Despite the restrictions connected to Corona, I have come across a number of unique Israel Passover experiences (and responses to the situation) and thought I would share a few with you.

  • I was able to call a number for someone to pick up my chametz and then distribute it to families needing food in a nearby Arab neighborhood. Normally, people can bring the food themselves and there are opportunities to interact. This year, they met me outside my apartment building and presented me with a flower in exchange of my chametz.
  • The city of Jerusalem was very worried people would want to go outside to burn their chametz the morning of the seder and would gather together as part of this burning, so the city put out special trash cans to collect your chametz to be burned and did the burning for you (and forbade individuals from doing their own burning).
  • at 8:30 pm on seder night, there was a coordinated effort that everyone should go on their balcony and sing the Four Questions. We went outside and could hear singing coming from every direction, up and down the block. It was super cool. We also heard families throughout the evening singing different parts of the haggadah from their balcony
  • Knowing Israeli tendency to gather in large groups for seder, the country was put in lockdown from the day before the seder and no one was allowed to go anywhere until the morning after the seder, to help prevent Israelis (who often decide rules are only suggestions) from gathering.
  • There is currently an egg shortage and the Israeli government took it upon themselves to fly in eggs and had 10 cargo planes and ships bring in over 30 million eggs knowing how important eggs are in Passover cooking. (And even with all these emergency egg imports, there is still a shortage and we haven’t been able to buy in weeks.)
  • There was a national seder on one of the main tv channels with the president, prime minister, singers, comedians and other public persona so everyone had access to a seder without leaving their home (and it was with controversy as both the president and prime minister appeared with their adult children in violation to the curfew and not bring allowed to have anyone who doesn’t live with you join you for seder).
  • And not connected to corona, but for every pesach, there is kosher for Passover Ben and Jerry’s ice cream.

And a few interesting programs connected to Corona:

  • There is an adopt a medical personnel program where you can sign up and are matched with a medical personnel who lives near you and people are doing various things to support the medical personnel who are working over time including cooking for them, walking their dogs, and helping their kids with online school
  • The municipality has called all elderly to assign them a nurse and also to see if they need their groceries delivered. This is in addition to youth groups who are also shopping and delivering groceries to those who are vulnerable or in quarantine or at home sick
  • In Israel, school vacation starts the week before Passover and all the youth groups run overnight hiking trips, this year, they ran 3 day virtual trips and gatherings
  • there are a number of individuals and organizations trying to bring music to people:mostly virtually, but also with spontaneous street performances. Today when I was out on my walk, I cam across a truck with a flatbed truck with a dj blasting music and everyone coming out to their balconies to dance. The sign on the side of the truck said ” In Jerusalem, we will get through this period together”. It turns out the truck with its spontaneous concerts in different neighborhoods is a project of the Jerusalem Municipality and the route is never disclosed to minimize a crowd forming. I was impressed that everyone I saw either was dancing from their windows or balconies or keeping social distance.

Surprise neighborhood musical concert