Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzmaut

Yom Hazikaron (Israel's Memorial Day) and Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israel's Independence Day) are back-to-back days on the calendar. This year, they began on Sunday night and continued until Tuesday evening.

Yom Hazikaron is observed throughout the country with great solemnity since everyone is/was a soldier or has a relationship to a soldier. Everyone knows a family that has been affected by the death of a soldier in the line of duty or a victim of terror. Yom Hazikaron is the day of remembrance of those who died for the country.

We attended the official national Yom Hazikaron ceremony at the Western Wall on Monday night. We stood on the side of a dirt hill adjacent to the wall in order to see the ceremony of lowering the flag, the speeches by officials (including the Acting President of the State and the IDF's Chief of Staff), memorial prayers, and the emotional singing of the national anthem, Hatikvah. The crowds of people at the Wall reminded me of our stumbling upon the IDF Ceremony at the Wall last August. I didn't really understand all of the words the speakers were saying but I got the gist.

The crowd begins to gather at the Western Wall for the Yom Hazikaron ceremony.

At exactly 8 p.m., as the ceremonies were starting, the sirens sounded nationwide, announcing the start of Yom Hazikaron and causing everyone to stand still in memory for the minute of the sounding of the siren.

On Monday, my Ulpan class was not canceled but it was a shortened day for Yom Hazikaron. It was my last day of Ulpan. Only seven students out of nearly 25 showed up. In fact, only two Israeli Arab students came to class. The rest stayed away either due to the difficulty of getting across town due to security or due to not wanting to participate in Yom Hazikaron. We spent the morning talking and learning about Yom Hazikaron and then, at 11 a.m. was the nationwide two minute memorial siren for Yom Hazikaron. I observed the cars and buses on the street come to a full stop and drivers and passengers getting out to stand in memory of the more than 22,000 soldiers killed as well as those killed by acts of terrorism. After the siren, the teachers held a half-hour memorial ceremony. It was a very nice ceremony and it included poems, readings, and the emotional singing of Hatikvah.

The rest of the day on Monday, Yom Hazikaron, was fairly quiet - traffic was light and many shops were closed. In the evening, we attended a lecture by the parents of Alex Singer, an American who immigrated to Israel and joined the IDF and was killed in Lebanon in 1987 in Lebanon. It was a moving talk and made us feel like we really knew Alex and his family. We bought the book of Alex's letters and drawings, Alex: Building a Life and I'm currently about half-way through. I highly recommend it.

After the talk, we transitioned from Memorial Day to Independence Day with lively services for Yom Ha'atzmaut. The entire country transitioned on Monday night from a time of remembrance to a time of celebration - it's an amazing process and incredible to see. After the services, sung to the tune of many Israeli songs, we had a BBQ at the synagogue.

The country goes flag-crazy for Yom Ha'atzmaut

After the BBQ, Eve, Steve, Jen and I headed downtown to Ben Yehuda Street to see the city's main Yom Ha'atzmaut celebration. There were many celebrants wearing blue and white or even Israeli flags. People carried flashing-light things, plastic inflatable hammers, and some kids were attempting to spray people with some sort of aerosol "snow." However, police and soldiers quickly confiscated the fake snow form those who used it. Jen mentioned that she couldn't imagine being a kid and having four men with machine guns approach you from each direction to take your can of snow. Throughout the night there were numerous fireworks displays throughout the city.

A guy in flag.

On Tuesday, a national holiday when everything is closed, outdoor BBQs are the theme of the day. Gan Sacher Park in the western part of the city was filled with families barbecuing on tiny grills usually just inches from the ground. Many families established tents in the park for their day-long celebrations. In the U.S. the Fourth of July is a popular day to be in the park but most will barbecue at home and then go to the park afterwards in anticipation of the fireworks. In Israel, the fireworks are the night before and everyone remains in the park the following day and barbecues there as well.) Some families even brought couches to the park and we saw one family with not only couches but also a television powered by a generator!

Tables, chairs, couches, and even a TV and generator!!!

A more typical family gathering.

In the afternoon, Eve, Jen, and I went to the area around City Hall for their "Living History" Independence Day event. People were dressed up from periods of the city's history and performing skits or playing music. While there, we discovered the Underground Prisoners Museum - it is a museum that shows what life was like for prisoners during the British Occupation from 1917-1948 in Israel. Also at the prison is the cell of Meir Feinstein and Moshe Barazani who were condemned to hang by the British but instead chose to blow themselves up with a grenade concealed in an orange peel in 1947. It's an amazing story - Haaretz has a summary.

The City Hall displays included a manikin dressed as one of the "ninja" police as we like to call them. The Ninja Police usually ride two to a orange motorcycle and they both carry very big guns and are part of important motorcades (they are very effective at stopping traffic) and they provide security at high-profile events. In a nationwide survey, I'm sure they would be selected as the "Coolest (but most intimidating) guys in the country."

The evening was very quiet with shops and restaurants closed and few cars on the street. It was a wonderful ending to two very important days.

Our own flag display on our balcony. See the neighbor's flag in the background?