Suzanne Dellal Center

The Suzanne Dellal Centre for Dance and Theatre is the most important dance establishment in Israel, offering a wide selection of events and festivities all year round. Inaugurated by the Dellal family from London, the Suzanne Dellal Center is situated in the beautiful neighborhood of Neve Tzedek and hosts most dance events and festivals in Israel.

Three of the more well-known festivals are Summer Dance, such as a long six week The Sixth Guangdong Modern Dance Festival which includes many of the best local artists alongside guests from all corners of the world, Dance-Europa and finally, Haramat Masach (Hebrew for Curtin Up), in which young independent performers and choreographers are given the stage. Besides that there are many more events will take place there. There are four different halls, all located in one of the most beautifully renovated buildings in Neve Tzedek. There is a delightful entrance square dotted with citrus trees, and a lovely Italian restaurant called Bellini, ((03)5178486). You can enjoy a drink and sandwich here before or after the performance, or instead drop by for a full meal, the food isn’t really exceptional but the atmosphere is wonderful.

Address: 6 Yechieli St.
Tel: (03) 510-5656
Site: http://www.suzannedellal.org.il/index.htm

Anything You Can Imagine is Real

Spring is the loveliest season of the year. Here, in Israel this is the time of impressive lineup of holydays including Passover, Easter and Israel’s Independence Day. Besides that we celebrate 100 anniversary of Tel Aviv this year. The profuse sunshine and worm weather, along with the festive mood surrounding the season, all make it clear as day, spring is here. No doubt this is the time for travel, wonderful trips and adventure tours as well.

Israelis celebrate Independence Day with parade and grandiose air show. When I have been watched yesterday how skydiver flied like a birds over a crowd of spectators in Tel Aviv I thought that it’s really not bad idea to fly to the Edge of space in some of such super machines as legendary Israeli F 15 or Russian MiG-31 Foxhound. Definitely anything you can imagine is real and if you seek to spend your holiday not only eating and sleeping well but enjoying an adventure tour like no other you get it!

We wish you a happy holyday season and a sunshine filled spring!

Happy Passover!!!

20 Things To Do With Matzah

Pesach Holidays

Do you think a life time is passing too slowly? Time like a watch is always too fast or too slow. But as to me, now I think the time life is passing too fast. Therefore one should try to make the most of today, gets interested in something he loves, shakes himself awake, developing a hobby, meeting with friends, traveling at last, letting the winds of enthusiasm sweep through.

Pesach is coming. This year, the most important Jewish holidays begin at sundown on Wednesday April 8 and ends at nightfall on Thursday April Wednesday April 15. Many people, young especially, try to use the seven days for vacations and Cuba Holidays is a winner on the way. No wonder that spending Pesach in Cuba hotels has become more and more popular in Israel. This small Caribbean country offers a wide range of services suited to any tastes and interests including cigar and golf tours, salsa trips, fly fishing, diving, birdwatching and more providing kosher restaurants, synagogues and kosher hotels to spend your holyday with a great comfort.

Purim 2009

Cultural Events Out of Doors

If you are planning to come to Israel this year pay attention that there are many musical events are wroth to be visited there.

Abu Gosh Vocal Music Festival in Abu Gosh
Israel Festival in Jerusalem
Jazz festival in Tel Aviv
Klezmer Festival Safed in Tzfat
Pearls of classical music in Beit Guvrin
Red Sea Jazz Festival in Eilat
Spring Festival in Rishon Lezion
Voice of Music Festival in Kfar Blum

You can easily check out online any event you are interested in for the date and time it will be placed. I’m sure that sometimes different kind of cultural events are just necessary for traveler to spend some time among the same fans of music as one getting pleasure and relax.

Planning to visit United Kingdom don’t forget about such famous musical event as Reading Festival taking place in Reading and Leeds on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August. Check out Reading-Festival.net for more detailed information including Seatwave Reading Festival Tickets to take part in this enchanting musical event out of doors.

Tel Aviv Bauhaus Buildings

If you dont know Tel Aviv’s bauhaus buildings had been declared a World Heritage site.
Bauhaus is usually cubic, favor right angles, it has smooth facades and an open floor plan, flat roofs ,sometimes with curved balconies. So when you will come to our city you can admire Tel Aviv architectura personally. There are many such plain Minimalist style buildings in Tel Aviv especially in the center part of old town. Tel Aviv has one of the largest collection of Bauhaus Buildings in the world. Bauhaus architecture flourished in Tel Aviv in the 1930’s due in great part to the fact that 17 former Bauhaus students, worked locally as architects.

Arieh Sharon, Dov Carmi, Zeev Rechter, Pinchas Hueth, Josef Neufeld, Genia Averbuch Richard Kauffmann and Erich Mendelsohn are just some of the architects, who contributed to the local abundance of Bauhaus architecture. Sharon, (no relation to the current prime minister) was known for his cooperative workers’ dwellings in Tel Aviv, work on many of the country’s hospitals and his early beginnings in kibbutz Gan Shmuel. Averbuch is best known because in 1934, at 25, she won second prize (no first prize was given), in the competition to design Dizengoff Circle, in memory of Zina Dizengoff, Meir Dizengoff’s wife. While Mendelsohn designed the private residence of the country’s first president, Dr. Chaim Weizmann.

Between the First and Second World Wars, there was a great building momentum in Tel Aviv, because of the growing waves of immigration from Europe. Buildings that now show their age were once painted white (or beige). The city had many ‘white’ buildings, which came to be associated with the International Style (even though white exteriors are not really one its characteristics). Nevertheless, that is the source of the city’s nickname of “The White City.”

Tel Aviv has the largest number of cooperative workers’ apartments in the country. The aim was to provide residents with as much equality in living quarters. These blocks of apartments, operated almost as self-contained units. Residents had a variety of services right in the buildings, including kindergarten, post office, convenience store, laundry etc. Additionally, a plot of land was set aside, so that residents could grow their own vegetables. Having a ‘connection to the land’ was viewed as extremely important. An example of such a cooperative unit can be seen at the corner of Frishman, Dov Hoz and Frug streets. This block of buildings also served as headquarters of the Haganah.

via jewishvirtuallibrary.org

Jewish Sukkot

Sukkot is coming. The Festival of Sukkot will last for seven days from sunset October 13, 2008 to nightfall October 20, 2008, if you dont know. It is usual to build booths on these days then to spend all the time there as far as possible with the family and close friends. Sukkot is a harvest festival and referred to as Chag Ha-Asif , the Festival of Ingathering. I’ll try to make photos during the Holidays then to put them here. Now several worlds about Sukkot. First of all how Sukka must look. Must be nice, something like this one:

By the way, this is my picture, it is done specially for you . Hag Sameah!:-)

Sukkot observance involves a branch of a beautiful tree, (palm branches) and Four Species (arba minim in Hebrew).
” The four species in question are an etrog (a citrus fruit similar to a lemon native to Israel; in English it is called a citron), a palm branch (in Hebrew, lulav), two willow branches (aravot) and three myrtle branches (hadassim). The six branches are bound together and referred to collectively as the lulav, because the palm branch is by far the largest part. The etrog is held separately. With these four species in hand, one recites a blessing and waves the species in all six directions (east, south, west, north, up and down), symbolizing the fact that G-d is everywhere. Detailed instructions for this ritual can be found under Sukkot Blessings.

The four species are also held and waved during the Hallel prayer in religious services, and are held during processions around the bimah (the pedestal where the Torah is read) called hakafot each day during the holiday. These processions commemorate similar processions around the altar of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem. This part of the service is known as Hoshanot, because while the procession is made, we recite a prayer with the refrain, “Hosha na!” (please save us!). On the seventh day of Sukkot, seven circuits are made. For this reason, the seventh day of Sukkot is known as Hoshanah Rabbah (the great Hoshanah).”

Rosh A Shana 5769

I got this picture from my friend Masha Trebukova – Happy New 5769 Year – she did it from her lunch

Best Cultural Events October 2008 in Israel

1. Hafia – International movie festival 14-21 -
haifaff.co.il/index.php

2. The Date festival (Not dating, dates-those you eat) 15-18 – deadsea.co.il

3. Dancesport festival – dancing 24-25 – maltar.org.il

4. The Acco Festival Of Alternative Israeli Theatre 15-19/10/2008 – accofestival.co.il/

5. Olives and olive oil, from 30 October for 3 weeks -galil.gov.il

6. Annual Taybeh Oktober Fest – 11th-12th October. This is a Christian Palestinian village just a twenty minute drive from Jerusalem also you can test there a truly gourmet beer. Anyway great beer is available at wonderful wine stores, pubs also in Israel of course.

7. Opera’s greatest hits (Aida, Tosca, La boheme, Carmen) side by side with the Israeli premiere of The Cunning Little Vixen (Janacek) and Mefistofele (Boito). A festve season for the 100th anniversary of Tel Aviv!

8. Daniel Ezralow Dance Company. The newest opus of Israeli choreographer Daniel Ezralow is a portrayal of ourselves

9. World of Classics Festival returns to the Opera House in October
A Weekend of Music with artists from Slovenia, Spain and Austria
and more and more…