Rabbi Bloom's Sabbatical Blog

  Preface : I fully realize I am about to describe problems that only come with privilege. All of this pales in comparison to those who don’t have such privilege as well as the seriousness of what is happening in Israel where we are about to get to. Still..advice for my future self if not others.  Strikes and Shutdowns. The biggest problem was that, at almost every turn, strikes threatened our trains or planes. The most anxious one was today, when, for a time, it looked like the Tel Aviv Airport would shut down completely in protest of the judicial overturn. But there was a pause, so, onto more usual travel travails.   I Thought I Was Good at This .  I pride myself on being really good at arranging travel plans, getting the best deal, etc. But on this trip, with the International differences, I made a number of costly rookie mistakes.  Round Trip vs One Way. In the U.S. there is no longer an advantage to booking round trips. Two one way flights, in most cases, are the same price and m

The Tourist Side . Karen kept singing "one short day in the Emerald City," because that's all we had in Barcelona. We had one day, but we certainly packed a lot in. It included the Le Sagrada Familia, the giant unfinished church, which looks like a skyscraper from the future, the Picasso Museum, the Gothic Quarter, an amazing food market, and the Jewish quarter. Another completely alive city; people are out at all hours in packed cafes throughout the city. The stone streets, the small shops, the public transportation all make this city understandably popular with tourists and residents alike. They've kept nearly all the old structures but put modern apartments and stores in them. The downsides are a lot of homeless and a lot of smoking, even more than in Paris or London. Oddly enough, there is very little vaping here. They just smoke straight cigarettes, and we felt like we were back in the seventies. Still, a great city.                                             Je

 So much of our thoughts about Paris come from either our stereotypes of the French hating Americans or the television show Emily in Paris. In some ways, Paris reminds me of Israel. If you took the Tel Aviv lifestyle and plopped it in the streets of Jerusalem and increased its size, you'd have Paris without all the Jewish stuff. We found the people of Paris to be much friendlier than expected, and as far as Emily goes, the city is every bit as charming  but nowhere near as clean. Granted, there was a garbage strike going on, but there are quite a bit of homeless, and it just doesn't feel as modern or well kept as London. But wow is it alive. There are people sitting in the cafes from about 10 AM until past Midnight, each one more crowded than the next. And the food...oh my. I had to have eaten 20-25 pastries in 5 days. We stayed in the Marais, the formerly Jewish section of Paris, now completely hipster, and it meant that most things were within a 15 minute walk. The place was

 Sabbatical Week 1--England So it begins. What I definitely am telling myself is a well deserved sabbatical. In 2011 the first week was pure relaxation--Fiji. This time, it begins with running around. It's still very much a vacation, but it's much more of a frenetic pace. So few days to do so much I want to do. London--The Tourist Part. My sons Micah and Jonah have joined us on the first parts of this trip--London and Paris. I am not ashamed to say that seeing the Tottenham Hotspurs may have been the main reason we went to London, and it did not disappoint. Tottenham is considered the historically Jewish team because of where much of the Jewish community was centered at one time. The fans still call themselves the "Yid Army," and so many Jewish fans throughout the world have adopted them as their "team." It was a beautiful 3-1 dominant victory. The stadium is unbelievable and brand new. They don't gouge on the prices, and the beer comes from underground.

 Hard to believe, but I am headed out tomorrow for nearly 5 months of sabbatical. We start with a week in London, a week in Paris, a Cruise from Barcelona, and, finally, on to Jerusalem from April through the end of July. Obviously, things in Israel are concerning, so I am sure I will have lots to report from there. It's been an incredibly intense last 3 weeks on top of an incredibly intense last 3 years. Being a Rabbi during Covid was an incredible challenge, but it was also fulfilling, as our congregation truly rose to the occasion. The last 3 weeks have been filled with 3 separate tragic funerals, all of which is to say I am really ready for this sabbatical. Should you miss me too much, my "giant" presence will remain behind in the form of lifesize cutouts. Our staff thought it made a fun picture. Enjoy.