Jaffa/ Yafo

Jaffa, Joppa, Yafo, Yaffa.... regardless what you call it - we like it!

January ended up being a big month for us. We had four sets of visitors, including my parents, so we had plenty of chances to show off all that Israel has to offer. Probably the closest attraction to us outside of Tel Aviv is Jaffa. It's a 15 minute drive (no traffic) or a 30 minute bike ride on the ocean boardwalk. You just can't beat it.

Jaffa is one of our favorite places in the Tel Aviv area. We attend church there weekly, and we just love exploring its streets. It never gets old. It's is a very beautiful and ancient little town with something to offer everyone.

Historically, this is the place from which Jonah fled to Tarshish instead of going to Ninevah (Jonah 1:3). No one really knows just how old the port is, but it is supposedly named after Noah's son, Japheth. Today, it is roughly 60% Israeli & 40% Arab, and many of the signs are in Arabic. There are a number of quaint little shops there, and the town has been restored in recent years to become quite an artsy place.

Jaffa also houses the home of Simon the Tanner, and it is where Peter had his vision of the net let down from heaven (Acts 10 & 11). It is also where he resurrected Tabitha in Acts 9:36-42.

To get to the water, you go down a series of steps in tight alleys--down, down, down. Lots of steps. It reminded me of the story of Jonah when he fled the Lord (he went down [Hebrew-ירד] to Jaffa...went down to the ship...and went down to the inner most part of the ship). So there is truth on 2 levels: Jonah actually had to literally descend a good ways to get to his ship, and of course in a figurative sense--running from God will only bring you down.

These marble gates were formerly an entrance to the old city (currently being restored).

Below is the clock tower in the center of town. There are 9 of these around Israel, minus the one in the Old City of Jerusalem that the Brits dismantled in 1920 because it was too much of an Islamic symbol. I can't imagine that would go over too well today.

Minarets dot the skyline.

This is a beautiful little restaurant by the water. There is a juice stand in front selling seasonal fresh squeezed juices. My pomegranate juice was squeezed from 4 huge pomegranates, and my mom's orange juice from 6 oranges. Holy antioxidants!

The view of Tel Aviv from Jaffa is amazing.

the infamous floating orange tree

I just love the streets, and they are often this quiet; nothing like the hustle and bustle of Jerusalem.

Below is a series of 3 shops:

1. Dr Shakshuka (they specialize in a tasty middle eastern breakfast dish - shakshuka- served in a hot skillet with tomatoes & eggs);
2. Dr Antika (all things antique)
3. Dr Houka (they sell what looks like giant bongs)

Convenient that all the 'Doctors' to set up shop together, right?

So, if you're in our neck of the woods, be sure to put Jaffa on the itinerary!

You won't be disappointed.

Shalom, yall...

Mt Hermon

Olmsted Ski-Trip!

In honor of the Hensarlings' visit from Brussels, the Israel Olmsted contingent decided to cut classes and declare an 'official' ski-day.

Who knew you could ski in the Middle East? Yes, that's right--Mt Hermon is located in the NE corner of Israel in the Golan Heights, and it normally gets enough snow for actual skiing in winter months. OK, it's no Aspen, but it was better than most East coast options in the states (sorry Snowshoe). The fresh snow and decent runs definitely exceeded my expectations.

Sean & I on the summit w/ Lebanon in the background

Check out this hair: outstanding.

A true statement in skiing fashion (& it's warm!)

Ken Wainwright (OSC 2012, Jerusalem)

Sean Carano (OSC 2010, Jerusalem)-the brains behind the operation

Brian Hensarling (OSC 2011, Brussels) thinking to himself: "Hmmm, not enough places to ski in Western Europe....I think I'll try a more southerly location."

Good snow, decent weather (most of the day), and a beautiful view of the Golan Heights, Syria, and Lebanon made this a great little trip. This is probably the only ski slope on a disputed territory, and one that has been the sight of a good deal of fighting due to it's strategic location between 3 different countries (Syrians still don't recognize Israeli annexation of the Golan Heights after the 6-day war of 1967, and Mt Hermon changed hands several times in Yom Kippur War of 1973). Lucky for us, our biggest threat was just falling down and breaking something.

Check out the ski patrol.
These guys are "Alpinistim" skiers w/ M-4 rifles...

You just don't see stuff like that at Squaw Valley.

I for one have never felt more safe skiing in my life!

They were also assisting in a very noble cause:

a program teaching wounded IDF veterans to learn how to ski. Awesome.

Till next time...Shalom Y'all -Stew

Turning Six in Tel Aviv

...Lydia's part of the adventure.

Growing up in a military family, you get to list cool (or not so cool) places where you were born and a litany of places and houses in which you have lived. Now, in addition to living in 5 different houses by age 5, Lydia gets to boast that she turned six in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Lydia's birthday this year was a blend of two cultures and traditions. We noticeably missed our friends and family from the states. It just wasn't the same without all those familiar faces! But, we had new experiences to enjoy. We celebrated her birthday at home on her birthday with our first guests from the states: Nana & Papa J. Then, we celebrated her birthday at school the day after her birthday, and finally her birthday party with her friends from school & the neighborhood last week. Her best friend from class has a birthday mid-January, so her mom and I arranged to host their party together. Boy, was this a relief for me. Without this dear friend's guidance, Lydia would have been sans party. I wouldn't have had a clue!!!

For your birthday at school, you get to ditch the uniform and wear the dress of your choice along with the traditional flower wreath in your hair. Well, don't you know our little fancy nancy reveled in every moment of it. She picked this multi-layered outfit herself, complete with Christmas cape and cinderella gloves.

Here she is showcasing her big birthday gift: a real purple guitar!!! (that daddy is a sucker.)

As for the birthday party, this was some event.

Birthday parties here are kinda big.

First, you invite your whole class from school - that's 35 kids.

Then, you invite all their parents and siblings too. Next, you invite family and neighbors. That's. A. Lot. of people.

Like I said, I would have been lost in this if it weren't for our dear Israeli friends walking us through the process. Since there are so many folks to accommodate, and no one here has a yard, you rent space for the party. Typically, in the warmer months, you find a spot at the park or claim a playground with some grass. In the rainy, cooler months (i.e. January), you find common space in an apartment complex or rent space in a health/sports club or community center. Unfortunately, there's no bouncy house warehouses or chuck-e-cheese's in these parts.

Next on the agenda is to find the entertainment. All kids' birthday parties here come with live entertainment, usually in the form of one or two adults adorned with mics and dressed as something resembling a cross between a clown and a Nick Jr host. This entertainment then leads the mass of children in songs and games for the duration of 2 hours. Seriously. Fortunately for us, my friend Avital found the space and the entertainment that wasn't nearly as cheesy as some that we've seen. Ours was a pirate/ princess fairy duo that kept 50 kids jumping, running and dancing for almost 2 straight hours. Lydia even said the next day that her legs were sore. Money well spent.

For my part of the party planning, I introduced my dear Israeli friend to Orientaltrading.com. Seeing as how things here are a little pricey, this was some introduction. We ordered all the party decorations in princess pink and purple. She also had a funny request that I was more than happy to oblige. As soon as party planning started, she said to me, "Could we please have American candy for the party?" Oh, could we! Thank goodness for a DPO address and online groceries: Skittles, M&Ms, starbursts, candy corn, Willy Wonka assortments as far as the eye could see. It took every ounce of self control in my body not to break into that candy early.

Wait, let me back up a minute: the typical Israeli fare for a birthday party goes like this:

One table for drinks.

One table for candy.

Pizza on the floor when the pizza man comes.

Cake after pizza.

Avital and I did our best to kick it up a notch, and I think it turned out quite nice...

She baked some amazing breads and cakes, and from all the sticky hands and faces, I think everyone enjoyed the new candy. We even snuck some vegetable trays on there. Shhhhh...don't tell.

Most importantly, Lydia and Danielle felt very special, and they had a blast as co-birthday Princess Fairies!

too cute..

(interesting side note: they put one extra candle on the cake for the coming year, so for Lydia & Danielle that means 7 candles, not 6.)

& One final tradition:

The birthday girl/boy is raised in a chair seven times. Not sure why...I'll have to look it up. All I know is that Lydia loved it.

Yom, yom Huledit!

Shalom Y'all,

E

Dance Class

The other day I got on the elevator with my 6-year-old to walk her to her weekly dance lesson. She had dressed herself in this little pink ballerina getup, with white tights and leg-warmers, and she was the only girl in her class with gloves that she had personally glued pink diamonds onto...just for that something special. I told her that she looked beautiful and quite stylish in her dance outfit, and she said, "Well Daddy, you know, I just kind of know how to rock the fancy." Indeed. I think it's one of her spiritual gifts. The other little girls seemed to like them as well, which prooves that bling is truly an international language.

As for cultural immersion...

here's a birthday-party invite you don't see every day:

"Lydia and Danielle are 6 year old girls & invite you all to their birthday party!"

We decided on a joint birthday party w/ one of Lydia's friends from Gan. Thank goodness for us, not only are her parents dear friends of ours, but her Mom just happens to a fabulous graphic designer (you didn't think we did this ourselves, did you?!?)

We'll save party pictures for another blog...this was just a teaser.

Till then, Shalom Y'all!

Stew

"I want to dress up too, guys!"

Muskrats in the Jordan

Mark 1:9-11

On our last outing with EJ's parents, we had the privilege to visit a sight I've been looking forward to seeing for quite a while: the Jordan River. I expected to be disappointed by a tiny, polluted stream, but I was mildly surprised by the size and feel of this little river. It was actually what I expected it should look like from my Sunday-school imagination. That, plus the fact that the Israelis have built a marvelous facility to handle the hundreds of sojourners who travel there every day to be baptized where Jesus was baptized by John-the-Baptist, made this a great place to visit.

An interesting fact about the river Jordan in the winter-time...it's teeming with life. Not just the average Christian pilgrims from every corner of the globe, but wildlife, too. That's right, we saw actual muskrats trying to join in all the anabaptist fun. Now I'm pretty sure that's not in the Bible (at least not in my translation). There were fish and turtles too, but they didn't seem nearly as eager to participate.

Can you spot the rodent?

Here he is...pretty cute after all

Will is not sure what to think...

As soon as we opened our car doors, we were greeted by the sound of squawking wild parrots and an African processional. We also witnessed several baptisms, as you can see from this video...

Another interesting aspect of this particular stop in the Holy Land is that written on the walls & on every corner of the facility, in almost every language you can imagine, is the New Testament account of Jesus's baptism in the Jordan River (Matt 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11). I must admit that I was quite proud of myself when I could actually read this in Hebrew without referencing the English at all (& I even understood most of it):

To all the multi-lingual readers and Olmsteders out there...knock yourself out:

[I mean, really....who speaks FANG? I've never even heard of that?!?]

Fortunately for us, it looks like Nigerians prefer English as well:

Although no one in our group actually took the plunge, this was a fascinating stop and well worth visiting. Not only were there affirmations of faith, the Gospel of Mark written on every wall, and impromptu African processionals, we saw muskrats too! What more could you want from your holiest of holy Christian sights to be baptized? So from the Welches to all the pilgrims at the Jordan River, we say to you:

Shalom Y'all! -Stew

PS- if you ever decide that infant baptism just wasn't enough for you, and you feel compelled to follow in the footsteps of Whitney Houston, Bobby Brown, & Jesus himself, to come all the way to Israel to be baptized in the Jordan River just like your Savior...don't say we didn't warn you about the muskrats ;-)