There is no better introduction to the people of the Holy Land than taking an El Al flight to Israel. Luggage carousel, Ben Gurion airport,Tel Aviv In most cases women are inclined to follow the trend of their particular community, whatever that may be. I was told “You don’t have to look frumpy to be religious” and indeed some young women have become creative in finding new and very attractive methods of tying scarves. What to wear can be a dilemma for the recently married or newly orthodox young woman particularly if she is fashion conscious. The main issue being just how much hair one should cover or reveal. Others may wear a half wig, snood, soft round hat or scarf. Belz Hassidim allow wigs, but only when a hat is also worn over them, just to make doubly sure. Predominantly an Ashkenazi practice ( Russian/polish), it is rejected by most Sephardim ( Spanish/Portuguese) who claim that when a woman wears these wigs one often cannot tell if they are false or real and furthermore these wigs can look so much more attractive that a woman’s natural hair, that the objective of remaining ‘modest’ seems somehow defeated. One group of Jews, the Lubavitch Hassidim, recommend the wearing of wigs. However for those of you who use a computer regularly, I am sure you will be delighted to know that there is now an ‘emoji’ so you can express your feelings in your emails…. It means something quite different in Italy – certainly something not to be used by a well brought up young lady. An Israeli lady friend of mine was on business in Italy at a VIP boardroom conference and used the sign, intending to say “Please wait a second” but the gesture caused a gasp of shock around the table. Israel is a land of black and white – there is no word for SUBTLE in Hebrew – either stay calm, or go crazy – this they understand.īeware though – if you decide to use ‘The Rega’ hand gesture, remember that this sign does not travel well. According to Israelis the English are constantly saying ‘sorry’ or ‘excuse me’ for everything – a fact they simply cannot comprehend and in fact find quite annoying. Being restrained makes you look like an idiot – so to get anywhere you have no choice except to explode – but whatever you do, this should never be accompanied by an apology for your outburst. Because, my friend, English patience simply doesn’t work here. “Why are you shouting?” they ask with a puzzled look. Any such outburst is always met with hurt surprise by the average Israeli. To get anything done, you may start out optimistically with English ‘cool’, but inevitably have to resort to ‘explosive mode’ – Israeli style. This, compounded with an excess of bureaucracy, can stretch ones savlanut to the limit. Ring any of the service providers – there are options to speak in Russian, Arabic or Hebrew. Savlanut is necessary in many areas of Israeli life.

Meaning of never a dull moment