Dorothea Shefer-Vanson Archives - Page 3 of 35

Meir Shalev’s ‘My Wild Garden’ Brings to Light Israel’s Ethos, History, and Development

July 20, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — From time to time I like to test my ability to read a literary text in Hebrew (the daily newspaper can hardly be called “literary”) by reading a book in that language. After all, I have been living in Israel for almost 60 years and have had to […]

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An Evening in Hungary

July 6, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — At the risk of repeating myself (and starting to sound like a cracked record), I feel impelled to write about yet another fascinating musical event I was privileged to attend. “An Evening in Hungary” was the title given to a programme of music primarily from that country performed

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Israel, Music and Visual Arts

Musica Aeterna in Jerusalem

June 30, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson JERUSALEM — A small notice tucked away in our local newspaper caught my attention, and the promise of a performance of choral music by Russian composers seemed intriguing. In addition, the venue was an unusual one – the Ratisbonne Monastery in Jerusalem’s Rehavia neighborhood. So, we ordered tickets and turned up on

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Music and Visual Arts

Political Correctness or Madness?

June 22, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson I left my homeland of England about 60 years ago and came to live in Israel for a variety of reasons, one of them being the weather. The England that I left behind was a fairly stable country with regard to the composition of its population, which was largely white. There were,

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Israel, Lifestyles, Opinion

The Good Samaritan Inn

June 15, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — So many times, on our way back to Jerusalem after spending a few days at the Dead Sea or in Eilat, we passed the sign directing travelers to the Good Samaritan Inn and Mosaic Museum. I often wanted to make the slight detour to visit the site but

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Travel and Food

Ghosts From the Past

June 8, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Attending a concert recently in Jerusalem, I suddenly found myself surrounded by ghosts. In the row in front of me sat an elderly woman whose face I recognized but whose name I had forgotten. When I had last seen her, about twenty years ago, she and I were

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Lifestyles, Opinion

Music Was the Beginning of Her Love Story

June 5, 2023

My love of music even brought me the love of my life. After first meeting at a student party we quickly found out that we both loved classical music, especially chamber music, and our first ‘dates’ consisted of listening to one another’s records of our favorite compositions. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Israel, Music and Visual Arts, Travel and Food

Ceremonies and Celebrations

May 29, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — There was a time when an invitation to a wedding or even a party would arrive in the post, artistically embellished, in an envelope with a stamp, plus a smaller card on which to confirm one’s participation in the event, and information about the time, date, and place.

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles

Revisiting the the Rothschilds

May 2, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — While sorting through and getting rid of books in order to accommodate a new item of furniture I came across “The Rothschilds: A Family Portrait,” which I had given to my father for his birthday in 1965. It still bears my dedication, “To Daddy, with love,” reminding me

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Jewish History

‘Twelve Tribes’ and Music as a Source of Hope

April 26, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — It was with a mixture of anticipation and apprehension that we bought tickets for the concert of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra in which the first half consisted of the performance of an unknown work entitled “Twelve Tribes” by an unfamiliar composer, Benjamin Yusupov. The attraction of the second

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Music and Visual Arts, Opinion

Died, Disappeared, Perished

April 18, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Something that never ceases to amaze (and annoy) me is the extent to which various euphemisms are used to describe what happened in the Holocaust to 6 million Jews. Why is everyone — whether individuals, politicians or scholars — so reluctant to use the correct term: murder? For

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Holocaust, International, Opinion

Difficult Times During Passover in Israel

April 10, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — This year’s Passover festival began under the cloud that has enveloped Israel ever since the mass demonstrations protesting the so-called “legal reform” began. Yet preparations for the festival went ahead in the customary fashion, with spring cleaning and food purchases and preparations much as usual. By a quirk

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Opinion

Worrying Echoes in Israel

March 31, 2023

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — The echoes of events that happened in Germany just a few decades ago are continuing to disturb my peace of mind and give me sleepless nights. We all know that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s position is precarious and that his main goal is to avoid having to stand

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