Lions, and Tigers, and Babka… Oh My!

The last couple of days have been a blur. More grading. A trip to the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo.

Getting there was not easy, but once inside, everyone had a great time. Luckily there was ample shade strategically located throughout the facility. The fruit bats and kangaroos were probably the biggest hits. I still think referring to a zoo as an “animal garden” (gan chayot) is both delightful and at the same time, a little dark.

There was a successful dissertation defense. Then a trip to the Bloomfield Science Museum.

Again, getting there was challenging, but it wasn’t excessively crowded. The cafeteria had good food and dessert options, in addition to the ubiquitous, caffeine-packed Turkish coffee served in tiny cups. The optical illusion and electricity exhibits grabbed the kids’ attention and energized (pun intended 😉) us all. But the biggest crowd pleaser of all for us was the harp with the invisible strings!

My limited conversations with people here in Jerusalem have revealed several interesting and familiar urban planning issues. Where to put light rail lines in a place where practically everything has historic preservation implications? On the other hand, traffic congestion seems pretty bad for a city of this size. Who wins and who loses when mega-projects with no residential units go up in the heart of the city? American academics like Richard Florida helped to create the economic development plan that led to the Jerusalem Gateway, by the way.

On the way back from the museum, we made an impromptu stop at Machane Yehuda aka The Shuk. It was fun to wander around and take in the sights and sounds.

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Chocolate babka, olives, apricots, and pita were a few of our finds.

Here’s a parting photo from the rose garden near the Israeli Supreme Court.