Happy New Year

I'm back in Jerusalem after a few days in Austria (pictures now on last post). I spent 3 days in Graz with friends from Vancouver (who are living and working in Graz for the fall and winter). Graz is a charming town with great transit and a good-sized river (the Mur) running through it. I notice surface water now that I live in a place that has almost none.

Me in Graz on Boxing Day (photo credit: Nicki Dusyk)

Back in Jerusalem, the winter sun continues to shine and the end of the Gregorian calendar year is a bit of a snooze.  That is, today is a full workday, so is tomorrow, and the town is not fixing for a big night of parties. But, I can't help treat the changing calendar year as a bit of a milestone and time to reflect on what I've done since I arrived and what else I want to do while I am here -- both for work and for fun.


To those of you celebrating the New Year (or Silvester as it is called here, and as many Europeans call it) have a wonderful night!

Frohe Weihnachten...Merry Christmas!!

Greetings from Vienna where I'm stopped over en route to spend a few days with friends in southern Austria celebrating Christmas. The weather has been a bit like home -- snow, rain, slush, more rain. So, while it's cooler than I've been used to outside,  I am loving the central heating!!

Vienna is Christmas crazy. Lights, markets, gluhwein, and all the usual pastries abound.  Here are some pix of Christmas lights in Vienna.

Christmas baking...

Christmas Markets

All the best to everyone for a very Merry Christmas!

Winter and the Temple Mount

After a glorious week of weather in Jerusalem, a blast of winter arrived on Thursday morning. Suddenly it was raining and blowing a gale.

The view west from Jaffa Gate (20.12.12)

 The streets are a bit more river than road. Some drivers slow down when they see a puddle near a pedestrian and others, well, don't. Fortunately, as a born and bred Vancouverite I know how to dodge a puddle spray and use my umbrella as a shield.

Nablus Road in the rain (21.12.12)

Looking north on the green line at Shivtei Israel train station

The living room in my house is a pool - we've got about an inch of rain on the floor.

Hmmm...not so obvious in the photo, but there is an inch of water on the floor!

The torrents of rain were intermittent all day yesterday and today. It's vicious. These blasts of winter are starting to feel like tantrums. Generally, the weather is pretty pleasant, but when it isn't it really isn't. There is nothing mild about the rainstorms that visit the city.  I keep trying to think "groundwater recharge" (something positive) since you cannot complain about the rain in a climate like this where water is far from plentiful; there is no rain for the better part of 8 months of the year.

Early this week, when the weather was grand, I had the chance to visit the Temple Mount in the Old City. Temple Mount is a key religious site in Jerusalem.  As part of conference that my colleagues were hosting this week, there was a tour for the non locals. Arriving at the entrance to Temple Mount at about 830 am it was surprisingly quiet. No line up to get in and lots of space to absorb the sense of  the place. It definitely has a sanctuary feeling.

Temple Mount (18.12.12)

Temple Mount - Dome of the Rock

Temple Mount

Sitting at the northeast side of the Old City, just below the Mount of Olives the Temple Mount has been a holy site for thousands of years. Briefly (and far from entirely accurate, I am sure),  the key feature for Judaism is the Foundation Stone (from where the world was created in the Judaic tradition) and upon which the First Temple was built by King Solomon in about 950 BCE. The key feature for Muslims is the Rock over which the Dome sits.  The Dome of the Rock (completed in 691 CE) is more a commemorative site than a mosque. From the Rock, Mohammed is said to have ascended to heaven (with the angel Gabriel) where God gave him the Koran.  Also on the Temple Mount is the Al Aqsa Mosque. Since the second intifada non-Muslims are not granted entry, ever, to either the Dome or Al Aqsa.

Quite spectacular from the outside, the Golden Dome dominates one's view of the Old City from almost every perspective. For example, from the gym at the University on Mt Scopus.

Just there in the middle of the frosted glass is the Dome. Photo credit: Elka Gotfryd

And well it should given the value of its glitter - that's 80 kilos of  gold. Apparently King Hussein (of Jordan) sold a house in London to finance the gilding in the early 1990s.  I'm told the interior of the Dome is equally impressive.

The Dome of the Rock (18.12.12)

The Dome of the Rock plaza (18.12.12)

Tiles (not the originals) on the Dome of the Rock (18.12.12)

So, in short, a bunch of really important stuff happened in this small corner of the one square km in the world that is the Old City. The holiest Christian site, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is about 150 metres or so to the west, also inside the Old City.

Hanukkah

The Menorah at Mahane Yehuda on Thursday night

I arrived back in Jerusalem very late Monday (er...very early Tuesday morning). Hanukkah celebrations are in full swing and the Festival of Lights seems to have distracted folks from the politics of life here, at least for a bit. Until the latest Lieberman scandal-saga.  I'm hoping to lighten up on the politics for a bit and instead focus more on festivities (and work) for the rest of the month.

The weather has been cool here making me perhaps more appreciative than ever for the inventions of good insulation (including double paned windows) and central heating -- two building features that are difficult to find in Jerusalem. I'm now understanding why people told me the winter here can be "grim". It's grim because you have to wear more clothes inside at times than you have to wear outside. It's grim because the windows don't fit tightly and the wind howls through the cracks. It's grim because when it rains it buckets. What makes it okay is that after two or three days of a storm (max I've seen so far) the sun comes out and the daytime temperatures climb to 16C. And that, my Canadian friends, is pretty fantastic.


A key food to eat during Hanukkah is sufganiyot (jelly donuts) - they are everywhere. And, a bit like Christmas treats are wont, they started showing up sometime in early November. I have tried strawberry, pistachio and caramel. So far the caramel is winning, but maybe because it was procured at the fanciest bakery of the three? But, I'm far from the person who should be evaluating sufaniyot -- those of you who know my culinary preferences know that I am no donut aficionado!  I might have to see about making some ginger cookies this week...

An Island in the Eastern Mediterranean

Happy Hanukkah from Cyprus where I've been:

1) getting some Christmas cheer
2) walking in the mountains
3) taking a break from Israeli politics
...and instead sampling Cypriot politics. Nicosia is the only divided capital in Europe. Since 1974 Nicosia (and the island) has been divided by a green line that separates the "occupied" (Turkish) north from the south.

Christmas Cheer

When you live in a Jewish country where the largest minority is Muslim, Christmas isn't really on the calendar. The upside of this is that you are not constantly bombarded by Christmas advertising -- buy this for your mom, that for your dad, decorate your house with this bauble, listen to this music, etc. The downside is that December creeps up on you and it's hard to find any of the trappings of the holiday season. So, imagine my delight (and my travel buddy, Theresa's) when, on Friday morning, we found Christmas in downtown Nicosia: festive street lights, Christmas trees, and Christmas songs (even Anne Murray!). "Squees" of delight!

A Christmas Tree!

Our delight was somewhat subdued when we looked more closely around downtown Nicosia, both inside and outside the Old City. The recession gripping the EU is evident here. Many storefronts are now empty with "to let" signs in them. This is true on the north, Turkish, side of town too. The economy is constricting here; the retailers are really feeling it.

Walking in the Mountains

Saturday we rented a car and headed up to the Troodos mountains. We took a winding secondary (actually it might be tertiary E908) road up into the hills through villages where not much looked to be going on.

The Roadmap of the Troodos Mtn Region

The Kia I drove

We stopped in one village for what we were told was "the best coffee in Cyprus". It was good coffee, not sure if it was the best the island had to offer, but it definitely was the best price to value coffee we had all weekend. Cypriot coffee is the sweetened, boiled variety that leaves a layer of sludge at the bottom of your cup; it's really similar to Turkish coffee or coffee you'd find in the Arabic world, although it didn't have any cardamom in it. Still, yum.

There are fantastic roadsigns in Cyprus:

Legacy of the Brits: "Mind"

I'm not sure what to make of this one!

And, frequently signs that say "CAUTION: Drive on the LEFT". Sadly I don't have one of those to share.

The walking-hiking in the mountains was fabulous on Sunday. We walked to the Kaledonia Falls that are nestled into a deciduous forest, then over the shoulder of another hill (does 1700m above sea level count as a mountain?) into a pine forest.

The Kaledonia Waterfall

with a rainbow!

This was something like going from Manning Park to Penticton in about 5 minutes on foot. Gratefully we had clear skies and some sun; much of the rest of the weekend it's been raining off and on. Our hike took us near the Troodos ski resort (this is really more of a bunny hill) and Cyprus's Mount Olympus (not Zeus's Mount Olympus - that's in Greece) on the Persephone trail.

Pine trees -- with cones that look like perched birds

View south from our hike - Pano Platres village and the Med Sea beyond

Climate change update: Locals reported that snow skiing in the Troodos mountains is not what it once was. Winters are warmer and sometimes there isn't enough snow to ski on. Apparently, Israelis used to come quite regularly (it's a 45 minute flight) to ski here; now they mostly come to have a civil marriage. (A complication of life in Israel: you may be Jewish enough to make aliyah (immigrate), but you may not be Jewish enough to be married by a rabbi.)  Marriage tourism is a major industry in Cyprus.

Taking a break from Israeli politics

Okay, not really. Israeli politics aren't like Canadian politics which nobody outside of Canada follows so that when you leave Canada you can leave the politics mostly behind (if you wish). You can't really escape Israeli politics. Especially not on the weekend that Hamas celebrated its 25th anniversary with a massive rally in Gaza. But, it is nice to take a break from Jerusalem. And, even though I'm no more Cypriot than I am Israeli, and Cyprus is more European and less American than Israel, in a way there is something more familiar about Cyprus. In a way I feel like less of an outsider here. Maybe that's not all of Israel, maybe it's just Jerusalem.


Last night we had dinner with Cypriot friends of Theresa's.

After dinner

They told us elections are coming up in February and the biggest issue is the bailout that Cyprus is negotiating with the EU. When I asked our hosts what other issues were of relevance, e.g. health, education, environment? they said, "Has no one told you that Cyprus is an island of idiots? No one cares about anything more than having enough money to buy their daily coffee." Um, okay, I had noticed that you can pay 4 Euros for a coffee in town, but still... They went on to say that since joining the EU in 2004 life in Cyprus has changed tremendously. In some ways it is better for younger people, they've got much greater opportunity to participate in European life, to travel and accumulate wealth. The downside is that prices have gone way up and Cyprus has lost much of its culture. When I asked what characterized Cypriot culture, our hosts replied, "good question."[ed. note: so it's not only Canadians who struggle to define their culture.]


Back to Jerusalem tonight.  I'll update this post with pictures as soon as I can.

Epilogue: The taxi driver (who works for Theresa's friend's company) drove me to the airport on Monday night. He took the long route through Larnaca, the busy beach town on the south coast. It was Monday night, but it was desperately quiet downtown. Open cafes were empty, or had one busy table. While we drove I asked Nassos about the occupation of Cyprus and its membership in the EU. He told me he's a Greek Cypriot that grew up in a village in the North that is now occupied. He said the Turks are changing everything in the North (I think he meant "Turkifying" everything) by changing town names and converting churches to mosques. He said that Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots were getting along fine in their united Cyprus...but reported history says otherwise. Anyway, he said that part of the motivation of joining the EU was to remove the occupiers. So, far, nearly 9 years on, there's been no change.  And, for now, this is what you need to cross the border:

North Cyprus Visa

On borders and settlements

This post is really an addendum to yesterday's...

I watched a series of five videos on the New York Times website entitled, Challenges in Defining an Israeli-Palestinian Border that I think offers a great perspective on the issues in the Israel-Palestine conflict. If you are curious to know more these videos are a great place to start.

And for more detail on the implications of the potential new 3000 units in East Jerusalem see Rudoren in the New York Times on Dividing the West Bank, and Deepening a Rift.

Meanwhile, Hillary has said, "these activities set back the cause of a negotiated peace". I haven't watched her speech so I don't know if she was referring to a particular peace -- the immediate peace (which is really more of a truce) related to the ceasefire following Operation Pillar of Defence or peace as in a two-state solution. Likely she meant both. 

The 29th of November

Still more politics, still few answers.

29 November is an important day in this part of the world.  On 29 November 1947 (here known as kaf-tet beNovember, there's a street named after it),  the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 181 on the Partition of Palestine. And that's where much of what happens here these days has its roots.

This year on 29 November, the United Nations General Assembly voted 138 to 9 (with 41 abstentions)  to grant the Palestinian Authority non-member observer status. The US and Canada were among the 9 that voted against the motion.

Ehud Olmert, the former Israeli PM (2006-2009, and yes, he was convicted of breach of trust in July this year) is getting lots of press for having written that the PA's UN bid is “congruent with the basic concept of the two-state solution”.

Netanyahu (aka "Bibi") said the UN vote was "meaningless"; then he said that the speech Abbas (aka "Abu Mazen") delivered at the UN that was "defamatory and venomous".  This is probably because Abu Mazen made mention in his speech of ethnic cleansing in Palestine. Briefly, this is super controversial. Ethnic cleansing may refer to ongoing Israeli policies and-or more particularly to the 1948 Independence War. For Israelis 14 May 1948 is Independence Day; Palestinians call it Al-Nakba -- the Catastrophe. One of the leading Israeli historians researching and writing on what happened at the end of Mandatory Palestine is Ilan Pappe. And, if the PA has status at the UN it might start applying to join UN Agencies including the International Criminal Court...and it might pursue claims against Israel there.  The UK abstained from the vote because it couldn't get sufficient assurance that the PA would, after a successful bid, return to the negotiating table and refrain from prosecuting Israelis through the ICC.

As for the Canadian position, John Baird said:

Yesterday’s unilateral action does nothing to further the Middle East peace process. It will not change the reality on the streets of the West Bank or Gaza. This unilateral step is an impediment to peace.

Ummmm...exactly how is a vote at the UN General Assembly a unilateral action? And, why should it be assumed to be an impediment to peace? In fact, it has been said that with clear borders, the separation barrier wouldn't be needed. 

According to Haaretz earlier in November, Abu Mazen made the bid at the UN to pursue the Palestinian right to self-determination and to get back to the negotiating table to move toward a two-state solution:

Abbas, however, is determined to go ahead with his bid to the UN. The way he sees it, this is the last best chance to negotiate with Israel, backed by a sweeping international decision on the borders of the Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. It is clear to him that, when they have their own state, the Palestinians will not be able to demand the return of refugees to Israel. This order of priorities has accompanied the Palestinian position since 1988. The territorial issue is the most substantive, while the refugee issue is the main bargaining chip.

It's a beyond me to unpack this much, but you get the idea that the two sides have really different ideas -- maybe something like a chicken and an egg -- on how to move to resolution.  

In the words of Abu-Mazen "a birth certificate for the State of Palestine has been issued". Some Palestinians are celebrating; those who would prefer a single state solution are unhappy. (A single state is untenable to most Israelis because the difference in demographics makes it unlikely that a Jewish majority could be maintained.)

And, the next day Bibi ordered the building of 3000 new homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. According to Haaretz,

If built, the controversial plan would prevent territorial contiguity between the northern and southern West Bank, making it difficult for a future Palestinian state to function. 

Territorial integrity as affected by settlements is a big issue already -- the Israeli state is a mostly east-west contiguity (Tel Aviv, Modi'in, Jerusalem) and the Palestinian state is mostly north-south (Nablus, Ramallah, Jerusalem, Bethelem, Hebron).  Anyway, I don't know how to evaluate this news -- politics or policy? -- or whether it will impact anything at all.

What does it mean to Bibi's quest for re-election in January? Probably not much. He seems to have victory sealed up already. The trend in Israeli politics is to lean further to the right . What does it mean to peace talks? What does it mean to the ceasefire? Do they have any relationship?