As Election Day is a day off from work, Israelis were set to enjoy Tuesday’s
expected sunny and warm weather with friends and family across the
country.
For families with children, the Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem will
hold a mock election where visitors will be able to vote for their favorite
animal and name him leader of the zoo.
A similar vote is expected to take
place at the Botanical Gardens in Givat Ram, where the public is invited to
choose a tree that will be named chief of the gardens. Before picking their
leader, however, they will be offered a tour to visit the contenders: the olive
tree recognized as a sign of peace; the cedar, considered stable and reliable;
the fig tree symbolizing wisdom; the eucalyptus and its determination to thrive
even after being uprooted from its land of origin; and the myrtle, representing
endangered plants.
While some people plan to take part in such family
activities after going to the polls, in Tel Aviv, 24-year-old Tamara Hirsch, who
came to live here four years ago and does not hold an Israeli passport, can’t
cast her ballot on Tuesday.
Instead, she planned to enjoy her day off
from her job at Google to go to the beach, something she didn’t imagine she’d be
able to do in the winter.
“Its nice to have a day off in the middle of
the week, and see some friends,” Hirsch told
The Jerusalem Post, “especially one
that it falls on a good weather day, that’s perfect.”
“I would have liked
to give my vote,” she said, “since in my opinion every single vote counts and is
part of the result.
But, for me I can just hope that the results will be
positive for the country; that’s what matters.”
Tel Aviv residents also
looked forward to taking advantage of Election Day sales taking place around the
city.
Many chain stores such as Gap, American Eagle and the Body Shop
sent text messages to clients throughout the day on Monday to let them know
about Tuesday’s discounts.
At the French clothing shop Zadig and Voltaire
in State Square, store manager Moise will offer his clients a 50 percent
discount on Election Day.
“We’re doing that because it’s a day off and
people are not going to work, so it’ll encourage them to shop,” he
explained.
“Personally, I’m not expecting many people to show up, because
it’s a day off and people may want to just relax, or their kids are off from
school so they might not be free to shop, but I think that some of my usual good
clients will definitely come and buy more than they usually do, to take
advantage of the sale,” Moise, who plans to go to his polling station before
opening the store in the morning, told the Post.
At the Tel Aviv Moishe
House, home to young international Jews in their 20s, Election Day is another
opportunity to gather around a barbecue with some beer.
“We’re having an
election-themed day party,” Benji Davis, one of the house’s residents, told the
Post on Monday evening.
Davis, originally from California, explained that
while in the United States people work on the day of the election, having the
day off in Israel is a great opportunity to spend some time with
friends.
“It’s going to be something very chilled, laid back, where
people can just enjoy themselves,” he said. “We’re also going to have a mock
poll and maybe some decorations.”
Davis and his roommates were expecting
some 60 people to attend on Tuesday.