Earl Shugerman, a freelance journalist, writes articles of Jewish and Israeli interest for the Jewish press My first and favorite tour of Jerusalem was two months after my Aliyah in May of 2007. I was accompanied by my cousin Chaya (Heb. fem. name for life). She is Jewish Orthodox and by the age of thirty has six wonderful children. She is also an American Oleh (immigrant). Her family immigrated to Israel, two decades ago. Their intention was to be in the holiest city of the holiest nation on earth. Continue...

T.R's Disappointment As Jews, many of us dream of making the Holy Land our home.  And when we begin the process, we’re filled with hope, excitement and joy.  When my husband and I got the call to go to the Israeli Embassy to get our passports stamped, we could hardly stand it!  I think we could have made it from Barcelona to Madrid (where we lived at the time) without taking a train or airplane.  We had enough adrenaline between the two of us to propel us for miles. Continue

Is He in the Food Business I wonder if G-d is in the food business on the side.  I know He is busy with important things like global warming, the global economic crisis and all other things global but how is it that all the festivals revolve around food?  I think G-d is a major shareholder in the food industry.  I never noticed this in "chutz la'aretz" but when I arrived in Israel I saw how much food gets eaten on the Chagim.  Continue

An Anonymous Story Single, I arrived in Israel in 1988.  I went straight to an absorption center in Kfar Saba with a group of other singles.  It was always my intention to move north to Haifa.  I loved the mountains, the sea, the forests and the way of life.  Towards the end of my 6 month ulpan,  I would go up to Haifa on weekends, scour the local papers in search of accommodation.  I knew that living in a house in Israel was the ultimate but at the same time I didn’t know anything about the suburbs in Haifa.  I saw a lot of apartments, none of which really appealed to me, so when I heard about the availability of a small cottage, I jumped at the opportunity. Continue

Doreen Guinsburg - a true Zionist  As I entered her very modest ground floor apartment in Ahuzza, Haifa, I immediately noticed an antique book-stand filled with lots of interesting old leather bound books.  A large collection of nature scenes, watercolors and pastels cover the walls.  On the coffee table are a selection of paperbacks on Aliyah, Israel and Zionism.  As I talk with her I discover that Doreen is an ardent Zionist and has been ever since she first decided to come to Palestine in 1932 at the age of 18. Continue

Doreen's sister Lynn Durlacker travels alone by car, up Africa along the Great North Road on her way to Israel When I first interviewed Doreen Guinsberg, she promised to tell me the about her sister,  Lynn -  she had to find the article! "What should I tell you about today; more about myself, about Lynn or the early days of Haifa?"  I want to hear about Lynn's incredible journey to Israel, so I coax her in that direction.  Continue

A light-hearted look at some of the things Leah has learned after a year in Israel 1.    Even though they teach you the word "savlanut" or patience, no one seems to have any. 2.    Pray that when the serviceman says he is coming on Tuesday, that he means this coming Tuesday and not one of the 52 Tuesdays this year. Continue

Eran - a lone soldier Lots of unsteady, Zionist motivated, young American adults come to Israel to show their Jewish/Israeli attachment. Maybe it's just an excuse, and they are searching for their identity in what they presume is a different and friendlier society.  In my case, I came to Israel, not because I wanted to contribute to Israel, but because I needed to get away from a hectic way of life in Los Angeles.  I was searching for a combination of stability, equality, loyalty, individuality and even similarity.  I hoped that my endeavors would propel my personal growth, maturity and purpose in life.  Continue

Gershom & Bobbie from Chicago My wife and I made Aliyah to Haifa in July, 2007. We came from Chicagoland, having spent much of our lives in the New York/New Jersey area. Our two children are grown enough to have remained in the U.S., so there is still a major part of our lives in the U.S. But all our physical belongings that were not sold or given away came with us. That was quite a sorting process!!  Continue

David's journey via Turkey, Syria, Iran & Russia For most of my life, I have been the stereotypical “Wandering Jew”.  I was born in the US but always felt out of place there, so as soon as I received sufficient academic qualifications, I headed out, working, studying, traveling, not having any base for longer than my job contract or study period. Along the way I met my future wife, but it took a few years of international chess-like moves as both of us moved from country to country, sometimes crossing in the same one, until we married in Turkey.  Continue

Greta's Story I was living on a kibbutz in the 1970s, as part of a  “garin” (group or nucleus).  My garin split up, and  I attempted to join a more established kibbutz on my own. During that period, I received news that my father was terminally ill.  I went back to Northern California to visit him. When I returned again to the kibbutz, I realized that my place was back with my mother in the USA. I was still single and this made the most sense. - Continue

Sanda - Being a Jew in Israel My name is Sanda Abromovici-Lam, no mistake; the R was dropped from day one. When I lived in South America people assumed that I HAD to be Sandra! After all where could the name Sanda come from? When I made aliyah I was so excited I could finally recover my identity. Wrong! In Israel they call me Sandra too, even when it’s written in Hebrew without the Reish. Guess my destiny is to keep fighting for my name among other identities. I decided I could write my story as an amateur story-teller. Continue

Would you like to share your Aliyah experience with us?  Email us at: anglolist at gmail dot com and we'll consider your story for publication