Kabbalat Shabbat

I have been living in Israel for about 2 years and I may have finally found what I was looking for.

No, not the best falafel in the country or the best website to stream American TV shows...but I found an amazing Kabbalat Shabbat Service (Friday Night Service).

Almost 2 years ago I heard that on the beach in Tel Aviv there is a nice service but I never found it or heard any more details about it. Last week I was talking to a friend who actually knew about the service I was searching for. She said that it actually takes place on the port during the summer months and in a building off of Rothschild during the winter but this week it was taking place in a building in the new train station area in Tel Aviv. The area was recently remodeled with shops and restaurants and is a great meeting place in TLV.

I was in. I couldn't wait to find out what this service was actually about. We showed up a bit late but of course in Isreali time we were on time. The hall was packed with families, elderly people and young professional alike, maybe close to 300 individuals in total. People were wearing jeans, skirts, sneakers and boots, some chose to wear a kippah while others didn't. There was barely a seat in the house. In the front of the room there were 10-12 musicians already playing and singing when we arrived. The music and spirit in the room were beautiful. Many of the songs and tunes I love were played and they even included some Israeli songs. I cannot explain the level of participation, energy and community that existed among this group. It was perfect.

I loved how everyone felt comfortable, everyone was accepted, people could sit where they wanted and with whom they wanted and everyone feel a part of something bigger, something "Jewish" but not something  "religious" that scares away many from Judaism. Israel is a place where one can easily lose their need for a Jewish community and a spiritual environment, it can be a difficult place to find the perfect mix for but after I long search I think I have found it.

Shabbat Shalom!

(The community is called Beit Tefila, as I searched for it on the internet I came across a video which someone made from the week I was there, click the link to see it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UKiWS-K8oU&feature=share )

Music in the Old City

Last week I decided to take a little adventure into the Old City. When you live so close it can be hard to make it there even a few times a year. I saw that there was going to be a music festival so I figured it could make for an eventful night out. I went with my friend Rebecca and we spend the night following the trail of lights around the Old City as we came across different musical events. My favorite one was when you entered at Jaffa Gate there were 4 musicians hanging from the city wall playing traditional Jewish music. It was quite the performance. There were soloists around many corners of the Jewish quarter and even a band in the Christian quarter that sounded like they came straight from the deep south. Its nice that the city invests time and money into unique cultural events. Looking forward to many more adventures in the Old City. 

 Musician hanging of the wall of the Old City.

A band playing in the Cardo in the Jewish quarter.

A Day at Hadassah Ein Kerem

The following is an article I wrote for my Hadassah internship. Hopefully it will be published somewhere, maybe even in Rochester.

________________________________________

Andrea Kovalsky, Jerusalem
March 27, 2012

In March 2012, Islamic Jihadists sent more than 220 Grad missiles and Qassam rockets into Southern Israel, striking from Be’ersheva to Gedera. As a result over one million Israelis were sent into shelters. Simultaneously, the IDF executed 30 airstrikes against rocket launching sites and other terror facilities within Gaza.

Just 48 miles away from the fighting another battle rages in the Hadassah Hospital, Ein Kerem. But, all who are fighting in this battle share a common enemy, disease. Disease knows no religion, race, ethnicity or origin. Upon entering the medical battlefield of Hadassah Hospital, all political opinions and thoughts towards the Arab-Israeli conflict are left outside. Jewish and Arab doctors and nurses work together as dedicated partners and friends to provide the best health care for their patients from Israel and the territories.

In 1909, Baltimore-born Henrietta Szold, the visionary and founder of Hadassah, visited Palestine and witnessed the starvation and disease that afflicted the people. Her trip inspired her to bring health care to all who lived in Jerusalem. Just as the disease trachoma did not   distinguish Arab children from Jewish children as it spread among the population, Szold would not discriminate when providing medical care to the local population.

Living in Israel for the last two years has acclimated me to the tensions that exist in Jerusalem and throughout the country. I was given the opportunity to visit the Hadassah Hospital in the midst of latest round of fighting between Israel and Gaza. As I acquainted myself with the hospital I was astounded by the tremendous sense of community that existed. This was the first time I felt the political tensions of the country evaporate. The diverse staff and patients live at peace under the same roof, while an hour drive away the families of these individuals are at war with each other. Walking through the hallways and wards I saw chairs and beds filled with religious and secular Jews and Arabs from Israel and the territories. It was one of the first times I felt the tension of the Middle East conflict disappear as everyone united for a common goal, health.

Visiting the Children’s Oncology Unit I had the opportunity to meet some of the young patients. R is an 8 ½ year old boy from Gaza City who has undergone treatment in Hadassah Ein Kerem for the last 8 months. His grandfather, a retired car painter, has been there almost every night since R arrived. At this point the two appear to have celebrity status in the hospital.

Over a year ago R noticed a bump on the back of his neck that began to cause him great pain. He was having trouble swallowing and talking. The doctors in Gaza treated him with salve and herbs and had difficulty diagnosing him. He was given permission by the Gaza authorities to be transferred to the French Hospital in Jerusalem; there they were able to diagnose him. R had a malignant tumor growing on his spine penetrating his throat and eating away at his spinal cord. He was almost choking to death when the doctors decided to transfer him to Hadassah where he was rushed to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. R received chemotherapy and went through several procedures in order to treat the tumor. For months he wore different medical devices on his head to keep it straight and stable. R has also went through physical and occupational therapy throughout his stay.

During his rehabilitation R relearned to talk, walk and eat. Because he lives far from Hadassah, he is not able to go home in between treatments and spends each day in his room at Hadassah with his grandfather. He has been attending school sponsored by the hospital while receiving treatments. His school in Gaza calls to check in on him, and family and neighbors constantly stop by his home in Gaza City to hear how R is progressing. “No one judges us or thinks ill of us for coming to get treatment at Hadassah. Everyone in Gaza knows that Hadassah is terrific, it is a household name,” said R’s grandfather. “I am very comfortable here at Hadassah hospital.”

I met with R’s doctor, Dr. Michael Weintraub, the head of the Children’s Oncology Unit and he was cautiously optimistic about R's prognosis. Weintraub does his best to help each patient that comes into his department. “We keep politics out of the hospital, whoever needs care and makes it to Hadassah will be treated,” he explained. I met Hadassah doctors who have studied and lived all over the world, who are making a conscious decision to be a part of the internationally recognized Hadassah medical staff. One of them, a religious Jew, personally raises funds in France for his sick Palestinian patients.

Hadassah provides medical services to all who need. Their mission is to work as a humanitarian organization, to save and improve the lives of all who enter their hospitals. An important Jewish value is “Tikkun Olam” or repairing the world. Most people give lip service to this value, and it sounds cliché. At the hospital, “Tikkun Olam” is everywhere. The work being done at Hadassah by the Israeli and Palestinian doctors and nurses demonstrates the ultimate practice of “Tikkun Olam.” These professionals are setting an example to the residents of Jerusalem, Israel, its surrounding territories and to all of humanity.

All over the world, Jews are busy getting ready for the holiday of Passover. In Hadassah Hospital, all the bread will be replaced with matzo. Passover celebrates our Jewish forefathers’ and foremothers’ emergence from slavery. As a slave, your time isn't your own. You can't be concerned with repairing the world. Freedom is coupled with responsibility to partner with God to create a better society. It is our job, as free people, to follow in the ways of the Hadassah community.

The Hadassah staff embodies how we should be treating our neighbors and working to create a better world for all to live in. As these individuals continue to heal the brothers and sisters of their enemies, the rest of the world has something to learn. We must begin to see the struggles of from a new perspective. We must unite ourselves in the fight against poverty, starvation and illness, just as the Hadassah staff has put their religious and political differences aside to unite in the fight for life.

Snow in Jerusalem

Two weeks ago I was woken on a Friday morning by a friend texting me and my roommate banging on my door. I jump out of bed worried about why people were trying to get a hold of me so urgently on a weekend morning. Polina yelled, "Andrea, come look outside!!" There was snow falling and the city was covered with a dusting of white everywhere. It was beautiful. 

We put on our make shift snow gear and headed out to explore the city. It was unreal to see everything white. People were playing in the parks, shops and restaurants were closed, everyone was enjoying the snow that comes to Jerusalem about every 10 years. But before we knew it we were entering the Old City and the snow stopped, the clouds cleared, the snow melted and the sun was shining. We arrived at the Western Wall and there were 6 of us in snow gear. The wall was nearly empty and the few people who were there were not dressed in snow gear. After all that cold weather 2 hours later we looked so out of place and were starting to over heat. We headed to go grab some food and the storm came in and out a bit more but by the evening there was no sign of a snow storm anywhere. Only in Jerusalem.

 

Aza Street, my neighborhood

A snow ball someone rolled all the way through Independence Park.

 

 Snow at the Mamilla

 

A snow man someone made on Ben Yehudah Street

 

Me and my friend Leah dressed for a snow storm at the sunny Western Wall