Tag: israel
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New Israeli homebirth restrictions drafted (where’s midwife trust?)
From Haaretz: Israel ministry drafts new rules to restrict home births A woman planning to give birth at home will have to obtain a letter from her family doctor testifying that she is both physically and mentally sound, under new regulations being drafted by the Health Ministry that many believe are aimed at curtailing home…
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The history of Israeli pretzels.
A short history of flat, flavoured pretzels (bagele) in Israel… true story! If you don’t understand Hebrew subtitles or (exaggerated?) Yiddish, here’s a quick and dirty transcript: The Bagel-Bagel Factory in Poland, 1880 Son: “Father, mother – I have an idea! Thin pretzels – in flavours!” Everyone: “What?!” Son: “Yes, with pepper, chedder, spices!” Father:…
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This just made my aliyah.
I swear to the power that makes this universe run, this telephone conversation just happened (in Hebrew). Note: This was the first time in nearly 7 years of aliyah that I have ever used the word מעולה on the phone to someone in a feedback survey of their customer service experience. “Hi! I’m calling from…
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Todah, dentist.
Just came back from Koala’s first time at the dentist. I’m pretty sure I managed not to project any of my own dentist dislike onto him, and maybe got him a lil too excited for it, because when we walked into the office reception he was SO EXCITED DENTIST IMA YAY! Then we got called…
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Welcome home, Gilad Shalit, our brother soldier.
There’s no doubt: this is bittersweet. Today we’re proud. We’re relieved. We’re emotional. We’re exhausted. Tomorrow we’re going to continue mourning. We’re going to be extra cautious. We’re going to be angry. We’re going to feel even more pain. Today we can be mothers of lost soldiers. Mothers waking up from a nightmare. Tomorrow we’ll…
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The time has come to return to Israel.
They’re talking to you, Israelis. The Israeli government has been enticing Israeli ex-pats back for a while now. But it seems they’ve added emotionally heart-tugging videos to their Jewish guilt arsenal. The Returning Home Project – not just for born-diaspora Jews anymore. The campaign seems aimed at getting friends and family still in Israel to…
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1 in 4 Israeli elderly live below the poverty line (Shana Tova)
Quick shout-out to Ezrat Avot, in honor of the quickly-approaching Rosh Hashana, Jewish New Year… Back in my old job, around the major holidays, we’d band together and as an office, collectively donate around 20,000 NIS to Jerusalem-based Ezrat Avot. Even though we are no longer giving together, I do hope many of us continue…
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Don’t be colorblind.
Doesn’t matter which side of the line you’re on. Or which color: black, white, orange, blue, or a comfortable shade of gray. We might revere the S word or despise it. But we can’t ignore it. For any stripe, it’s important we all watch it happening, to be sure we are seeing with our own…
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Things I love: Telling it like it is to the NYTimes.
Like this quote, from this recent New York Times article: Israel Debates Two-Day Weekends, and Its Lifestyle “People really look forward to Election Day because you get the day off and it’s not a religious holiday,” said Gil Hoffman, political correspondent for The Jerusalem Post. “The problem is that this government is so stable we…
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Learn Hebrew online for free, visit your Israeli grandchildren.
If Learn to read in Hebrew for free wasn’t enough for you, here’s something better… Struggling to learn even minimal Hebrew to get by on a visit to Israel? Or even just to get past security at the airport? Saw this posted on Facebook, had to share: Learn Hebrew phrases with Audio It’s a free website…
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Coming to Israel? Things to do.
Recently wrote up some off-the-top-of-my-head Israel tourism ideas for a friend coming in the summer (with a 6-month-old baby). So, while I’m at it, why not share, right? Short-term rentals There are quite often short-term rentals of apartments in Jerusalem and elsewhere, which is probably a better bet than hotel if you’re coming for a…