I ♥ TLV

One of my favorite things about Israel also happens to be one of my favorite things about NYC: Time Out magazine. It's one of the many reasons why I was thrilled to see the knock-off cover of this month's issue:


Yes indeed, the month of April marks 100 years since the founding of Tel Aviv. There are celebrations scheduled all throughout this year, but some friends and I were lucky enough to make it to the opening event a few weeks ago: A festive concert in Rabin Square featuring the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra accompanied by famous Israeli singers, dancers, actors and other artists.

To say that the concert was packed would be an understatement. We couldn't even get close to the center of Rabin Square itself, which was reserved for dignitaries and special guests. Instead, we stood with a mob of people in the surrounding streets, watching the spectacle on giant television screens. We did manage to get somewhat of a glimpse of the orchestra, which was perched high upon an enormous balcony overlooking the square.

When we looked up, we also noticed huge crowds of people watching the festivities from neighboring rooftops. There were even some creative people who wanted so badly to sit that they climbed on top of bus stops!

That's about when Leslie and I, in desperate need of a bathroom, broke off from the rest of our group and set off in search for the facilities. What we found was even better -- the wide-open door of an office building. We decided to try our luck and climb the stairs in the hopes of watching the concert from above. Ten flights later, we succeeded in attaining the fabulous new-and-improved birds-eye view you see below. We were so happy that we (almost) forgot that we still needed to pee!

We made a quick phone call to our friends, who managed to find their way up to the roof to join us. It seemed like other people were catching on as well; pretty soon the roof was almost as crowded as the streets, albeit with a much better view.

The real problem came just a few minutes later when -- without warning -- they began shooting fireworks from a neighboring roof. This was all part of the show, and while it was neat seeing the flames up close, it was extremely unnerving. At the crack of the first explosion, people screaming and running for cover. It was not all that unrealistic to be terrified -- after all, we were standing in the very location where Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated during a peace rally in 1995. I've learned not to let the fear get to me, though -- and I also managed to get some great photos:

After yet another round of ducking and avoiding fireworks, we decided to be "smart" by making an early getaway from the square. We had made arrangements with the driver of the sherut that picked us up in Jerusalem to give us a ride home at the end of the night. We called him as soon as we got out of the area barricaded off for the event, and were assured that he would be there in "shalosh dakot" (that is, three minutes). After we waited for thirty minutes, we called him back again. This time, he reduced his timing to "Shtei dakot" -- that is (you guessed it) -- two minutes! At that point we started debating alternate plans for getting back to Jerusalem, but we ultimately decided it would be easier just to wait. Eventually our driver showed up, but it took him so long to get to us that I can't even remember how long we waited in total.

As we were waiting, I made note of the diversity of the crowd. Tel Aviv and Jerusalem are completely different worlds, and I have to admit that the bustle of Tel Aviv is much more my scene. In fact, our Israel Seminar class paid a visit to the Israeli Foreign Ministry offices a few weeks ago, where we heard an incredible presentation about "branding" Israel -- let's just say the publicist in me was really excited about this!

Apparently the latest trend in Israeli PR is to play up the "fun" aspects of Israel -- that is, instead of focusing on religion, history, and culture, the government launched a campaign they call "Tel Aviv Nonstop," which began in 2006. It's based on the same tactics that are used to market Brazil as a colorful party zone, despite the fact that the country is actually plagued by crime and poverty. The impetus came from a study using a game called "House Party," in which participants were asked what the atmosphere was like at hypothetical parties hosted by various countries. For example, Italy's house was described as being welcoming, with lots of food and wine. In contrast, Israel's house was envisioned as defensive, closed-off, and awkward. There was an interesting article in this week's Jerusalem Post that explains why previous PR tactics failed -- here's an excerpt:

"We have to appear on entertainment shows from Jay Leno to Ricki Lake, from Oprah Winfrey to MTV, from David Letterman to Tyra Banks, presenting attractive and alluring personalities, be they Aviv Gefen, Ahinoam Nini, Yair Lapid or Amos Oz - people with sophistication, humor and a subtle and reasoned approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that will play as well in New York City as it will in Lincoln, Nebraska. "

To counter this image of Israel being a place wrought with terrorism and orthodoxy, the Israeli government has also put forth the following:

But there's more to Tel Aviv than just beaches and bikinis. Last Shabbat I went to services at Beit Daniel, a synagogue affiliated with the World Union of Progressive Judaism across the street from Tel Aviv's gorgeous HaYarkon Park.


We found the synagogue based on the fact that there were a line of tour buses outside, which made for a standing-room only crowd. We spent the first twenty minutes of the service standing in a mob listening to the service from outside the door and joking about the fact that it felt funny to be behind a mixed "mechitza" at a progressive synagogue! We eventually managed to snag seats for what ended up becoming the most meaningful service I've attended all year.

This week marked Shabbat T'kuma, the special name given to the Shabbat between Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) and Yom Haatzmaut (Israel's Independence Day). Beit Daniel commemorates this passage from remembrance to independence by hosting an annual multilingual service. The goal is to celebrate the miracle of the ingathering of the exiles in Eretz Yisrael.

Since Israel is a melting pot of Jews who made aliyah from all over the world, this service included speakers of German, Russian, French, Danish, Slovakian, Romanian, Portuguese, Dutch, Spanish, Hungarian, South African, Iraqi, and even Thai descent! It was pretty special hearing the Veahavta paragraph of the Shema, one of the central prayers in Judaism, being read in an Asian dialect! It made me realize that I hadn't had Thai food at all since coming to Israel, and I was very happy that the restaurant that we went to after services had a Pad Thai-like dish on the menu! It wasn't quite as good as the real thing, but at least it satisfied the craving...

There was also a man who read the Hashkivenu prayer in Arabic, but I'm not sure if he was an Arab who happened to have a relationship with the congregation or if he was a Jew with a knowledge of Arabic. It was definitely a bold move for them to include Arabic in the service, but I'm so glad they did. It made the service all the more representative of the many cultures that make up Israeli society. This kind of diversity is something I sorely miss in Jerusalem. Here, the progressive congregations are mainly limited to those affiliated with American institutions, like HUC and USCJ.

It initially bothered me ever so slightly to learn that Israel was trying to promote tourism with sex because it seems to undermine the religiosity that is so ingrained into everyday life here. However, I'm curious to see what develops from these new marketing tactics. Will the religious population reject or merely ignore ads such as the one I posted above? Will the hypothetical "House Party" Israel be more appealing to the general public ten years from now?

The Jerusalem Post does an excellent job of explaining the differences between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and suggests why changing the way in which the rest of the world views Israel just might work:

"Jerusalem symbolizes Jewish survival against the odds. Tel Aviv encapsulates Israel's spirit of freedom."

Either way, my newfound love affair with Tel Aviv has gotten me all excited for the onset of Yom HaZicharon and Yom Haatzmaut. Lots of ceremonies, festivals, and BBQs to blog about -- stay tuned! :)