The Rabbis of the Talmud said, "A person is obligated to drink on Purim until he can no longer distinguish between "cursed is Haman and blessed is Mordachai." This statement of the early rabbis who lived during the Talmud (about 1700-1800 years ago) had caused much concern by the later rabbis. For more on drinking during Purim please visit "the people of Mea Shaerim" under the "meet the people" gallery. Drunk Haredim at a synagogue in the district of Mea Shaerim during the Purim celebrations, Jerusalem, Israel, 2012.

Muslim student walks past the school wall in the Arab Quarter. Jerusalem, Israel, 2012.

Tel Aviv was founded in 1909 by the Jewish Community of Jaffa on the outskirts of the ancient port city. The growth of Tel Aviv soon outpaced Jaffa, which had a majority Arab population at the time. Tel Aviv and Jaffa were merged into a single municipality in 1950, two years after the establishment of the State of Israel. Tel Aviv, Israel, 2012.