Extreme Weather in Israel. Duh!?! It Does Happen!

Shalom Yeladim:

I'm flying in to bring you some needed sunshine as you hunker down and get ready for the "perfect storm." Whew...sounds like it's going to be awesome, as in the original definition of the word.

Sorry, I can't bring you our warm sun rays, but I can bring you sunshines of smiles by giving you this Extreme Weather in Israel quiz. Ready?

1. How long did the recent drought in Israel last?

2. When did it end?

3. At the end of that period a man made disaster was made infinitely worse because of the extremely dry climate. What was that disaster?

4. Israel recently experienced extreme snowfall with the largest snowstorm in two decades. When was that?

5. What was the highest temperature ever recorded in Israel? When and where?

6. What was the lowest temperature ever recorded in Israel? When and where?

7. What was the highest wind gust ever recorded in Israel? When and where?

8. What kind of extreme weather do Israeli meteorologists predict over the next decade?


Scroll down for the answers. But first, I hope this Tel Aviv sunset will bring a smile to your face.

Keep safe, warm and dry. Sip on some hot chocolate while you read the answers.


1. Five years
2. December 2010
3. Carmel Forest fire
4. December 2010 (ironic, no?)
5, 129º F, June 1942, at Kibbutz Tirat Tzvi
6. 7º F, February 1950, in the Beit Netofah Valley
7. 99 mph, January 1974, in Jerusalem
8. Read all about it


Tel Aviv sunset photo credit

Holy Cow! Our Cattle Waste is Powering 6,000 Homes!

Shalom Yeladim:

The holidays are over and now it's back to business as usual. Business as usual???? In Israel, it's always business as unusual.

You know that we Israelis don't like being cowed into doing anything. So, going at our own pace we developed a way to gain the highest milk yield from our Holstein cows.

Now we've come up with another cow "technique" and all I can say is mooo over environmentalists. We've set up a new biogas conversion facility in a moshav  -- agricultural village -- located in our southern region. It's aim is to turn livestock waste -- and I bet those Holstein cows have a lot -- into electricity. At the end of the day its output is set to be 4 megawatts of electricity.  That's enough to power 6,000 homes!

You know what I have to say about that? Holy cow!





Photo credit

Guess Who's the Artist Behind the New Masorti Movement Simhat Torah Flag?

Shalom Yeladim:

I'm so excited! Take a look at the new Masorti Movement Simhat Torah flag.

 I love it! Not only because it puts girls and boys, men and women on an equal footing -- and there's a lot of footwork on Simhat Torah -- but also because of something else. And that else is the artist who made the flag -- Ksenia Topaz. I am the cutest, shovavi fly around thanks to Ksenia. Tami created me and the whole idea of my book -- and Ksenia? She gave me my look.  Yup! Ksenia, the same artist who created this flag, illustrated my book Zvuvi's Israel. 

I can't wait for the Hakafot. I'm going to spread the buzz.

חג שמח

P.S. Can you name the historical figures on the right side of the flag? What else makes this flag unique? Write and tell me.