“call tour”

The whole world turn around cultures.
Usually when I hear the word “culture” – automatically it’s pop up in me mind a number of scenes from me life:
1. Age 8-12, Location Israel. My Russian mother forced me to learn to play on piano and violin (“unfortunately” the Russian methods did not help her – since in those years I already felt like an Israeli … so I preferred playing soccer, playing hideouts in the wild nature, stealing sweets from the kitchen …). So today… I  have no idea how to play… but I managed to find friends that would play for me.
2. Age 12, Location – Moscow. The first ballet performance in my life – “The Nutcracker”. I don’t understand why the music has no words, I don’t understand why the entire audience is dressed like they came to the coronation event of the Queen of England, I don’t understand why I should not eat sweets.
What I did understand – that when you shout “Bravo” it means that the nightmare is over and now you can go home … so I joined to all the cultured people, and I shouted like a crazy – “Bravo”!!!.
3. Age 14, Location – two weeks of a homeland visit to Russia. My father decided that it was the time, to get to know the museums in Moscow and St. Petersburg – so we did it… every day 3 museums, result – 800 photos of me, standing next to: fountains, beautiful gardens, pictures of fat naked women, knights, tanks, mummies, gold And diamonds, statues of Buddha, models of spaceships …. And all the pictures I am with the same angry face of – “Why I cannot to eat sweets in these museums.”

So it is clear, that this word – “culture”,  can be used for a variety of aspects of life, so I will talk about the culture of dialogue in Israel.                                                                          In Israel, everyone thinks that they opinion is important. Anyone can turn to a random person on the street and start a conversation with him. The conversation will always begin with the attempt to find common friends. In the middle the conversation there will be a small political issue, and in the end of the conversation – the most important question of all will come: Are you in a relationship…? –                                                           Even though that you know thus person only 5 minutes, if you are a single – this person  will try to get you to marry with the daughter of his friends.

I’ve been in my life in 30 countries around the world, talking to many people from a variety of cultures, and obviously I can not be objective – but… in my opinion, the atmosphere of the most fun dialogue I ever met, was in Israel.