Israel is consistently a widely discussed topic in the news, but does all the negative press accurately represent what life is really like for Israelis on a day-to-day basis? On November 17th, the Israel Student Association at Queens College (ISA) conducted an event to introduce another aspect of Israel to the students of Queens College, the cultural aspect. The culture of Israel is not necessarily portrayed in the news outlets that students are exposed to on a regular basis. Thus, the ISA decided to reproduce an Israeli Aroma Café, in the Queens College Student Union building, to pursue the goal of creating awareness of Israeli culture. Aroma Café in Israel is equivalent to Starbucks in America. Just like Starbucks, Aroma, as it is called for short, is a coffee shop that is on almost every Israeli street corner. This delicious and trendy café is a huge part of the culture in Israel. Israeli culture, as the ISA is trying to point out, is not that different from American Culture.
With the help of donations and support from Zayde’s Bakery in Fairlawn, Seasons supermarket in Queens, Aroma Café in SoHo, and CAMERA (Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America,) the ISA was able to create an extremely fun, relaxing, and enlightening event full of intricate details that really added to the night and made the Agora Café, in Queens College, feel almost exactly like the Aroma Café, in Israel. The event was completely student lead and the dedication and hard work that these students put in was exemplified in the end product. There were smiles on the faces of volunteers and guests throughout the entire night, and overall there was a very toned down and calm feel across the room the whole time.
As each person entered the room, they were immediately greeted by many of the friendly ISA volunteers wearing t-shirts with the Aroma logo on them. “Shalom, let me take you to your seat” is what the guest would hear next. While saying this, the ISA “waiters” kindly guided them to one of the many tables set up in the room. The guests were placed at tables strategically so that they would interact with and meet new people. Each volunteer spoke in both English and Hebrew so that the guests would really feel like they were in Israel hearing the native language. At each table sat a menu with the many options of delectable pastries and both cold and hot drinks to order (in both Hebrew and English of course.) People were then able to choose one pastry and one drink to be brought to them, free of charge!
The means by which the ISA brought Israeli culture to the room did not lie merely in the delicious food and drink, but mainly in the numerous extraneous details that were a part of the event. Every single component of the night was planned out strategically, and that fact was clear to anyone who walked into the Café. First off, fun Israeli music was playing loudly in the background to set the mood and Hebrew words were spoken throughout the entire night. The music was so catchy that it could make almost anyone want to dance. Additionally, the entire room was decorated in blue and white, the colors of the Israeli flag. The tablecloths were blue and white, and the tables that displayed the food and drink were actually decorated with Israeli flags. Additionally, all the drinks were served in authentic Aroma coffee cups, and every single pastry had a cute mini toothpick Israeli flag sticking out of it. Therefore, it was almost difficult to forget that the event was first and foremost about Israel, in addition to offering a relaxing and healthy environment to hang out with friends and meet new people.
That being said, the drink and food duplicated the actual Aroma Café selection that Israelis would choose from exceptionally well. One of the drinks that Aroma is well known for in Israel is their mouthwatering “iced Aroma,” or blended coffee. Naturally, the ISA made it their business to create and offer an equivalently tasty blended coffee drink, so that everyone would feel as if they were in the real Aroma. Devora Eisenberg, a sophomore at Queens College, even said “drinking the blended ice coffee that night brought back memories from when I was actually in Israel last year drinking that same drink in Aroma Cafe.” The drink menu also offered “Shoko Cham,” which means hot chocolate, and “Lemonada,” which is the Hebrew way of saying lemonade. Any person in Israel would be very likely to walk out of Aroma carrying one of those delicious drinks in one hand, and a pastry in the other, just as they may have walked out of Queens College last week. The detail that I appreciated most from the whole program was the Aroma chocolates that were given with every order. In the Israeli Aroma, every order is accompanied with a signature delectable Aroma brand chocolate. Receiving that same exact chocolate here, with the aroma logo on it, made the whole experience feel so authentic.
In the past few weeks, there have been numerous terrorist attacks in Israel that have been showing up in the news on the daily. It is easy, as an American, to forget that even though this situation is happening currently, Israel is not a place that lacks happiness and normality. It is also important to note that Israelis live their every day lives just as Americans do; going to school, work, stores, restaurants, and even Café’s. Israeli culture is full of art, music, parties, shopping, and so much food, just like the culture here in America! The Aroma Café at Queens College offered the best balance of entertainment, and socialization, while still teaching this valuable lesson. This event proved that when students set their minds to something, they can produce. Good job ISA! We cannot wait to come again next year to see what you have in store for us!
Written by: Alyssa Shapiro, sophomore at Queens College
