When I go to MAC here in Jerusalem it’s confusing. It looks the same and yet feels so different.

Yes! You heard right (all you girls out there who can’t imagine living without MAC makeup). MAC, the Canadian cosmetics store, has just recently come to Jerusalem. This is very exciting for those of us who have never found better lipstick than that from MAC. : ) But honestly, when I was still living in Vancouver, contemplating my possible return to Israel, it was when I heard things like, “MAC has come to Jerusalem, and H&M is on its way too,” that I’d get a bit more courage to make the move. I thought, “If Shoppers Drug Mart is in Israel, I can be there too!” (Shoppers here is called Super Pharm but it has the same owners.)

Super Pharm in Mamilla, Jerusalem (photo by yours truly)

The thing is that I’ve never been to one of these stores when it’s actually the same experience as that in Canada. Sometimes it’s a bit messier, often the service doesn’t compare.

So I went with my sister to MAC today at Mamilla (a gorgeous new outdoor mall in Jerusalem,) and the service didn’t compare. The girl there was nice but anyone who’s been to MAC knows how amazing the cosmeticians are there. I said to my sister, “How can I live in a country that doesn’t have service like Vancouver?!”

It is at times like these that I dig into my virtual purse and take a reality pill (if I haven’t run out).

Mamilla outdoor mall, Jerusalem (photo by yours truly)

First of all, our dear little country improves so quickly in almost every aspect of life that, if you have some patience, chances are you’ll get to enjoy the continued improvement yourself. My family moved here in 1990 and in many respects it’s almost a different country. The service is way improved. The availability of products here is unbelievable, if you think about 10, 15, 20 years ago. It is a more comfortable place to live.

Also, I try to put things in perspective. Did I come to Israel in order to have good customer service? Well, obviously not (though I love it when I get it). I came to be near my family, to be in a place with so much more Jewish vibrance and Jewish opportunity than I felt I had in Vancouver and probably anywhere in Canada.

So, I will continue to go to Mamilla and I will continue to enjoy the awesome food in this country (the real reason I moved back, just don’t tell anyone) and, like any huge decision you make in your life, I will continue to have moments when I get really nervous, wondering if it was a big mistake, only to move past that and continue to enjoy everything I am gaining from moving back home.

And anyway, seriously, you’ve gotta admit that the bottom line is that MAC has arrived in Jerusalem, right?

Malcha Mall in Israel is my best Mall to shop in. Here you can eat, pray and shop all in one place. Seriously – only in Israel, will you find a mall that has a synagogue on the ground floor! Whether you use it for solace, convenience or to assuage the guilt after a particularly lavish shopping spree, it’s your choice.

Here you’ll find a supermarket, eight cinemas, and almost 250 shops and restaurants. Try Castro or Zara for  hot fashion, and H&O department store. There’s also Office Depot, Steimatzky bookstores, Hamashbit and Mega.

A great food court for tired, hungry shoppers to take a break. Or – as I mentioned – for spiritual food there’s the synagogue.

Review By: Dana Valentine

Got any shopping tips for us. Tell us about new stores and outlets for students at you@hebrewyou.com. Pictures and videos welcome.