One for the body, one for the mind…
A post by Ohad Moser, sophomore at the Hebrew University
When I think of American Colleges, a lot of sports come to mind. It seems like everybody has a team they’re on – football, soccer, basketball, golf… I’ve even heard of a frisbee team. Unfortunately for me, all that doesn’t exist here in Israel. Well, not formally at the University anyway. I regret that. But it doesn’t mean that us Israelis are couch potatoes. In fact it’s quite the opposite. We just like to get fit in a less competitive way.
The Mount Scopus campus at the Hebrew University offers us the Lerner Indoor Sports Complex. To tell you the truth, it meets all my expectations. The standards are very high and the facility is well maintained. The staff is willing and friendly and the environment is pleasant. One big problem remains, and that is the price – 1,400 Shekels per year. That’s about $380 CAD! It might not sound a lot for a year, but my friends at other Universities pay much less. Then again, the complex is very modern. Oh well, I guess it’s worth the price.
To say that we don’t have team sports is not quite correct. There are some informal gatherings of rugby or ultimate frisbee at the parks across the city. But those are organized – surprise, surprise – mostly by foreign students. I rarely get to go to these, since my busy schedule doesn’t give me much free time, but I’ve heard that it’s catching on recently. Who knows, maybe one day the University will adopt it and we’ll be just like the American Colleges. On the other hand, do we really want that?
Ohad – I feel your pain
But as you said, it’s probably worth the price. Nonetheless it may be an assumption that the higher than normal (maybe expected) cost is related to the state of the art facilities – and it’s probably worth asking the question…perhaps they may even be willing to negotiate a deal based on usage, individual circumstances, etc. Hope it works out for you…either way, I believe you do have access (albeit relatively expensive) to a fantastic facility. Good luck!
Hi Ohad,
I am interested to know about the facility. Is it just for swimming. What other sport facilities does it offer?
Thanks for your reply.
Yes, Yonni, it is definitely worth the price, bottom line I believe. And it’s not that expensive compared to other gyms in the city – atfer all it is a special price for students. The thing that really bothers us students at the Hebrew U, is that our friends at other universities in the country pay about 1/4 of what we pay. Maybe it is well maintained, but as a student I think I would prefer something a bit less “high-class” as it is for a cheaper price.
But let that be our troubles, eh? As for your question, Simon. The complex is mostly indoor, other than the tennis courts. There is a swimming pool, I believe it is considered “half olympic”, a fitness hall and an aerobic hall (treadmills and the like). There are also all kinds of diverse classes (dancing, yoga and more) which I don’t know too much about and a nice cafe (which is one of the most “bang for the buck” in the city). It’s open 7 days a week and the pool has seperate (male/female) hours every day (1 hour for each). If you want any more info, you can contact me through here or my mail, or just visit this site: http://www.cosell.co.il/?CategoryID=161 (it has an English link, though not very developed). Who knows, maybe we’ll meet here in the future.
Ohad
Hi Ohad,
I’ll be coming to Jerusalem this summer to take a course at the Rothenberg School. I know that on Mount Scopus you can rent a room inside a five room apartment, but I would like to know if there are also other options, like a more private place with a small kitchen and bathroom?
Thanks for the help
Nicolas
Nicolas Hello,
First of all, my apologies for the delayed answer. Holiday period has been a bit hectic. Second of all, welcome to the Hebrew U. About the dorms, I myself don’t know much. I’m guessing a private room with it’s own bathroom and kitchen would probably not be available. Most people who care for more privacy usually search for an appartment in the city. There is the French Hill neighborhood pretty close by to the university and there are plenty of student apartments in the city center. The price is a bit higher than the dorms, but I find it worth the extra dollars.
Hope I was some help. Feel free to keep asking here or via e-mail: ohad.moser@mail.huji.ac.il