Israeli Pesach

So I’ve had some requests to talk about Passover in the Holy Land, compared to that in the US. So I’m going to take this time to do exactly this...

The Seder

- I just want to say that my Passover seder was finished in record time. Seriously, it really helps when the native tongue is Hebrew. Reading the Haggadah for them was probably like us reading a Dr. Seuss book in front of a table of well-dressed patrons. The goal for any U.S. Jew should be finding an Israeli to lead their next seder.

- They aren’t so big about hiding the “afikomen.” They put it away, but the whole hide & seek/giving kids rewards may be more of an American addition.

- The gefilte fish is still not liked here. Although, they add a really good jelly/sweet sauce to it that made me want seconds.

- They served rice at the table. They were Ashkenazi too. The whole rice/corn issue is really only a religious practice picked up by the Ashkenazi Orthodox community here. The conservative movement decided to adopt it in the States, but most of the country, aside from the Orthodox, doesn’t follow these rules. And the thought of giving up corn syrup is not really known.

Food

- Virtually the entire country, however, does not eat bread. It doesn’t matter how religious you are, about 70% of the country gives bread up. 15% will eat bread, but out of respect, not in public. The remaining 15% don’t care. And I think that 15% is the community I live in. I live in Yafo, which is an Arab town. They serve pita in public. However, they also offer kosher for Passover options at their establishments, which is respectable. Israel passed a law years ago that forbids even non-Kosher restaurants to serve bread.

- Kosher restaurants either close over Passover week, or serve kosher for Passover food. Israel has invented a kosher for Passover bread that is made from potato starch. It doesn’t taste great, but at least it doesn’t leave crumbs everywhere and constipate you for weeks even after Passover finishes.

- Most every food items here are made to be kosher for Passover. It’s a marketing tool to label proudly that your corn chips are still, somehow, kosher for Passover. It’s marketing suicide in the States.

- They too make fried matzo. But they mash it up into almost an oatmeal, and add sugar to it. It’s quite delicious.

Traditions

- Israelis have a sedar on the first night, and a huge dinner on the last night. Everything, from the banks to the supermarket, is closed the next day, and some for the entire Passover week. This is their holiday break. Makes it really inconvenient for ill-prepared Americans like myself.

- Most families go camping. It’s spring time, and they go north to enjoy the outdoors. I too just returned from a hiking and camping trip in Tiberias. Everything is blooming, and it’s nice because they don’t have any rules about where you can and can’t camp. We set up in a meadow on top of a hill overlooking the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee. Nobody was around. But many families camp on the beaches with fires and music.

- Everybody owns the EXACT, SAME tent. Literally.

- It’s a pain to get anywhere. Either the buses don’t run, or the streets are flooded with people. The sight of it looks like an alien movie where everyone is trying to get out of town using one highway.

- Camping makes Passover easier because the food one brings on a normal camping day is the same: peanuts, canned tuna, fruit, etc. It’s not great, but it seems to go by much quicker here because everyone is in on the same traditions.

-Hummus is still on everything.

I’ll try to think of some more differences. If you have any questions, shoot them my way and I’ll try to find an answer. Otherwise, chag sameach!