Israel - Our Final Station

New immigrants in Netanya ulpan share experiences of acclimatization to Israeli culture. Set against the beach of the young and expanding Poleg district of Netanya, the Akiva Ulpan (Hebrew learning center) is home to new olim (immigrants) from around the world, who have chosen to make Israel their home. A number of them told Ynetnews about their experiences as new Israelis.

Daniel Harubi, who made aliya (emigrated to Israel) from the UK in August, described his adjustment to Israeli culture, which has now become familiar for him. "I found that when I first came here, there was culture shock, as things here are very in your face, and people are very abrupt, and very direct," he said.

"And at first I thought, this isn't such a great thing, and it's a bit foreign to me, coming from London, where people are reserved and a bit more shy and polite. But then I realized that this is reality, and people are real here. People don't have time to mess around. And they're not pretentious, they'll tell you how it is, whether you like it or not.

And that's good for everyone, because everyone knows where the other stands. In London, you're not quite sure where you stand with people, even though people are polite. So that's a positive thing, which may at first seem negative and foreign, but it's definitely a good thing for people to learn. People are warmer here. They'll invite you to their house, offer you food, and treat you like a member of the family," he said.

Max Shoshana, of Switzerland , made aliya four months ago. He spoke of the difficulties of learning the Hebrew language, but said he felt welcome. "Israelis say, 'welcome, we hope you feel good.' Everyone here in the ulpan helps us, they invite us to continue to study. The ulpan is good for us," he said.

Shoshana added that there was "much anti-Semitism" in Switzerland , but emphasized that this was not the reason he came to Israel.

Melloul Yehuda, 41, emigrated to Israel from France one day before the outbreak of the second Lebanon war. "It's very good here. I feel at home. I don't feel a major change in culture. Today, there is a joint global culture. But I like also the culture here. People are direct. Not like in France, where we don't know what the other is thinking. It's hypocritical. Here it's all direct, if something's not good, they say it straight out," he said.

"Now I live in Netanya, and I like this city. Afterwards, I hope to find work in an Israeli company. I am a computer engineer, I deal with software programing," he added.

Yves Hazut, 49, also emigrated from France with his family three months ago. His eldest son is currently serving in a combat unit in the IDF. "I was quickly absorbed in the Israeli environment. I am like everyone, and its quite moving for me," he said.

"I still have days when I have to figure out what's going on, but that is the reality and I'm here. It's good for me to deal with. We wanted to come here. We didn't escape from France," Hazut said.

"We had it good in France . We could have lived there, even with the anti-Semitism. We could have created protective layers, he added.

'Our final station'

Asked what his message was to Jews thinking of making aliya, Hazut said: "You should come. Prepare yourselves before you come. Send your children. It should always be on your mind, and prepare the big day for when you come. Just be ready. This is the final station for us. There is no other place."

Dimitri Pavolovsky, 44, made aliya from Russia six months ago. "I love this country," he said. "In Russia , there are some changes I did not like at all. The authorities now make bad policies, and there is a lot of corruption. I am a lawyer, and I'm tired of seeing that every day. I also have relatives here, and now we are here together."

Alex Weiniger 31, from Britain , has been in Israel since April. "I sort of feel at home because I'm living with an Israeli, and I went back to England for a holiday which is great, because it made me appreciate Israel much more. I was having issues with the culture, I didn't resolve them, I just said, what can you do, this is how it is. You have to give as good as you get. I have problems with driving tests, and the bureaucracy is a nightmare, but everyone knows that. You just have to try not to let everything come down at you once. It's hard being in a new country," she said.

Weiniger added that she would stay in Israel "if there are no more wars. If there's another war like the last one, I'm leaving. I don't agree with it, so I can't stay and support it."

Gershon Le Boette 27, from France , is considering aliya. He is currently on the Masa Maof program, designed to get young Jews acquainted with Israel. "Masa is for people like me, who want to know what it's like to live in Israel," he said. "Even if I don't make aliya, it's important for every Jew to speak good Hebrew," he added.

'That's life here'

Eric Greenberg, 43 moved to Israel from New York, and Doron Noll, 44, came from Colorado . Both moved to Zichron Ya'akov, in northern Israel, right before the start of the war, and faced air raid sirens and bomb shelters immediately after arriving.

"It doesn't bother me, because that's life here, but I had to deal with four kids being in the bomb shelter. We had the sirens, and for the kids it's rough. But that's life. It's another thing to get over, so you don't have to worry about it, now it's done," Greenberg said. Noll described the experience as a "swift acclimatization."

'Students return to ulpan years after leaving'

"Most of the immigrants who arrive here have a background. They are not coming to somewhere of which they have no idea about. A large section of them come after visits that prepare them," said Frida Fisher, Manager of Hebrew at the ulpan.

"With that, there are the problems that immigrants face, mostly that of language. Language is part of culture, it is intrinsic to understanding it. Every month we hold a special program… we bring lecturers on relevant issues. We expose them to Israeli culture in every way, through Israeli films and songs."

The center not only teaches Hebrew, but also acts as an extended family for new immigrants, Fisher added: "Every student who leaves here feels this is their home. They all come back. There are very personal relations between students and management. We have Shabbat receptions. We invited olim with their families for Friday. They come back to the ulpan after years of finishing their studies. They see it as their home."

Y Net News
11.04.2006