Israel Pride 2014

If you don't count watching parades, I've never been much of a participant in Pride.  No particular reason behind it; I just haven't.  Oh, I take that back.  We did reserve a hotel near Walt Disney World one summer during Gay Days Orlando.  Or maybe it was One Mighty Weekend.  I'm not sure which one it was.  It's the same weekend, either way.  Just depends on which event planner you throw your money at.  But it doesn't really matter.  We had all but decided not to go when we found out that our house was facing a wee bit of a termite problem and had to be fumigated.  We needed a hotel anyway, soooooo....whatevs.

Passing interest changed to active participation this past summer when TJ and I joined friends in celebrating not one, but TWO Pride weekends in Israel.

First up was Eilat Pride May 16th-17th.  Pete and Jacob had invited us to join them and another friend, Shawn, for a weekend of fun in Israel's southernmost city.

We weren't really sure what to expect here, so it was a bit of a trial run.  We opted not to stay at the host hotel, but rather a more economical option a few blocks away.  The location was decent enough and it was apparent immediately upon arrival that not staying at the main hotel was a good idea, as music could be heard blaring from the epicenter for blocks and blocks.  Within the confines of our room...delicious silence.  Pete, Jacob, and Shawn stayed even farther away, so we sadly didn't see them as much as I'd expected.

The room itself was a bit dingy.  It reeked of smoke.  We called the front desk to ask if it would be possible to get a non-smoking room and were told no without apology.  There was a small kitchenette, which was nice...but there was neither an ice bucket nor a place to get complimentary ice.  There was, however a small store in the lobby from which we were able to purchase bagged ice for $5.00.  How...generous.  Circulation was poor, resulting in a clammy, never-dry (much less clean) feeling throughout the weekend.  This was very disappointing as the hotel was within the Isrotel family that brought us the amazing Beresheet Hotel from my birthday.  Just goes to show that quality does not equal consistency.

The big draw for this Pride weekend was supposed to be a Boy George concert.  What we didn't realize until the party started was that Boy George was only pulling DJ duties.  Le sigh.  No worries.  The party was a smashing success and we took many pictures together as we drank and danced the night away, "Karma Chameleon" be damned.

No clue who the guy in the white tank is.  I assume somebody did.

Drag and semi-nudity always makes for a good party.

The next morning we met for breakfast on the beach and then parted ways to....well, recuperate.  That evening TJ we reconvened for some delicious Chinese food before parting ways again.  TJ and I headed to the Wow Show, a music, dance, magic, and acrobatics-filled extravaganza sponsored by the Isrotel family of hotels.  Better than (but in the same vein as) any cruise ship entertainment we have ever seen, this was our hotel's redeeming quality.  No photography allowed, though.  Boo.

The final morning of our weekend getaway will be discussed in my next post, as it is a total thematic shift away from the subject matter at hand.  So, moving on...

Next up was Tel Aviv Pride June 11th-15th.  This came at no invite, but as Jacob, Pete, and Shawn live in Tel Aviv, we did run into them a time or two.  Also in town were our friends Yann and Charles from Paris, and their friend Patrice...though sadly, we somehow managed to not take any photos together...

We marched with US Embassy Tel Aviv and our friends in the annual Pride Parade....

...and attended some amazing parties.  

TJ even got to meet his idol, Israeli sex symbol and party-/self-promoter Eliad Cohen.  Who, being relatively famous, was not interested in becoming best friends or anything.

All in all, two fantastic Pride weekends that, hangovers aside, made me wonder why I'd never bothered to really participate before.

No need to cry over any spilt milk.  One more year in Israel means two more Pride celebrations on the horizon.

We Met the Trashiest People at Ariel Sharon Park

While perusing Facebook on the evening of Sunday, April 13th, I saw that some of my friends had spent time over the weekend attending a temporary art installation in Tel Aviv that looked pretty cool.  So cool that I simply would have died of anticipation had I been forced to wait an entire work week to go see it myself.  Fortunately, the office was closed on Tuesday, April 15th due to first day of the Passover holiday.  With great glee, I shoved TJ in the car on Tuesday morning and made him drive me to Tel Aviv.

Trash People consists of one thousand life sized humanoid
sculptures made from crushed cans, electronic waste, and other rubbish that, together, form artist HA Schult's critical commentary on human consumption.

"The Trash People are images of ourselves.  We produce trash and we will become trash.  Today's Coca-Cola bottle is the Roman archaeological find of tomorrow...The pyramids of the present are the garbage dumps"

The above quote comes from the official website, which also features numerous photos depicting the exhibit and the stunning locales in which it has been installed since its inception in 1996.  Places such as...

L:  Red Square, Moscow (1999)

R:  Great Wall of China, Beijing (2001)

L:  Pyramids of Giza (2002)

R:  Matterhorn and Lake Stellisee, Zermatt (2003)

L:  Cathedral Square, Cologne (2006)

R:  Piazza del Popolo, Rome (2007)

Israel, however, got a trash dump.  Yes.  That's right.  A trash dump.

Ariel Sharon Park, Tel Aviv (2014)

Ariel Sharon Park is located on top of what was once The Hiriya, a 60 meter high mound of waste.  The landfill is now closed but the conversion process is still underway.  Once completed, the park will be the largest new urban park to be built anywhere in the world over the last century.

When we arrived at the park, which although greatly improved still bears the visual and aromatic scars of its former existence, we felt somewhat shortchanged.  Why were we standing on top of the final resting place of someone's Tuesday night leftovers instead of in front of one of the many iconic attractions that the region has to offer?  How stunning would this exhibit have looked if displayed outside of Jerusalem's Old City?  Sure, you can see Tel Aviv in the background…but it's so far away.

Of course, when one stops to think about it, an exhibit of this nature belongs here.  What better place to acknowledge mankind's addiction to waste than on the site of man's very attempt to correct that flaw?

Purim 2014

Our friend Adi invited us to join her in Tel Aviv for the Hip Hop Pop-Up Purim Party on the evening of March 14th.  The party was described as "80s/90s old school hip hop plus some modern beats.  Friendly Israel meets North American vibe and Florentin neighborhood feel."  TJ and I hadn't celebrated Purim since 2010, so we happily grabbed some new costumes and our friend George, and hit the road.

In the week leading up to the party, George was a bit wishy-washy about whether he was going to join us or not.  TJ and I had ordered our costumes weeks in advance.  He would be dressed as some sort of dragon warrior, and I would be a pharaoh (though I was a bit nervous dressing as a Biblical enemy of the Jewish people).  George, on the other hand, hadn't prepared and was concerned that he wouldn't have a cool costume.  I told him to just cut two holes in a sheet and be a ghost, but he wanted to aim higher.  He ended up cobbling together what is probably the creepiest thing I have ever seen.  It was more suited for Halloween than Purim, but I absolutely loved it.  Look at that thing.  LOOK AT IT.  *shudder*

The party was in an old warehouse, so we naturally had to park our car on some side street that by all rights should have been the last place that we would ever lay eyes on it again.  As we began walking to the party, an obnoxious young man carrying a briefcase that I suspected to be filled with drugs and wearing slacks and a button down shirt looked at TJ and said "Hey, cool costume, what are you, some 300 warrior or something?"  TJ said "Something like that, I guess."

The guy then turned to me and said "And what did you come dressed as?  A faggot?"  "Yeah," I said,  "And I see that you've dressed up like an asshole."  What is it with people today?  Stone age cro-magnon mentalities abound.

We walked around the corner and waited for him to head off down the street, just to be sure he didn't mess with our car.  Awkwardly enough, he ended up spending the evening at the same party. Given how many hands he shook and how many time he disappeared into the back of the club, I stand by my earlier suspicion, though we never interacted again.  I haven't had occasion to wear my pharaoh costume since, but I do suspect he dresses like an asshole daily.  Thankfully, he didn't hinder my enjoyment of the evening in the slightest.  Now, the fact that I was designated driver may have...

As it turned out, I needn't have worried about wearing a culturally insensitive costume.  While the majority of people were dressed in standard Halloween/costume party attire, there were people dressed in stereotypical Middle Eastern attire and a cute Jesus that made out quite enthusiastically with every girl in arm's reach.  I took the opportunity to teach Adi the hilariously tasteless joke about why all the girls love Jesus.  If you don't know it, ask a friend.  I shan't be sharing it here.

Overall, a fun night with fun people.  Next year, I think I'd like to try and see if one of the gay clubs hosts a Purim party, as I bet that'd be insane.  We'll have to work on TJ's costume though.  I mean, I was already dressed the part.