Everything that happened at Israel 4Real

The Integration Statue was buzzing in celebration of Israeli culture yesterday during Israel 4Real, an event showcasing various cities in Israel for their unique qualities and raising awareness for Israel advocacy. The festivities were part of Noles For Israel’s goal to present a well rounded view of what Israel has to offer and how diverse such a small country (about the size of New Jersey) can really be.

“A lot of times when people talk about Israel they’re focused on the political tension in the middle east, and people forget that Israel is a country that has a really rich and diverse culture,” said Elyssa Ronik, president of NolePAC and Communications Chair of Noles For Israel.

Each city had a table that gave a “sneak peak” of what the area is like by highlighting their most notable qualities. Tel Aviv attracted plenty of students because of the young, liberal, artistic lifestyle and night life. It’s also a hub for LGBT pride, home to Israel’s greatest beaches, and where many of the universities are located that make groundbreaking medical discoveries every year.

My favorite “souvenirs” from Tel Aviv were these genius Iron Dome condoms that piqued everyone’s interest…

Don’t know if there’s a rule about condoms sitting in the sun, but I’d use with caution

Mikha Feldman, Community and Israel Relations Chair and Hasbara Fellow, walked around in a camel suit to represent the Negev and the popular camel rides taken with local Bedouins.

“I believe Israel advocacy is absolutely pivotal more than ever now. There’s growing antisemitism in Europe and there’s not enough of a voice for Israel and for those social and civil liberties that Israel provides. It’s the only democracy in the middle east, it’s a westernized country with more rights than most countries, and I think Israel advocacy is absolutely critical because without it, Israel won’t get the support it truly needs as a tiny country in the middle of a hectic region.”

CUFI on Campus(Christians United For Israel) was present showing off Nazareth, which is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel and predominantly Muslim and Christian. Tzfat gave out beloved Israeli chocolate bars, and the Golan Heights displayed historical and political facts about the region bordering Jordan and Syria.

Noles For Israel President, Stephanie Jablon, said, “Noles For Israel is a cultural organization, we don’t do anything political. We mostly just want to show people why we love Israel so much and show Israel’s contributions to the world. We want people to see it as more than a political stomping ground and that’s the point of this event, it’s a showcase of all things Israel and hopefully passersby will get a taste of what we love so much.”

Haifa had cookies and spring flowers to represent the Bahá’í Gardens and beautiful landscape found there. The cookies were melted, but no one seemed to mind.

Of course, you can’t talk about Israel’s greatest cities and leave out Jerusalem. There was (voluntary) tefillin wrapping and the opportunity for people to write down a wish or prayer to be taken to Israel and placed in the Western Wall with the FSU birthright trip.

Matthew Feuer, Shabbat Chair at Chabad and Chabad Liason for NFI, said “Throughout history the Jewish people have been persecuted by many different peoples for many different reasons, and now there’s a plethora of people that live there, not just Jewish but Bahá’í, Druze, Christian, Muslim, Bedouin, etc. It’s been a home for people who for thousands of years didn’t have any home and are now finally able to defend themselves. And even if we don’t live there we should do our best to protect it from double standards, from hypocrisy, and from the evil that is antisemitism.”

The event was full of Israeli music, treats, and laughs, and was extremely successful in sparking peoples’ interest in this land that has a special place in my heart. If you ever get the chance to go to Israel, it’s a truly life changing experience. No matter what religious or political affiliations you may have, leave them at the airport and enjoy Israel for what it has to offer in food, culture, scenery, and history.

This was totally worth the sunburn (sorry mom) and skipping class (sorry mom x2).

Peace for Israel.

Peace for the world.

Peace out.