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Winnipeg’s Ari Glikman just back from his time in Israel amidst Covid-19
By REBECA KUROPATWA
When Ari Glikman (22) decided to take some time off his studies at the University of Manitoba to go to learn in Israel for a semester at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Covid-19 was not yet on the world’s radar.
“My plan before was to stay for the summer – volunteer, help out, and travel,” said Glikman. “I also wanted to travel to some of the neighbouring countries, and then Europe a little. That didn’t happen, because of Covid-19.”
As he boarded the plane at the beginning of January 2020, few people were wearing face masks. He started his semester at the Hebrew U in class, before Israel, in March 2020, entered its first Covid-19 lockdown.
Once the lockdown began, the majority of the international students decided to return home. But Glikman was determined to stay. His Winnipeg-based parents were okay with that, especially as they have family living in Ashdod.
“I was living in Jerusalem at the time, at the student dormitories,” said Glikman. “I wasn’t with my Ashdod family then. And, during most of that period I couldn’t go see them because it was restricted to go see people or travel.
“Luckily the student housing there is in a good neighbourhood. At the beginning, there was like a 500 metre area of leaving and we couldn’t do anything. But, after it got expanded a little we were pretty close to the Old City and Jerusalem…So, if you have to be stuck somewhere, Jerusalem is a great place to be stuck.
“Sometimes I’d walk through the Old City. And, because it’s such a touristy place and the airport was closed, sometimes I felt like I had the Old City all to myself. For example, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, that’s normally always packed with people, I was able to sit in that square and be the only person there…because, the people that go there are usually tourists…unlike the Kotel, that often has Israelis there. But, even the Kotel was definitely less packed than it would normally be.”
While traveling out of the country was not an option, Glikman was able to spend more time travelling within Israel, and discovered many things and places he otherwise would not have.
Even Glikman’s plan to volunteer with MDA had nearly been cancelled, due to Covid-19. But, as Israel had restricted high school students from volunteering for MDA, the need for volunteers grew to the point that Glikman was called to join a group of volunteers from Australia and South Africa.
After the 10-day training, Glikman was stationed in Ashdod, where he was able to stay with his family while volunteering full-time for MDA.
“It was 40 hours a week, five days a week and I usually got night shifts,” said Glikman. “It was 11pm-to-7am. And when there were no calls at the station, I’d just be there, waiting for a call. But, if there was a call, I’d normally be the second guy on the ambulance – it was the driver and then me. Usually, there are three or four people in the ambulance, but, because of the volunteer shortage when I was doing it, it’d just be two or, occasionally, three of us. You get set for an ambulance and you’d hop on and get going with someone.”
As far as how Israeli society is coping with Covid-19, Glikman reflected that just having been living life in Israel helped prepare people to manage crisis situations well – in some sense giving them an advantage in coping with pandemic stress. But still, this sensibility is applicable more to short-term crisis situations. So, the seemingly lengthy duration of Covid-19 is now causing some compliance fatigue among Israelis.
“People are getting tired and you are fighting an enemy you can’t even see,” said Glikman. “It’s very difficult. It’s really hard for a lot of businesses, for example. My family, the people I was living with in Ashdod -they have a little factory. And, it’s really hard because, sometimes, it’s allowed to be open and sometimes it’s not…so, there is no consistency.
“There’s a lot of frustration and everybody’s pointing fingers at everybody else. But also, I think it helps when people come together. I don’t know. I definitely saw that at the beginning and throughout as well – neighbours helping neighbours, friends helping friends…making sure everyone is getting through it together.”
Glikman expressed his thanks for the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba (JFM) and the Joel M Weinstein Memorial Scholarship, and the scholarship he got from the Canadian Friends of Hebrew University (CFHU), when he graduated from the Gray Academy for Jewish Education, for the financial backing and help in making his Israel dream come true.
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New Opportunities for XRP in the Trump Era: How XRP Holders Can Earn $7,899 Daily in Passive Income Through FTMINING Cloud Mining in 2026
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Musings from Dizengoff Street – by Bruce Brown
(August 8, 2026)
Outside Basimta Café in Central Jerusalem. Love the red shirt against a tiny sea of black. Not sure I am shrugging because of the ultra-orthodox uproar over a Jerusalem café operating on Shabbat or the lack of an ultra-orthodox uproar over a Jerusalem café operating on Shabbat. For the last six weeks Israeli headlines shouted about the cafe chaos. With the ultra-religious blocking entrances and storming the café. While shouting ‘Shabbos! Shabbos!’ Upsetting the secular amongst us just wanting to enjoy our Saturday iced matchas. So the wife and I thought we would check it out. And. Yes. Buy something to support the business. Uproar. Not. Blocked entrances. Not. Storming the café. Not. Albeit there were police barriers separating the devout protesters from the coffee drinkers. The protesters being just a few dozen black clad, pious Jews. Mostly teenagers. And yes. Shouting ‘Shabbos! Shabbos!’ Certainly underwhelming in its reported mayhem. Reminds me of the famous saying misattributed to Mark Twain – “If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you do, you’re misinformed.” But I did enjoy my iced matcha.
(August 6, 2026)
Here we go again. Another round of forever negotiations. As someone who negotiates for a living. The way things are going in the straits. If I had to recommend a book on the subject to a new hire. Between The Art of the Deal, A Presidential Edition by Donald J. Trump or The Real Art of the Deal by the Mullahs of Iran with a special forward by the IRGC. Well. I would choose the latter.
(August 3)
Bravo Yoav Segalovitz, Liberal Yesh Atid MK and Monsour Abbas, United Arab Ra’am MK and party head. For breaking a glass ceiling where a Jewish lawmaker joins an Arab political party. No less a political earthquake in my little shtetl. Which can significantly impact coalition block arithmetic and posturing and strategy in the upcoming elections. Now Ra’am can be considered a legitimate ‘Zionist’ partner when forming coalition blocks and potentially pushing the ‘center left/right’ party over the 60 seat majority threshold. In our crazy parliamentary democracy defined by a multi-party (about fourteen!!), proportional representation system. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, Israel’s proportional representation model of governance is the best parliamentary democracy system except for all other forms of working democracies. Stay tuned for more amateurish political musings as we move towards Israel’s 26th national election – five of them held since 2019.
(August 1)
Although both sides say they are open to diplomacy. Neither really trusts the other. And American military action, or its threat, continues. I read headlines in the middle of the night -it’s a nervous habit lately– that the Dynamic Duo of Trump and Netanyahu may again strike in unison. Possibly this weekend. Yikes! Prompting me, at 2:30 AM, to dash around the house stocking my safe room. Bottled water. Canned food. Medicines. Documents. The beat goes on….
If it’s crazy here. It’s insane in Italy. With a recent online ‘Jew Hunt’ in the Milan area. Before being removed, the digital forms urged reportings of Israelis and Italian Jews staying in local hotels. The infamous Global Sumud Movement -yes, the one coordinating ‘peace and humanitarian’ flotillas to Gaza- was somehow connected. Although they deny involvement?! This deranged decree was looking to identify Zionist tourism and Zionist neo-colonization in Italy. I’ll stick with stocking the saferoom.
Then there’s New York Mayor Mamdani, a Global Sumud Movement supporter, threatening to arrest Prime Minister Netanyahu if he comes to New York. But since discovered he has no legal right for such a grandstanding, antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Western, anti-democratic antic. Maybe Mandami should be arrested! Or at least impeached. For being a grandstanding, antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Western, anti-democratic mayor.
Here’s a post Bruce sent us Friday, July 31:
WARTIME MUSINGS
Should credible threats against FLOTUS and ‘FSOTUS’ (first son..) not be justification to attack first.
As for yesterday’s summit. Netanyahu really can’t win. Explainer. If Trump now attacks without victory its ’cause of Netanyahu. If Trump now attacks with victory its ’cause of Trump. And, in Israel, if Trump doesn’t attack -victory or not- Netanyahu failed in his eighth meeting with Trump. And if Trump does attack -victory or not- half the country will vilify Bibi anyway. Missing a permutation?
Ya. I know. Kinda’ need a definition of victory for that musing to work.
And here in my little shtetle. We go to sleep unsure if there will be a code red in the middle of the night. And if not. We wake up thinking it will be tonight. How do you define stress?
Seemed like an appropriate way to end this musing.
Bruce Brown is a former Winnipegger who made aliyah to Israel over 35 years ago. Bruce first began writing for us – in his own inimitable style, in 2012, during what was known as “Operation Pillar of Defense.” His occasional musings on aspects of life in Israel that were far from what you’d typically read in other reports from Israel were hugely popular – both in the print Jewish Post & News and on this website.
We’re now glad to report that Bruce is back writing for us – this time on a regular basis. We will post Bruce’s reports as they arrive – with the date of each post at the beginning of that post.
Here’s some information about Bruce – and awards he’s received for his writing:
Bruce Brown. Canadian born. Now living in Israel (for a long time). Bruce works in Israel’s hi-tech sector by day and, in spurts, is a somewhat inspired writer by night. He received the American Jewish Press Association’s award for writing excellence in 2019 and 2025. And wrote the 1998 satire, “An Israeli is….” Bruce’s musings are political, social, economic and personal. With lots of biting, contrarian, sardonic and irreverent insight.
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