Travel and Food

Elon Musk wants to take a ‘futuristic Noah’s ark’ to Mars

Published by BANG Showbiz English Elon Musk wants to bring animals and humans to Mars “like a futuristic Noah’s ark”. The 50-year-old billionaire entrepreneur’s dream is to reach the Red Planet via spacecraft and ultimately create an intergalactic “self-sustaining city”. In order to fulfil his vision, Musk believes he needs to bring animals into outer […]

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Travel and Food

Yale Strom’s Search for Jewish Music throughout Eastern Europe

In retrospect, ethnomusicologist Yale Strom probably owes a thank you to the local klezmer band members who turned down his request to play violin with them.  That rejection prompted him to decide to form his own band.  However, he resolved that before doing that, he ought to search for material that other klezmer musicians weren’t playing. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Travel and Food

A Trip to Tiberias on the Kinneret’s Western Shore

With about 45,000 residents, Tiberias is a relatively small town located on the western side of Lake Kinneret. The lake is one of Israel’s most popular holiday destinations, for tourists and Israelis alike. Named for the Roman Emperor Tiberius, the city is famed for the legendary rabbis who resided there, for its hot springs, and for Tiberias’ colorful lakeside promenade. [Steve Kramer]

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Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Steve Kramer, Travel and Food

Historical Novel Tells of 19th Century Yemenite Jews

The pomegranate pendant of the title was fashioned in gold as a wedding gift for Mazal, a fourteen-year-old Yemenite girl who is the narrator of the book. The events she recounts begin in the capital of Yemen, Sana’a, in the modest home where she lives with her parents and siblings. Her father, a skilled artisan who fashions the intricate filigree jewelry that is produced by many of Yemen’s Jews, informs his daughter that his apprentice, Ezra, has asked for her hand in marriage, and that he, her father, had given his approval. The pendant was made by Ezra, as a gift for his bride. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Travel and Food

StandWithUs Condemns CAIR Executive’s Antisemitism

StandWithUs strongly condemns the overtly antisemitic speeches given by Zahra Billoo and Nihad Awad, two senior officials at the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). The speeches took place at the American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) Annual Conference in Chicago on November 27, 2021. Both AMP and CAIR have a long and growing record of actions and rhetoric that meet the internationally accepted IHRA Definition of Antisemitism. [StandWithUs]

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Travel and Food

Moroccan Cemeteries Waiting to be Visited and Remembered

In early July, I set out with colleagues of the High Atlas Foundation—a U.S. and Moroccan non-for-profit organization—to meet with agricultural cooperatives in Morocco to understand their needs and goals and create action plans toward lasting development. Along the way, we visited Jewish and Christian cemeteries, and met their caretakers and neighboring community members to discover their heritage stories. [Yossef Ben-Meir]

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International, Jewish History, Travel and Food, Yossef Ben-Meir

Good News from Israel (November 28, 2021)

In the November 28, 2021 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:
–Two Israeli breakthroughs in cancer research.
–Two Israeli women “break the glass ceiling” – in innovation and IDF leadership.
–Two historic events uniting Israel and the UAE.
–Two more cool Israeli energy-saving innovations.
–Boost in Israel’s economic ties with Serbia and Morocco.
–Four more billion-dollar Israeli companies.
–Israeli wins at the Emmy awards and in the World jiu-jitsu championships.
–Two major Temple-era archaeological discoveries in Jerusalem [Michael Ordman]

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Business & Finance, International, Jewish History, Michael Ordman, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, Sports & Competitions, The World We Share, Travel and Food, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA

Memoir May Prompt Reflection about Your Own Father-Son Relationships

This is a powerful book, a disguised memoir in the form of a novel, about a man who fought and loved fiercely, and the impact he had on the lives of his three sons.  It seems obvious from the brief biographical sketch of author Stuart Z. Goldstein at the end of the book that he is the model for Zachary, Son Number Two of the fictitious Murray Goldman, who boxed under the name of “Moe Fields.” [Donald H. Harrison]

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Travel and Food

Wait! Are Those Turkeys Kosher?

Some of the rabbis of the previous centuries identified the turkey as the הוֹדוּ תַּרְנְגוֹל “Indian chicken,” and thought the bird originated in India. Jews were not the only ones who thought this way. The French referred to turkey as poulet d’Inde (“Chicken from India”), as did the Polish, Ukrainian and Russian countries. It was assumed that the rabbis in India permitted it. However, this was an assumption that could never be proven since it was based on a false assumption: Turkeys did not exist in India! [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Judaism, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Middle East, Travel and Food, USA

Sampling Israel’s Ethnic Groups and Restaurants

Author Ethan Michaeli is an American journalist with a knack for schmoozing with people wherever he goes.  While he lives in Chicago, his older brother and parents live in Israel. He travels frequently to Israel to see his Hungarian-born parents and his brother, and whenever he does so, he likes to go touring around the country, meeting people from as many different backgrounds as possible. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Middle East, Travel and Food

Jewish Veterans Swap Favorite Stories of Military Times

After raising the flag and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, military veterans at  Tifereth Israel Synagogue on Veterans Day, Thursday, Nov. 11, shared some of the happier stories about their time in the military or just afterwards. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA