My mom needed new shoes so we headed to the mall. The car in front of me suddenly stopped, the driver came out and the Israeli in me wondered, hey what are you doing? He pointed to the sky.. A red light went up, whoa its a siren. So we left the car in the middle of the road and went to the nearest building… stayed there till the siren sounded again, signaling that it’s safe to come out. Later I found out that there were three rockets aimed near that were intercepted by Iron Dome. To my amazement everything continued as usual. All I could think is how frustrating it is to think of when and where the next siren will sound. Art is a great therapy. We can make weapons into beautiful objects and maybe they will loose their destructive connection. 
In the evening we said fare well to President Peres and welcome the new Israeli President 
It’s 12pm on Friday, on my way to meet a friend and the alarm sounded. My brother and I went to stand in the hallway in our apartment building. We heard four explosions and then it was over. My mom met a friend for coffee and they used the shelter in the restaurant. Life goes on but Rothschild Boulevard is not as busy. There is a feeling of numbness. One has to think twice before going to the beach or a restaurant- is there a shelter nearby? It’s almost Shabbat. I pray that Hamas would take a rest. I pray that all the wounded will be well soon, I pray that we will have a true cease fire and not just a temporary relief , I pray for PEACE. If you read till now you realized that this post was supposed to be published on Friday.. There was a cease-fire that started Saturday at 8am but Friday evening during Shabbat diner at my brother’ home out side of Tel Aviv, the alarm sounded. We all went to the Miklat (Shelter) and when the boom sounded … it was safe we came out. A miracle happened and Hamas held up and there were no further rockets shot during Shabbat. We all could use a day of rest. … Shabbat Shalom.
Author Archives: ornadvora
Mission continues – July 24
The second day of our solidarity mission started with a visit to Kehilat Ya’ar Ramot . Ms. Talia Levanon, director of Israel Trauma coalition, an organization that started with help from NY federation explained that Trauma in Israel is everywhere, among the soldiers, in the supermarkets, buses and schools. They work with communities not only individuals.
Dolev Kidar, 38, from Modi’in, the commander of the Gefen Battalion who died in Gaza said “The eyes tell the story but we have to continue”.
The organization gets 1600 calls a day and as the rockets continue to fall the work multiplies.
Next we met Tzipi Livni, Minister of Justice who explained that unfortunate we need to understand that we are facing pragmatics. Chamas uses violence against Israel and we need to focus on military operation that will find the tunnels. She then had to leave to a meeting with the prime minister.
We continued to another Masorti synagogue, Kehilat Ramot Zion.
rabbi Chaya Rowen-Baker compared these days before Tisha B’av to being “Bein Hamezarim”, a break point and we should try to rise and create peace if possible.
The next speaker was Rachel Frankel, the mother of Naftali who was one of the three teen who were kidnapped. Her smile and twinkling eyes captured us all. We were in owe. She captivated us with her spirit She said that she promised her kids taht they will be a happy family and is trying to keep Naftali alive even if he is not with them . She told us that she got strength from the people who came to console her and compared it to a person who expirience love and through that the world view is changed. Her parenst came from the US and she was born in Israel and grew up in Ramat Gan. There was no hanger , no regret only hope for a unity in the future.
Outside the synagogue between two building we spotted Iron Dom which protects Jerusalem
We continued to the Knesset , we met with Yuli Edelstein, the speaker of the Knesset The Knesset (Israel’s unicameral parliament) is the country’s legislative body. The Knesset took its name and fixed its membership at 120 from the Knesset Hagedolah (Great Assembly), the representative Jewish council convened in Jerusalem by Ezra and Nehemiah in the 5th century BCE.
He was hoping we will reach cease fire, he sees toys,medicine and kids cloths flying in the air and cement used for building tunnels, millions of dollars used by Chamas in fighting Israel and in Israel we see unity , the whole country coming together to burry the fallen lone soldiers. Hope is still here. This is the first time Chamas is isolated from the arab world.
Tomorrow we will inaugurate the 10th Israeli president, Robi Rivlin. Tomorrow we will talk about what will happen after, how to bridge the Israeli society.
We contiued to a farewell diner . We heard form Rabbi Tamar Elad Appelbaum whi again talked about the BREAK. She compared it to a pregnant woman who is about to give birth.
She talked about the future of creating a religious language, a language that can bridge the gap between Jews and Arabs.
The mission is over. My country is suffering, 31 soldiers dead and many wounded but we are all united. We run for shelter when there is a siren alert, our boys are fighting and have the enormous task of keeping the home front safe so we have to be strong.
Let pray for peace.
visiting Mom-July 2014 in Israel
The Summer of 2014 turned out to be very hot so I thought it will be a good idea to visit my mom and take her on a retreat, away from the humidity of Tel Aviv.
Two weeks before departure date it got “hotter”. The tension in the southern border with Gaza escalated. It started with the kidnapping of the three jewish teens that were found 18 days later dead, then the kidnapping of an arab boy by jewish religious fanatics. Meanwhile the rockets from Gaza were shot towards Sderot, Ashkelon and for the first time reached Tel Aviv and even Zichron Yaacov. I was glued to the TV and on the phone each time when the Red Alert app signaled another rocket in Tel Aviv. My mom’s quivering voice telling me that my cousin’s son is going into Gaza was a hint to her high anxiety level, so when our Rabbi send the invite to join the solidarity mission of the RA/Masorti movement to Israel I did not hesitate and off we went.
Eighteen rabbis from the U.S. were joined by local masorti (conservative) rabbis.
Monday night we heard from Natan Sharansky, the head of the Jewish Agency. He pointed out the solidarity among Israelis. No matter what each of us believe, we come together to support our government decisions and pray for the safe return of our soldiers. Israelis find inspiration from the support of the Jewish people. In Hamas we have a unique enemy, one that uses women and children as a human shields. The Israelis have developed a special missile that warns the Palestinian civilian inhabitants of a pending attack but they are told by their Hamas leaders not to leave. I have read that it’s the first time that among the ground force units that are send into Gaza there is one soldier who carries a camera to document the actions to be analyzed later by IDF PR. Israel must win on all fronts. World opinion is important and plays a crucial role in these times. During dinner we heard Minister of Intelligence, Dr. Yuval Steinitz who described the three goals of Operation Protective Edge is to deliver a serious blow to Hamas’s infrastructure, to secure the people of the south and to de-militarize Gaza once more. They amassed 14,000 rockets and build many tunnels. This was a sobering and ambitious military mission and a reaffirmation to us all of the importance of our solidarity mission.
Tuesday we boarded a bus to the south. First stop Ashkelon, a city by the city , we visited a shelter which functions as a camp, a rocket was shot towards Ashkelon, it felt safe being underground but is it a way to spend the summer?
We then continued to Sderot, which is a few kilometers from Gaza. We could see the smoke from Gaza. We met the deputy mayor in the shelter and learned that most school and bus stops are build as shelters. By the time a child turns 13 he or she is exposed to 600 siren alerts. Is this a way to grow up?
Next Stop, Beer Sheva, the capital of the Negev. It’s now a routine; go down to the shelter, meet the deputy mayor, who is thankful that we came to show our support and care. We continued to Omer, a suburb of Beer Sheva. On the way, there were two siren alerts, we crouched on the floor of the bus till we heard another a boom. People who drive a car got out and lie on the road.
We continued to Jerusalem for dinner and a briefing from Col Dr. Eran Lerman, deputy national security council for foreign policy and international affairs.
He emphasized the need for legitimization with regard to the terrorists. He quoted Ben Gurion who talked of “Easy Optimism” and “Sterile Pessimism,” claiming it is forbidden to rely on either of these for the future.
The sign which can be found in many intersections says: strong home front /winning on the front. Unity is what’s important. It is a feeling I got all day. We are strong when we are together.
On the road again……….
So, here I am, in the air again, flying over continents, destination homeland-Israel.
There is something special that I feel every time. I guess no matter how many years I will leave outside it always excite me when I arrive. Just like magic the land, the smells, the light, the people, the language, the gestures-I am connected and it’s as though I never left.
After the coooold winter and tons of snow seeing the flowers bloom. The colors are vibrant. The air is warm, no need for heavy coats.
Yesterday I explored the art scene, I visited some galleries and saw a fantastic retrospective of Vic Muniz at the Tel Aviv Museum.
I believe some times pictures are better then words so here it goes..
Passover has many names The Freedom holiday, The holiday when we left Egypt but the one I like the most is Chag Haaviv-The Spring Holiday.
CHAG SAMECH
So, what’s for dinner?
I have been meaning to write this post since I came back from India….. I promised to post some recipes so here it goes.
When we were in Udaipur we had the privilege of participating in a cooking demonstration.
Spice is what gives food a definition. Two weeks eating Indian vegetarian dishes I came to the conclusion that there are five basic spices that are used in different combinations. In the spice box we can find, red chili powder, turmeric powder, salt,cumin seeds, mustard seeds, fennel seeds and fenugreek seeds. All these help with digestion (fennel), brain memory ( cumin) and blood ( turmeric) in addition we use a combination of spices called Gara-masala which has black pepper, cinnamon, black cardamon, cloves, coriander seeds, bay leaves and cumin seeds roasted and ground.
Dal is one of these dishes that we find almost in every meal. It consists of lentils, red, yellow, black or white. It is a source of protein so no need for meat.
Ingredients
1 cup of any kind of lentil
2 finally chopped onions (you can make a paste in the food processor)
10-12 cloves garlic
1/2 teas turmeric powder
1 teas red chili powder
salt to taste
1 teas garam masala
3 medium size tomatoes,finely chopped or paste
4 tbls oil or ghee or butter (ghee is a clarified butter that’s used in many Indian dishes
1 tbls chopped coriander for garnish
Method:
Boil the soaked dal (lentil) with 1/2 liter water in a pressure pan or over an open pan for 10 minutes.
Take pan, add the onions and crushed garlic till brown then add all the spices and the tomatoes.
Mix well and cook till oil and masala seperate.
Then add boiled lentils and mix well. In the end, add pinch of garam masala and coriander, cover for two minutes.
During our trip we had plenty of Chai Masala which is a black tea spiced with dry ginger, green coriander, black pepper, cinnamon and milk. The spices are combined, not roasted and ground into a paste.
The recipe for this delicious tea is:
1 cup water
2 pinches of chai masala
Bring to boil, add Assam tea or any tea leaves, now add 1 cup milk and sugar to taste. Bring to boil for two minutes, cover for two minutes , strain and drink.
It’s a refreshing way to start the day instead of coffee.
There are others dishes and let’s not forget the bread. In India, we did not use utensils but used the bread as a fork. The food tastes great.
Chapati is the bread that’s made each morning. They say that the first chapati is given to the cow (well they are sacred), it’s made of:
6 cups of whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups water.
Slowly, slowly add the water and make a medium dough. It can be stuffed with spinach or onion or even condensed milk for sweetness.
method: mix well, roll little dough, put the filling in the center and cover it from all sides. now roll it again and apply ghee or butter to both sides and fry on a special flat pan.
It sounds a bit complicated so I promise a demonstration and a complete meal soon.
Bitea’avon!
Where is home?
Israel is the country that shaped my personality. The place where I grew up, went to school, army and university. There is a feeling of belonging that cannot be explained in words.
I have been away from home, my family, my kids, my grandkids for almost a month. The home I created with my partner for life, the home we build together, the children we raised. This home is the US.
In the last month I have travelled from the US to Israel to India to Israel and back to the US. I explored new country, met new people, formed new friendships, spent time with my mom.
I feel like a tree, the roots are in Israel, the trunk is me, growing, the brunches , the leaves , the flowers are what I did and will continue doing …
Life is a journey and although this blog started as a travel journal I invite you to continue exploring with me. Let the tree grow…
अलविदा alavidā -Good bye in hindi
It is our last day, again we start with a 6 am drive from Jaisalmer to Jodphur, board a plane to Mumbai then a flight to Israel.
It is a bitter-sweet goodbye, two weeks adventure. India is a complex place, there are lots of contradictions, lots of mysteries, lots to learn. It is so different but yet familiar. Hinduism starts with one g-o-d and there is all the deities each one with it’s own face, like “elilim”,is that what Abraham broke when he affirms the belief in one god.
Mindfulness tours was the name of our tour and indeed in each city, each temple, one cannot escape the notion that there are layers upon layers of meanings. We were 21 strangers that became friends, cared for each other and learned to accept the differences.
The literature festivals in Jaipur, we saw the future, the generation that tries to break from old traditions. At the women’s gno we saw how hard it is to elevate the woman’s place in the society, education is a key to advancement.
The palaces and forts are a symbol of the rich past but not all of them are well kept, some are dilapidated structures and then we see the Taj which is a magnificent building that draws lots of visitors. Some are keeping with the arranged marriage tradition and some are trying to break away from the caste system.
As I am sitting on the plane to Tel Aviv, full of Israelis, some who finished a three month’s vacation through the south beaches and some who were on a tour of the country. India is a big country and we only covered the Rajasthan area. Will I come back to explore more? Maybe the north where the Dali Lama sits or visit the golden temple where they serve 100,000 people food with no charge.
I can’t say yes or no but one thing I know that the effect of this trip will continue to make me think and be puzzled.
Jaisalmer-Jali
Jaisalmer is a desert city, 80 km from the Pakistan border.Jali is the name of the stone lattice work. The color of this city is gold which comes form the sand, although it’s known for the incredible silversmith works.
We entered another fort ( I believe it’s the fourth on this trip), this one has four gates one cannot be seen from the other so you walk like in a zigzag. We entered the Jin temple and were able to take photos, their deity has a human like features and no adornments just an innocent smile..This is a “working” fort, people live within the walls, the streets are narrow , the market is bustling with merchants offering all sorts of stuff form pashminas to Kama Sutra books to bags and more . It’s a popular tourist destination. Our guide told us that there is a popular Indi movie that was filmed in the city , that explains the groups of students we met who cam on a two day train journey from Delhi.
Lunch was served on the roof of a hotel over looking the fort. In the last two weeks we tasted the food, smelled the spices, enjoyed the colors and heard folk music. Surprise waited for us, a lesson in traditional Indian music. We learned that there is order to the rythm, to the movement of the dance , to the gestures and the words. There are sixteen notes that keeps repeating. It felt soothing and transformed us to a maharaja palace where he is listening to his court musician.
After lunch we walked to the silversmith home , I must have been day dreaming as I bumped into a cow and then stepped in her S.., they say it’s good luck but i got startled..the streets are filled with cows walking around like they own the place with no regards to motorcycles or people.
The attention to details is fascinating, in the chaos of the street there is order.
Thar Desert
Six hour bus ride; through the desert pass different towns. This time we watched an Indian movie – Taare Zameen Par, every child is special produced and directed by Aamir Khan, An Indian actor who cares about social justice causes. The film is about a child with dyslexia. His parents cannot accept the fact that he has a problem nor does his teacher, but there is an art teacher who recognize it and helps. And as in every Bollywood movie there is a happy ending and the kid wins the school art competition and recognition by his father.
We arrived at Mama’s resort, an oasis in the desert with fancy tents.
We went on a camel ride to the dunes. The scenery reminded me of bible times. I saw women at a well and could imagine Eliezer meeting Rebecca there.
We tried to meditate on the dunes waiting for the sunset but for some reason it was a popular place, jeeps came by, children looking to sell chips and drinks, who knew..finally it was quiet . The sun went down.
So what do we do for dinner? Outdoors it is with a bonfire and dancing. A mix of belly dancing and Bollywood kept us warm. Again chai amsala, paneer and a new dish mini eggplant in masala sauce.
How romantic it sounds to sleep in a tent , not on a floor but on a bed , but it’s desert and it gets cold at night so I went to sleep with all my cloths.
Fort and more- Shabbath in Jodphur
This is the third post in the past 24 hours. I have so much to share so forgive me if it is too much and I hope you will enjoy the ride.
Being on a bus for 7 hours for the ride from Udaphur to Jodphur was not too bad, we watched a great movie called “outsourced”, stopped for Chai at a nice spa and soon after arrived at the blue city.
There are almost 2 million people living in this city. The Mehrangarth is a fort that towers over the city. From one side one can see the old city with it’s blue color buildings, they say its the color of kings, on the other side the new city spreads.
The fort was build form stone and the intricate work is unbelivable. The carving are made in stone but it gives the illusion of carving in wood. Once entering there are displays of miniature paintings, textiles and wall painting which are unbelievable in their intricacy.
I treated myself to an ayurvedic massage that started with half an hour oil pored over my head and ended with a 10 minutes steam. I came out rejuvenated and ready for Shabbath.
Shabbath at the Ranbanka Palace hotel started with mindfulness two and half hour meditation lead by Dina. We meditated to the מודה אני ושמע ישראל , we practice walking meditation and did an exercise with a partner asking each other- what do you really think multiple times, we continues after lunch and rest into a two hour yoga.
The combination of meditation-yoga-india worked after a week of intensive travel we all needed to recharge.
Namaste
THE-ORNA 
