Ask the Israeli Guy

In My Humble Opinion
1

With much trepidation…

I’ve been thinking about starting this thread for quite a while, but due to the reasons stated here I’ve pretty much avoided it. Still, there haven’t been many “Ask the…” threads lately, and as there seems to be some interest in the subject, I think it’s time to damn the torpedoes and set this ship out to sea. A gauntlet, after all, has been tossed in my general direction. Plus, I’m bored.

Two notes before I start -

  1. As the other full-time Israeli Guy in these parts, Noone Special: please feel free to answer any of the questions. All other Israelis and Honorary Israelis (hi Kyla!) are also welcome. Readers should bear in mind, however, that Israelis rarely agree with one another, or ever with themselves.

  2. This is IMHO, not GD or the Pit, and I’d like to keep us here. The board has been blessedly lacking in Isaeli-Palestinian shitfests lately (Iraq seems to be diverting most of the attention) and I’d like to keep it that way. I’m trying to be informative, here. If you’ve come for an argument I can’t really give you much satisfaction.

So, any questions?

2

Very minor question, but the last time I was in Israel and visiting Jerusalem I visited a little resteraunt named Moshikos and had what is, to this very day, the best falaffel of my life. Is the joint still there, and have you ever eaten there?

If you have no idea what I’m talking about, feel free to say “You crazy, foo!”

3

Sorry - although I was born in Jerusalem, I grew up in Haifa and now live in Tel Aviv, so I can’t really help you. I don’t go to the capital that often, and although this may sound sacreligious… I can’t stand the place. Too much history packed in too small a town.

Beseides, everyone knows Jerusalemites can’t make falafel.

4

Actually, if there’s one thing that I’ve grown to expect from my Israeli relatives, it’s an odd mix of reverance and sacrilage. Even as a secular Jew myself, I love Jerusalem. For me as an American to walk streets which are centuries old… maybe what turns you off on the city is exactly what turns me on to it. (What’s the old joke anways… if you have two Jews in a room you have three opinions?)

Say, speaking of geography, where are you in relation to Caeseria? (sp?) I’ve got a good number of family members who still live there…

Oh, and, who does make the best falafel?
And simply as a tangent, good gods I would kill for some decent schwarma right about now.

5

[QUOTE=FinnAgain]

Say, speaking of geography, where are you in relation to Caeseria?

[quote]

About half an hour dive, traffic permitting (which it rarely is).

Falafel HaZkenim, Haifa, although I’m biased.

Interestingly enough, I myself would kill for some Mountain Dew right now - I love the stuff, and they don’t sell it here.

6

I’d like to do a solo bicycle tour of your country, north to south, starting in Tel Aviv and ending at the Red Sea.

Are there areas off-limits to foreigners?

What about cool places to see that are not the usual religious site tourist traps?

Do I need a visa?

7

My friend’s dad, who have went for Irsrael for a tour, tell me that his dad says that the situation is so tense that mothers outside schools waiting for children are armed with rifles and guns. Is that true, or have I been misinformed?

8

Well of course what we all want to know is how is the weather? I would have presumed it was Mediterranean, but a few years ago it snowed in Jerusalem. Do you own a winter coat?

Moving to a touchier subject. How does Jewish/Arabic segregation work? If a very rich Palestinian wanted to move into your neighborhood could he? If not what would stop him, the law, custom, people with sticks, what? Is this segregation sort of like the old American South?

This has always bugged me.

9

There’s the Territories, but as a foreigner you’ll probably have more freedom of movement than Palestinians or Israelis. Basically, you can go anywhere, but you’ll have to pass through military checkpoints, which can be a pain in the neck. And if they warn you that the area you’re going into is dangerous for foreigners, listen to them.

There are also many military training areas, especially in the south and in the Golan, but they’re ususally clerly marked and off the beaten path. Remember, though, that landmine warning signs are not a recommendation.

Off the top of my head:

Yarkon Park (Northern Tel Aviv)
The Sachneh (hot springs, north of country)
The Banias (nature preserve, north)
Kal’at Nimrod (Georgeous Crusader-era fort near the Golan)
Beit Shean (Roman Ruins near city)
Old Caesarea (Remains of old Roman/Arab/Crusader City)
Old city of Acre/Acco (Classic walled city, Crusader halls, Arab Bazaar, great restaurants)
The Dead Sea
Ein Gedi (Oasis near the Dead Sea)
Mount Sodom (salt-crystal caves)
Ben Gurion’s grave in Sdeh Boker (overlooks the Wilderness of Zin - greatest view in the country)
Ovdat (ancient Nabatean town in the Negev)
The Ramon Crater (in the Negev - huge, fasecinating geological formation.
The Hula Valley, especially during the bird migration season

Dunno. Don’t think so, but it’s best to check.

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And that’s why I should preview. Uh, mods?

11

Is done.

12

are bagels popular? I only ask because once in Tokyo at a bagel shop I heard an Israeli ask for one of those “donut things” and wasn’t really sure if it was a language issue or he didn’t know what a bagel was. Maybe bagels are a european/american thing. But I’m curious.

Also, I’m trying to make my own bagels and actually have some bagel making specific questions if you or someone close to you makes a mean bagel.

13

The weather *is * Mediterranian. It only snows in the Northern Highlands and in Jerusalem, the latter no more than twice a year or so. I own a winter coat, and I wore it maybe once last winter.

Hmm. The question doesn’t come up that often because there isn’t that much will on either side t change the status quo. Not many Arabs want to live in rich Jewish neighborhoods, at least as far as I can tell, nor vice versa. There’s no law against it, of course, but there’s a certain amount of custom from both sides; I suppose there is also some racism on behalf of sellers and landlords.

In my neighborhood - middle class Tel Aviv, mostly inhabited by young professionals, new families, artists and old holdouts - an Arab family would fit in without a problem. There are also many parts of the country that are considered “mixed” - Jaffa, certain Haifa neighborhoods, the entire city of Lod (Lydda) - so it changes from place to place.

Another interesting point is that because property values are lower in Arab towns, rich inhabitants can afford much larger homes, land in Israel being at a premium. That’s often more important to buyers than location.

Incidentally, the comparison to the old south is both appropriate and not. While the segregation exists, and Arab communities receive less public funds (admittedly, they also pay less property taxes due to a near complete lack of enforcement), there are very few legal barriers in place. The Arab community also has its own middle- and upper class, with its own disposeable income.

14

On your second question: I actually worked making bagels while living in NY, and we all know that the best bagels in the world come from New York. Lay some o’ them specific questions on me.

15

How strong is the religious influence? (eg in politics and eating habits)

Would you agree there is an atmosphere of tension in the country? (if so, does this affect eg driving)

16

What are Israeli firearms laws like? The pro-gun folks here in the US tend to hold up Israel and Switzerland as places the US should emulate because of their citizen-soldier military models; but I was under the impression that civilian ownership of arms was actually rather tightly restricted in Israel.

17

hmmm, I don’t wanna hijack this thread but your email is hidden so what the hell.

-Potato water seems to be THE secret ingredient (any hints on making said water? 1 potato per quart and boil for 15 minutes or any ballpark recommendations?)
-why use sugar in the boiling water? And then what’s the advantage of using honey or malt?
-How to make bagels more dense? (less yeast, less rising time, boiling time, drier?)
-How about beer bagels, eg substituting beer for water? Seemed to work out pretty well last night when I tried. Get that malt action going.
-How long to boil the bagels? I see anywhere from 30 seconds per side to 3-4 minutes in recipe books. What’s the difference?
-how much yeast and how long to let rise? Eg, can you use too much yeast?
-how much should one let the bagel rise? 50%, 100%, 200%? seems like if it rises a lot it becomes more bread than bagel.

18

Do you have any Palestinian friends or coworkers? Would you say you are typical in this regard, or atypical?

19

Whoops… I thought I had it viewable. I’ll try to fix that, but I’m pretty clueless when it comes to tech stuff. Anyways, it’s AgentFinn@gmail.com in case I don’t answer all of your questions here. This should be a short hijack in any case.

(My apologies Alessan if this tangent is too long for your tastes. If you require, I’ll send ya a mountain dew to make up for it:))

Actually, we always used plain ol’ NY tap water. I’ve often heard NY water credited with making the pizza and bagels so good… Although there might also be a miscommunication here. Although I boiled and then baked the bagels, I never made the dough from scratch; we had a guy who’d come in at four in the morning to do that. I’d imagine that one would of course mix water into the dough, but once the dough is made you don’t need to do anything special to the water you boil it in. I’d imagine that using honey, malt, or potato starch would yield a different flavor, but I have to admit that I’ve never tasted one of those bagels. In specific, using potatos would probably yeild a product somewhat similar to potato bread… which I love. Try it and tell me how it turns out :smiley:

Here are a bunch of recipes They all seem to vary a bit, but a good few do recomend putting sugar or malt or honey in the water bath. Personally my favorite bagels are salt, everything, garlic, or sesame bagels, and I think that all of those with the exception of sesame work best when they’re not really sweet. You could also probably achieve a similar result if you glazed the bagels before baking them.

I found that the longer you boiled them, the less dense they became. I would wager that making the original dough less dense would also influence the final product. Adding more yeast and letting them rise longer would probably yield fluffier bagels.

Sounds tasty. Bagels can be modified by a rather large degree and still be good. Add egg and onion to the dough, change the wheat flour for rye flour, etc…

I suppose it depends on how hot you had the water and maybe even the size of the pot you’re boiling it in… as I was working at a bagel joint, we prepared large batches in a big ol’ cauldron type thing. I just got to the point where I’d be able to tell when a bagel was done by its consistency, and the texture of its outside. My best advice would be to experiment a bit. You don’t want the dough to get runny, or the outside of the bagel to really start cooking, just toughen up a bit.

I’m sure you can add too much yeast, but since I was in charge of boiling and baking the dough and not making it, I’m afraid I can’t give you better advice than that.

Pretty much, yeah. They’ll expand a little bit when you boil them, and a bit when they’re baked… I guess the best advice I’d have is again to practice a bit until you can eyeball it. When you’re holding the dough before you boil it, it should hang together and feel somewhat solid in your hands.

20

Probably shockingly ignorant questions, but,
Were you born in Israel? Do you consider Hebrew your “first language”? Approximately what percentage of Israelis were born there? Does everyone speak fluent Hebrew? Are there large linguistic subcultures (Russian, Ethiopian, etc.) that tend to maintain a distinct identity? Why do most Israelis speak English so well?