Moving to Israel

As someone who is constantly trying to pitch the idea of moving to Israel,  I am always scouring the Internet, searching for stories of Aliyah success (or failure, if the case may be). So today, on an early Sunday morning, you can imagine how happy I am as, while surfing I stumble across a great new blog (well, new for me) of another North American who has made Aliyah recently and sounds like they really are enjoying the experience. I have some reading to do to get to the origins of the blog but some of the posts I’ve read talk about the experience the authors go through leaving their long time homes in Michigan, the challenge of bringing children along to make the adjustment and many other issues that can really hit home for all the Olim and potentially future Olim out there.

I am going to try to get in touch with the owners and try to get some more information to share with you, but for now just know that this blog is a must read. Again, the address is http://shuandnat.blogspot.com/.

Ari

There was a very interesting post today over at Teaneck Talk, a local blog written and maintained by the Orthodox community of Teaneck, NJ (a very well known and popular town in the New York City area). The author of the article writes how, although the area of Teaneck has an exceptionally high rate of Aliyah and people moving to Israel, there has been an equally alarming number of people making Yerida (leaving Israel) and moving to the area while also starting to take up some of the more high profile positions (Shul president, etc.) of the religious community.

The author takes a very hard tone against these practices and even suggests shunning those who move into Teaneck after leaving Israel. It is a very interesting topic and there has been a number of comments posted on the blog (including one by yours truly).

What does everyone think of this? As someone who has dedicated a good part of their life to the Aliyah cause - including this blog - I am very interested to hear what my readers think about the possibility of making certain positions unavailable and, perhaps even shunning, the people who move into an area after making Yerida. I think hearing from everyone would help to shape my opinion as well and I am anxiously looking forward to hearing what everyone thinks.

Ari

As this blog is a platform for encouraging people to move to Israel I thought I would share with you today a site that attempts to be THE resource on the subject. However, let me advise from the begining that it will be a somewhat biased analysis as the site is one of great signficance to me - it is mine and it was the inspiration for the creation of this blog which has been so successful over the course of the last few months and has, hopefully, helped to provide one more “friend” when making the very impactful move of leaving your lives and relocating to Israel.

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, the site was originally set up to find people the best prices when shipping to or from Israel. It was created by myself and a former college roommate of mine, Ronen Levy, who have both made Aliyah in the last decade and who both experienced tremendous headaches when we were attempting to ship our (and our families’) belongings overseas.

The process that we kept finding when researching for good shipping companies was becoming all too familiar. We’d look at a company and go to the phone book or website where we would be prompted to fill out a form or call a representative. This is where the troubles usually started. Filling out a form would often take you to a page that let you know that the company was researching your data and would get back to you. Fair enough. However, when you’d finally speak to an agent the information would often be inaccurate or you’d be given a message that there could be no quotes until they came to your home and assesed the complete situation. Obviously, this delayed the process even further and then you multiply this process by all of the companies you’d like estimates from.

The troubles would get worse when, after agreeing to a price and selecting your agency, the stuff was sent only to be discovered when we were in the country that the price was actually different then from the one we had been quoted. Now here you are in a new country with your possesions being stored and you in obvious need of them. Hardly an ideal bargaining position to be in. In both of our cases and in others we’ve heard about over the years, this story, or similar variances thereof, have been common occurrences. After comparing notes of our stories the idea for http://www.shippingconsolidators.com was born.

We established a system where a person comes to our site and fills out a form with their moving information, just as described above. In our case, however, we then receive the form and personally take the information to find you the best shipping price from good, reliable companies. A few days later the visitor is sent an email giving them an approximate estimation of what their move will cost. While it is mentioned in the emails that these approximations are just those - approximations - and there will always be factors that will be needed to be determined by the shipping companies in person, the price given gives users an extremely reliable number that they can use as a guide in all future negotiations with other companies. In addition, the price estimate comes much faster than a visit from an agent would take and therefore the general price will already be established and budgetary issues can begin to be considered and implemented.

After the launch of the site and the positive feedback we received, we were informed that there are tons of other needs for Olim that begged to be addressed and that they were not getting answers to the vast number of questions they had. That’s when we decided to expand the site, establish the blog and turn them into true, complete resources for anyone moving to Israel that answers all questions while providing easy access to us where we can answer your questions directly and personally if the answers were not given on the site.

The best thing about everything mentioned above is the price - it’s free. There is no charge whatsoever. We do it all just as a way to promote moving to Israel and that is the only pay we hope for - more Olim. I say this not to brag but to further try and bring the site to everyones attention so they can use its vast amount of resources and save hours of trouble and hassles that we had to go through that are no longer necessary for you.

Overall the site has grown in popularity and we are thrilled with that. However, we need to get the word out more! With Aliyah and moving to Israel as important, if not more so, than ever, every little bit helps. Any resource or friendly advice that can be transferred over to potential Olim and possibly tip the scales in favor of them making the move is crucial. We need Olim. We need Jews to come home. Please spread the word about the site to anyone who is even thinking about moving to Israel and, if that includes you, please squeeze every amount of information you can get out of the site to use to your advantage. Whether you’re looking to ship to Israel, find a job in Israel, need to know your army obligation to Israel, want to see pictures of Israel or are just curious about anything even remotely connected with Israel, the site is here for you.

I hope you can forgive me for taking todays post for a little self plugging but, again, we cannot lose site of the ultimate goal of our blog and site: the encouragement and helping of people to come home to Israel. Enjoy the site and hope to see you keep coming back again and again.

 Ari

For the first time since the British rule, Aliyah to Israel will be stopped. In an obviously cruel and racist manner the Israeli government will stop all Aliyah of the Falashmura from Ethiopia. In a decision made by the Jewish Agency, a quasi official government entity, all agency representatives will return to Israel, bringing to close a five year streak which saw over 16,000 Falashmura make the move to Israel.

If our readers will recall a previous blog post, the Israeli government had declared war on the Aliyah of Jews who are not wealthy. Apparently, a new front to this war has been opened as Falashmura Olim from Ethiopia can hardly be considered wealthy and therefore not of interest to Israeli government officials. Although Ethiopians are an honor and credit to Israeli society, they are usually only found working menial jobs for the Israeli economy and it is possible that their manpower is no longer needed or that quotas have been met.

Unfortunately for the rest of Israel’s citizens, this represents a further moral deterioration of Israeli government leaders. Further, if Israel was truly a democratic state then, at a minimum, citizens should be called upon to vote over the issue.   

      

In attempting to be THE moving to Israel blog on the Internet, we are constantly seeking to provide our readers with tips and advice on making Aliyah. Another, less publicized adjustment for new immigrants in Israel is the move within the country itself. As Olim are often unsettled upon relocation, moving to several places until a permanent home is found is extremely common. Yesterday I found myself is such a situation as I moved my family across the city to my second home since making Aliyah and thought I would share a bit of my experience to you.

We moved from our home in the German Colony Jerusalem to the neighboring community of Old Katamon just a few blocks away. As someone who has moved a reasonable amount of times over the years back in America, I was prepared for the grind of the day. However, looking back on the day, I can say that I was pleasantly surprised with how it went. The moving company showed up at about 8:00 a.m. and worked efficiently from there on out. They were out of our old apartment by about 12:30 p.m. and had all of our stuff moved in to our new place by 3:30 p.m. The company seemed to be proffesional throughout and was accomodating with any requests made of them.

Now, this is not to say that any moving company should feel the right to act in any way other than the above. However, reality is that not all companies do. I have had very bad experiences with my moves in America and it would be nice if this was a general indication of company practice here in Israel. Unfortunately, my wife dealt with all the arranging and everything was paid in cash so I do not know off hand the contact information of the company to link to them. However, I will get it and post it in a future post to let everyone thinking about moving a chance to test them out.

Making Aliyah is always tough and making a move within Israel is just another challenge that many Olim face within their first few years in the country. As we always are trying to dole out information when first moving to Israel, please never hesitate to post a comment here or to contact me directly for ANY answers or advice you may seek regarding the move within Israel as well.

 Ari

As a blog that encourages and (hopefully) contributes to the moving to Israel and Aliyah process, we are always searching the Internet for content that does just that. In searching, today I came across a video that is an aboslute must-see for our audience. The video, written, produced and acted out by Yehezkel Laing, can be viewed here.

These are some tough times that the country is going through and, therefore, this video comes along at the perfect time as it promotes Israel while also being laugh-out-loud funny. If there’s anything better than encouraging Aliyah, it’s encouraging it while making you smile. This is a great piece by Yehezkel and I hope to see lots more content from him in the future (which I will be sure to pass along).

Enjoy the video. You will not be dissapointed.

Ari

This has not been the easiest of weeks in the history of the Jewish people in general and the country of Israel in particular. Basically, a “tradeoff” of hostages was completed where several live, swearing-to-do-more-evil terrorists were released from Israeli prisons while, in return, Israel received the bodies of two young soldiers kidnapped and killed two years ago (with another “wrinkle” on Israel’s side: noone even knew whether the soldiers were dead or alive).

For a country and a people that has known its share of pain through the centuries, for many, this was a particular lowlight. Here we have a determined nation with G-d behind it and one of the most powerful armies in the world being led by the nose by a sworn enemy now returning the dead bodies of two soldiers for whom we once swore we would not rest until they returned home. The outrageous details could go on for hours but, needless to say, it has not left Israel with the greatest impression around the world and, even more needless to say, is certainly not something that is going to encourage new potential immigrants to make Aliyah. That is why this article by Go´el Jasper is such a fantastic read. A snippet:

But we are still the Jewish people. We are still the nation that has survived - and thrived - throughout the centuries against all rational calculation. We are the nation that won an un-winnable war in six days, and we are the nation that rescued the hostages from Entebbe, and we are the nation that bombed Iraq’s nuclear reactor.

The article is filled with inspirational messages such as the above and was really the first time all week I was able to look at my country and my own personal Aliyah with pride. These are some very dark times and with many people in full ”I’ve had enough” mode, it will take people with spirit such as Go´el to keep us on the right path of belief of our attitude in general, and our love and desire to move to Israel, in particular. This is still a wonderful, miraculous country that has accomplished an unprecedented amount of achievements in its short history. We need to continue to push on and encourage every Jew to come home and not let the terrorist, murdering ways of our enemies, as well as some woeful decision making by those in power, discourage us.

Thanks for the message Go´el.

Ari

Nefesh B’Nefesh has brought in its first batch of new Olim of the summer. As reported by Pinchas Sanderson of Arutz Sheva:

Nefesh B’Nefesh welcomed its first summer aliyah flight at Ben Gurion International Airport on Thursday. The flight brought 220 new immigrants from North America to Israel. It was the first of thirteen flights expected to bring more than 2,000 new immigrants over the course of the summer. Tracey Levy, formerly of Houston, Texas, who arrived on the flight, is the organization’s 15,000th new immigrant.

As a blogger who writes about the significance of Aliyah and moving to Israel, I have to say that Nefesh B’Nefesh continues to amaze me. To think that there is an organization that has built itself up in these few years on the premise of helping and enabling people to drop everything and come to Israel is truly awe inspiring. Although my own personal Aliyah was a bit before Nefesh B’Nefesh came into being, I have many friends who I can without doubt say would not be living (and thriving) here without it. I also take pride in knowing co-founder Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, who I grew up with. Although we haven’t had much contact since we were kids, it’s still great to see a fellow native of the Highland Park/Edison, NJ area have such a phenominal infulence on helping people with the life altering move. I know for the two of us, life was very nice in the NY/NJ area and, as I’ve written in the past, there are a myriad of reasons that people are able to uproot and leave these pleasant lives behind. While they’re too numerous to mention here, it goes without saying that financial issues are often one of the top concerns potential Olim have. This obstacle, along with many others (including information, advice, etc.), is one that Nefesh B’Nefesh has done an absolutely extraordinary job of tackling and easing the burden on people.

I would encourage everyone to check out Nefesh B’Nefeshs’ web site and, particularly if you’re thinking of making Aliyah, give them a shout.

Ari

I came across a great blog today by another North American who has just moved to Israel and will be spending the coming year in Hebrew University. Andy Ratto keeps this regularly updated diary of his daily happenings in the country.

I always feel these are the best types of blogs to share with my readers (being a moving to Israel blog) as they seem to take Olim just like me (and many of you) and put real life stories of their day to day lives on display through their eyes to let others somewhat live out the Aliyah experience for themselves. So real life, in fact, that they don’t always work out. Many people have negative experiences when first making Aliyah and many more do not end up staying at all. This is good. I don’t think I would be doing a service to my audience, even though I try to promote moving to Israel, by just blindly painting every one’s move in a positive light. It is not easy just as it is not easy moving from another part of the world to anywhere. That being said, I think it’s pretty safe to say that the vast majority of people who move to Israel find it to be a positive, life altering experience and an extremely high percentage of Olim continue to make Israel their home on a permanent basis.

Andy’s story, I would say, is yet to have played out as he appears to be just begining his time in the country. He states his early views on some of the things he’s seen so far and I am extremely excited to follow along throughout the year and see how it goes. Again, I think this and other blogs like it are very good reading for new and potential Olim to see the absorption process in action.

 Ari Strauch

There’s a great and pressing article from Thursdays jpost.com by Ruth Eglash about Alexander Mulugeta, 26, a young Ethiopian student, who has spent the past year at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya and is set to be deported within the next two weeks. The article goes on to touch upon the more-delicate-than-ever issue of the Law of Return and an idividual and family’s eligibility.

Mulugeta, who is studying Government, Diplomacy and Strategy at IDC’s International School, said that since family members moved to Israel more than 10 years ago they should be allowed to immigrate under the Law of Return, which allows any person with at least one Jewish grandparent to move here.

The challenges faced by Mulugeta described by Eglash in the article, along with some of the comments by her readers, makes it clear that the bureaucratic squabble and finger pointing regarding moving to Israel and Aliyah are, unfortunately, as alive as ever. With the life and death situations that present itself to Israel daily this is truly the last thing the public wants to hear about. Let everyone who is legally eligible for the Right of Return come to the country with the fewest obstacles possible and let’s get back to defending our lives from the true enemies.

 Ari