#natasha yannacanedo

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 3

I feel like I am wearing a Halloween costume. I am dressed for modesty for a tour of Me’a She’arim with Raya Bruckental and a meeting with Puah Steiner in the Old City. Tennis shoes and a long dress feels awkward. I bought a long skirt in the Old City and when I tried it on this morning, you could see my ankles and looked like it could be see through. The sun burned my eyes and I realized I had forgotten my sunglasses and had to go back to my apartment to retrieve them. I just missed the bus and had to wait for another 20 minutes. How I miss the MTA. The bus did not have its usual announcements of stops so I stressed the whole ride trying to keep track of where I was. An Orthodox young man started speaking to me and I had to explain, yet again, that I don’t speak Hebrew. I feel like the ugly American here, not speaking the language at all. I hate it. The meeting place was not clear and I called Raya but got her voicemail. I contacted Dveer and he said she thought the meeting was at noon and would be late. Of course I had to pee. It’s funny to me that several Israelis have told me everyone speaks English when I have already encountered many that don’t, including a bus driver and two security guards. Also, I have not been impressed by the food thus far. And gluten-free options have been very limited. The produce is pretty good though! I have had gluten-free pasta three times already.

I loved Raya! She walked me through a Me’a She’arim and told me all about the different religious groups. She treated me to delicious halva at the market and then we had lunch. I hope to see her art one day.

Traveling to meet Puah was a nightmare. Navigating Jerusalem super stresses me out and is not easy. Worse than any place I have ever traveled to. I felt very guilty as I got lost and Puah said she would walk to me. There were many large uneven steps in the Old City and very steep hills. My knee was already in tremendous pain by 2pm. Ends up Puah broke her leg recently so it was not easy for her to walk to me so I felt even more guilt. We ended up having a lovely chat outside and at her apartment. She told me her heartbreaking story about the siege and surrender of the Old City and gifted me with her memoir.

The TEDx Youth event was insane! I walked in to the most chaotic pizza and soda party with tons of teenagers! It opened with a cute drumming number. I didn’t understand most of the speakers since they weren’t in English. It was cool that one speaker was talking about Jerusalem DNA and how many creative leaders grew up here. Another was a video that I had actually seen before! A brilliant young teenager that developed a device to help heal chronic wounds. Another young boy gave an adorable speech on perseverance. The rest of the time I was bored as I couldn’t understand what was being said. As a New Yorker, I have an attitude that time is precious and resent spending time that does nothing for me. I felt that last night at the film as well. The TEDx Youth event ended with a famous rapper here (no idea what his name is) and I got a real kick out of the teenage girls screaming after he touched their hands from the stage. I bought my first bag of milk! Yes, they sell some milk bags here. The woman was surprised that I was surprised at the bag and said, “Oh I thought you were Israeli!” I am looking forward to volunteering at the hospital tomorrow!

[wanderingnomad84]

Othello with all female cast.

Harlem Shakespeare Festival in partnership with The National Arts Club present William Shakespeare’s OTHELLO: The Moor of Venice, in an exciting 90-minute all-female stage-adaptation by Lisa Wolpe; with sound design by David D. Wright.  

OTHELLO stars international actress/producer, Debra Ann Byrd, who recently received the Broadway World Best Lead Actress Award for her portrayal in the title role. This live classic Zoom production is led by celebrated director Vanessa Morosco and performed by a cast of ten classically trained actresses, who tell the story of a love that defies the boundaries of race; and a hatred that defies all boundaries of reason.  Together they transform a lover’s world of sighs into a universe of hurt ... Othello: “Be careful who you trust!”

WHAT: Harlem Shakespeare Festival Classical Lab Reading Series WHEN: Monday, September 21, 2020 at 8pm ET; Zoom Room Opens at 7:30pm WHERE: Streaming Live via Zoom and Facebook RSVP: http://bit.ly/HSFOthelloRSVP

------------------------------------------ WHO’S WHO IN THE COMPANY ------------------------------------------ OTHELLO: Debra Ann Byrd IAGO: Lisa Wolpe CASSIO: Mary Hodges RODERIGO: Amanda Barron DESDEMONA: Jennifer LeBlanc MONTANO: Amy Driesler EMILA: Natasha Yannacanedo BIANCA: Kim Wuan SAILOR 1/HERALD/Female CVR: Anja Lee SAILOR 2/Male CVR: Aixa Kendrick - - - Zoom Director of Production: Norman A. Small Zoom Production Technician: Nidal Q. Harvey Marketing & Promotions: Natalie Clarke Marketing Associate: Tom Martin Associate Producer: Jackie Jeffries Producing Artistic Director: Debra Ann Byrd Associate Artistic Director: Dathan B. Williams 🎭 Producing Partner: Voza Rivers/ New Heritage Theatre Group 🎭 Producing Partner: The National Arts Club * 📷 Photo by Yasmine Lawler 💻 Graphic by dabgrafix designs 💃  Original Costume by Gail Cooper-Hecht

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 20

I started the day at Power Coffee Works. My internet on my phone failed me and I was super proud that I found the place all on my own. It was hilarious to me that I had been right outside of it before when I went on my tour with Dan. Everything starts to become familiar eventually. I decided to try a “frio,” which is basically ice, expresso, milk, and a little honey. However I could not taste the honey. It was quite strong; I would have preferred it with a little more milk. Lonnie was great to talk to. He is originally from New Jersey and has started hosting and organizing all these literary events in Jerusalem. Jerusalism is the name of his movement. We talked about everything from happenings to performance poetry to his dating life. Lonnie was kind enough to show me the way to buy some pants I could do yoga in. All my pants were dirty! The shopkeeper tried to cheat me out of 10 shekels but Lonnie thought he was just slow. I have enough experience traveling to know when someone is trying to cheat me. The guy had a bad vibe. But I loved that Lonnie had such an optimistic attitude about it. Lonnie then showed me a restaurant he likes in the “shuk,” which is the Mahane Yehuda Marketplace. Of course it was the place I already ate at that had the good rice! I decided to eat there again. I panicked a little because my internet was still not working after restarting my phone three times. Miraculously, I was able to find the place of the earthmaking class and picked up my piece and I also was able to find my bus stop! All on my own. On the bus, a couple asked me about their stop and I was actually able to help because it was my stop! Then another guy asked me direction advice and I was able to help him too. Twenty days later and I can actually give transportation advice. Pretty cool. Only on my bus line of course. At the bus stop I saw a mother exposing her baby to the hot sun. A woman came up to her and told her to get a hat for the baby. Very Israeli. I think it but the Jerusalem woman goes ahead and tells her what she should do.

The Hebrew Music Museum was familiar to me as I had already visited their store and used their restroom the first week I arrived. Truth be told, I visited it the day before because I happened upon it, had time to kill, and realized it would make room in my schedule the following afternoon to do laundry. It was on the same block that I bought the art for Amara’s room. And funny enough, the same block as the bad vegan place. The more I am here, the more everything feels like a circle. The tablet self-guided tour was pretty cool as you could hear the sound of every instrument and read about the history. The cartoon narration was a little annoying and cheesy but overall it was a great tour. I learned the frame drum is called “Miriam’s drum” in ancient Israeli culture because the prophetess Miriam (sister of Moses) led the culture of playing the frame drum in Biblical times. I loved the sound of the Azarbijani Kamancheh; it is considered an ancestor to the violin. I dug the sound of the Hejhouj as well-a Moroccan string instrument. I also loved the Morrocan violin-so soulful! The Ethiopian harp was gigantic as well as the Contrabass! They had a Peruvian flute but had misspelled it saying “Peruvain.” It made me laugh because I do have some Peruvian relatives that could be considered vain. The Cuban violin was crazy looking! It struck me how so many of the instruments looked like works of art.

Getting my laundry to my friend’s house on the bus was a bit of a chore. She was really into her soccer game so I took advantage of her wifi to catch up on life and get some help from the cellphone expert from Cube Art. He said he would call the company with my sim card to see what is up. I then learned from my friend that there is wifi at every bus stop. Say what?! Now that would have been extremely helpful information to have had this entire trip but especially today! I still can’t get used to the invasion of personal space here. A man reached directly in front of my face to close a window in the bus without saying anything.

My yoga class was awesome. It was supposed to be for people with disabilities but it was a pretty typical class in my opinion, just not Vinyasa style. I couldn’t do a couple things but could participate in most of the class. It was the perfect temperature and I could hear the birds chirping outside and feel a light breeze from the windows. It was my first time in a yoga class with a man wearing a kippah and his shirt said “Got wrinkles?” I felt very aligned, released, and in touch with my body at the end of class. My teacher has a daughter with serious knee issues so we discussed this at length. She even gave me a ride to the place she recommended for dinner after class. I finally had shukshuka! The was the first place I found where they served it with gluten-free bread. It was quite good but not amazing. I think it would be better spicier. I found another Anise so was able to pick up some gluten-free items.

[apexart-journal]

My baby, Amara.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Palestine, Day 25

Palestine! We started the day at the hospital in Jerusalem. Rula’s friend was getting chemo. We had time to kill so I ended up volunteering at a second hand shop at the hospital that donates its proceeds to children with cancer. The place was a hot mess so I organized the main table. I even bought a cute jacket for Amara. Then we drove her friend, friend’s daughter and other friend to their homes in Palestine and then we had lunch. This place was what we call a “hole in the wall” and had the best hummus and falafel I have ever had in my life! It was delicious.

Then we headed to the university and saw an excellent show of graduating student work. Rula was well known everywhere we went! She is like the mayor. Her Chair felt really bad she couldn’t offer her a full-time position for fall and they discussed this at length.

Afterwards we headed to the Palestine Museum and sat outside and chatted for a while. Then we saw some really cool embroidery and posters in their current exhibit.

We then headed to the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center but the only thing going on was a concert later in the evening. The director knew Rula of course. We were allowed special permission to see the late poet, Mahmoud Darwish’s off-limits desk and office. It was being held as he had it before he died. Then, we were allowed access to a special private preview of a drawing exhibit opening the next day. We were very lucky that we encountered no traffic on the way back and had no issues at the check point.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 29

Last day of required itinerary! My entire time here so far I have only had one complete day that was entirely my own and that one day was on Shabbat so choices were severely limited. Tomorrow is my own so I will meet up with my generous friend, Oded, for an adventure in Tel Aviv!

I started off the day with spoiled milk. The milk here probably has less crap in it so it spoils quickly after you open it, even if the expiration date is much later. I quickly ran to the bodega to get more as they will close early for Shabbat. Then I went to get my last reimbursements at the Art Cube office. Dveer gave me an official letter of invitation for the fellowship to show at the airport to help avoid drama. I was going to buy a t-shirt but he gifted me one. I visited the current exhibit one last time. For the first time ever, a bus driver smiled at me. Oh how I miss smiles! I have never been on a trip before where I was so homesick by the end.

Dveer was kind enough to schedule me return to the Bezael Fair so I could buy my pre-approved anniversary present from my husband. ; ) I saw a really cool giant art installation that played music when you turned it like a gramophone! There was a South American pan flute player that people were enjoying. I dropped off the ice packs I had borrowed for my knee from Maya at her apartment and then ventured to the Botanical Gardens.

The Botanical Gardens were cool. It made me miss my mom as she and I went to the ones in the Bronx last year. Also, she has more of a “green thumb.” I don’t even own a plant. The sun was blazing as I trekked uphill to the bus stop. The next bus was not for 20 minutes and my bladder was bursting. Of course to commemorate my last day I got lost because I took the bus in the wrong direction and ended up at an ugly protest with an Israeli woman yelling at an American guy, “Yankee, go home!” I thought in my head, gladly.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 26

I dragged myself out of bed at 5am after a long night of insomnia for my tour to the north. I walked to the hotel we were meeting at and was not happy that the guide arrived 50 minutes late. We drove through Tel Aviv (established in 1909) and then ended up in Caesarea. I met a wonderful woman from Northern California named Chris and we chatted throughout the day. She taught in Saudi Arabia with her husband for eight years and her daughter grew up part of her life there so now her daughter always works in the Middle East and speaks Arabic. Caesarea was established in 4th century B.C. and King Herod built it. We visited an amazing 4,000 seat Roman theater. There is a small mosque In Caesarea for a small community that came to work and needed to worship. We moved on to Haifa, the third biggest city in Israel. 65% are Jewish and 35% are Muslim. We saw the Baha’i Gardens from (above and below) in Haifa. Baha’i originated in Iran. The beauty of nature is an important part of the religion. Baha’i comes from the word gate. You don’t have to convert to become Baha’i! You can remain in your own religion. I attended a Baha’i wedding once upon a time and I remember no alcohol was allowed. Rosh Hanikra was gorgeous and borders Lebanon. (There is no peace agreement between Lebanon and Israel or Syria and Israel. Only a cease fire.) We saw these really cool grottos in Rosh Hanikra. The freshness and coolness of the water was so welcoming. We stood by the border of Lebanon and Israel. We all had falafel and hummus for lunch at a local Arabic restaurant. We also watched a craftsman make a copper bracelet and give it to a woman in our group. In Acre we saw these really cool tunnels where the smugglers used to sneak in products to avoid paying taxes. I met a few gorgeous cats throughout my day. Two let me pet them. I befriended a Chinese man named James and a woman and her son, Gabriel from San Jose, California! (One hour from where I was born-San Francisco.) We thought we were staying on part of the actual kibbutz for our hotel but it is just their property and it is separate. So, we decided to venture out on our own and try to meet some people and discuss their experiences living on the kibbutz. At the swimming pool, we met a really kind and witty man who gave me all kinds of wonderful information about his experiences growing up. When he was three days old, his mom put him in a room to live with the other kids that were born in the same year as him. There was a person in charge of that age group. Most of the adults would work from 6 AM to 2 PM and then come home for a nap from 2 PM to 4 PM. Then, they would be with their children from 4 PM to 8 PM. Then when the kids would go to bed, they would discuss business matters and vote on things. So children did not sleep with their parents. But they did have really great quality time for those four hours every day. Very interesting! They worked six days a week. The idea was to create the “new Jew.” They would often work on creative things, even do theater in the evenings. And children would often be nursed by another woman, not their mother. This doesn’t really happen anymore. Now most kibbutz’s are much more “modernized.” Children sleep with their parents. Back in the day, you would only get what you would need. There was no extra or consumerism. And it would only be the people on the kibbutz. Now, outsiders are brought in for certain things. I wanted to talk to this man longer but his daughter was getting cranky and he needed to take her home. I didn’t get to find out exactly how they run their modern kibbutz and his position. My new friends and I went to the only restaurant in town to eat dinner. I was very lucky they had gluten-free bread so I could get a sandwich. An interesting and informative day.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 24

I suffered this morning because the hot water decided to not work. Another person asked me for directions at the bus stop in Hebrew. I have noticed many older siblings take care of their younger siblings here. Even older brothers will be on the bus with strollers. It is rare to see that in the States. An elderly woman on the bus asked me the other day flat out, “What religion are you?” I don’t think anyone I have just met has ever asked me that before.

At the Great Synagogue the guard did not speak English. I was clueless if I needed to cover my head so I did, but then I saw a woman uncovered and pulled mine down. I realized I looked more Muslim than Jewish the way I had covered. All this covering and modesty stresses me out. I have Zen meditation later so was going to wear pants but then I had this meeting at this synagogue so I thought a dress would be better. (Dveer texted me back saying it was OK to wear pants since it was not a service after I was already dressed.) Moria was so very lovely. Dveer failed to mention she is his aunt! We climbed many stairs at the Great Synagogue to find the doors to the women’s section locked. She wanted to demonstrate for me the segregation of women and men and how far the women have to sit from the men. We sat on the stairs and chatted. She shared her beautiful poem about not being able to recite Kaddish after her father died while her brothers could. Her father died when she was twelve and he was a pretty well known rabbi. She has conflicting emotions about her situation. She lives in a conservative community and a settlement although she does not necessarily believe in the politics of that. She stresses about what to tell her daughter about modesty. Her daughter goes to a religious school and has to wear a skirt, not pants. And she has to have some sleeves. Females are taught they must practice modesty for the males. Moria does not like this idea and does not want to teach her daughter that idea. It is complicated as most things here are. Moria hyphenated her last name with her husband’s years ago when it was not customary, but her kid’s have her husband’s last name. In her community they have started to do the Shabbatt prayer service in each other’s houses without a rabbi. The men and women sit separated but they can see each other-there is no screen. This is quite progressive. Women are allowed to say prayers unlike in the traditional synagogue. She was able to finally say Kaddish for her father and found it very healing. Her extended family is very Orthodox so for her son’s Bar Mitzvah they did everything by the book except she stood by her son. We climbed down the stairs and entered the men’s section of the synagogue. The women’s gallery was so very far up. It reminded me of back in the day in America when we used to separate women and black people from the white men downstairs. Moria said they are trying to separate men and women on the bus here! They want the women to go to the back. She visited New York for the very first time last year with her two oldest kids. She said her favorite part was meeting people. They stayed near Central Park and on Shabatt they would read books in Central Park. Moria offered to drop me off at Bastet for lunch. She almost joined me but had to deal with coordinating dropping off the car with her husband. She said it would have been her first time having lunch at a LGBT friendly place! The waitstaff was not super friendly so I was glad she didn’t come. There was nothing that really stood out to me that it was gay friendly. There was a very small rainbow flag under the cash register and very tiny rainbow flags in the front window. Very subtle gay pride. There was a lesbian couple eating together and one of the waitresses fit the stereotype of a lesbian. There were a couple statues of black cats and a cat painted next to the sign on the door. The salad was good and the iced latte was incredible. I explored a bit, got bored, and was lucky enough to have Maya offer me to hang at her place before we met up for early dinner. After I will head to lay-led Zen meditation.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 21

I ended my lovely day on a pretty miserable note as I accidentally erased my entire post for the day. At Beit Avi-Chi I took advantage of the wifi and was trying to post on Tumblr and accidentally erased from my note the entire post. Here I will attempt to recreate.

I dragged my suitcase on the ten minute walk to the cafe where I was to meet Yossi because I had to run to pick up my dry laundry at Maya’s and take it back to my apartment before my meeting with Dena in the afternoon. Some streets here don’t have sidewalks or cars are parked in them so you have to walk in the street. Coffee T was deserted. I ordered a large latte to help wake me up. I am reminded here how I am so not a morning person. I was gifted a pastry with cherries by the nice staff at the cafe! I didn’t have the heart to tell them I have to eat gluten-free for my Celiac Disease. Yossi was amazing! He is the first person I have met that simply said to me, “Tell me about yourself.” He was very personable, open, and communicative. His personal story was very interesting to me. Yossi’s parents were Ultra Orthodox in the south and he ran away to Jerusalem. Ironically he married a religious woman even though he is not. He continues to have a relationship with his parents. He has three daughters and would like more. He took me on a tour of his neighborhood and told me the story of his activism. His neighbor found out that the city was planning to build a huge road behind their building so they organized and stopped it from happening. Instead, they convinced the city to build a walkway on the old train tracks like the High Line in New York. One of the old stations even had a cool reading station for people to borrow or leave books for free. How did they find out about this road the city planned to build? The students from Betzael College had warned his neighbor. They were taking an arts and activism class and their assignment was to find out what the city was planning and inform a specific community. What a wonderful assignment! Bravo to that professor! Yossi then told me the story of the wall. There was a wall blocking the children from accessing a playground. The city would not help. So the students from Betzael again stepped in to help. They suggested to raise the wall to the sky! So they made a creative short film with the neighborhood kids and how they raise the wall with balloons so they can play in the playground. (I saw the film and it was great!) They screened the film on the actual wall on a Friday and got lots of media coverage. The city finally caved because of media pressure! They added stairs and a handicapped ramp. Yossi then showed me a gorgeous park he helped get built. It had ping pong tables, hammocks, playgrounds for different ages. It even had a fountain and canals. Yossi is an inspiration! A role model for community activism. He even walked me to the bus stop and waited with me until my bus came.

I then picked up my laundry at Maya’s. It was a bit difficult going uphill with my suitcase full of clothes but thank goodness the bus was not too crowded. I returned ravenous and ate cereal for lunch. I then went to meet with Dena. I ran into Eca on the bus! This felt like a very New York moment. You think you are in this big city and you run into your friend. My meeting with Dena was good. I basically caught her up on my life the past two weeks. No great epiphanies or breakthroughs.

I wandered around for a while before I met Maya. At Safra Square I saw a gigantic radio that actually played music! We had a delicious fish dinner! And delicious gelato for desert! It was nice to chill with her. Maya helped me buy some fruit. She even showed me an arepa place. We saw a gay pride flag hanging off a building and I took a picture. I told her I hadn’t seen any gay couples holding hands or kissing. She said that Tel Aviv is the gay capital of the world. I said, “Don’t you mean San Francisco?” She said, “Well Tel Aviv is the gay PARTY capital.” Ah OK. She ran home to watch soccer and I went to my lecture.

The lecture was the final in a lecture series and I was pretty bored and lost. It was an interpretation of a certain part of the Torah. The lecturer had a pleasant personality and gave nice eye contact but she sat the whole time and I tuned out. I hope my students don’t ever feel this tuned out.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 19

I am still recovering from getting up at 5am on Sunday. Having insomnia a few nights this past week has not helped things. I started the day meeting with Lior at Hamiffal. This communal space is for artists to make art but also has a bar. It is in a very cool 19th century building that needs a lot of renovation. There is a loft space for artists doing residencies. I had fun watching the kittens play as I waited for Lior to show up. He was very friendly and we had a great conversation. He showed me this interesting piece he made of an old audio tape strung up that plays the music backwards. He showed me a cool fountain that his wife and him made. The space feels very hippie and reminded me of Santa Cruz. I learned from him that in Israel if you want a cat, you just pick one off the street. What’s funny is I have a street cat but I had to fill out a long application and pay a fee to adopt him. And oh how I miss him! We discussed having kids and he reveled he has two. He mentioned how brutal it is at the beginning. I have noticed many artists have kids here while in the United States most don’t because they can’t afford it or/and feel like they won’t have enough time for their art. And most artists in the States only have one kid if they have any.

One thing Amanda said that sticks with me is that here people don’t judge you by your profession like in the States. Or even where you live.

I then headed to see my friend that is recovering from surgery. It was nice to touch base and relax at her place for a bit. Funny enough, she is also an artist as well as having a full-time job. I have spent a lot of time with artists lately! I then headed out in search of food. The place she recommended ended up being the nasty vegan place I ate at last week! I then found a Georgian restaurant with some gluten-free and vegetarian options and decided to try my luck there. My itinerary said Mahane Yeduda Market for lunch and stroll, but I had already eaten there three times and walked through five times. The cheese and mushroom dish was pretty good at Kangaroo, the Georgian restaurant, but unfortunately was not very filling. I bought some carrot juice on the street to help fill me up.

The bus drivers in Jerusalem are the worst bus drivers I have ever encountered in all my travels. One started driving with the door wide open right after I stepped in! Others drive very haphazardly and I have seen elderly people almost fall numerous times in the past two weeks. I visited with Dveer at Art Cube and got my reimbursements for the week. I was lucky enough to run into Dan. He was painting his studio and showed it to me. It was bigger than many New York apartments! I then headed to dinner and my Yemenite concert.

I went to three restaurants until I finally found one that was affordable with gluten-free and pescatarian options. The waiter was very sweet trying to communicate with me. I had a stuffed artichoke and of course was still hungry because it wasn’t really stuffed so then I ordered a cheese plate. It was huge so I took half to go. It struck me how much more enjoyable a meal is with such a friendly waiter.

The concert was open seating so I was glad I got there early. It was my second Yemenite concert. A woman spent twenty minutes talking before it started. I have no idea what she said but it was the longest introduction I have ever seen at a concert. The lead female singer, Shiran, was my favorite. She was phenomenal-stage presence, emotionally connected and a gorgeous singer. There was a beloved older man singer that joined her but I didn’t love his singing. I would have preferred listening to her all night. Most of the night people did not dance which I thought was so strange! I was smiling and dancing in my seat. Towards the end of the night, a few people danced in a circle to the side of the stage. When the beloved older singer left the stage, Shiran busted out with almost a hip hop song. It was very cool. I think the male singer was doing more traditional music and she was more edgy. I really enjoyed myself. I came home with tiredness in my bones.

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 13

I was honored to meet with Nadim Sheiban, the Director of the Islamic Art Museum. He met with me for an hour and 15 minutes and even took me around their Khamsa exhibit. I also met with Idit Sharoni, the Curator of the museum, for the first half hour. They were very kind and spoke to me about their museum. They have grown their audience by highlighting their contemporary exhibitions in recent years; they both joined the museum about four years ago. I was very excited to have this incredible opportunity to meet with the director of such a prominent museum. And truth be told, I am a little obsessed with khamsas and that is their current contemporary exhibit. They also had this watch exhibit that was beautifully displayed; the lighting design that featured the watches was incredible. There were stunning artifacts in their permanent collection. I bought the book about the khamsa exhibition. It is interesting that the Jewish people have take khamsas as their own, as it originated from Muslim culture and represents the hand of Fatima, daughter of the prophet Muhammed. One Jewish artist I met here did not even know who Fatima was although she knew about khamsas. I loved that there was a sense of humor within the khmasas exhibit. To reflect the literal meaning of khamsa, there were 555 different khamsas on display. (Khamsa means “five” or “five fingers of the hand.”) I really enjoyed my visit to this museum. My favorite museum in Jerusalem so far!

My Pilates class last night was a bit of a challenge. The class was in Hebrew. The teacher spoke English but made it clear to me at the beginning of class that she would be conducting class in Hebrew. It was challenging to see what the other students were doing (so I could follow) while I was on the floor in contorted positions. I did get some nice exercise in. However, it was also pretty frustrating, and I felt like I was taking a class in gibberish.

An old lady on the bus got in trouble for not paying enough so she had me go to the front to pay for her. The bus driver was angry with her and started talking fast and I had to say in my bad Hebrew that I did not speak Hebrew. Then, he had me take a receipt back to her that she did not want. It was kind of hilarious.

Tonight I will go to an Iftar dinner. This dinner breaks the fast at sunset during Ramadan. I will eat before because most of the food will probably not be gluten-free.

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Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 12

I’m getting better at getting lost. Now when I am lost, I try to go with the flow and not panic. I try to have the adventure attitude. I took the 1 bus in the wrong direction to Temple of the Mount and ended up in Me’a She’arim. I quickly covered myself as I exited the bus to cross to the other side since it’s such a hyper religious neighborhood. Men and women even have to wait in separate designated lines in some places there! Temple Mount was a bust because it’s closed for the holiday. I wandered around the Old City and then tried to find the Old Yeshuv Museum. No one knew where it was, including shop owners and the police. I encountered an address plaque saying “The Fiedler Family” with the iconic Fiddler on the Roof image! I had a frozen fruit shake to tide me over since, as usual, nothing was gluten-free nearby. “Mi Gente” played and made me nostalgic for mi gente in New York. I watched a good, short film “Alone on the Walls” about the War of Independence at the Jewish Quarter Defenders Memorial. At the Old Yeshuv Museum there were items from before the war in 1948. There were short videos throughout to watch. It was heartwarming that each person would talk about different religious items and how it would connect them to their mother or grandmother or father. The relics were so deeply connected to family; they talked more about their family than the religious importance. One video was cool because it talked about how the way certain men wear their hats reflect their mood. One hat if you wear it forward means I have an urgent errand and should not bother me. While if you wear it back, it means one has time to chat. In New York most people would wear their hats forward! : ) I experienced my first Jerusalem rain. I saw an old Jewish man using a Moana umbrella! I am amazed how women here can wear their wigs because it can be so hot here. As I transfered busses, I tried my luck and found a place that served gluten-free pizza! It was packed so had to wait for a table but assumed that was a good sign. I was served salad before my pizza. I did not order salad. Interesting. It took over an hour but the pizza was delicious! I made my way back to my apartment to rest a bit before my pilates class.

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Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 11

I hiked about 30 minutes, mostly uphill, to get to my first destination. Google maps was not showing me any public transportation options although I later figured out the bus goes right there. The Evolution of the Sensitive Soul sounded very interesting. When I arrived at the Van Leer Institute, there was no one to be found anywhere. I saw that I should go to -1 but I could not find it anywhere. About 20 minutes later, I found a woman who explained it was in another building. There was a very small amount of art work on the wall and the auditorium was locked. For some reason I thought it was going to be a lecture. 99% of the art had explanations in Hebrew so I didn’t get much out of it in terms of the theme. However, they were fun, colorful, and intricate. The U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art was a very tiny museum. Its purpose is to collect, preserve, and display objects relevant to Jewish life in Italy. I saw some beautiful Torah arks, some gorgeous crowns, some scary looking circumcision tools, and various other items. It was interesting that the Conegliano Synagogue is in the same building. What I didn’t know before was that in many Italian synagogues the interior finish was made entirely of wood! I absolutely love art made of wood. I had some time to kill so I did some shopping and got two sundresses and a top. I searched for gluten-free food for awhile and then gave up and headed to the Market for lunch. I had rice and lentils at a health food restaurant. For once, it wasn’t super expensive. I have been shocked at how expensive all the food is here. The rice was delicious but the lentils were very plain. I then met up at the Artists’ Studios to review my itinerary, get reimbursed for things, and discuss the trip so far. It was located in the strangest place! Lots of car factories and industrial type businesses. Dveer then escorted me to Metzion, a cool second hand store where the proceeds go to charity. Dveer found some treasures but I did not. He kindly escorted me to the bus and I went home to deal with mundane tasks like laundry and buying groceries. (Shops close by 7pm or 8pm in my neighborhood.)

[apexart-journal]

RIP Anthony. Your words resonate so profoundly for me. 🙏🏽

[apexart-journal]

Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 8

I cried throughout my time at Yad Vashem. I was there about three hours. I did not see one other person cry. I thought that was very strange. At first I felt very nauseous and then faint and then just very sad. I kept remembering every book, poem, and film I had ever experienced about the Holocaust. The pictures of the emaciated people reminded me of the Ethiopian famine. The belongings of the murdered were too much to take in. The Children’s Memorial overwhelmed me. I had to leave quickly before really breaking down. I spent about five minutes in a bathroom stall really crying. Interestingly enough, I did not “learn” much of anything new. I did not know about the death vans where they would kill people in vans, but most of the other information I had consumed over my lifetime. I was reminded that my mother was born during World War II and indeed it was not very long ago. The atrocities that human beings commit against one another stuns me. I think of Trump and how ugly America has become. Or truly revealed itself. I fear for my daughter’s future. A mixed girl growing up in Trump’s America. I finally met my landlord and she is so young! A film student leaning towards documentary filmmaking. I will attend Shabbat prayer at the Beit Israel Synagogue and have Shabbat dinner this evening with an artist from Israel that will be in New York in July for her fellowship. I finally was able to video chat with my daughter today who was busy drinking her milk for breakfast and then looking so cute. My husband seems to be holding up well-thank goodness.

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Natasha Yannacañedo in Jerusalem, Day 3

I woke up at 5am and could not go back to sleep. Again no hot water to shower. Good thing I left super early as there was no 38 bus stop when I got off as the directions said. I ended up walking to the Tower of David. My itinerary said 10:30am but the tour was actually at 11am so I had an hour to kill. I looked in all the shops and got quickly annoyed by the aggressive salesmen commenting on my looks. One shop owner gave me a terrific price on some hand painted bowls. He thought I was Mexican and spoke to me in Spanish. I got a kick out of that. Another guy thought I was Brazilian. I had some delicious freshly squeezed carrot juice and a latte. I went on a two hour tour in the Tower of David that was a bit overwhelming on five hours sleep and I started to tune out about half way through. I was standing and waiting for a table when a nice Australian man invited me to join him and his family for lunch. He is an undercover animal rights activist! It was nice to have company for lunch. I then walked all over the Old City. I went to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Western Wall and the Damascus Gate. The religious fervor was intense at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It made me a little uncomfortable but also fascinated me. I was most moved by the Western Wall and put a prayer in the wall and even walked backwards afterwards. I walked around a lot after that and got frustrated as I was a little lost. I got a lot of looks of condemnation! I think because of my hair, as I covered my arms with a shawl and my dress went to my ankles. I then met up with an incredibly generous friend of a friend. She treated me to a lovely dinner and then helped me find things I needed for the apartment. We went back to her place for half an hour before I had to leave for my film. She even offered to let me stay at her apartment while she is out of town this weekend! And gave me some ice blocks to use on my knee, which was in pretty bad shape because of the intense stairs and walking I did today. She walked me to the bus so I could get to my film. I was so miserable and frustrated! The film was in German with Hebrew subtitles. No English. It was an interview and I didn’t understand anything! And I was really looking forward to what Hannah Arednt had to say. And then on the way home, I tried to take the 18 bus and after waiting for 20 minutes, the stops were not lining up and the driver did not speak English. I ended up getting off and having to take a cab. Thank goodness there was one that I could hail since my Gett app was not working. Came home exhausted and spent. I’m currently waiting 45 minutes for the hot water to be ready as I finally learned the switch is in the kitchen?!