SEGOVIA, TOLEDO, CHURROS, MANCHEGO CHEESE AND WINE!!!

It has been a ver special weekend visiting SEGOVIA and TOLEDO with these two couples from Philadelphia. With a tight agenda we were visiting the cities, learning history, some shopping and some kosher local food…. a great combination.

Abarbanel House was also in our itinerary and we all enjoy with crossed stories.

Hope to see you soon here.

Soccer Homage to Kristallnacht

This Wednesday, in the match that will face Club Fortaleza, the Brazilian football club Corinthians will place a Star of David Yellow in their uniforms, in memory of which the Nazis forced the Jews to use during World War II and with reason for a new anniversary of the Night of Broken Crystals, which is commemorated on November 8 and 9.

Proudly, fans of one of the most successful clubs in the country, say that this time they will not use a star for a championship, but for “Don’t Forget.”

corinthians
On this day, the photo exhibition entitled “Survivors of the Holocaust” will be displayed in the lobby of the Casa del Pueblo. This historical intervention had the collaboration of the agency Tech and Soul and the Holocaust Memorial, in Bom Retiro, São Paulo.

At the end of the match, the shirts used with the yellow stars will be auctioned and the proceeds will go to the Memorial.

corinthians STAR DAVID
From the club the club fans were encouraged that if they wanted to join the move, there will be venues that sell the Yellow Star to put on their jackets.

In addition, the shirts of players that were not auctioned will participate in a temporary exhibition at the Corinthians Arena.

Pepe Mel, ex football player and actual coach writes a new novel

Known in the sports field for his long professional career, Mel is a rare insider in his profession when combining his work with writing; “The Sephardic key” (La llave Sefardí)

is the fourth book published.

A book whose background reflects the author’s concern for any form of fanaticism, whatever it may be, and which he captures through a story of intrigue, in which such notable characters as the painter Velázquez are part of an intricate puzzle, whose end It will not leave the reader indifferent.

A key carried by a Jew expelled from Spain – Samuel Ha Levi -, will pass from generation to generation and will coexist alongside their owners what will happen to them throughout their different lives.

On the other hand, the obligation to return to Sepharad will also be a heavy burden that the descendants of Samuel’s saga will have to live with.

This fact will be present in the passing of time and will take the different protagonists to periods and places as disparate as the archdeacon Ferran Martínez’s Sevilla, to the time of the Holy Inquisition, to Velázquez’s Madrid, to Nazi Germany and its Holocaust, to the 11-M and the dates of the Jihadist attacks in Madrid.

In short, The Sephardic Key is a book that aims to stir the conscience about fanaticism that uses literary resources that every novel must have to engage the reader with a suggestive story of suspense, which reveals facts as worrisome as the Palestinian and Jewish problem.

José Mel Pérez was born in Madrid on February 28, 1963, he was a professional footballer for many years. He finished his playing career in the French team of Angers, and has trained in the Premier League in West Brombich Albion.

Established in Seville for years for his close relationship with Real Betis Balompié, he is currently a football coach. Passionate about reading, history and archeology, he is a tireless traveler in search of stories that he can take to his books.

El Mentiroso (2011), El Camino al mas allá (2013) and La Prueba (2016) are his first three novels. Now he returns with an exciting story: The Sephardic Key.

cropped-13_02_12-juderia_segovia.jpg

Cristiano #Ronaldo cooperates with #Maguen David Adom-Israel

The first aid and emergency organization Magen David Adom of Israel and Abbott Israel have joined forces with soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo for a new campaign that encourages Israelis to donate blood.

Star Real Madrid player Cristiano Ronaldo, a regular blood donor, appears in the “#BeThe1” campaign, part of a nationwide blood donation campaign that will take place at dozens of blood donation sites throughout Israel.

Blood donations are vital for saving lives, but many people do not know them until they or their loved ones have a critical need. Few people know that 234 million operations that require blood transfusions are performed worldwide annually. In fact, 1 in 7 people hospitalized requires a blood transfusion that saves lives.

While 108 million units of blood are collected annually around the world, only a small percentage of the billions of people eligible to donate do so. For those who require a blood transfusion, the need is even greater since the blood has a very short lifespan. Only through a steady and regular flow of voluntary donors can the required supply be guaranteed.

For this reason, Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has joined the Magen David Adom campaign. Israel’s national rescue service, together with Abbott Israel, are cooperating to promote and raise awareness on the issue, as well as to encourage younger members to join the group of regular donors.

“It is within our faculties to achieve a change by donating blood. Each donation can help save 3 people, either in an emergency or in long-term care, “says Cristiano Ronaldo, captain of the Portuguese soccer team and Real Madrid player. “This is why I am excited to join forces with Abbott Israel and the MDA campaign, which will help raise awareness of the importance of donating blood and will encourage people around the world to become blood donors by life and lifeguards “.

Ronaldo, one of the best soccer players in the world, is the first international ambassador of the BeThe1 initiative, active around the world in order to inspire as many people as possible to become regular blood #donors and help save lives .

Melilla: ‘Tetuan striped’, the exhibition about Atletico Tetuan goes to the Autonomous City After passing through Madrid and Tel Aviv, “Tetuan striped” returns to North Africa.

atletico de tetuanThis time the expo is enriched with a panel dedicated to football in Melilla and the inaugural event will feature the intervention of former footballer Antonio Potous.

While the city of Tetuán was part of the Spanish protectorate of Morocco (from 1912 to 1956), Atletico Tetuán became a member of the Primera División of Spanish football, specifically in the 1951-52 season. Atlético Tetuan, who also had a basketball section, played for six years in the second Spanish Division and five more in the Third. Today, in Tetuan there is still a great passion for Spanish football and a very strong sentimental nexus with Atletico Madrid.   Atlético Tetuán was, in the image of the Maghreb city, an example of coexistence between cultures. Muslims, Jews, Christians, shared the fervor for their colors. In order to narrate its history and recreate the spirit of Tetuán and his team, Asociación Los 50 has created a pleasant exhibition that is composed of illustrations, texts, and period objects. International players, shield, colors, stadium, historical milestones, anecdotes, can be seen in an initiative in which also collaborate Government of the Autonomous City of Melilla and Center Sefarad-Israel.   After passing through Madrid and Tel Aviv, “Tetuan striped” returns to North Africa. This time the expo is enriched with a panel dedicated to football in Melilla and the inaugural event will feature the intervention of former footballer Antonio Potous: born in Tetuán, he played in the Rayo Vallecano loaned by Atletico Madrid, and was a precursor The best handball team in Melilla as well as other sports.   Club Marítimo de Melilla April 7 through April 30, 2017 (Inauguration: April 7 at 8 pm).

The Jewish football player able to change a match schedule in the Spanish Football League

Haim Revivo CeltaHaim Revivo was the first Israeli player to play in the Spanish League. He did it in Celta de Vigo between 1996 and 2000, period in which the team reached to reach semifinals of the UEFA CUP(1999).
The goal of Revivo in Anfield that entered the history of Celta

Revivo arrived at Celta after being named best player of the Israeli championship in the two previous campaigns, in the Maccabi Haifa. He did not stand out for his scoring ability (he only made a fortnight in the League), but he treasured one of the best left-handers Balaídos has enjoyed in the last decades. With Irureta first and then with Víctor Fernández as coaches, he was one of the bastions of that Celta nicknamed as ‘La máquina'(the machine).

The most remembered episode of Haim Revivo in Spain, however, was the controversy that was generated around the schedule of the match Celta-Betis of 1996, only a couple of months after his arrival in Vigo. The match was set for 20:00 hours on Sunday, September 22nd, half an hour after the Jewish celebration of Yom Kippur or ‘Day of Forgiveness’ began in Israel, a day of fasting and prayer starting at sunset .

Revivo went to rest to celebrate Yom Kippur

Revivo consulted with a rabbi of Madrid what he should do, since his agent had included in the contract a clause by which the Celta had to respect his religious customs. The rabbi stated that Revivo had to be in his home at 19:45 to go locked and not eat or drink until the evening of the following day, according to this Jewish rite of penance. Solution? To advance the hour of the party to 18:00 so that Revivo could play the first part, since the option to advance the party to Saturday was vetoed to Celta. Everything went well for Revivo except the result: 0-2 for the Betis.

The best goals of Revivo in the Spanish League

Toshack called for Real Madrid and Rivaldo told him that he would play with him at Barcelon, but that jump never came and, after leaving Vigo in 2000, he would end up in the ranks of Fenerbahçe. Especially well things went in the first campaign, where he conquered the Turkish Superleague with great protagonism in the equipment.

Shortly afterwards he would move on to Fenerbahçe’s great rival, Galatasaray, where it stayed only a season. A controversial transfer that Revivo already did in its beginnings, when it left the Bnei Yehuda of Tel Aviv to sign for the Hapoel. Before retiring, however, he did have time for sentimentality: he played a season at Ashdod in his hometown, where he hung up his boots at age 31.