-job-search-survival-tips/#ixzz0NFn3aKoF

I have posted this as a guest blogger.

Note that the original post name was "My Big Fat Israeli Job Interview", however it was changed to 5 Israeli Job Search Survival Tips so that readers can understand exactly what the blog post is about.

Enjoy.

Sabra Album Take 6 – Marketing Edition

Welcome to the 6th edition of the Sabra Album. Continuing to post pictures that talk about how Israel is such a special and interesting place. These pictures are so unique to Israel that I’m calling them “Sabra Album” (Click here for definition of Sabra). (You can also visit Sabra Album Take 1 , Take 2 , Take 3, Take 4, Take 5 and Machane Yehuda Edition if you missed them).

Lets use a Marketing approach this time for the Marketer’s enjoyment among the readers. I will use the 4 P’s (Product, Place, Price, Promotion) to make a point in the different photos.

Promotion

From Sabra Album

The store on the picture above is in a very commercial street in Tel-Aviv. The sign on top reads “End of season all year long”.
Good slogan? Well.. you’ll be the judge…
The sign on the left window (partially blocked by the Tel Avivian fake blond guy with the dog) reads “For Rent”
I guess not such a good slogan. It reminds me of the Zohan movie with the electronics store named “Going out of business”. But in this case their season did end.

From Sabra Album

Now here is something I loved when I saw it. I love this country!
The sign at the entrance of the gas station in Jerusalem reads “Promotion: Newspaper (picture) or Challa (picture) with fueling of 180 Shekel or more. On Friday and holiday eve only.”
Not sure how efficient this promotion is. I would say that it gets you to step down from your car and into their convenience store, hopefully you will buy some highly priced impulse item.
On the picture the sign by the gas station and my daughter holding the free Challa we got.

From Sabra Album

From Sabra Album

This is one of the best outdoor execution of a campaign I have seen here in Israel and it’s so Sabra too. What is written on the advertisement at this bus stop could not pass without me placing it on the Sabra Album.
The ad is for a company that prepares high school students for the standardized test (Psicometri) to get to college and it reads “Waking up drunk wearing only a sombrero in Guadalajara and the Psicometri. There are things you prefer to do only once”. (Note that the Mexican City of Guadalajara sounds funny to Israelis given the work Jara which in Hebrew means Sh#@t.)
The other ad reads “War with Iran and the Psicometri. There are things you prefer to do only ones”.
Great concept, great execution, well written for its target audience, and most importantly very Sabra.


Place

From Sabra Album

This picture was taken at a store in Jerusalem’s old city right next to the Jaffa gate and the entrance to the Arab Shuk. If you watch closely, who is the store’s target market?... Wrong! It seems as it’s targeting all! Hanged on the entrance you can find on the left a Belly dancer custom, next to it a Talit (Jewish prayer article), and to its right a set of Kefiot (Traditional Arab headdress). Playing a little Sesame Street: “One of these does not belong with the others”. In strict marketing theory the Talit is definitely out of place, right? Well, the store seems to be targeting tourists from all religions and I would bet that they have been in business there since the Turkish empire. Distribution of all these articles at the same point of sale seems to be working.

Product

From Sabra Album

This store/museum had already its place in the Sabra Album Machane Yehuda Edition. This time I visited Jerusalem’s main marketplace on Friday with Batya and we had to stop by this store/Museum. The store owner (Yeoshua a.k.a Shuki) was glad to talk to us and pose for a picture. One would wonder what does a museum with pictures of prime ministers, presidents, political figures and important Rabbis do in the middle of the marketplace, well the product/service it sells is not really the “Museum” it’s just the environment it creates for its underwear store. What Starbucks cafés are for coffee, Shuki’s museum/store is for underwear, it’s all about the environment/experience you are in. Every time I’m in Machane Yehuda I visit him and chat a little, I always try to buy something however I end up empty handed. It’s just interesting to see the picture of political personalities right next to a rack of tighty-whities.

From Sabra Album

We might all look different, dress differently, come from different places, have different religious and political opinions, however we all have the same prayer and pray to the same G’d.
This picture was taken by the Kotel (Western Wall).
We might all have different packages but in the end we are all Bnei Israel (Children of Israel) inside (just like Intel inside).


Price



1 Kilo of Mango – 7 Shekel
1 Kilo of Cucumber – 2 Shekel 49 Agurot
Hearing the sounds and songs of Machane Yehuda – Priceless
Enjoy the videos below with the sounds and songs of Machane Yehuda on a busy Friday. The guy is singing about “Colorful watermelon, welcome to all buyers thank you very much, plums, peaches, joy of life, cucumbers add a lot to your salad… “ Please note right in the end… that’s the most Sabra part as he stops singing to take on a call…”Alo?.

Shabbat Shalom to all.

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Commemorating Rosh Hodesh Av 5769

The month of Av has been historically a month when the darkest events have happen to the Jewish people. Both the first and the second temple were destroyed on the 9th of Av.
To commemorate the start of this month (and our 1 year Aliyah anniversary) we visited Jerusalem to pray by the Kotel (western wall) for the quick rebuilding of the 3rd temple. We also visited an interesting archeological site called “the burnt house” where a house dating back to 70 AD was burnt most probably during the destruction of the 2nd temple. A funny fact was that when we got there and wanted to enter they said that the burnt house is temporarily closed because of a water leak….
During this visit to old Jerusalem we also enjoyed a delicious and out of the oven pita with Zathar. It is always so magical and amazing visiting the old city of Jerusalem. It’s right in front of our eyes but so close that we can’t see it but we are truly living special times where Jerusalem has been rebuilt and with such livelihood, spirit and beauty.

Enjoy some pictures from our visit including the western wall, the burnt house and the Menorah built in pure gold according to studies on what the menorah in the temple should look like ready for the 3rd temple.

Isn't these amazing? Take a look at the announcement below by the municipality.

Public Service Announcement Regarding Tisha be-Av
Message from the municipality:According to city law, public businesses providing pleasure (restaurants, movie theaters, sports facilities, swimming pools, game areas, bowling, etc.) will be closed on Tisha be-Av — marking the destruction of the two Batei Mikdash (Holy Temples) – from Wednesday evening July 29 at 7pm until 6am Thursday morning.

Years and years have passed and in our modern days we continue with our traditions and laws in our own land. Imagine if your local U.S city regulated this for Memorial Day?

Shabbat Shalom to all and may we soon see the rebuilding of our temple and by them we shall all see you around here.

Soon… a new edition of the Sabra album with a never seen video special and later on "My Big Fat Israeli Interview"

Happy 1st Aliyaersary!

Today we celebrate 1 year since our Aliyah.
I want to share with you this happy moment with a video recounting our last year.
It’s so good to be home!

In case you were wondering how acclimated the kids are, take a look at the video below and you’ll be the judge.

It’s Summertime!

Summer is here and it’s starting to get hot.
The kids are all set up with their respective camps/Gan.
We have a new road to thank for bringing the beach closer to us. We have visited the beach more often thanks to the 30 minute door to sand advantage. Below are some pictures of the beach as well as a circus event in Modiin. Summer is filled with lots of activities for the children.


We are hosting this Shabbat our friend from Pittsburgh that was in Israel for a year, this will be her last Shabbat during his year in Israel. We were happy to see you here and hope to see you in Israel soon.

Ilan had a special event at his gan and was de Aba Shabbat. He is so happy there, has made lots of friends and is becoming a true Israeli kid (for better and for worse). He had several play dates the last two weeks. See pictures and video below.



My Big Fat Israeli Interview is coming to your favorite blog on August 3. More on this later.

Happy Birthday Blog - 1 Year

This is where all the magic happens.

Click on the image to make larger and try to reveal the message on the computer.
Inspired by my 1st (or second?) grade lunchbox that had a similar concept with sesame street characters on it.

The blog has reached a major milestone: 1 year!
There have been since July 2, 2008:
- 68 posts (hey that’s more than ones per week)
- 134 comments – most commented was I’m in Love!
- 3,697 visits
- 5,586 Pageviews
- 724 Absolute Unique Visitors
- Day with most visitors – July 10, 2008 (official blog launch): 49 visitors
- 16 different countries in 4 different continents (I know where you are :)

United States 56.78%
Israel 23.75%
Mexico 18.31%
Canada 0.46%
United Kingdom 0.22%
Venezuela 0.11%
India 0.08%
Germany 0.05%
Spain 0.05%
Peru 0.03%
Italy 0.03%
Belgium 0.03%
Australia 0.03%
Denmark 0.03%
Ireland 0.03%
Netherlands 0.03%

Below some memorable posts:

This is how it all started – Here we go… Welcome to our Blog!
Some of the most funny include – To be Israeli , And the award goes to… , Yom Kipur & trip to Jerusalem, Happy Purim 5769
For originality take a look at the Sabra Albums: Take 1 , Take 2 , Take 3, Take 4,Take 5 and Machane Yehuda Edition
Romantic - I’m in Love!
From the heart - The most honorable Aliyah, A miracle in our days, Goodbye Pittsburgh :(

For more posts browse through the Blog Archive to the right

Do you have a favorite blog post?
What would you like to see this new Blog year?
Please comment…

Thanks for following the blog and commenting on it, it keeps me going. Maybe I should become a Pro? - Blogging like a Pro