Having spent my entire life living in a country where the only comparable experience is sidewalk Christmas tree sales, I can’t help but marvel at the site of such stacks of palm fronds lining the streets of Jerusalem.

For the uninitiated, the palm fronds are used in the construction of sukkahs — temporary shelters utilized during the holiday of Sukkot, the annual Jewish harvest festival, which begins this evening. To learn more about Sukkot, click here.

Oh, and, FYI: Danya’s got a great related post on her Sukkot preparations here.