Grapevine: The beer garden is back

From February 3 to 25, the Japan Foundation and the Japanese Embassy will be promoting screenings of six films produced by three leading directors of contemporary Japanese cinema.

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
Jerusalem Kosher Wine Festival (photo credit: Courtesy)
Jerusalem Kosher Wine Festival
(photo credit: Courtesy)
IN JERUSALEM next week, they will be drinking wine at the fourth annual Kosher Wine Festival at the Jerusalem International Convention Center; and in Tel Aviv throughout February, the liquid refreshment every Friday between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. will be beer. David Hadad, the proprietor of the Paulaner Beer Garden, hopes to create a Bavarian atmosphere at Sarona, once the home of the Tel Aviv branch of the German Templer community, and today a commercial- cum-leisure center in the heart of Tel Aviv.
Sarona still carries a semblance of its former ambience but with a much more cosmopolitan flavor. The beer garden, which as a concept came into its own in the 19th century, is being revived. Hadad expects a large turnout. He says that in case of rain, the event will not be canceled but will merely be postponed until the following week.
■ AFTER REPRESENTATIVES of a dozen European Union member countries got together for the Another Look Festival last month, in which restored European films were shown at various cinematheques around the country, it is now the turn of the Japanese filmmakers to strut their stuff. From February 3 to 25, the Japan Foundation and the Japanese Embassy will be promoting screenings of six films produced by three leading directors of contemporary Japanese cinema.
The screenings will take place at the Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem and Sderot cinematheques. The three directors are Takashi Miike, who is highly revered in Japan; Junji Sakamoto, considered to be a master of suspense; and Shinji Aoyama, who is a filmmaker and film critic. Further details can be obtained on the websites of each of the above-mentioned cinematheques.
■ RA’ANANA MAYOR Ze’ev Bielski received a pleasant surprise when he showed up at the 21st anniversary celebrations of his city’s Ahuzat Bayit home for retirees, where his parents had lived out their twilight years. Resident Ahuva Itzhaki presented him with a bust of his likeness after working on it for three months. Bielski said that he never imagined that someone would go to the trouble of creating a bust of his image.
■ OF THE three siblings whose father was Israel’s ninth president, the one least in the limelight is Yoni Peres, an expert veterinarian. He was among the guests at Na Laga’at in the Jaffa Port when ever-smiling celebrity chef Meir Adoni and the management of Arcosteel launched a new set of dishes under the brand name Arcosteel Adoni.
The event was organized by Millennium Marketing, whose owners Shlomo and Danny Zigreich were on hand, along with Ofer Malls CEO Moshe Rosenbloom.
Guests went home with a copy of Adoni’s book of recipes, Adoni at Home. The younger Peres was there because he is an enthusiastic amateur chef and wanted to collect a few tips from Adoni.
■ THE PUBLIC badmouthing by politicians against their rivals and the unbridled trading of insults filters down to the general public. Many of our legislators and would-be legislators can hardly be considered role models. In an attempt to restore civilized relations among family members, friends, work colleagues, business acquaintances, et al, Rabbi David Lahiani has initiated a project that he calls New Faces in which he encourages people to put a new face on their relationships with others.
To that end, he is hosting a weekend seminar commencing today at the Kinar Galilee Hotel in Tiberias. This particular seminar is geared toward married couples. Anyone who misses out due to the time frame can find out more about other Lahiani seminars at www.panimh.co.il.
■ ON JANUARY 6, 1995, Ofra Feliks, 20, a promising university student, was killed when terrorists opened fire on her car while she was driving north of Beit El. Last week, close to the 20th anniversary of her murder, a Torah scroll was dedicated in her memory in the Neveh Ofra neighborhood synagogue in Elon Moreh. Many of her relatives and friends were present, as well as residents, not all of whom knew her.
Among the religious and lay leaders who wrote the final letters of the scroll were Rabbis Elyakim Levanon, Ya’acov Roget, Haim Fogel, Yoram Tzahar, Shmuel Haber, Benny Katzover and Housing and Construction Minister Uri Ariel. Students from the Kfar Haro’eh yeshiva also participated in the ceremony, which was presided over by the head of the yeshiva Rabbi Moshe Feliks, the brother of the deceased.
Ariel said that the dedication of a Torah scroll symbolized continuity. The Feliks family is well known for its settlement activities in the development of the Land of Israel, he said, and dedicating the Torah scroll was carrying out Ofra’s living will.