From a Schindler's List...

This is an obituary note on a bus stop nearby. Such are being placed near the houses of diseased or their relatives notifying of the sorrow, stating the day of the funeral and place of the shiva. Yet this one is rather in-ordinary: it is written that Giza Leshem, dear wife, mother and grandmother, was one of those saved by the Schindler's List. 

Nature Art - Another Magical weekend

 Right in the center of Israel, near busy freeways, close to luxurious ranches and crowded beaches, there is a little-known place where everyone could find a piece of mind.  Vast fields of nature art created by Israeli and International Artists. It is called The Green Gallery, located in Arsyf Kedem. For all the lovers of De Cordova museum in Lincoln, MA, this one is well worth your visit.

A Winter Weekend

One of my main concerns in weighing up living in Israel was the weekend. It is much shorter here than in the US. Many people work on Fridays, most of the kids study, Friday is devoted to errands, cleaning and cooking while the real day of rest for the whole family is only Saturday.

What did we do during the weekends in the US?  Met with friends, drove or took a train somewhere to explore, took our kids to sport competitions, went to museums and parks, read and watched movies.
What did we do during the weekends when we visited Israel? Went from one family table to another, stuffing ourselves with delicious food that was offered in abundance. Warm weather, lack of public transportation on Shabbat and laws forcing many entertainment places to be closed made travel and exploration very limited.

I was scared that Israel will turn us into lazy, fat, bored bumpkins.
And I am happy to report that I was wrong. We are constantly discovering more and more interesting weekend activities:

• Most of the museums are open on Shabbat. This includes the superb Israel Museum in Jerusalem, Children's and Design museums in Holon, Science Museum in Haifa and many others.
• Sport competitions do take place on both Friday and Saturday, which keep our son, Naor, and us very busy.
• There are plenty of places to jog or bike and I hope to join one of such biking groups soon. Meanwhile we occasionally take family biking trips in the Yarkon Park or in the nearby strawberry-grapefruit fields.
• Many restaurants stay open throughout the weekend despite the potential fine from the municipal authorities. Even if we do not eat out often it is reassuring to see city streets bursting with life.
• Travel. This country offers much more than what we remembered. In addition to the well-known historical attractions there is so much natural beauty: rolling hills with olive trees, almond groves that are now in a pink bloom, my favorite colorful anemones, poppies, cyclamens and irises. 

Today we drove up North to the Yokneham area, visiting a small reptile museum and stopping for picnic twice in random nature spots that looked very close to paradise.

My dear Bostonian friends, I know that this is cruel to show you our sunny and colorful day while you are battling one snowstorm after another this winter. But you should know that our kids miss the snow and all related winter activities very much and would switch in a second with yours. Life always seems better on the other side....