Oh, to be an Israeli Rockstar...

...is quite different than in the states. Here, famous singer Idan Raichel lived with his mother until about year and a half ago (according to my boss, Lindsay)...He's 31 years old, and is an EXTREMELY well-known Israeli musician. I can't really imagine my boyfriend, Justin Timberlake, being as "cool" if he lived with his mama, but here it's totally acceptable! Another funny thing about the Israeli "celebrities," is that they are walking around much more normally here. In fact, Idan Raichel lives and hangs out on King George, a street I frequent, so I have seen him hanging out in cafes around Tel Aviv a few times now...He's pretty easy to spot, even though he tries not draw attention, as he has a head full of dreadlocks (rumored to be fake!) Last week, our group crossed paths with Moshe Ben Ari, totally the Bono of Israel, on his way to get food before a concert he was performing for us! No green room full of random and ridiculous requests...just a trip to get falafel probably sans a huge posse of bodyguards. He is ALSO quite easy to spot with his head full of dreadlocks, but I think his are the real deal.

In one week, I was lucky enough to see performances by both these artists, in two totally different settings! On Sunday, May 24th, my friends Sloane and Nina invited me to a special charity event by the organization they are interning with through our program: Save a Child's Heart. This inspiring non-profit is an "Israeli based international humanitarian project whose mission in to improve the quality of pediactric cardiac care for children from developing countries who suffer from heart disease and to create centers of competence in these countries." They strive to provide immaculate medical care for any child no matter what their religion, race, gender, or financial situation might be. I've been hearing how wonderful and meaningful Sloane and Nina's experiences as interns with this organization have been for the past months living in Israel, so I was thrilled to experience it firsthand at their charity event "Music from the Heart," being run by the Young Leadership Program at SACH. Idan Raichel was the special guest, and it was great to get to see him perform with just a piano in such an intimate environment. While I heard from people behind the scenes he's kind of an asshole, on stage he was funny. It seemed as though he wasn't quite sure what to do with his time...and even offered to tell us some jokes! He asked how we are liking it in Tel Aviv, and when one of my group-mates said she loved the city, he asked where she is from. After hearing she's from L.A. and thinks TEL AVIV is great...he was shocked, but excited!

Last Tuesday, MASA (the organization that gave me the grant to come here) held a MEGA EVENT in honor of some of the volunteers they've brought to Israel through programs like mine. In the opening of the event, Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu, made a speech thanking everyone for being here and doing such great work for the Jewish State. There were a number of performances including an interpretive dance using long, white gloves and blacklights, and an incredible acapella group which I MUST find the name of! Talk about a drama dork-gasmic event! While highlighting the winners of volunteering awards, MASA had invited lead vocalist for Hadag Nachash, Shannan Street, to tour the different groups and make a video diary of his experience with the MASA participants. This Israeli hip-hop/ funky group has really great music, which was even featured in Adam Sandler's comedic homage to Israeli culture: Don't Mess with the Zohan! At the end of the ceremony, Moshe Ben Ari performed a concert for all of us! We were VERY lucky to have gotten some great seats in the front, so I was able to get pictures of him and my new Israeli boyfriend, the trombonist in the band! HAHA I wish!

Bibi
Flags representing the Jews coming to Israel from all over to volunteerMoshe Ben Ari

My new boyfriend ;)

Hebrew phrases for today's post:
Pituach: open
Segur: closed
B'hatzlacha!: Good Luck!
Musica meh ha lev: Music from the Heart
Anachnu ohevim leeshmoah musica Israeli: We like listening to Israeli music