'Flash Mob' hits Tel Aviv
Global craze taking root in Israel as mass pillow fight held in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square
TEL AVIV - The craze spreads: The heavy rain that poured down on Tel Aviv's Rabin Square did not stop a Flash Mob pillow fight from taking place.
The pillow fight is part of a widespread phenomenon that also includes Mobile Clubbing. If this is the first time you heard the term do not despair, as an explanation will soon follow.
Mobile Clubbing started out in the United States and Europe and has been growing in popularity in the past few years. The idea is that participants are invited ahead of time to take part in a seemingly “spontaneous” gathering. A Flash Mob invitation can take the following form:
“Tell everyone about the pillow fight, and arrive at the designated spot with a nice soft pillow hidden in your belongings. At a set time, pull out your pillow and start fighting. You are not permitted to fight anyone without a pillow (unless they are interested). Enjoy.”
The instructions for Mobile Clubbing are similar: “Arrive at the designated spot with your MP3 player. At a set time, put on your headphones and start dancing to your own music. No need to wait for instructions, just start dancing. Go wild, shamelessly. Take advantage of the open space, spread out, that way it would be harder for them to get rid of us.”
Another event planned for April
Monday's pillow fight in Tel Aviv was scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Monday. Seconds earlier, the young crowd that had flocked to the square began the countdown to a war that would have no winners and no losers.
The pillow fight was scheduled to last for about 18 minutes, but participants had so much fun they continued bashing each other with their pillows for several hours.
A participant in the pillow fight, Asher Whitman, explained this is what an Israeli Flash Mob event looks like.
“In Israel everything is capricious, and no one is likely to leave the square until he is 'knocked out',” Whitman said as he was holding onto the pillow he had brought with him all the way from his southern Kibbutz, located near Eilat.
The trend made its "aliyah" to Israel from London about six months ago by two youngsters, Eyal and his sister May, who have asked to use their first names only.
“One of our brothers who lives in London participated in several Flash Mob events,” Eyal said.
“We wanted to bring this social phenomenon, which is quickly spreading around the world, to Israel,” he said.
For interested parties, a Mobile Clubbing dance event is scheduled to take place on April 12th, 2005 on the corner of Shenkin and Rothschild Streets in Tel Aviv.
