To the Party...or is it a Protest?

What to wear…what to wear.  The events email I got this week talked about all the bands that would be playing concerts tonight in support of the protest.  They are protesting the cost of living in Tel Aviv.  Actually, this is like ten small protests all coming together and the binding thread is the cost of living. 


It all started with a young orthodox guy who created a facebook page to protest cottage cheese (there is only 1 or 2 producers and it is really expensive!  Like $4 or $5 for a 10oz container).  Then a 26 year old girl who mad at her landlord did the same thing for rent prices.  
 
 This snowballed into a “tent city” on the most popular street in the city, then a 50,000 protest two weeks ago, 150,000 last week, and 300,000 this weekend.  Before you start to get a wave of anxious fear, the papers are saying the protests are more like street parties than protests.

So…the dangly earrings?  These seem a bit too party-ish for a protest.  Hmm…how about a casual dressed up look that looks effortless (but really takes me 45 minutes).  A casual cotton T-shirt with a touch of sparkle, hair pulled back, small earrings, and the obligatory across the shoulder crunchy protest purse (packed with an id, enough money for a cab home, a camera and two beers – there is no open container law here).

When we walk out of the house there are 6 tour buses parked on our corner.  There is a band playing from the second story balcony.  I’d stay to listen but it is in Hebrew and I want to see the main event.  The general crowd is moving towards the city center like a swarm of bees towards honey.  Most of them look like they are about to go grocery shopping, no signs, no hippy clothes…just normal people. 
 As we get close we can feel the excitement rising with the beating of drums.  We squeeze past the groups of young adults chatting with their friends (one of them brought a sign), past the strollers, the dad with his 6 year old daughter on his shoulder, past the families who just came to watch.  There are as many people marching as there are watching.

The march is the exciting part.  It is moving slowly – like an unorganized parade that got really scrunched up.  Each group has a banner or poster and some even have people in costumes, group T-shirts, or instruments.  We can’t really read the signs, most of them are in Hebrew.  The chants are in Hebrew as well, also very unorganized, but supposedly they are saying something like “the people demand social justice.”  We see one sign in Arabic and one in English.  We see a guy on stilts, some orthodox guys, guys with drums, a Che Guevara shirts…mostly just normal people aged 20-50. 

Looking around we can see that the walls lining the sidewalks have become benches for supporters with cameras and every other rooftop and window facing the street is packed.  “Jen, Paul.  How are you guys?”  Who would have thought, a crowd of 300,000 and we run into someone we know.  He is actually one of the two big wine experts in the country and – lucky for us! – he is carrying wine! J  The march is winding down so we head towards this great pizza place downtown and share a pizza that tasted like it had been dipped in truffle!  Of course, paired perfectly with a great bottle of wine.  We probably wouldn’t have gotten a table if we hadn’t been with the wine guy as the place was packed with hungry “protesters” (catch the irony here – the protest is on the cost of living in Tel Aviv, and they are going straight from the protest to the pizza place to enjoy $24 pizza).

It was fun.  And if the government doesn’t do something I am sure we’ll have the opportunity go again next weekend. 

Paree Paree!

Oh Paris!  I miss you!  I haven’t written this post (or the postcards) because they are all in the past tense – and that would mean my trip to Paris has ended.  But now that I’ve written it, I see that it hasn’t made Paris a part of the past, it has taken me back to Paris.  

Paul and I are sitting on a shawl in Park Luxembourg.  We can hear other Americans around us, but mostly French.  I’m pretty sure we’ve blended in and – as long as they can’t hear us – they will all think we are French.  We’ve snagged a little spot on the green with an amazing view of the Mansion.  There are walking paths on 3 sides of us – but far enough away that we aren’t bothered by the passerbys…not that they would bother you because they are just strolling along in their perfectly fashionable and dressy outfits chatting about art and wine and great food! And I just want to replay this moment over and over and over again.

We happily discovered that when you buy a bottle of wine here they don’t mind opening it for you and leaving the cork 1/3 of the way in so it doesn’t spill in your bag on the way to the park.  Supposedly you aren’t allowed to drink in public, but our guidebook says “the French don’t obey laws that they think are senseless.”  Oh, I love this city!  Renting an apartment was a great idea!  It makes me feel like we are Parisians!  Every time I say this (when crossing the street on a red light, sipping coffee in a café, buying cheese, spinning around in my new dress!), Paul reminds me that I AM Parisian!  (More on this in the next post.)

(This is my favorite part!)  We leave our apartment early this morning, walk down the 5 flights of winding warped centuries-old stairs.  We pass the crepe place, the brasserie (bar and food), the boutique, the patisserie (pastries), and the fromagerie (cheese)!  Actually, we don't just pass any of them – we stop to look in the window at all of them, and get drawn into the fromagerie!  How could we resist?!?!  Cheese for our picnic!  Eventually we find a table in the sun at a café with a great view for people watching.  We order two coffees and two croissants.  This is so flaky and warm and gewy and delicious!  I didn’t know what a croissant was until this very moment.  Should I order another?

Eventually we move on and walk through the beautiful neighborhoods that lead us past the museums, over the river, past the Notre Dame…we walk as if we’ve seen them a million times – and yet every time we see them I light up with the excitement of a little kid!  This is Disney World for adults!  We stay longer than we normally would at the café and the store because that is how you do it in Paris, and because every moment is so enjoyable that you don’t want to move on.  We walk a little slower, smile a lot more, daydreaming along the way.  As we approach the park we pass through a small market and grab some meat, fruit, bread, and a bottle of wine. 

It didn’t take us long to find this most perfect spot to sit in the park, and I think we’ve got the Parisian thing down from the daily routine to the food – and my French is improving!  The city instantly feels like home.  I let out a long slow sigh as if I’ve finally arrived at the place which I’ve been in such a rush to get to.  The rest of the world becomes a quiet blur, circling around this very spot on this little shawl in this beautiful  garden in Paris.

First Impressions

We made it! We are finally in Tel Aviv, settling in to our new apartment. The balcony is - as expected - amazing. We have a great view and we can't wait for it to be warmer so we can have dinner out there. It has only been between 50-65 so far. How's that snow going for ya? ;)

Our first adventure last weekend was to the Caramel Market. (First, let me note that the English spelling of almost everything in this city changes frequently - even street names are spelled differently on different corners!). The market was great and we now have way more oregano and basil than we can use. We also bought seeds and planted a few spices and cherry tomatoes - but I (Jen) was in charge of that so we'll see how successful they are.

We ave also explored the city this week by going out for runs. Oh...my..gosh! I have never had a better running environment. 1. Most sidewalks are wide and there are lots of running trails .5 miles of our house. 2. Lots of people run. 3. It is flat. 4. The scenery: sunset over "the Med" or parks along the river. 5. The temperature is cool (this is the coldest it will be). I could go on, but suffice to say it is very nice.

This weekend is a welcome party and church and exploring in Jaffa (the older city). Next week.. I can't say yet... but let me just say you're jealous :) and we're going to Jerusalem (J'lem)!

Love from Tel Aviv! (Pictures next time)