Tel Aviv Thinking

"Thoughts of Tel Aviv" Picture taken by Jake Barker January 2007, Jaffo Tel Aviv

The White Night

So there was an advert that kept catching my eye promoting a night run in Tel Aviv over the last month. The run took place on the 28 June to coincide with a French tradition called White Night which Tel Aviv has adopted. White Night is when the city's cultural institutions, bars, stores etc... open their doors till the early hours of the morning.

So I decided to set myself a goal and enter the night run and do some training for it. The options were a 5km or 10 km run. To cut a long story short, preparations were bad I entered the 5km run and did two practise runs of about 3km beforehand on the week of the run I pulled a few back spasms plus a heatwave hit the city for the week, 30 degrees with 80% humitity.

Anyway, the best part is complaining beforehand, by the end most of the 5,000 participants did the 10km run so I was one of the first few to get over the finish line in a proud time of 28 minutes. (See picture above). Next year perhaps the 10.

Statistics are revealing and here is the proof why

For those that live here, even for those that don't realise the Israeli driving culture is unique. Unique is an understatement, it is more likely described as a culutral difference or a Middle east mentality, related to stress and concern over terror, built in with the fact roads and signage are not well organised. Whatever the reason, the statistics are shocking just a quick review from the Israeli police website showed me that (and you will be happy to note a drop) from 1998 52,000 people were wounded in a year in car accidents compared to "only" 36,241 last year. While the number of accidents in 1998 was a whopping 26308 in a year, last year it was 17,499. I am not going to gore you with the death count buts lets just add that you have more chance of dying on the roads than in any terror/war related events in this country. In summary, to proof my point and the problem, I eye-witnessed and took this picture (from a passenger seat) of a happy driver on the highway. (Yes, we use left hand drive cars in this country.

Pride and Happiness

By the time we got our act together, organised a few bicycles to ride around the city for the day and go see the festivities of the Gay Pride parade it was already late afternoon, but this did not stop the festivity goers from partying through the heat of the day on the main beach front in Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv is open and welcoming to the Gay community, there was even some talk in the papers lately of the tourism ministry promoting the Pink Shekel (gay tourism) less said about Jerusalem where last year's attempt to hold a rally caused lots of protest and compromises.

Gay pride parties are renowned to be a good party, and guess what the participants were Jewish as well!

Don't laugh it's not funny - The Sharaf

Now, it took me a while in Israel to realise what the brown grey, smoggy. misty atmoshphere is on some days in the Middle East. They call it a Sharaf - it is a mixture of a heat wave and sandstorm.

The sky is red and brown due to all the sand in the air, and the weather is honestly like a sauna, humid, muggy, actually laughable when you exit from an air conditioned area. People and life just moves slower on these days and you cannot do anything other than accept it. Now a sharaf (sandstorm/heatwave) breaks after a few days resulting in the heavens opening with rain. (Note: the weather is still hot humid and disgusting while it rains) No cool relieve. So a mixture of sandstorm and water creates a weird substance when it hits land.

I happened to time my car wash perfectly the day before the sharaf started, this picture the day after the sharaf broke.

Just around the corner to Caesarea

After about a half an hour drive north from the city of Tel Aviv, I found myself in the 2,000 year old ancient ruins of Caesarea.

Orginally built by Herod the Great about 25 –13 BC, its a fortress, palace, harbour beautifully located on the coast of the Mediterranean. Between Romans, Crusaders, Jews and Muslims various peoples conquered and reconquered this fascinating place.

Having done numerous tours and travels around Israel, I was quite embarrassed to admit that I had not explored this gem of history just half an hour from my house.

London in One Hundred and Twenty Two Seconds

Thanks to Wayne "The Ultimate Tourguide" Sussman

The top five internet documentaries

(According to the Daily Telegraph)

Loose Change (www.loosechange911.com)
One of the most popular internet documentaries yet created. Dylan Avery, Korey Rowe, and Jason Bermas edited this 9/11 conspiracy argument on an aging laptop - it's now been downloaded over four million times. Watch the riposte, Screw Loose Change, at lolloosechange.co.nr.

My Second Life (www.tinyurl.com/2798o2)
A documentary shot entirely on location in the internet's most popular virtual world, Second Life.

Skiing in Iran (tinyurl.com/382b4s)
An American skier and his family challenge our preconceptions about Iran by carving up the slopes and generally having a great time. And there's not a mad mullah or nuclear warhead in sight.

Michael Jackson's Sonic 3 (tinyurl.com/kv22d)
Rumour has it that Michael Jackson was originally asked to pen a score for this classic Sega game - this documentary argues that some of his work still remains hidden in the soundtrack.

One Inch Punch (tinyurl.com/fqur8)
A look at Bruce Lee's famous "one inch punch" technique and how it shaped martial arts.

Angered over an unnecessary death

My latest piece related to the Bob Woolmer murder at the World Cup cricket:

http://www.sportingo.com/david-myers/1000,555

Sportingo - Sport and New Age Web Sites

I recently wrote an article for a new start up sports site, Sportingo, where sports fans can write articles that professional editors edit and put online. Hopefully, I will be writing more and doing some content work with them.

Click here to check it out.

Head Surgery in the Shuk

I had the interesting opportunity to wake up at the crack on Saturday to head out to the ancient city of Hebron with a couple of journalists who were invited to see the Physicians for Human Rights (an Israeli NGO organisation) perform their medical clinics for Palestinian patients who do not receive any medical treatment. Approximately 20 volunteer Israeli and Israeli Arab doctors set up a make shift treatment centre after the medicines were carted into rooms within the Old City while hundreds of people waiting there to receive medicines and consultation.

A quick tour of the Old City showed how sections had been blocked off due to tensions and clashes between Palestinians living in the area and a group of Jewish settlers who live dispersed around the area. Locals were saying that 10 years ago, the Old City was threiving while today no tourists or business was noticable while half the shops were also closed.

However, we were hosted to some cafne (rich, sweet, cheese desert and tea) while the shopkeeper tried to dress me up as a shephard.

(I did not have the stomach to try the two shekel falafel.)

Following that a small crowd swelled (pun intended) next to a stall in the Shuk (market) and the talk of the town was a surgery. Doctors started performing a minor surgery on a patient's head to remove a growth right in the middle of a stall selling cleaning products, the man lying on a simple matress was sedated while the journalists enjoyted this photo opportunity and bystanders enjoyed the gore factor. A surreal scene to see and encounter (see picture below)

A Panaromic view of Hebron from a rooftop in the Old City

Avaaz.org - Clash of Civilization

Davis Cup Tennis in Ramat Hasharon

Its not often there are "big" sporting events in Israel and it is not often Israel excels and causes a whitewash and it is not often that rain stops play in Israel. So I had the privilege of seeing all of this as Israel took on Luxembourg in the Davis Cup tournament in Canada Stadium at Israel's main tennis centre in Ramat Hasharon. Luxemburg is by no means a tennis nation they have one player ranked in the mid 100's of the ATP equivalent to the two Israeli single players and the rest of the team are ranked way out in the 1000's. So the excitement was there as a few thousands supporters packed the stands. Off it went, the powerhouse and Israeli number one Noam Okum cruised past his opponent losing one game only in the third set. Then it was the more evenly matched Dudu Sela (who was in good form from the Australian Open) taking on the Luxembourg number one. By that time, like two hours into the day the crowd was restless, either the Israeli crowd were so excited to have some good live professional sport or they just did not know how to behave or letting in lots of unsupervised youths is a bad idea. You be the judge! But I have never sat at a tennis game where the crowd throws paper jets onto the court and get up and walk around during points! Quite the experience, anyway, Sela was in good form and had the upper hand when rain stopped play, the next two days Israel won all their other games setting up a convincing whitewash victory!

Senior Zimbabwean Davis Cup supporter and once a week player in Israel, Hilton Burke, gets mesmerized by top Israeli female player Shahar Peer (front left) in the blue cap.

The Last King of Scotland

Staying on a similar topic from my last post that being of Africa, I went to see the Last King of Scotland - a movie based on a novel depicting the life and rule of Ugandan President and horrific dictator Idi Amin.

The movie starts of in that happy African spirit (similiar to Hotel Rwanda) of beautiful countryside landscapes, dancing energetic people and African sounds and slowly slowly the problems arise and it all deteriorates into disaster. The power, corruption lack of trust, seer madness (Amin gave himself the title: "His ExcellencyPresident for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Sea, and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular.") symbolises most of the stories of African rule and government, a President with the charisma, who starts off promising his supporters change and hope lands up "taking out" every threat or suspicion that arises.

The acting was superb especially by Forest Whitaker who plays Amin, and portrays the decorated soldier who is big active and sporty with a sense of humour and charisma that charms all. I even read recently that Ugandans are struggling to watch footage of Whitaker because it reminds them so much of Amin and the traumatic past. Also, amazing how Israel always gets a mention in everything (Amin played a part in dealing with the Palestinian Entebbe Hijacking of an air France plane which Israeli troops later stormed and rescued the Israeli and Jewish passengers).

So, thats my recommended movie from on top of the world this week.

The Bang Bang Club

Snapshots of a Hidden War by Greg Marinovich and Joao Silva

The one thing I was looking forward to when I was in South Africa for two weeks at the beginning of the year was to peruse the local book store to pick up a few of my favourite genres, that being non-fiction African books. I tend to prefer the books displaying the hardships, complexities, misunderstandings that portray the forgotten continent. These type of books give off a mystic, inspiring, hope to this fascinating place. The Bang Bang Club is one of those that hit my genre tastes. A book about the heart of the South African Apartheid changes and transformations from the 80's to the mid 90's. The stories of a group of a close knit friends, companions and photojournalists termed the Bang Bang club for their pursue of the perfect picture to expose the world to the realities of the violence and warfare in the transformation of a country to democracy and freedom. They were Kevin Carter, Greg Marinovich, Ken Oosterbroek, and Joao Silva. A group of photo journalists in the thick of the tribal black hostel wars where the killings and death were brutal, indescribable and obscene. They had this rush and feeling of responsibility to be at the scene and capture the images that were portrayed all around the world at the is time. Aside from astonishing pictures, the book goes into the personal life's, their relationships, their ideologies, zest for life, battle with drugs and dealing with the images they saw. Which untimely resulted in death and suicide for some.

The one point that stands out from the story and reminded me again and again that during South Africa's "miracle" transformation the democracy change which allowed one person one vote, thousands of people lost their lives in tribal clashes, riots against the police and political instability. It was far from a smooth transition and presents that any transformation in a country will see and have to pay many, many sacrifices. A highly recommendable and a must read for those interested in the South African transformation.

Big Day out in Jafo - My first YouTube video!

Peer- First Israeli to Make Quater Final in Aussie Grand Slam

Shahar Pe'er came within two points of a semi-final birth in the first Grand Slam of the year, but was unable to capitalize, losing to former No. 1 Serena Williams in a thriller 6:3, 2:6, 6:8.

If Peer had won I planned on taking my racquet to work and to wear a white tennis shirt, Unfortunately nobody in the office would have understood.

One month since last post;Holiday;Cape Town; End of a Chapter in Life

Been a long time since the last blog; Cape Town two weeks; Friends; Family; Summer; Sport; Reflection;Closure;

Start: New Years Eve; Cricket Test Match Newlands SA vs India; SA win series; Family; Swimming Pools; Sister's Engagement party; Biltong (240 Rand per kilo); Lots of meat; SA Music; Waterfront; Old School Friends; Brandy and Coke; Hermanus; Beauty; Driving left hand side of road; Addis Abbaba; Johannesburg; SA media; Wining and Dining; New Cricket Bat; New digital camera; cleaning house; clearing out room; closing the Cape Town chapter in my life.