We took a walk down to the marina this evening and things were really lively there. Thousands of people gathered to participate in the Selfie Festival, organized by the city of Ashkelon. They had set up dozens of large backlit displays enabling people to take really fun photos of themselves or the kids. Buskers entertained [...]
Kan Ashkelon reports that Ashkelon has won again in the annual contest run by the Council for a Beautiful Israel. The city of Ashkelon won a score of 100 in the competition of the Council for a Beautiful Israel and won first place in the category of medium-sized cities. In addition, the city was awarded the [...]
While many people who have never been to Israel read about it in the news and think it is a dangerous place. In actuality, it is quite safe. When comparing crime and personal safety in Israeli cities to many large metropolitan areas in the USA, Israel is in a different league. Even within Israel, [...]
Israelis are used to comparing the prices of goods and services in Israel with those in the US and Europe. Every once in a while media outlets in Israel show examples of how items such as cottage cheese or chocolate wafers are less expensive in Boston or Berlin. But we also know that some goods [...]
Over 30 years ago, two brothers, owners of grocery stores in Jerusalem, decided to parlay their knowledge of the food market and their desire to sell inexpensive and healthy foods in Israel. They created B&D, which stands for "better and different". They were very successful in producing natural and high-quality products at affordable prices. You [...]
The Noam Yitzhak Synagogue is on the corner of Eli Cohen and Kibbutz Galuyot in Afridar. It is a Modern Orthodox Ashkenazi shul (Nusach Sefard) with people of all ages and backgrounds. Shabbat davening times: Erev Shabbat: Mincha and Maariv 15 minutes after candle lighting. Shacharit: 08:30 Weekday Shacharit: 06:00 and 07:00. [...]
Miri Miri moved to Ashkelon in the summer of 2020 from Jaffa. Her arrival in Israel was through a circuitous route: born in Romania, grew up in New Zealand and made Aliyah from Hong Kong in 2017. Moving during a pandemic presented challenges in meeting new people, but as she [...]
I had a very interesting conversation today with Odiel Malchi, a mortgage specialist who has worked for a number of Israeli banks. He wrote an article (linked below) on the new program to replace Mechir Lamishtaken. The good news is that the government will give a grant of 100,000 NIS towards the purchase of an [...]
Date: TBD The Abraham Accords Dan will speak on the Abraham Accords, Israel-Gulf Relations and the fundamental restructuring of the Middle East underway. About the Speaker Dan Feferman is an author, researcher and speaker on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. A major (res.) in the IDF, Feferman served in a number of [...]
Date: TBD Biblical stories of climate change: Abraham, Moses and Ruth Biblical stories can be understood as Jewish history, as sources of Jewish law, and as ideals of proper Jewish behavior. They also contain details of the natural history of the Middle East, including weather cycles that can be confirmed by geological, botanical and archeological [...]
