judyinjerusalem's blog



17 Ways to Know Passover is Coming in Jerusalem

By judyinjerusalem, April 17, 2011

Citizens of southern Israel face the prospect of yet another Passover under fire. The barrage of missiles and rockets on our southern cities and surrounding western Negev kibbutzim is almost taken for granted by the international community as they prefer to focus on whether a few hundred more apartments are being planned in a Jerusalem neighborhood.

More..



Corrie Trial in Haifa Brings MORE Inconsistencies

By judyinjerusalem, March 15, 2010

A news release from the Corrie family after yesterday's court session in Haifa notes testimony that Rachel Corrie "arrived dead at the hospital."

If she was already dead, why were doctors at the Arab An Najah Hospital "treating" her ?

[Go to http://jerusalemdiaries.blogspot.com to see the photos of Corrie being treated at the hospital]

As I have reported before, ISM Media Coordinator in 2003, Michael Shaik stated definitively both to me and in other media:" An ambulance rushed her to A-Najar hospital where she died."

More..



Who Should be Paying for Rachel Corrie's death?

By judyinjerusalem, March 11, 2010

On March 16 2003 the obscure International Solidarity Movement (ISM) made world headlines when Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old ISM member, was run over by an Israeli bulldozer in Rafah and died of her injuries.

With the seventh anniversary of Corrie's death approaching, only one thing remains certain about the events of March 16: Corrie died in Rafah, on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip, under very questionable circumstances.

More..



"Watch Over all that I hold Precious..."

By judyinjerusalem, January 31, 2010

I don't know much about Israeli schools. I made aliya WAY after my kids were school-age, so until now, my main contact with schools here has been limited to walking past the middle school that's just down the street and davening in a shul that holds Shabbat services in a school gym.

I have no experience as a grandparent either, so last week when I was invited to be an honorary savta so that my 6 year-old friend Aviel would have someone to take to his school's Grandparent's Evening in honor of Tu B'Shvat I was thrilled!

More..



British Architectural Legacy in Jerusalem

By judyinjerusalem, January 14, 2010

Museum goers today are a sophisticated and demanding lot--most of the leading museums around the world today boast the latest interactive, high tech shtick to keep visitors entertained.

More..



No Mumbling Here, We're Jewish...

By judyinjerusalem, December 13, 2009

http://jerusalemdiaries.blogspot.com

More..



Pictures from Jerusalem Anti-Freeze rally..

By judyinjerusalem, December 13, 2009

Are posted at www.flickr.com/photos/jerusalemdiaries/. More blogposts from Jerusalem at http://jerusalemdiaries.blogspot.com

Chag urim sameach...

More..



Starting over--Gush Katif redux

By judyinjerusalem, December 1, 2009

I spent yesterday in the beautiful Lachish region that lies between Kiryat Gat and Beersheva. It's a part of the country that's for some reason off the radar screens. Apart from one or two isolated moshavim and their vineyards, the rolling hills are deserted.

This is the area that hundreds of families who were thrown out of their homes in the 2005 Gaza "disengagement" have chosen to rebuild their communities. I've posted a series of pictures at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jerusalemdiaries/sets/72157622911222378/

More..



Looking for a good date??

By judyinjerusalem, October 15, 2009

The last time I saw Ayelet and Rachel was at Shirat Hayam in Gush Katif in January 2001. They were then 22 year-old single women who had decided to help found a new community next to the sea in the Gaza Strip in reaction to the horrific bus bomb attack in nearby Kfar Darom that claimed the lives of their friends Miriam Amitai and Gabi Biton.

More..



Most comprehensive source for info on Goldstone Report

By judyinjerusalem, October 13, 2009

Check out www.globallawforum.org for the most comprehensive live links to articles, videos, op eds, conclusions of legal scholars etc on the Goldstone Report.

More..



Rising from the Dust of Expulsion

By judyinjerusalem, October 7, 2009

I remember when I first heard about the dream community that would rise out of the dust and ashes of Neve Dekalim, the largest of the 22 Jewish communities destroyed by the Gaza "disengagement" of 2005.

It was in the cramped room occupied by Rachel and Moshe Saperstein on the 6th floor of the Jerusalem Gold Hotel. Along with hundreds of their former neighbors, the Sapersteins spent 10 months attempting to take the first steps in recreating a semblance of a normal life after they were forcibly removed from their home and the meaningful lives they had built in the Gush.

More..



Occupation??

By judyinjerusalem, October 1, 2009

I spent yesterday in Shechem and Ramallah with a small group of journalists. I'm working on a few articles from the trip, but in the meantime, take a look at some of the photos (there are almost 100, so too many to post to the blog) at http://web.me.com/jbalint1/Site/Photos.html#grid"

More..



Lead Up To The Big Day Just Passed...

By judyinjerusalem, September 30, 2009

In the days before Yom Kippur, thousands of Torah observant Israelis rush to finish the ritual of kapparot, where human sins are symbolically transferred to a fowl--generally a chicken. It's a custom that does not appear anywhere in the Talmud, but whose origin seems to come courtesy of several 9th century rabbis.

More..



What Will They Think of Next??

By judyinjerusalem, September 17, 2009

As Rosh Hashana approaches and food banks all over Israel work overtime to distribute basic foods for the holiday to thousands of needy families, along comes a news release from a local PR firm about yet another project foisted on Israel by well-meaning, Israel-loving Christians.

"The largest flag in the world - the Jerusalem Flag - recognized by Guinness World Records, will be unfurled and raised at the Teddy Football Stadium in Jerusalem on September 17th, 2009, at 9 am.

More..



Bloggers of the Jewish World, Unite!

By judyinjerusalem, September 13, 2009

Off to the 2nd annual Jewish bloggers convention here in Jerusalem. You can watch segments of it live on-line at www.jbloggers.org beginning at 2p.m Sunday, Jerusalem time...

More..



New Israel guidebook hits the stands

By judyinjerusalem, September 3, 2009

I spent a good part of last summer working on helping to update the Fodor's Israel guidebook and the new volume has finally hit the bookstores.

More..



Are We Disney-Landing the Kotel ?

By judyinjerusalem, August 6, 2009

A new 1.2 ton model of the Second Temple was hauled up to the roof of the Aish building overlooking the Western Wall yesterday.

More..



The Call of Jerusalem: Tisha B'Av 5769

By judyinjerusalem, July 31, 2009

I'm in the middle of reading a fascinating old book about Jerusalem--Jerusalem is Called Liberty written by Walter Lever, an English professor and rabidly secular British Jew, who arrived in Palestine with his wife and two children in September 1947 to take up a teaching position at Hebrew University.

More..



Singapore # 1: Israel # 40

By judyinjerusalem, July 23, 2009

Despite all the preening and self congratulation about Israel's various contributions to scientific research and high tech development, the sad fact remains that much of it is inspired by Israelis who were educated abroad or who immigrated from Russia or western countries.

The reality is that Israel consistently ranks at the lower end of international rankings for education.

More..



An ordinary Jerusalem morning...

By judyinjerusalem, July 16, 2009

This morning, having the day off work, I got up late and went for my morning power walk about an hour later than usual. Instead of the quiet streets and the empty park that I usually encounter, today's Jerusalem scenery was a little different.

My southern Jerusalem neighbourhood is on the opposite side of town from the riotous Chareidi areas north of the Old City, so I was set to enjoy the relative tranquility of a mid-summer Jerusalem morning.

More..

123next ›last »