So many learning opportunities now in Israel during the Annual Historic Site Preservation Week!
You will be hearing in posts to come about the houses of worship we visited on a Beer Sheva synagogue tour.
But first, look how a full day of lectures began!
It's so Israeli!
The audience joined the accordionist in singing the good old songs of the Palmach days.
It got us in the mood to hear about local history, as well as the present and future of Beer Sheva.
The low-ceilinged auditorium where we alternately froze and baked from 8:30 to 14:30 was in the old Yad Labanim building.
See more about it in the post where we talked about Brutalist architecture.
The Society for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites tries to protect the irreplaceable historical buildings and heritage sites associated with Israel’s re-birth.
That means places from before about 1949, but not after.
If funds can be raised, over 250 sites are in need of restoration work.
As one architect speaker said in her presentation, holding on to a place, remembering and cherishing it, and hopefully restoring it--all this first begins in our collective memory.
And another spoke of "the future of the past."
In order for our youth to understand and appreciate our past, that past has to have a future.
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(Linking to Whimsical Windows, Delirious Doors.)
Quite a striking building.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't have associated accordions with Israel.
Agreed. The Society for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites MUST protect the irreplaceable historical buildings and heritage sites associated with Israel’s re-birth. A nation that loses its historical buildings and heritage sites... loses its soul.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I am quite aware that old buildings need lots of money to renovate and re-use.
I'm a big believer in historic preservation.
ReplyDeleteWilliam, I remember the old days when there was never a kumsitz (bonfire) without an accordion to accompany the singing. Even today, there is renewed popularity of shira batsibur, the coming together to sing the nostalgic old Israeli songs.
ReplyDeleteA whole week sounds brilliant!
ReplyDeleteThat is a neat building!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that Israel has reached a stage where we can worry about preserving old buildings, rather than just building as many new ones as possible :)