Israel - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

169 Pages·2018·3.24 MB·English

by  Jeffrey Geri

CULTURE SMART!
ISRAEL
Jeffrey Geri and Marian Lebor
Revised and updated by
Daniel Kuperard
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This book is available for special discounts for bulk purchases
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For more information contact Kuperard publishers at
the address below.
ISBN 978 1 85733 882 9
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP catalogue entry for this book is available from the British Library
First published in Great Britain
by Kuperard, an imprint of Bravo Ltd
59 Hutton Grove, London N12 8DS
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
www.culturesmart.co.uk
Inquiries: [email protected]
Series Editor Geoffrey Chesler
Design Bobby Birchall
Printed in India
Cover image: The port of Jaffa with the Tel Aviv skyl;ine in the background. © Shutterstock.
The photo on page 73 is reproduced by permission of the Rubin family.
Images on the following pages reproduced under Creative Commons Attribution-Share
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National Library of Israel; 95 (left) © Aviv Hod; 95 (right) © user:shako; 113 © Tzahy
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Pages 94, 108, 150, 164 © Shutterstock; page 154 © Israel Museum.
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About the Authors
JEFFREY GERI was a South African-born barrister who
made Israel his home in the early 1960s. Involved in all
aspects of Israeli life, he brought up three Israeli sons and
worked extensively in tourism and advertising. He wrote
several novels, two of which, Oh Henry and The Trouble
With Francis, were based on the theme of immigration to
Israel. Sadly, Jeffrey died in 2013.
MARIAN LEBOR is a journalist, filmmaker, and teacher
born and educated in London. After graduating in History
from Queen Mary College, London University, she moved
to Israel with her young family in 1994. She writes for
a variety of English-language publications in Israel and
abroad on Israel-related themes, and her work has
appeared in The Guardian and in Anglo-Jewish newspapers.
She currently produces short feature films that highlight
Israel’s diversity and culture for online magazines.
The Culture Smart! series is continuing to expand. All Culture Smart!
guides are available as e-books, and many as audio books.
For latest titles visit
www.culturesmart.co.uk
The publishers would like to thank CultureSmart!Consulting for
its help in researching and developing the concept for this series.
CultureSmart!Consulting creates tailor-made seminars and
consultancy programs to meet a wide range of corporate,
public-sector, and individual needs. Whether delivering courses
on multicultural team building in the USA, preparing Chinese
engineers for a posting in Europe, training call-center staff in India,
or raising the awareness of police forces to the needs of diverse
ethnic communities, it provides essential, practical, and powerful
skills worldwide to an increasingly international workforce.
For details, visit www.culturesmartconsulting.com
CultureSmart!Consulting and CultureSmart! guides have both
contributed to and featured regularly in the weekly travel program
“Fast Track” on BBC World TV.
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ccoonntetnetsnts
Map of Israel 7
Introduction 8
Key Facts 10
Chapter 1: LAND AND PEOPLE 12
• Geography 12
• Climate 13
• A Brief History 14
• Key Events Since 1948 35
• Israelis Today 45
• Government 50
• The Economy 54
• The Israel Defense Force (IDF) 56
• Cities and Towns 58
• The Kibbutz 60
• The Moshav 63
Chapter 2: VALUES AND ATTITUDES 64
• War and Peace 64
• Religion 66
• Family Life 72
• Togetherness and Groups 73
• Attitudes Toward Each Other 74
• Attitudes Toward Minorities 76
• War and the Israeli Psyche 78
• Humor 78
Chapter 3: CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS 80
• Jewish Festivals and Public Holidays 80
• Muslim and Christian Festivals 89
• Rites of Passage 90
• Courtship and Marriage 91
• Death and Mourning 93
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Chapter 4: MAKING FRIENDS 94
• Hospitality 94
• Gift Giving 97
• Manners 99
• Immigrant Associations 100
Chapter 5: DAILY LIFE 104
• Homes and Lifestyles 104
• Weekday Routine 106
• Education 108
• Leisure and Sports 112
Chapter 6: TIME OUT 114
• Wining and Dining 114
• Shopping 118
• Fashion 120
• The Performing Arts 121
• Museums and Galleries 124
• Cultural Festivals 125
• Nightlife 126
• Beaches 127
Chapter 7: TRAVEL, HEALTH, AND SECURITY 130
• Flying 130
• Taxis 130
• Buses 131
• Trains 132
• Driving 132
• Seeing the Country 135
• Health Care and Emergency Services 145
• Safety and Security 147
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ccoonntetnetsnts
CHAPTER 8: BUSINESS BRIEFING 148
• Business Culture 148
• Protocol and Presentations 149
• Personal Relations 150
• Negotiating Styles 151
• Contracts and Fulfillment 152
• Women in Business 153
CHAPTER 9: COMMUNICATING 154
• Language 154
• Body Language 157
• The Media 157
• Telephone and Internet: The Online Nation 160
• Mail 162
• Conclusion 163
Further Reading 165
Index 166
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7
m
a
p
o
Map of Israel f isra
e
l
LEBANON
Kiryat Shmona
Nahariya Rosh PinaHGEOIGLHATNS
Acre (Akko) Safed
MEDITERRANEAN HMaOifUaNTs CARKMEaLTrmibSEie’Aer OilaF sGALILEE (KINNERET) SYRIA
Nazareth
SEA Caesarea Afula
s
Hadera
J
Netanya WEST RO
BANK AD
Herzliya N
Tel Aviv-Jaffa Petach Tikvah VIR
Ramle RE
Ashdod Rehovot
Jerusalem
Ashkelon DEAD
SEA
A
Z
A
G
Masada s
Beersheba
Dimona
NEGEV JORDAN
DESERT
EGYPT
Eilat
GULF OAF QABA
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8
el iinnttrrodoudctuiocntion
a
sr
art! i
m
s
e Culture Smart! Israel sets out to condense an
ur
ult extremely complex subject into a compact guide
c
that will help you discover the Israel behind the
clichés. This dynamic, diverse, and paradoxical
country is steeped in history and biblical
associations, yet most Israelis are modern, secular,
and energetically materialistic. Visitors from
abroad will find much that is familiar, and more
that is unexpected. To soften the impact of the
latter, this book offers insights and essential human
information that will deepen your understanding
of the Israeli people and enable you to make the
most of your visit.
Israel embraces its many visitors—tourists,
businesspeople, foreign representatives, pilgrims,
and, most of all, those who have come to stay. The
Israelis love showing off their country and its not
inconsiderable accomplishments over seventy years
of statehood. They glow when a returning guest
says, “I can’t believe the development that I have
seen,” or when a business traveler says, “Next time
I’ll bring my family,” and they are genuinely upset
when it happens, as is inevitable with over
3.5 million tourists a year, that the occasional
visitor has a bad experience. Israelis like to be liked.
So, for now, Bon Voyage through these pages.
You will read about the formative influence of
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9
introduction in
tro
d
u
c
tio
n
Israel’s ancient and modern history, its geography,
and what makes Israelis the way they are. You
will acquaint yourself with Israel’s democratic
institutions, rich cultural life, wide range of
cuisines, sports and leisure opportunities, sandy
beaches, and lively city streets, and you will
understand its dilemmas.
The Israelis you will meet will be from all walks
of life. They will be more or less sophisticated
depending on their occupations, where they
live, or where they were brought up. They will
almost always be friendly, helpful, direct—
perhaps to a fault—and resourceful. Some will
be well mannered; others won’t. A few may be
Holocaust survivors; many will be the children
and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors. They
will all carry with them memories of Israel’s wars,
in which relatives, comrades, and loved ones fell
in defense of the country.
Finally, you will learn what to expect and how
to behave in different social circumstances, so
that you can avoid misunderstandings and make
genuine friends and valued business partners.
Israelis are great travelers, and those whom you
visit may one day visit you.
“Bruchim Habaim!” Welcome!
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