Israel Thoughts - for a change

I've now been here in Israel for a bit more than 3 weeks (of six weeks total) and the country continues to astound me. From the beauty and urbanity of the neighborhood where we are renting a flat (which I'll recommend or not at the end of our stay), Talbiya in Jerusalem, to the arcane twists of politics here to the constant struggle to keep up with the rules and customs of our haredi children and grandchildren, Israel offers a very full life.

Of course, the real purpose of our being here is to help Ety's daughter with the kids while the family welcomes their seventh (count 'em, 7) child, an adorable daughter, who deserves all the kvelling that her grandparents can provide, dor de cotovelo or no. Ety is now over at her daughter's house with the two youngest while I put together this post. I'll go over when I finish this and my Hebrew homework for the day to see how the older kids (ranging from 5 to 11) deal with their new sister's first day at home.

Some observations.

Winter here, this year, is amazing. Plenty of sun — a mixed blessing as the Carmel wild fire attests — that keeps the cold at bay. Walk in the sun and you want to strip down to your shirt. Move into a shadow and back on the coat goes. In Jerusalem, there is plenty of sun. In Talbiya, the German Colony and Har Nof, the architecture has carefully protected sunny vistas. Even in our flat/zimmer/bungalow behind an apartment building, we have plenty of light entering.

I admit we are living in a privileged place. Netanyahu's residence is two blocks away and we share the block with HaBeit HaNasi, the Israeli White House, the residence of President Shimon Peres. Netanyahu's residence near the end of Derech Azza (Gaza to you and me) draws a wide variety of demonstrations and simple curiosity.

To the immediate left of the entrance gate is a series of white tents that house the parents and supporters of Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier kidnapped in 2006 by terrorists in Gaza and not seen by anyone but his captors since. The lack of progress has led Shalit's parents to take up a fairly civilized residence in the white tents until he is released.

In exchange for his release, Hamas is demanding the exchange of a large number of prisoners, including a number that Israel finds totally unacceptable as they were allegedly involved in killings of Israelis, directly or indirectly. So for four years, no deal. A German intermediary keeps shuttling back and forth, but frankly, Netanyahu is between a rock and hard place. As a former military man and brother of Entebbe hero and martyr Yonatan, Netanyahu wants to get his man back. But the terms can't be met.  I will go around to visit them later this week. Shalit deserves the support of everyone who believes in decency. If you want to know more about Shalit, have a look at this blog.

The latest manifestation of the craziness surrounding Shalit's imprisonment is the attack yesterday on the motorcade of the French Foreign Minister who went into Gaza to review conditions there and had her convoy attacked by demonstrators with one aide being injured and the cars being seriously egged. How to win friends and influence people. She was attacked because she had previously expressed support for Shalit's release on humanitarian grounds. Today, the kidnappers of Shalit are being held responsible for the bombing of the Coptic Church in Egypt at the end of the year as well. I'm not sure what the German intermediary thinks he can do to obtain a credible agreement with groups that primarily seem to want to kill anyone who is not a member of their particular stripe of Islam.

One of the most striking aspects of Jerusalem is the light here. This is due in part to a decision taken long ago to demand that all buildings be constructed of the local granite stone, Jerusalem stone, which casts a warm slightly yellowish light. This tinge becomes pronounced in the early morning and late afternoon when the sun is low. The sky takes on this warm yellow tone. It really does warm the heart to see it.

Ok, now off for some kid-minding duties. If this seems strange on a Sunday, in Israel, today is the beginning of the work week which runs from Sunday to (generally) mid-day Friday. So, until later.