Spring in Wartime Israel, 7: Yom ha-Shoah in Tel Aviv, 6 May 2024

July 28, 2024  •  Leave a Comment

          It was fair and cool on the morning of Yom ha-Shoah, the national day of remembrance for those murdered in the Holocaust, or Sho'ah.  Knowing the significance of the date may have colored my perception, but the city seemed subdued.  Workers were repairing the sidewalks, servers were delivering breakfast to patrons seated at outdoor cafés, and dog owners were greeting one another.  Still, everyone seem to be moving more slowly than usual.

       Then, at 10 AM, the Yom ha-Shoah siren sounded.  Immediately, everyone stopped moving.  Pedestrians and drivers, laborers and shoppers, absolutely everyone stood stock-still in silence for two minutes.  There was neither speech nor traffic noise.  Six million souls rushed noiselessly into the space that the sirens’ wail had cleared for them in the world of the living.

       This year, the annual contemplation of the Six Million victims of the Nazi genocide was especially poignant.  It was the first time that I had experienced Yom ha-Shoah in Israel.  I was proud to witness the solemn solidarity with which the Jewish nation marked the occasion.

       As the last reverberation of the sirens faded, all those around me resumed their activities. At first, they did so tentatively, as if waking from a dream or, more accurately, a nightmare.  By afternoon, Tel Aviv had regained its rhythm. 

       Our friend and indefatigable tour guide, Daniela,  showed us more of the city.  We went to the Shuk Levinsy, once primarily a spice market.  There we shared a meal consisting of many small dishes, most so tasty that I consumed far more than hunger
demanded. 

       We strolled around old neighborhoods near the central business district, where formerly neglected blocks of century-old houses had been restored to elegance.  The old Turkish railway from Yafo to Jerusalem had been transformed into a linear urban park favored by cyclists, walkers, tourists and residents.  Though new office and apartment towers are changing its skyline daily, Tel Aviv remains a city of shared public spaces, with the next coffee house, sculpture garden or park just around the corner.


Construction workers and others standing at attention while the siren sounded

A meal in Shuk Levinsky with Daniela and Ari

This fountain by Nahum Gutman was commissioned by the municipality of Tel Aviv in 1971.  The artist illustrated his impressions of Yafo’s and Tel Aviv’s history in his mosaics.


The former Ottoman rail line, now
P
ark Ha-Tachanah (Railway Park)

A spice merchant’s shop in Shuk Levinsky (Levinsky Market)

Ladies Who Lunch, in Shuk Levinsky
 


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