- Title: ISRAEL: Quirky Christmas gift goes on sale in holy land - donkey doo
- Date: 24th December 2008
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) MENACHEM GOLDBERG, MANAGER OF THE KEDEM VILLAGE TOURIST COMPOUND AND INVENTOR OF SEALED DONKEY DUNG SAYING: "What we did here, we brought it last week, it we take the poo of the donkey or the doo of the donkey and we put it in a very modern material and we combine the ancient believe about the messiah and fresh poo of donkey with a very new materials.
- Embargoed: 8th January 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Israel
- Country: Israel
- Topics: Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
- Reuters ID: LVA58F3N2DVK3M39EDUYKZDHW247
- Story Text: Israeli souvenir shop gift wraps donkey dung from the holy land as a memorable Christmas gift.
If you're looking for a creative gift for Christmas, Menachem Goldberg has the perfect idea -- donkey faeces plastered in a cube from the holy land.
Goldberg runs a tourist compound in Kedem village in the Galilee, which was recreated to resemble the early years of Jesus' childhood. It offers its visitors to 'travel' back in time and experience life as it looked, tasted and felt in biblical times.
"What we did here guys, take a look, we took the donkey doo and we put in like this," Goldberg told a group of teenage tourists from Australia.
While visitors of the ancient-style village -- all dressed in 'biblical' gowns -- could ride donkeys, grind wheat or bake their own bread, they could also buy Goldberg's latest product, displayed in the compound's gift shop.
"What we did here, we brought it last week, it we take the poo of the donkey or the doo of the donkey and we put it in a very modern material and we combine the ancient believe about the messiah and fresh poo of donkey with a very new materials," Goldberg told Reuters.
He explained that the idea came to him as he ran into a phrase in the Jewish Talmud that is part of a debate between two rabbis speaking about the coming of the messiah.
In order not to offend tourists by associating donkey dung with the holy land, Goldberg preferred to quote that biblical phrase on the box: '"Let the messiah come,". "May I be worthy to sit in the shadow of his donkey's dung," it said on the cube that plastered a donkey faeces.
The plastic cubes recently went on sale for $70 each, but Goldberg says this is a fare price for the unique souvenir.
"It's very expensive material, it's a little bit expensive for some of the people, it's not a regular souvenir but some of the people bought it."
During their visit to the compound, the young tourists from Australia experienced donkey-riding, bread baking and other outdoor activities designed to allow them to get familiar with the life their ancestors led, Goldberg said. But not all of them were rushing to buy the exceptional souvenir.
"I am probably not going to buy the donkey doo. (Q: Why not?) because it's a donkey doo," said Assaf Cohen from Australia.
"The donkey doo product is something that I'll definitely buy, it's really cool," said Sharon Moshe.
Tens of thousands of pilgrims each year visit Israel's Galilee region, which is spotted with shrines commemorating biblical associations. During Christmas and Easter in particular, pilgrims flock to the hilly region to celebrate the life of Jesus. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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