Indescribable

My husband kept calling me away from the computer:
"You have to see this!"

He was right. The most peculiar kitchy and ironic production imaginable. It was the grand opening of the Maccabiya, Israeli sports extravaganza, otherwise known as the Jewish Olympics.

A little history, ancient history, the people who first "invented' the Olympics were the same who tried to destroy Judaism and the Jewish People. You know, the ones Judah the Macabee fought. Right the Chanukah story, the Holy Temple and the search for special olive oil. Familiar, right? Well, for the first bit of irony, and I'm far from the first to mention is the ironic name for sports here--Macabee, Macabiya. They're the ones who in ancient times hated everything Greek, and what's more Greek than sports?

Macabee Tel Aviv European Basketball champs and all that we're used to. But back to that Grand Opening Ceremony. What do you think? Guess, come on, don't be shy. Well, they decided that the Olympic Torch was the "Ner Tamid," the "Eternal Light" in the Holy Temple.

I kid you not. They had dancers/gymnasts dressed in "priestly garments" including one who was supposed to be a High Priest with all the tools like in the Bible, lighting it and they all danced around. I couldn't watch much.

And if that wasn't enough. I agree that it was more than enough, but not for our intrepid production planners. Next they had the dancers dressed in wedding clothes, like Chassidim, with hats and the whole business. They had chupot, wedding canapies, and the stadium was filled with the chassideshe nigunim.

A few seconds were enough for me.

faster, higher, stronger

kitsh like never seen before
RECORD-BREAKING

champions at something, at least