I ISRAEL

From All Of Us At

Classic Valet, Inc.

We Wish Everyone A
Happy, Healthy & Prosperous
New Year

For Valet Parking
at Corporate and
Private Events
Please Call
David or Kenny
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at

626-7177

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Our
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For
A Happy
New Year!

11 6

'Ne Dail Vlootexal
'6.# Sobezel Sltevi

543-3115

Israeli Paradise
Faces Hard Times

CARL ALPERT

Special To The Jewish News

I

n the old days, one who
wanted a pioneering life
went to the kibbutz.
Later, adventurous spirits
sought out Eilat. Develop-
ment towns like Kiryat
Shmona or Dimona were
border outposts, but few went
there of their own free will.
Today the new challenge is in
the desert town of Mitzpe
Ramon, deep in the heart of
the central Negev. To those
with vision and imagination,
it shows all the promise of
becoming a thriving
metropolis with many of the
same attractions which have
made Phoenix, Ariz., the
fastest-growing city in the
U.S.
Four days in Mitzpe Ramon
provided opportunity to study
many aspects of what is now
a town of about 4,500 people.
Above all, it is located on the
upper edge of Machtesh
Ramon, a vast depression,
said to be the largest crater in
the world, 40 kilometers long
and nine kilometers wide.
The scenery is reminiscent of
the badlands of Arizona -
peaks and desert vegetation
and rocks in a startling varie-
ty of colors. For the geologist
and nature lover it is a
veritable paradise. For the
historian and the ar-
chaeologist it abounds in re-
mains of settlements of the
ancient Nabatean people who
found ways to husband
meager water resources and
maintain agricultural lands
on which they survived.
The English-speaking
members of the community
are of mixed opinions about
life there. The climate is dry,
the air pure and fresh,
without any pollens. Many
regard it as an ideal place to
live, except for those who long
for big city life with its
crowds, lights, noise and
smog. Remote? It is a two
hours' drive south of Tel Aviv,
two hours from Jerusalem,
one hour from Beersheba, and
two hours from Eilat if you
drive fast..
A number of industries
have located here, but none
are permitted which would
befoul the air. Tourism could
well become the major attrac-
tion, and a handsome visitors'
center has been built on the
best observation point
overlooking the crater. Yet
unemployment today is about
16 percent, one of the highest
in the country, though we
were told of opportunities for

laundry and dry cleaning, a
print shop, shoe repairs,
tailors, auto mechanics, Ty
and radio repair, plumbers,
carpenters, electricians, etc h
Few of the many Soviet im-
migrants who have come here
fit these requirements.

Mitzpe Ramon has had a
checkered history since _ '
Moroccan immigrants were
first brought here in 1956.
The first 10 years saw rapid
growth, and then decline.
Since then, thousands of set- I
tlers have come and gone. In
1974 it was termed a_;
monumental failure, and
many felt the place would be',
abandoned entirely. Five I
years later the town was on
the verge of a great boom, and
the population zoomed. But
when the main road to Eilat
was changed, Mitzpe became-)
a ghost town on a little travel-
ed road.

The new challenge
is in a desert
town, deep in the
Negev.

Today Mitzpe Ramon has_,
foursynagogues, a Hadassaii-
study group, a chapter of the
Association of Americans and
Canadians in Israel, an
education system throughcl
high school, a community
center and health facilities,
but not a hospital.
Other attractions? The wild
ibexes, which elsewhere are
seen only on remote hilltops,
here come close on the scenicc
cliff promenade and stare ,
curiously at the human in-
vaders of their domain. At th6) -'
nearby alpaca and llama farm
one can literally play with
these exotic animals, who are
almost naively lacking in
fe an.
J
The visitor need not close
his eyes to visualize the an-
cient caravans which traversL
ed the spice route through
here, from Arabia to Europe.
In the final analysis, with
all its charm and scenery,
wild-life and dry climate, the I
future of Mitzpe Ramoi?,
depends on economic factors.
The government offers excep-
tional inducements for the
establishment of industries
here, though tourism and
retirement are probably
destined to be the major, ,
elements of the economy.'
Those with vision and pa-
tience believe that Mitzpe
Ramon will become an Israeli
paradise in the not too distant
future .EI