Time to Re-Lod!

Did I mean to say “re-load” instead of "Re-Lod?" No, I did not! Lod (pronounced “load”) is a city in Israel and Re-Lod is the name of a project whose mission is to revitalize the city through the power of the people.

Yesterday with the conference I am currently attending I and about 30 others visited Lod as part of a guided service-learning tour. Our tour guide was Yuval Bdolach, CEO of the Re-Lod Project. The Re-Lod project facilitates student villages in Lod where university students can have a more unique student community experience, dedicating part of their time to servicing their community.

First stop on our tour: some really old ruins in Lod! Circa 1000 years ago I think?

Bdolach told us that Lod is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, having been resided in, to this day, for 8,000 years. Lod is one of the only cities in the world where the same building houses Jewish religious services and Islamic religious services. It serves as a working model for coexistence. (Side note: this theme of coexistence in Lod reminds me of the same in Haifa. Remember this?)

Thirty minutes southeast of Tel-Aviv and about one hour northwest of Jerusalem, you would think that because of its central location in Israel, Lod would be full of young professionals and middle-to-upper class families. This is not the case.

In Israel Lod is known for being a more run-down area and is comprised approximately of 70% Jewish Israelis and of 30% Arab Israelis. 

Anthropologists and sociologists often theorize that a city will prosper when a strong population moves in. This theory is the basis for the Re-Lod project and for an organized network of orthodox religious families who believe that just by living in Lod they are helping to strengthen the community and the city. The families think that just by demanding more out of their everyday services and schools they can make a tangible difference in the quality of life in Lod. 

They claim it’s working. One woman told us that in the last three years the cost of housing in Lod has increased by 300 percent. (Wow! Right?)

This orthodox woman has a well-paying job as a scientist. She and her husband can afford to live in a "better" area but they would rather be the change they wish to see in Lod. She told us that by calling to complain when the trash removal crew is late, and by demanding for better education for her children in public schools she can help make Lod better for everyone.

Rather than a trickle-down system that focuses first on getting more government funding to revamp the city’s infrastructure, the individuals we met practice a trickle-up system that starts with Lod’s residents and its youth.

Bdolach chose four sites in the city that he wanted to show us. He didn’t ask for our money. All he asked is that we tell people about Lod.

We visited two community centers, the site of an excavated building and the first and only Cafe Cafe (like an Israeli Panera) in Lod.

The Chicago Community Center is one site where Re-Lod houses its student volunteers. The students are comprised 70% of Jewish Israelis and 30% of Arab Israelis in order to proportionately represent the city’s demographics. The students host events for school children in the neighborhood, they watch movies and play games - it’s really up to the kids to decide what they want to do. 

About to enter the Chicago Community Center in Lod!

A few years ago (I’m not exactly sure of the exact year) when the project first opened its doors there was not an immediate success. Five students came at first, and then those five brought another five and so on, until eventually the project was well known around town.

But there have been bumps in the road. One of the participants in my group asked Bdolach: How did the Summer 2014 Operation Protective Edge affect the Re-Lod project?

Bdolach’s answer: Initially it raised tensions between the two factions. Many of the Arab residents have family living in Gaza, and many of the Jewish residents have friends and/ or family serving in the IDF. During the operation, Re-Lod did not cease its programming. Instead it kept its doors open, a symbol of hope that there is a chance for the community to stay united even in challenging times. 

The last stop on our tour (and the yummiest) was the Cafe Cafe in Lod. This particular Cafe Cafe isn’t just a Cafe Cafe. It’s the red ribbon symbol of what is yet to come in Lod as a result of the blood, sweat and tears contributed by Re-Lod and the Lod community.

The only coffeeshop in Lod.

I am excited to visit Lod in five or 10 years (probably sooner though…) and see how the city has changed. After meeting such committed and invested community members, I believe in Lod. 

It all begins here- new faces, new places

A tiny tidbit: I wrote this post sitting on the bus with my group as we descended from Tel Aviv down to Eilat two days ago. 

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My program has started!

It feels a little bit like a model United Nations conference! We met just two days ago but between the jet lag and extremely closed quarters it seems like much longer! We are 14 people ranging in age from 19 to 29. We are from the U.S., Ukraine, South Africa, Romania, France and Georgia (the country!).

Between all of us there are probably at least six or seven languages spoken. Our guide Rami is originally from Ukraine and he speaks fluently in Ukrainian, Russian, English and Hebrew. Being around so many people from non-English speaking countries has really opened my eyes. Languages build bridges between nations, civilizations and between humans. With language we have the power to tie the world together. I am convinced that if everyone spoke the same language, there would be less violence in the world (though this is just a theory!).

That night we went out as a group to an American-themed bar called Mike’s Place. It was open mic night and two people from our group performed! Not to mention there was a crazy man who got on stage shouting profanities as if he had some kind of agenda to dominate the bar. That man needs a good therapist, maybe an hour or two with Oprah and he’ll be all set! I wish I had a picture of said crazy person... but instead, just these crazy people ;)

The next morning we had breakfast and then headed to Haifa! This trip was especially exciting for me because on neither of my two earlier trips to Israel did I go to Haifa. We learned from a tourguide, Natalie, that Haifa is a symbol of the world’s ability to practice coexistence. In Haifa exists the Bahaii gardens and a Bahaii shrine, the second holiest site for the Bahaii religion. The Bahaiis believe in uncompromising world peace and beauty in nature. They are pacifists. Some Bahaiis also practice other religions. To me it seems the Bahaiis should practice veganism… I would just think that if they are interested in achieving world peace, they need to also acknowledge that humans are not the only beings of the world. But hey, I could be wrong.

View of Haifa from above the Bahaii gardens.

People come from all over the world to see the Bahaii gardens.

Artsy shot of Bahaii Gardens in Haifa

After touring the gardens we learned the port in Haifa is a very old port and was involved in the African slave trade a few hundred years ago. During a single moment everything for me came full circle - I have now been to Charleston, S.C., to Accra, Ghana and to Haifa; all three were involved in the African slave trade. It is so baffling to think people would trade other people as commodities. Going back to my earlier theory - perhaps if they had spoken the same language the oppressors would have seen there was no difference between one man and another, regardless of skin color. 

This artwork is plastered on the side of a building in Haifa. It is a symbol of the city's unparalleled coexistence.  The boy on the left is Jewish and the boy on the right holding his hand is Muslim.

Random view in Haifa Arab neighborhood.

We then went to hear a member of the Islamic Ahmadi community share with us his sect’s views on how the Qur’an has been misinterpreted by millions of people who proclaim themselves Muslims. Omar, our discussion leader, said that jihad is supposed to be a holy war within one’s mind and NOT an interpersonal battle. After a less-than-heated debate with the discussion leader on a few tenets of the religion, we got lunch and visited a small market in an Arab neighborhood. After only five minutes I was able to see the entire market and took advantage of the time to study my Ivrit!

Market in Haifa - such a colorful array of fruits and veggies!!!

The building where we had a discussion with the Ahmadi leader. We were not allowed to enter the actual mosque due to our dress.

Max, Costa, Luca, Dima, Rami, Nata (None are American!)

The Ahmadi sect's mosque in Haifa.

The group peaks into the doors but not all were permitted to enter.

When we arrived back to Tel Aviv three people from my program and I went into the city, had dinner and explored before settling into a popular bar on Dizengoff Street. We met a few German travelers and I got to share my knowledge of how to say 555 in German ;) They wondered why I knew how to say this and not even to know how to say “hello.”

Restaurant we ate at had a vegan menu!

This is my dinner, it was SCRUMPTIOUS!

Vegan gelato labeled in green! Wow!!!!

Navigating through the city was difficult because there was a NEVER ENDING stream of participants in the 10 kilometer Light the Night run. It was a pleasure to see so many physically fit people in a city that is smaller than the one to which I am accustomed.

Yikes!

Eventually we made our way back to the hostel and met up with the rest of the group. Together we ventured to a nearby bar where I learned a few Ukrainian words and phrases from the Ukrainians in our group! Ex. How are you: Yak teh?; I’m good: Klows-no. Hello: Pree-veet. It is really a pleasure to get to interact with people from completely different backgrounds and upbringings. We are all so different and yet at the core we are all the same.

The next morning we woke up, took a guided tour around Tel Aviv and headed out for our breathtakingly beautiful voyage through the desert! 

A Tel Aviv man has transformed his home into a Matkot museum. Matkot is an Israeli sport played on the beach. It is like ping pong but without the table and net.

To be continued...