Heat wave unites Arabs, haredim in Jerusalem
Grandmother who refuses to buy air conditioning brings her grandchildren to water fountain in city, convinced extreme heat is sign of Messiah's coming. Eliyahu from New York gets by in his long black suit, while supermarket employee can't fill refrigerator shelves fast enough
The severe heat wave, smack in the middle of the summer, has not skipped over the usually dry Jerusalem, awash in recent days with relatively high levels of humidity. Most of the city's residents stayed in their homes. However, those brave enough to venture out came mainly to public parks and squares with water.
Children from the Shehadeh family from Abu Tur splashed around delightedly in the water fountains in Yemin Moshe together with haredi children their age.
According to Grandma Rachel who took her grandchildren to play in the fountain, the climate is a sign of much bigger things. "This heat is a sign of the end days, before the coming of the Messiah. Such hot weather I cannot remember in Jerusalem for generations. This is the period right before the coming of the Messiah and is meant to prepare people by shaking them out of their complacency. The Holy One, Blessed be He, is sending us signs," she said.
Splashing around in Jerusalem (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
Grandma Rachel does not have an air conditioner at home. "This heat will pass in a few days," she assures herself.
For the Shehadeh, the heat is not a sign of the End of Days. They came to the park because their house is being renovated. According to Lamia Shehadeh, this summer has been hotter than any other. "We are spending the summer by watching television and using the internet with the air conditioner turned on, and we don't do anything else all day. It's a shame the Jerusalem municipality isn't making a sea or us," she joked.
On the other hand, little David, who arrived at the park together with his mother, only has a fan at home. "But this bothers us, and we can't sleep at night," he said.
'Worse than hell'
Many of those who couldn't forego playing outside are not from Jerusalem. The only people we found in Liberty Bell Garden during the afternoon was the Buskilla family from Bnei Brak, who were amazed at how hot the playground equipment that was not in the shade could get.
According to David, 6, who was wearing a visor and a generous slathering of sunscreen, Jerusalem is hotter than Bnei Brak. "In Bnei Brak we don't put on sunscreen. It's more fun here because there we don't have parks next to the house," he said.
Messiah on the way? (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
David's mother, Orit, said that they came to Jerusalem to visit friends for a few days of vacation and happened on a few of the hottest days of the year. "We came from the heat of Bnei Brak to the heat of Jerusalem. But it is still pleasant here in the shade because of the dry air," she commented, mentioning that though a bit disappointed by the timing, the family is not planning on returning home early.
Rachel Finkelstein, on the other hand, who came with friends from Raanana, is planning on cutting her trip short. "We are barely dealing with the heat here and feel worse than if we were in hell. We came for four days on Friday, and we are planning on cutting it short and returning today (Sunday). It's hard to get by here and go out, but we don't regret coming," she said.
Eliyahu Kahan, from New York, who came from Brooklyn in order to visit his grand rabbi, is actually enjoying himself. "I get by fine with the heat. In New York it's hotter than here," he said. He had no complaints, even in his long black suit and hat.
On the Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall in the center of the city, many people could be seen walking around with bottles of water in hand. The ones enjoying the heat the most were the ice cream shop owners, who reported a rise in sales.
A supermarket in the center of the city also seemed to be benefiting. "People are buying lots of cold drinks. People are drinking a lot and keep on buying. We barely manage to restock the refrigerator, and it's already empty again. People are buying mostly water and juice, and not carbonated beverages," said one of the saleswomen in the supermarket.
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