Cultures and Traditions: Israel

Springtime in Israel

Images of Israel

A  school trip at night to the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem before the High holidays.

Writing  personal requests to be placed between the stones in the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem

Girls making posters for their election campaign

Elkana School Assembly before school elections

Chanukah in Israel and the Elkana School

 Soon we will be celebrating the holiday of Chanukah here in Israel. We celebrate Chanukah on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar.  This year Chanukah is on December 19.

It is a fun holiday that we spend with our family.  The best part is that we have a whole week of vacation from school !!!!!    

Jews all over the world celebrate Chanukah to mark the victory of the few Maccabee Jews over the Syrians and Greeks and the rededication of the Holy Temple, Chanukah is holiday where we remember the miracle of the one jar of oil that was used in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem.  The one jar of oil lasted for eight days and that is why we light candles for eight nights. Each night we add one candle until the Hanukiah or oil lamp has 8 candles burning.  That is why Chanukah is also called the Festival of Lights.

You can tell that it is Chanukah in Israel by the Hanukah lamps with their candles that people put in their windows.  It is lovely to walk along the streets and see all the candles burning.  Some people even put special lamps outside at the entrance to their house.  These are special because the candles are protected from the wind and rain by a small glass casing. 

Everywhere you go, you see big Hanukah lamps- on office buildings , schools, and of course, synagogues. 

     In our school, we are getting ready for the holiday.

The halls are decorated with dreidels ( special spinning tops) and hanukiyot ( special oil lamps). In the girls gym classes we have a contest where each class presents a theme of Chanukah through a song and dance. In our classes we have a Chanukah parties where we play games and we eat jelly doughnuts at the end of the party.
 

This year our Chanukah vacation will be 8 days. At home we light candles and sing songs near the candles- we eat things fried in oil like jelly doughnuts and potato pancakes ( latkes). We receive presnts or Chanukah gelt ( money) and we play the dreidel game.  Many families go away for the holiday to warmer places like Eilat.