Long-Time Zionist, First-Time Visitor: My First Days in Israel

By Michal Simson

Something about me… I’ve never been to Israel. Well, until now. I’ve termed myself a “long time Zionist, first time visitor”. I’m sitting in my hotel room in Tel Aviv, across from the beach, where the windows don’t open, the toilet paper roll holder is a hole in the wall, and there is definitely mould growing in the shower, and I’ve never been more grateful.

When entering Ben Gurion Airport and seeing the famous entryway for the first time, I felt overwhelmed and wanted to burst into tears, but didn’t because I was in public and didn’t feel like being interrogated by guards with tears streaming down my face. Zionism has never been ideological to me. Much like my Judaism, it just is me. It’s how I see the world, it’s how I experience every human interaction, it’s how I breathe.

I come from a long line of Zionists and it was never framed as something political. Rather, if you are Jewish you are Zionist, the two cannot live without each other. In many ways I cannot believe I’m finally here, and in many other ways I feel as though I have always been here. This may be because everyone here assumes I speak fluent Ivrit. For those who don’t know me, I have olive skin and my name is Michal, so being mistaken for Israeli has been a common thread throughout my life. But I can assure you I am not a local and got absolutely swindled at the Carmel Market, which is an enormous embarrassment for an active Camberwell Market goer.

Everything just feels right here. For the first time since I graduated high school, I don’t have to think about being Jewish because almost everyone is. I don’t have to think about being a Zionist because everyone is. Since starting work at Bialik in 2024, I was reminded what it feels like to be around Jews every day. When you graduate high school, you very quickly adjust to being the Jew in many spaces, particularly social ones. I think Bialik is a bit of a microcosm of Israel. It’s diverse, it’s loud, it’s opinionated, but mostly it’s just Jewish.

I walked past this pottery store and it was breathtaking. I ended up buying a vase, because I have no self control, and the woman told me everything there was made after Iran bombed Tel Aviv. I responded with amazement and she said, “I work fast.” I couldn’t help but laugh. It reminded me of the Zio Mads and the Nova Festival survivor David who shared their stories at Bialik. They were horrific, but somehow there was still a joke to be made.

Being Zionist isn’t political or ideological to me, it’s human. I’ve been here barely two days but I can feel the centuries of roots under every step I take. I don’t think I’ve had a more Jewish experience than being sent to Israel for the first time by Bialik to learn how to better talk about Israel to Jewish students in the diaspora, then arriving back at work a day before Purim, a chag where Jews prevailed victorious against the threat of genocide.

I love being Jewish.