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Reasons I'd love to live in Israel
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jerusalem90




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 3:43 am
moonstone wrote:
One day of chag. We have the occasional 2-day chag, and very rarely a 3-day chag on Rosh Hashanah, but for the most part it's one day. And I love that we only have one seder.

I know there are people who love 2 or 3 days of chag, but I'm not one of them.

Offices are closed on the chagim, no need to take vacation days. Also, workplaces in Israel seem to be much more easygoing about coming in late/leaving early to go to a brit, a kid's school event, etc. It's really a nonissue here, at least wherever I've worked.

Kids have much more freedom here than they do in the US.

And this is silly, but I like that the stoplights here turn yellow before turning green. šŸ˜



Big one. Surprised I didnt mention it first.
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amother
Amaryllis


 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 4:14 am
Things are a lot more casual here. You don't need to make a big effort to dress up or fit in (unless you choose to live in some exclusive community).
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Aylat




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 4:47 am
Rappel wrote:
I have a (not) secret passion for pomegranates by the dozen, so Israel is definitely my home. Smile


Oh my gosh, me too!
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FranticFrummie




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:11 am
Where else can you get a dvar Torah from a taxi driver? I'm convinced that they are all hidden tzaddikim.

If I am stranded somewhere, I am not afraid to get a ride from a stranger.

A smile can turn even the crankiest Sabra into a marshmallow.

The good news, everybody cares about you. The bad news, they are often up in your business when you don't need their advice! LOL You gotta love them anyway.

The sky is the most stunning shade of turquoise I have ever seen in my life. I never get tired of looking at it. Roses bloom all year round, as do many other plants.

Random tortoises! You never know when you'll see a Greek Golden tortoise cruising around, usually in the spring. They live to 120 years old on the average. For some reason that seems significant to me.

Sassy green parrots. We have tons of little green parrots that fly around in huge flocks and they love the date trees. They are not obnoxious or loud, they are just cute as heck.

Bats. I really love bats. The big ones eat overripe fruit, and the little ones eat mosquitoes. When they come out in the evening they are so much fun to watch when they do their aerial acrobatics.

Feral cats everywhere. So many pretty kitties, of every color and pattern you can imagine. There are practically no mice or rats here. The neighbors put out bowls of water for them in the summer, and extra food for them in the winter.

I guess it's just all the little things that make this place so wonderful. Every tiny detail here feels like a miracle (even that huge centipede that came in my house the other day. He was fascinating to look at once I caught him.)
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FranticFrummie




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:13 am
Another interesting one. I have never been cat-called here. Not once!

No "Hey baby, gimme a smile! Come on over! Why are you being like that? Stuck up b****."

I don't miss that at all. The lack of harassment is true bliss.
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essie14




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:16 am
FranticFrummie wrote:
Another interesting one. I have never been cat-called here. Not once!

No "Hey baby, gimme a smile! Come on over! Why are you being like that? Stuck up b****."

I don't miss that at all. The lack of harassment is true bliss.

I've been cat called plenty here šŸ˜

I love living here for so many reasons. Every day there are new reasons.
One day of chag is something I love.
The ability to explore this amazing land which all of jewish history is tied to, the uniqueness of each of the nachalot of the shevatim, the sheer beauty of this amazing land, the connection that my heart has to the land.
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amother
Moccasin


 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:18 am
No rain? Sad I love thunderstorms.
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essie14




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:47 am
amother [ Moccasin ] wrote:
No rain? Sad I love thunderstorms.

It rains, but only during the rainy season. roughly November through March.
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Elfrida




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:49 am
amother [ Moccasin ] wrote:
No rain? Sad I love thunderstorms.


Don't worry, we get them in the winter. But Pesach is chag ha'Aviv, and the entire country is in full bloom, and all the rivers are full. Then we say tefilat tal, and pretty much say goodbye to rain for the next six pr seven months.

At Sukkot we say tefilat geshem, and eagerly await the first rainfall of the season within the coming weeks.
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FranticFrummie




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:53 am
amother [ Moccasin ] wrote:
No rain? Sad I love thunderstorms.


Up in the north there are MASSIVE thunderstorms! Especially from Nahariyah on the coast, up to Ma'alot in the mountains. In the fall and winter they can seem to be non stop. I think Haifa gets a lot of thunderstorms, too.

Further south, in the Jerusalem/Beit Shemesh area, we get a couple of really good storms per year, but nothing like up north.

Even more to the south, along the Negev area, there is not a lot of rain, but when it does rain the flash floods are very severe. Pay attention to all weather warnings when hiking! People get killed every year from sudden floods along the wadis.
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Teomima




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 5:54 am
Ironically, the safely and freedom of living and raising children here. People read the news and think Israel is a war zone but my kids can go out on their own after dark and I don't have to worry about them. As a teenager I would travel around the country on my own, as a woman I can walk through dark parks in the middle of the night, and I never have to be afraid. Strangers in the playgrounds will offer your children treats and not only can they actually accept them, but you'll find yourself being the stranger offering snacks to the other children, too.

Children in general are viewed to be such a blessing. Neighbors stop my kids to give them candy bars, every savta on the bus offers (unsolicited) feedback so your child should be warm/fed/etc, strangers flash you looks of understanding sympathy when your kid is having a tantrum in the checkout line. Compared to when I travel back to the States, where everyone I encounter makes it very clear to me that my children are such an awful imposition and annoyance to them.
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BadTichelDay




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 6:00 am
amother [ Moccasin ] wrote:
No rain? Sad I love thunderstorms.


You get those in winter and spring here. Together with really massive, impressive rain.

Funny thing - in me previous life I was always looking forward to the first snow. During my first years in Israel I regretted that we get that here very rarely and sparsely.
However, last week I was watching the sky and a few stray clouds, thinking about how long it will still be to the first rain in fall and really liking the thought of rain.
Last year, my kids ran out during the first rain to dance in it. They were so happy!
So, clearly rain is the new snow!

Other things to cherish:
* Kosher winegums and sweets, lots of.
* The smell of blossoming citrus trees and yasmin.
* The informality everywhere
* Before Pesach, in many shops the food gets cheaper and on mivtza, not 5 times as expensive, like in chutz la'aretz.
* The rhythm of life is Jewish here. Shabbat and YT can be felt in the air. Even if not everyone keeps halacha, still the pace of life slows on them and the atmosphere is different in the whole country, even in mostly secular areas and of course much more so in the frum places.
* No X-mas glare and frenzy, instead all the shops carrying sukkah decorations or Purim costumes at the right time, blaring Jewish music with it. The pet peeve about sufganiyot hitting the shelves right after Shmini Atzeret.
* A group of totally secular looking girls next to me getting into a heated discussion about why the bracha for a banana is ha'adama and not ha'eitz.
* Sitting in a small neighborhood shiur on Shabbat with 6 other women and each of us was born in a different country/continent and yet we are the same.
* The feeling that this is where the past and the future of Am Yisrael is.
* The strange feeling sometimes, that Hashem is just around the corner, watching us, much closer than in other countries.
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amother
OP


 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 6:42 am
Op here.
Getting so emotional from all these responses, Mmakes me yearn for Israel even more. Hopefully one day this dream will come true!
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First Lady




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 7:39 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Op here.
Getting so emotional from all these responses, Mmakes me yearn for Israel even more. Hopefully one day this dream will come true!

Me too. I just teared up reading all the posts. There is nothing like it in the world. Oh how I would love to be home!
#Libi Ba'Mizrach
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Shuly




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 7:52 am
I love sitting on buses and listening to Israeli kids schmooze.
Thursday night, I was sitting in front of a group of about 16 year old frum bochurim who were schmoozing with a non-frum Israeli man about voting. He was saying that he doesn't vote because he doesn't think it helps anyway and they were telling him that every vote counts and he has to vote in the next election!
It was adorable because he told them clearly that he would not be voting for a pro-frum party but they were so earnest about how he can't give up his right to vote.

When he got off the bus, he warmly wished them a Shabbat Shalom.
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amother
Violet


 

Post Fri, Jul 09 2021, 8:03 am
Wish I could wear tichels to work instead of a shaitel like in the US!
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amother
OP


 

Post Sat, Jul 10 2021, 9:18 pm
And chocolate milk in a bag!!! Yummmmm
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Iymnok




 
 
    
 

Post Sat, Jul 10 2021, 9:39 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
And chocolate milk in a bag!!! Yummmmm

My daughter got one that was marshmallow flavored. She couldnā€™t bring herself to have it.

Many water attractions have separate hours.
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nanny24/7




 
 
    
 

Post Sat, Jul 10 2021, 11:58 pm
What FranticFrummie said (both quotes below):
Where else can you get a dvar Torah from a taxi driver? I'm convinced that they are all hidden tzaddikim

and:

The sky is the most stunning shade of turquoise I have ever seen in my life. I never get tired of looking at it.
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amother
Steelblue


 

Post Sun, Jul 11 2021, 8:57 am
I love how when I was obviously pregnant or have a small baby in tow, people in front of me insisted that I had to cut the line at a pharmacy, post office, airportā€¦..
(I think itā€™s actually a law that pregnant women are exempt from waiting in line at some legal places.)
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