Hanukkah Flavors

 Hanukkah in Israel is syfganiot (doughnuts) filled traditionally with jelly, in recent years also dulche-de-leche or chocolate.

In Ashkenazim families it is also potato latkes, Here are my, a bit burned. I finally own  a food processor and can shred the potatoes in minutes.

In my husband's Sephardi family of North African origin Hanukkah food are sfinge and fricasse. Fricasse is a fried dough sandwich filled with tuna, pickled lemon, spicy harissa, sweet carrot salad, potato and onion salad and olives.  Sfinge is a sweet treat: rig-shaped fried dough dipped in sugar.

For me any meal is not complete if it doesn't include tahini. I became a tahini freak ever since we returned to Israel making it from the raw state almost daily and ordering any tahini-containing dish at the restaurants. This Hanukkah I learned to make simple and delicious tahini cookies. 

Try it yourself:

3 cups of flour

1 cup of raw tahini from the can

1 cup sugar

baking powder

200 gram soft butter (not salted)

Mix it all, make 40-50 little balls, place them on a parchment paper 2" away from each other, can add a nut on top of each ball, bake for 15 min at 350F (180C). They will still be soft when you take them out and slowly harden. Cool and keep in a sealed container. Enjoy! 

Ahula Lake

This Saturday we took a family trip to Ahula Lake Nature Reserve that is a big WOW for kids as well as adults. Israel happens to be a perfect rest spot on a migration journey for the European birds escaping the cold winter to Africa. Over 120 species and millions of birds are passing by every winter. Originally they were feeding on the fish grown in the Galilee fish farms and frequently shot by the farm owners. Until the government decided to "welcome" them properly and flooded the Ahula area creating a large Nature Reserve and started charging small visitor fee of 5 shekels that goes toward the bird food. Now it is a birds paradise. Rumor goes may of them never even continuing the journey to Africa.

Turn your volume on to hear the birds feasting in this video:

There are cranes, pelicans, storks and many others.

                       

The route around the lake is around 10 km. 

You can travel it by foot, rent bikes for 1-5 people or a golf carts. Pushing such 3-person bike with my kids turned out to be an excellent and a very hard physical exercise.

In addition to birds there are also nutrias

and water buffaloes:

After these hard physical activity we planned to stop somewhere for a hamburger but couldn't resist trying the Druze pita. Paper-thin, spread with lebane, zaatar, tabule and spices and heated in front of us on a taboon, it was a delicious culinary experience.

Related and recommeded is a good Israeli family movie: Igor & The Crane's Journey

Keeping in Touch

Keeping in touch with our dear US friends is harder than it seemed and we especially miss you all during the Winter Holiday season.

We do know what is going on in your (US friends) lives, but rather superficially:
I still glance at the New York Times daily to see what is happening in our other home.
Moshe and Naor are trying to follow football and frequently watch Patriots live on our TV screens exchanging Instagram pictures with Boston friends.
Once a month I catch up some Facebook updates and say Happy Birthday to someone.
The New Yorker gives us a piece of US intellectual life with all the latest cultural highlights that we try to watch and read. Amazingly, movies, magazines, serials and books are now available around the world almost instantaneously.

But the really important daily details of your and our life do not cross the boundaries.
WhatsApp is so ubiquitous here for instant updates, while it is barely used in the US (for some reason unlimited data plans are more affordable and popular here).
Telephone and Skype connect but with a 7-10 hours back to the US it is very hard to catch each other leisurely.
While I was't working it was a pleasure to find each other on Google Chat or devote hours to detailed emails. Now we are barely managing with the demanding jobs and three kids requiring attention, food and rides. The only thing I could type at the end of such days is "Hi". Just like you.

The real meaningful re-connection happens only when you or we visit. We were lucky to be able to afford it this summer and had a wonderful time with many of you. Memories of these moments still warm our hearts.  Some of you or your kids came over to Israel and we picked from where we left.

I guess there is nothing to do about it. We should try to make efforts to do at least the little gestures as one line email, a snapshot of how your kids have grown, relationship or health status, connect kids on skype when they are on vacation, send each other recipes or pictures of something tasty we just made. This will be like a hug from abroad. A few of my dear friends are very good at it and I unfortunately am not but perhaps will make it my New Year resolution.

And please come to visit! I am preparing a list of places we discovered in Israel that are off the standard tourist list but are well worth visiting.

The Hard Days.

These are the days of sorrow for all of us.  For the dead and injured Israeli soldiers. For the innocent civilians killed in Gaza because of lack of communication, frustration and pressure of war.  For the horror of the tunnels, Hamas hatred of Israel, human conditions in Gaza, rocket sirens and explosions, for the stress that we all live in.

Today my husband saw his old school friend read Kadish for his son that was killed by explosives in a UN clinic. His only son. Son that looked exactly like his dad did 30 years ago when my husband and his father were high-school friends. At the funeral, the grandfather, a Holocaust survivor, cried to the soldiers "no need to hurry, bury him slowly."

Our 18-year old nephew came from the army for a few hours to attend a funeral of his school friend.

Today in Beer Sheva a girl was born unaware that her officer father gave his life for her future just a few day ago.

Every family has a soldier now, some in Gaza and some in other places.  There are thousands of parents, wives and kids that cannot sleep at night and their heart drops from any knock on the door.

There are thousands of people on both sides that could not sleep because of sirens and explosions. We had our first middle-of-the-night shock of rockets at 2:30 am a few days ago. South residents take it daily. Constant alert, search for the nearby shelter anywhere you are,  24-hour news updates, Iron Dome shrieks and loud boom became part of the routine even for toddlers.

A Quiet Shabbat. Day 19 of the war.

Today we all woke up to an unexpectedly quiet morning and messages of a 12-hour humanitarian cease-fire on our screens.  Hesitantly we used the opportunity to go to a neighborhood swimming pool, many people went to the beach. The summer pleasures we started to forget while hiding at home in anticipation of the missile sirens. I know that in Gaza for many it was a much sadder day, to bury the dead and the necessity restocking day.

Yesterday, the Shabbat dinner went in front of the TV screens waiting for the Cabinet's decision to accept or reject the US and Egypt-brokered cease fire, while the local and International journalists discussed each outcome. What the US news source didn't say is that this Knesset meeting was long and heated, lasting about 4 hours. No one doubted that lives of many people on both sides were at stake. We learned that the meeting ended at about 10:30pm when the rocket sirens went off and a few missiles exploded in the air. As my brother's family were our dinner guests, I sent my mom a pitiful picture of four of her grand-kids hiding in a shelter together.

Surprisingly, no government official appeared before the waiting journalists to explain the Cabinet's decision. All the members rushed home leaving the bewildered journalists, the Israeli population and the whole world to guess as to why. I am starting to think that this is an Achilles Heal of the Israeli culture and politics, possibly influenced by the Macho Military Discipline that most citizens go through. Do not explain your behavior. Do not explain your reasoning. Why bother making others understand you and bringing them to your side. You thought it through - just do it. And do not explain or apologize if you turned to be wrong. This theory for me explains the lack of any serious PR Israel is producing for years, and especially throughout this operation, the silence after the UN school bombing in Gaza (explanation for which the whole world is still waiting for), as well as the absence of details regarding yesterday's cease-fire rejection.

Most of the people and media I saw today actually agree with the Cabinets's decision of the cease-fire rejection. What I heard is:
- Apparently the agreement didn't allow Israelis enough time to finish destroying the tunnels.
- There is suspicion that a long cease-fire period and new supplies will allow Hamas to recoup.
- If we stop now, the rockets will continue to be fired at the South as for years before.
- If we stop now, the war will result in Hamas gaining even more popularity among the Palestinians.

Despite the lack of government's communication with the public, the majority of the public does support the government wholeheartedly in this operation. Because now the rockets are not only fired to the South and not occasionally but everywhere and daily if not hourly. We all live in constant fear of sirens and explosions. You can also see what is going on above us now on this map: Redalert.co.il or by downloading the RedAlert smartphone app.

Like in the World War 2 stories and movies, everyone here supports the operation in some way:
- People are collecting money and buying necessity supplies for soldiers.
- Many are visiting wounded soldiers at the hospitals, donating blood.
- Kibbytzim in the North have welcomed people from the Kibbytzim in the South.
- Organizations are gathering toys and clothes for people in the South.
- Scouts are helping elderly people shut at home to buy medicine and food.
- Actors are doing free performances for residents of the South.
- Thousands of people had come to the lone soldiers funerals to create the large extended family these soldiers didn't have in Israel.
If you are looking for ways to help, I posted a list of organizations in my previous post.

In our daughter's day care, the teacher, who is also the day care owner, was called to the reservists service. His duty is what is called here - a Town Officer - who is part of a team that notifies the families of fallen soldiers.

The day care is continuing to function with the assistant teachers. We are now getting an instant message after every rocket attack from them that everything is OK as the day care doesn't have a shelter.

Saturday evening.  Relying on the extended cease fire we decide to go to a theater in Tel Aviv leaving the kids with my father.  Ironically, the play is titled: "Everyone wants to live."  Near Rabin square we are stuck in a heavy traffic because of a starting stop-the-invasion now demonstration.  At 22:30 we see our phone screen flash with notice of cease-fire break with renewal of rockets to the South and Central Israel. The 3,000 people demonstration is dispersed by the police as larger than 300 people gatherings are dangerous at the time of rockets. On our way back home we hear the announcement of times and places for funerals of each of the six Israeli soldiers who died since Friday afternoon.

How you can help Israel now.

A few of my friends asked how they can help Israel now by either gathering toys for kids in the South or providing necessities for the soldiers on the battle fields. My American friend here pointed me to a list of charities accepting donations. If you know of anything else - please feel free to add them in the comments below.

1. DKatom.co.il/under  Care packages for the IDF soldiers that include underwear and other necessities. Use stores in the South to support their business in this difficult time.
2. OneIsraelFund  Providing security and medical equipment to Southern communities.
3. IndieGoGo  Supplies for the troops on the front lines.
4. YasharLaChayal A well-known soldier organization providing soldiers with needed equipment as requested.
5. LoneSoldierCenter The Michael Levine Lone Soldier Center is providing help specifically to lone soldiers. Sadly we lost two of them yesterday.
6. UnitedHatzala This organization of volunteers is providing emergency medical treatment. They need equipment to protect their volunteers (bulletproof vests and helments).
7. Jewcer Fund camps or trips for children under rocket fire.
8. OneFamily Another organization providing support to victims of terror and getting families out of the South.
9. Reservists  Help the families of Israeli reservists serving in Gaza.
10. Ben Goldstein. Paypal: Matolman1@yahoo.com  Ben is going to the soldiers regularly delivering whatever is requested.
11. Elana. Paypal: cakesforkby@gmail.com  Elana is organizing help for families where the husband is on a reservists duty: pizza delivery, cleaning assistance etc.
12. ShmiraProject. Pair IDF combat soldiers with people around the world who do acts of kindness, pray or learn Torah to increase the soldier's spiritual merit or protection.

And we are at war. Day 11.

The Israeli Army entered Gaza last night. An extremely dangerous and complex operation that was tried to be avoided but became the only choice and an obvious choice as the cease-fire was rejected and the rockets intensified. The sirens were everywhere - in the South where people are afraid to leave their homes for a week now, in Jerusalem in the middle of Bar Mitzvah celebration in the beautiful Sephardi synagogue, in Hertzelia during our son's swimming practice, at my work in Rosh Ha Ayin bordering the Arab Village Kassem, in the Ramat Gan's Safari. A piece fell in The Weitzman Institute of science in Rehovot, on the Tel Aviv beach, at Ramat ha Sharon tennis court.

Our little one that is two and a half has become sadly well-trained with the shelter procedure. Last night when we grabbed her from bed at 10pm and rushed to the shelter she said: "The sirens, and now comes the boom."  Like all of us she became extremely alert to any audio signals.  When an airplane noise woke her up last night, she started crying and said: "Mommy, I am afraid." Asking me to stay with her.

Shabbat is descending on us here in a few hours. I heard on the news that a special radio frequency was set for Shabbat observers. It is called "The silent wave" and will transmit silence only interjected by the rocket alert warnings. The chief Israeli Rabbi spoke now on the radio giving a special permission to leave this radio wave on, to inquire about the shelter at any synagogue and to stop any prayer (including the un-interruptable prayer number 18) if the sirens go off.

The boys and men have entered Gaza. Relatives, coworkers, fathers and sons. I don't know how their mothers and wives could manage to sleep at night.  Even I wake up and check news alerts every few hours.  All that I find myself capable to do right now it to make cholent (hamin) - a traditional soothing Jewish stew that I otherwise would never make during summer.

Together with a restless internal war, there seems to be a political war going on against Israel on an international stage. Unfortunately Israel is very bad at PR. And the conflict that was portrayed as very simple at first (200 Gazans dead, 1 Israeli, therefore Israel is at fault) is far more complex, especially as the Hamas behavior goes against acceptable norms and rules of logic. I always took pride at being liberal and worshiped The New York Times. But now they seem to skew the facts and story. It is horrifying to see the anti-Israeli demonstrations going on in Europe and the US.  By the way, they are not censored by the Israeli TV. Our dear friends around the world, we do need your support now. Thank you to all the Bostonians who went to the pro-Israeli rally yesterday and going today.  And thank you for all the PR work on Facebook. Israel really needs it now.