The streets of the ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem neighborhoods of Mea Shearim and Geula were packed with shoppers Monday evening, even as war with Iran threatened to dampen the Passover holiday.

Many businesses around the country have suffered due to travel restrictions and fears of missile fire. Here, the main commercial streets were as busy as ever, with people buying clothing, housewares, gifts, and kosher-for-Pesach food products that would enhance their enjoyment of the festival of freedom.

“I know that life has come to a standstill in other parts of Jerusalem, but here, life continues as usual, and people are out if there is no war,” said Arik, a seller of religious books at the Geula Avenue Book Shop. “There aren’t any tourists this year, so sales of our English books have been down a bit, but most stores here are operating as normal.”

Amid heavy car and foot traffic, and with holiday music blaring out of storefronts, many were pushing strollers and shlepping (carrying) large shopping bags overflowing with the day’s purchases.

The crowded streets bordered on chaos, as ultra-Orthodox families came out in droves for one of the biggest shopping periods of the year, two days before the beginning of Passover on Wednesday night. With matzahs already baked and purchased last week, and with food packages for the poor already distributed, religious families will be conducting the ritual search for hametz, unleavened bread, in their homes on Tuesday night, and be busy with cooking and final preparations for the holiday.

For many stores in the center of Jerusalem, including at the Mahane Yehuda market, sales to overseas tourists comprise more than half of all revenues, so the near-complete stoppage of travel during the busiest shopping season of the year has been an economic disaster, vendors told The Times of Israel.

But in the Geula area, arguably the capital of ultra-Orthodox Judaism in Israel, customers are predominantly local, and........

© The Times of Israel