Hebrew U Campus Tour…July ’10
Naomi met us at the admin entrance to the University. It was a hot Jerusalem afternoon, and being July, not quite as busy as it normally is. She had brought with her an ex-South African who had been in Israel for 30 years and who worked as an assistant to the University Rector. Although she had been working at the Mount Scopus campus for a while, this was her first organized tour of the facility. We were a family group: Lara, myself, and Geran, Gabriel and Benjamin. Ages ranging from 53 to 6. I wondered whether this would keep everyone happy for the next hour. Naomi handed out 5 HU caps and Canada/Israel Friendship pins. We were set!
The tour began right at the foyer to the Admin block, where the large and impressive painting of the founding ceremony took centre stage. We saw how the artist, who was never there but who worked from a black and white lithograph, had recreated the momentus day, making sure to paint himself into the scene, as well as his wife (or who knows what he might have had to answer to!).
From there we meandered through the grounds of the campus, stopping to see the ’tilted tree’ – a memorial to the 9 students and staff killed (and more than 80 injured) by the 2002 terrorist strike at the HU cafetaria. Standing there in the afternoon warmth, a gentle breeze drifting through the air, it was hard to imagine the carnage that took place at this very spot. Quite a surreal moment.
Continuing on we bumped into a few students, who were kind enough to share some of their thoughts about HU campus life with us. (Uri), for instance, was enthusiastic about his academic life and grateful for being part of a world-renowned institution, but missed the bustle of Tel Aviv’s social offering. We discovered that a brand new student residence had opened recently, offering state-of-the-art accommodation, which I figured might be some compensation for the students experiencing a more sedate social environment.
On we went, emerging at the amphitheater which marks the exact spot on Mount Scopus where the founding ceremony had taken place some 85 years earlier. Although hazy we could make out the Dead Sea in the far distance, and 2 towns in the foreground, one Arab and one Israeli. Naomi explained how HU participates in an outreach program to the Arab town, in an effort to bridge the cultural and social divide, and to provide humanitarian support.
We walked past several impressive looking buildings – some dating to the pre-1948 university, including the original home of the benefactor upon whose land the Mount Scopus campus was built. We passed the Avraham Institute of Contemporary Jewry, The Frank Sinatra International Student Centre (I thought our cab driver was cracking a joke when he asked me if this is what we were going to see…until I saw it myself!), the Harry Truman Research Institute, where we learned from Naomi how Truman’s business partner, a Jewish gentleman, had turned Harry into an outspoken supporter of Israel – and through the gardens to some older, much older buildings. The site of an archeological dig, in fact, which had unearthed Jewish burial crypts and sarcophagi from the 2nd Temple era. This was the Nicanor tomb, discovered in 1902 and identified in 1903 by Gladys DIckson.
Our tour concluded with a walk through the Stephen and Gail Victor botanical garden. The Victor’s, hailing from Ottawa, were honoured by the the Jewish National Fund in 2006 – this garden being their tribute. In the garden we met Ran Morin, curator of the garden and leader of several botanical projects, one of which he was happy to talk us through which involved the repatriation of certain flora species to their original habitats. I admit – this is not one of my favourite topics, yet the way he explained it made it seem so incredibly fascinating, that this was a project of sublime significance – and I believe it actually is!
In 60 minutes we saw a lot. There was not a dull moment for anyone in our party – I was amazed at how our children had embraced the tour, all agreeing afterward (in the cafeteria, over yummy cheese pizza), how much they had enjoyed the tour. Geran, the 15 year old is already eager to make her way there after graduation – she loved the cosmopolitan feeling – that history, the culture, the legacy and the learning on offer.
Naomi – thank you!
