We Won the Latest Battle in the Hummus War

Shalom Yeladim:
You won’t believe this – Lebanon has declared a “Hummus War” against us. If you’ve ever eaten hummus, you know it’s delicious. I love taking a dip in this mashed up mixture of chickpeas, olive oil, sesame paste, lemon juice and garlic. It’s not only healthy, it’s fun to eat because you don’t use a fork or a spoon. You scoop it up with pita bread. So why have the Lebanese declared a “Hummus War” on Israel? Here’s the scoop. It began a year-and-a-half ago when some Lebanese businessmen took Israel to court. They said that Israel was making and selling hummus as an Israeli food and because of that, Lebanon, the originator of hummus, is losing millions of business dollars. It’s true that hummus is eaten all across the Middle East and its popularity has spread (oh, I’m having fun with this) to Europe and the United States. But to say it was originally made in Lebanon???!!! That’s like saying the Egyptians can sue the world for making bread because rolls and bread loaves have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs. But the Lebanese insisted and they went on to prepare a HUGE plate of hummus weighing over two tons. They told their fellow countrymen to “Come fight for your bite. You know you’re right.” They fought to have the largest bowl of hummus in the world by making a new Guiness World Record, and they won. But the victory proved to be an uphill battle because last week we slam dunked them. There’s an Israeli-Arab village near Jerusalem called Abu Gosh. In Israel, this town is known as the hummus capital and the owner of the most famous hummus restaurant was not bowled over by the Lebanese success. “We can do better than that,” he declared, “much better.” An Israeli telecommunications company gave the restaurant a satellite dish 20 feet in diameter to fill with hummus. A week ago Friday, people living in Abu Gosh and all over Israel came to the restaurant to make hummus with their own hands. All together they used 2.5 tons of chickpeas, 1.5 tons of sesame paste, hundreds of freshly squeezed lemons and a vat of crushed garlic. A Guinness official was present and at the end of the day Israel’s Abu Gosh Restaurant broke the Lebanese record with a new record breaking 4-ton hummus dip. So here’s what I have to say to the Lebanese: Stop the war and let’s make chickpeace.

Hey…that reminds me. Israel Independence Day is only a few months away. This year’s celebration falls on April 20th. To start the celebration early you can buy my book, ZVUVI’S ISRAEL and get a 10% discount when you shop at Kar-Ben’s online store. Use the special code TAMI when you check out. This offer is available until April 20, 2010.

Rega (that's Hebrew for wait a minute)...here's another idea. Would you like to meet me around the time of Israel Independence Day? You can if you book a virtual Q&A with the Author. Visit Tami's website and go to the top right-hand banner that says "NEW" to find out how to do this.
You book the visit and I'll be there.
Lehitraot…Zvuvi

I’m as Fit as a Fly

Shalom Yeladim:
Did you have your swine flu vaccination? I brought you a sign showing how kids in Israel are learning about the swine flu. We’re part of the worldwide effort to get vaccinated. In fact, I just had my Khisun – that’s vaccination in Hebrew, against Shapat Khazirim – which means swine flu. When my turn came I hardly felt it, and now I’m as fit as a fly. You know it’s a good thing they don’t call it the “fly flu”. That would be really confusing. Speaking of which, I flew by Israel’s Ministry of Health this week and I heard some interesting news. Listen to this: as of January 1st – which means just a few days ago, all newborn babies in Israel will have their hearing checked for free within 48 hours after being born. Isn’t that unbelievable? There’s a reason why the Israeli government has decided to pay for this check-up. Doctors in Israel have found that 3 out of every 1000 kids have hearing problems. They’re determined to find out who has hearing difficulties as soon as possible. It turns out that hearing is the most important way to get babies to react when they’re very little. It’s our hearing that helps us learn how to speak and develop our brain power. Now that all babies will be tested, babies with hearing problems will have a hearing aid attached to their ear from the time they are one month old so that they will be able to develop like all the other babies.
I understand that people in England say “Hear, Hear!” when they like something and that Americans say “Let’s hear it for…”. I like the idea of a baby hearing test, don’t you? Let’s all say “Hear, Hear!” “Let’s hear it for the hearing doctors in Israel!”
I could be really punny and say “Le’HearTraot.” But I don’t want you to groan, so I’ll just say: Le’Hitraot. See you in 2 weeks.
Zvuvi

Do You Know That We Read The Same Books?

Shalom Yeladim:
“Mah Korei”? That’s the Hebrew saying for “What’s Going On?” If you separate the words and translate each, the word “Mah” means “what” and the word “Korei” has two meanings: “happening” and “reading”. It just so happens that the books we all read are exactly what I want to talk to you about today. I bet you didn’t realize that even though we live oceans apart we still read many of the same books, or have the same books read to us. Take a look at the examples I’ve found. There’s The Cat in the Hat; and The Giving Tree; and Once Upon a Potty. So now I have a question for you: If all three of these books can be read in English AND in Hebrew, which one do you think was originally written in Hebrew and first printed in Israel? I’m going to give you five seconds to think and give me an answer.
Tick tock…1. Tick tock…2. Tick tock…3. Tick tock…4. Tick tock…5.
And the answer is…Once Upon a Potty.
Its Hebrew title – “Seer Ha’Seerim” – is a great play on words. A “Seer” is a potty and “Seerim” are many potties. But the wordplay here deals with King Solomon’s famous poem: “Shir Ha’Shirim”. The word “Shir” means poem, and “Shirim” are many poems. Speaking of poems, a LOT of Israeli children’s books are written in rhyme. That’s because we take the time to think like a King who writes poems one can sing. Which is why I’m going to say “bye” from your favorite fly.
Le’Hitraot…Zvuvi

I Want You to See How Some People in Jerusalem Light Their Hanukkiah

Have you ever met an Israeli who arrives early? Late, yes. But early? Never. Well here I am. I know I’m supposed to be visiting you next week, but I just couldn’t control myself. You see, yesterday evening I decided to take a leisurely fly-by at sundown. My destination was Me’ah She’arim – an ultra-orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem. Friends told me that the people living there have the most unbelievable Hanukkah candle lighting custom. While the rest of us light our Hanukkiah next to a window facing the street, they light their Hanukkiot outside their house, on the left hand side of the front door! The reason they do this is the same one you light yours near a window – to visually remind everybody about the miracle of the oil. The only difference is that if you light the Hanukkiah outside, you have to protect the candles from the wind, rain and maybe even snow. That’s why the people in Me’ah She’arim have special glass cases for their Hannukiot. I took a picture of the Hanukkiot lit by one family. Aren’t they neat – and don’t the lit candles look beautiful? They remind me of lanterns. Hey, that’s a great idea: Hanukkiah lanterns. Maybe you can make one as a class project? If not this year, maybe next. By the way, don’t forget to look at the wall of the building. It’s made out of Jerusalem stone. All the buildings in Jerusalem have outer walls like this – it’s the city’s trademark.
Oops. Just looked at my watch. It’s time to fly. I have to get my Hanukkiah ready for tonight. Hmmm…which city should I go to this time?
Hanukkah Sameach…Zvuvi

My Dreidel is Different than Yours

Shalom Yeladim:

What’s the difference between an Israeli dreidel and an American dreidel?
I’m going to count to five. If you don’t know by the time I reach the number five…I guess I’ll have to tell you.
1…
2…
3…
4…I’m waiting…
5…I couldn’t hear anything over here in Israel. Did anybody give the right answer? You want me to tell you?????
All right, all right.
You see the first row of dreidel letters? Those are the ones you know: the letters Nune, Gimmel, Hey, Shin. They stand for “Nes Gadol Hayah Sham”. That means a big miracle happened there. You say “there” because the miracle of the little oil found in a teeny jug occurred in Israel, which for you is far away. But we live here, in Israel, where the miracle actually happened. So our dreidel doesn’t have the letter Shin. It has the letter Peh – like the one in the next picture. It stands for the word “Poh” – which means “here” in Hebrew. We say “Nes Gadol Hayah Poh” – a big miracle happened here. And it did! The story of the Hanukkah miracle began in the city of Modi’in, birthplace of Judah Macabee – and I’m in a rush to get there. I want to take part in the annual Hanukkah torch relay race that starts in Modi’in and ends at the Western Wall…and I’m going to win. There isn’t a runner in this country who can move as fast as I can.
Wait a minute…what about you? What do you think about holding your own Hanukkah relay race in your gym? Let me know if you do and make sure the winners each get a sufganiyah. That’s Hebrew for jelly doughnut, which is the favorite Hanukkah food in Israel. Doesn’t the picture above make your mouth water? Umm…I can smell the aroma of freshly baked sufganiyot…I land on one and lick the jelly. Mm..Mm..is it good…and…OH MY! I’ve got to fly. I want to be the first one at the race.
See you.
Chag Hanukkah Sameach…Zvuvi

We Just Celebrated the Sigd Holiday

Shalom Yeladim:

I bet you never heard of Sigd, but in Israel it’s been a national holiday for the past two years. It’s a holiday that began in Ethiopia and was brought to Israel by the Beta Israel –Ethiopian Jews who live in our country. Some people believe that the Beta Israel Jews are descendants of King Solomon and the beautiful Queen of Sheba. Wow!

Ethiopia is a country in Africa. The Beta Israel community always dreamed of making Israel their home. After thousands of years, Israel is finally their country the same way it’s mine. I’m so happy and proud. That’s why I took a picture of some of my Beta Israel friends. I also took a picture of part of the Sigd celebration.

So what is the Sigd holiday all about? It takes place 50 days after Yom Kippur and it celebrates the Jews accepting the Torah on Mt. Sinai as their way of life. Sigd is cool because it’s like other Jewish holidays that start with a fast and end with a feast. We Jews know how to fast and we know how to cook! Look at the Fast of Esther which ends with a Purim feast. And what about Passover? We have the fast of the first born followed by the Seder. There’s another connection between Passover and Sigd. Passover is all about how we left Egypt and made it to the land of Canaan. In between, we were given the Torah. Towards the end of the Seder what do we say? “Le Shana Ha’ba’a B’Yerushalayim” – “Next Year in Jerusalem.” For thousands of years, on Sigd, the Beta Israel gathered on mountaintops outside their Ethiopian villages to pray for their return to Jerusalem…and look where they are today and where they have the big Sigd celebration. In Jerusalem!

I thought about taking you to Jerusalem, but I’m making a detour to Petach Tikva – a city in the center of Israel where they celebrated Sigd in their schools. Make sure you click on the video clip to see what they did. At the end you’ll see kids dressed up in Ethiopian costumes and doing a special dance with streamers. I learned how to do the dance. It’s simple. Look at the steps. Come on… dance with me!

Chag Sameach…Zvuvi

Why Do Israelis Like Porcupines & Sabra Fruits?

Shalom Yeladim:
I’m on my way to visit the animal hospital at the Ramat Gan Safari.I want to thank them for taking care of three cute porcupine babies that some nice animal lovers brought to the hospital because they were so teeny tiny, and had lost their way from their parents. The kind people that found them understood that these orphaned baby porcupines needed a warm home and someone to teach them how to survive. The zookeepers and veterinarians at the Safari hospital did just that for three months. They were recently put back in their natural surroundings because the Safari people felt the porcupines were ready to be on their own.
All the newspapers covered the story and it got me thinking…thinking about the Israeli version of Sesame Street and one of its main characters – “Keepee” (“Keepod” is porcupine in Hebrew). You can see a picture of “Keepee” on top of the porcupines. See any resemblance? “Keepee” is a giant porcupine and is Israel’s equivalent to Big Bird. That’s right, there is no Big Bird on Rechov Sumsum – Sesame Street in Hebrew. Israelis are very nice and caring, but Big Bird was just a little too gentle for them. The Israeli Sesame Street producers felt that Israeli boys and girls needed a character that’s like the country’s sabra fruit – prickly on the outside – just like in the picture next to “Keepee” – and warm and wonderful on the inside. That’s why everyone in Israel is called a Sabra…and that’s why they created “Keepee”. Ouch, his hair is long and spiky! But boy is he a sweetie deep down.
Hey, sounds like me. I’m a Sabra. My tentacles are not soft to the touch. With all my buzzing around I’m not exactly the softest being, but hey, aren’t I the nicest fly you’ve ever met?
WHOA! I got to go. I have to contact the Sesame Street people and ask them if they’d like me to appear on the show. I’m a natural!
Le’Hitraot…Bye…Zvuvi