Alive?

I saw this cat and took about six pictures of it.  All the while the cat just stared at me, not blinking, not turning its head.

Weird Rubber Shoes–The One Thing Everyone Likes

Something I’ve noticed since landing here is the high number of people wearing Crocs.  I don’t really have anything against Crocs, they seem comfortable, but honestly, I think they look pretty silly.  I never quite understood how Brown’s Shoe Fit  Co. in Grinnell could sell their mountains of Crocs.  Who is buying all of those funny looking shoes?  Here, though, there are entire stores selling only Crocs.

And it is not at all surprising.  Some of the most stylish girls on the street wear Crocs.  Off duty soldiers wear Crocs.  The spaced-out “manager” of the hostel-bar-indian restaurant-movie theater we stayed at in Tel Aviv was wearing mismatched Crocs.  Moms wear Crocs.  Babies wear Crocs.  Dads wear Crocs.  Even this stately Arab man has taken advantage of Crocs Inc.’s endless array of colors to perfectly complete his all-white ensemble.

Maybe if all Israelis and Palestinians would just take a look at each others’ feet every once in a while, they would see that whatever their differences are, they really are all just people who like Crocs.

Tel Aviv

Marketplace Marketplace

See those sandals they are selling? I bought some of those the other day.  They are the kind that look like what the Romans or Jesus would have worn, which I guess is the point.

I had been glancing longingly at those shoes since I got here.  A couple days ago I was walking through the Old City and lingered at a sandal shop.  Lingering on anything is obviously an invitation for the shopkeeper to start offering tea and good prices and a pleasant buying experience.  But when I was walking away, the shopkeeper said “Come back!  Free shoes!  You can have free shoes!”  I thought that was such a hilarious proposition that I went back and bought some shoes.  They were very reasonably priced, though not free.  In fact, I’m  pretty sure that I paid quite a bit more for them than I had to.  I am absolutely terrible at bargaining, unless I don’t want something.

After I left, wearing my new sandals, every sandal shop I passed was even more aggressively courting my business than they had been previously.  I understand I had tagged myself now as not simply a tourist, but as a tourist who buys things.  But the sandal-sellers drew the obvious conclusion that if I had just bought myself a pair of sandals, the next thing I would want to buy would probably be a pair of sandals.  Of course.

Anyway, now I’ve got new sandals.  When I walk I stare at my feet and think about being a prophet or the Virgin Mary.  I say to myself, “I’m just another pilgrim with the simplest leather sandals, on my way to the ATM.”

The Armenian Quarter

A few small things to say

We returned from a couple days in the lovely town of Nazareth on Saturday evening. On Sunday we went back to work. Thinking of Sunday as a work day requires a little bit of turning my brain inside out, but I dealt with it ok.

Anyway, here are a few things I saw yesterday:

A VW Bus

Three black breifcases, the ultimate sign of adulthood

A cushy chair, a cup, and a closed “Oriental” restaurant.

Bible Tour

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

The seventh station of the cross.

Amidst cries of “Hello, where are you from? Would you like a tour? Juice? Want Juice?” and a lot of buying and selling and chaos and people, I followed around the Via Dolorosa today in the Old City. I have been to that part of Jerusalem so many times now that it seems I should know my way around, but I am always immediately lost as soon as I start trying to find my way to any specific point.

They’re Everywhere

The other day on the bus, someone’s cellphone started blaring Sheryl Crow. I looked to see where it was coming from and, of course, it was the girl with big sunglasses, manicured nails, an army uniform, and a machine gun whose pink-sparkle cellphone was ringing (not the same girl as pictured above). And the other day a young couple in civilian clothes asked Max and I for directions. It was jarring as they walked away to see their machine guns swinging behind them.

Mandatory military service is just a part of life here, and the soldiers are required to keep their guns with them all the time. I don’t feel threatened by the nice kids with guns, nor do I sense that there will be any reason for anyone to use one of those guns in the vicinity of myself. But still, it is hard for me to imagine having military service be so much a part of my daily life, and I still find it difficult not to stare at the stylish girl soldiers. As Max pointed out, the two of us would have finished our time by now, and who would I be if I had just finished 3 years in the military instead of 3 years majoring in Art at Oberlin College?

Anyway, yesterday must have been field trip day for the soldiers. I ran into the crowd above while taking a bus tour of the city. And later, at the archeological attraction City of David, where the top picture is taken, most of the visitors were soldiers.

Life and Politics

The separation wall being built around the West Bank:

In the park from which I took this picture, life goes on:

People even go on doing really weird exercises for anyone to walk by and see.

Mahane Yehuda Market

Friday afternoon in Mahane Yehuda.