Jaffa

Photo Captions: The view of the ruins which are dated at 1200BC and a view of the current Tel Aviv seashore. Couldn't resist this cute, if a little corny, sculpture of the whale that swallowed Jonah over the coast of Jaffa.

I had other plans today, but got on the wrong bus. By the way, there is no current bus map and believe me I have looked. One driver told me it was because there are so many buses and they go everywhere, that the company decided there was no need for a map. I agree with the first two premises, it’s the conclusion that I didn’t get. So when you go to the information booth and ask for a map, the lady asks, “Where do you want to go and I’ll tell you which bus to take.” I respond, “I don’t know where I want to go until I see a map.” This then starts a heavy philosophical discussion of what comes first the map or the journey. Remember this is Israel, everything becomes a major argument.

Anyway, I digress, so I’m on the wrong bus and have lost track of where I am, but when I look around I notice that I am the youngest person on the bus. (I remember my first week in New York, I got on the wrong subway late at night and when I looked around I was the only white person. A very nice elderly black man came up to me and said, “Son, I think you might want to get off at the next stop and go back to where you came from.) But in this case, I take this to be a good sign that we are at least on our way to a safe place, like a nursing home. Suddenly, I recognized the Jaffe Clock Tower and decided to turn the day into a tourist visit and jump off the bus, leaving the senior citizens to travel on; I did think of the movie Cocoon and hoped they were going to another planet to have fun.

If you like history Jaffa is your kind of town and it has been fixed up to appeal to a tourist so inclined. I don’t know the accuracy of any of the information I received, my sense is that the Israelis do pay attention to this stuff and this city isn’t just another “George Washington Slept Here” kind of hype. Until I am convinced otherwise, I believe the archaeological narratives are correct. In a nutshell, Jaffe goes back about 3000 maybe 4000 years, in fact Noah’s son built it after the flood, Jonah returned from the whale and Peter rose Tabitha/Dorcus from the dead there. Those are the first facts that really give one some perspective on time-line. What follows is an unbelievable series of sackings. One is reminded of those people who continually build their homes in a flood plain or a landslide area or (for my California friends) on an earthquake fault. The looting, pillaging and killing story goes like this, Egyptians, Macabees, Romans, Saladin, Richard the Lion Heart, Napoleon, Ottomans and finally it is one of the first battles of the 1948 Israeli war. On a brighter note, Jaffa used to be known for its oranges, conveniently call (even today when there are no more of them) Jaffa Oranges. How one place can repeatedly grow be wiped out, regrow, be wiped out over and over again is mind-boggling. As a kid growing up in Jaffa reading your history books, don’t you think you would be saying to yourself, “as soon as I’m old enough, I’m leaving this town.” But no, people kept staying and keep being wiped out. Curious.

There is a nice image of looking at the pile of rocks identified as the remains of old Jaffa, circa 1000 BC and then turning 180 degrees and seeing the modern Tel Aviv skyscape. (see attached photos) Also at some point the morning Moslem prayers are broadcast from the mosque. I’ve heard that before in Morocco, but was a little shocked to hear them in Israel especially as about about 50 old Jewish tourists suddenly freaked out when the speakers started blaring.

There is also a large government subsidized artist colony and a number of expensive seafood restaurants along the sea, none of which interested me. I then carefully retraced my steps back to the bus stop that I had mistakenly taken and returned exactly to my point of origin. That’s the nice thing about taking the wrong bus somewhere; you can always take the wrong bus back. There’s a life’s lesson here which I will teach my kids once I figure it out better.

Here’s a couple of one-liners: I saw my first fat soldier, it was shocking, they must tease the hell out of this guy. Did I already comment on the fact that the only teenagers I see who don’t look fit are the religious boys who go to the Yeshiva and avoid the army and they seem to grow up to be those overweight religious men in the black coats and hats, weird. I also saw a woman soldier in a long dress and I figured this one out on my own. (can you?) Somewhere in the Bible it says women shouldn’t wear pants (sorry Hillary, if you are President, don’t wear the pantsuits to Israel) so the very religious women are allowed to go to battle in a dress and combat boots. In addition to controlling the sexual urges of a million teenage boys and girls, the Israeli army also has to keep track of religious customs. Is this the first army in history that doesn’t live on Spam? (for my younger readers that a kind of food, not an unsolicited email)

OK, peace-out! (I heard my son’s friend say that and it sounded cool, I think you do something with your two fingers and your heart along with it, but not sure. But until my son tells me to stop using (or misusing) it, I think I’m going to end my blogs that way.)