The shekel is getting stronger; the exchange rate is now below 4:1 shekels for dollars (around the price it was when I was last in Israel...8 years ago). Check out this interesting post over at Six Kids and a Full Time Job about the various ramifications of the growing strength of the NIS; most of them have to do with business, but one which I found interesting on a general level:
Charity dollars raised in the USA are not going as far. You gave to your favorite Israeli charity 12 months ago? Well, expect to see the collector back in 11 months this year and your favorite charity short on money. Scant few charities had sufficient foresight to conservatively plan their budget on a rising shekel.