sea shore with lots of hotels...
by soniko
sea shore with lots of hotels and restaurants, azrieli center (mall) / Ramat Aviv Mall / diaspora Museum / Yarqon Park / Jaffa stayind in a hostel with my fiancee ( 1999 - now I am married to her) and seeing the sea from the window early in the morning!
Passport Stamping
by traveloturc
When you enter the terminal, prepare to show your passport (or visa?). In the old days, before the peace process, many people would ask that their passports not be stamped. The clerk would then simply stamp a piece of paper. The reason for this was the Arab boycott, which called for Arab states to deny entry to anyone with an Israeli stamp in their passport. Today, unless you're planning to visit one of the rejectionist states, such as Syria or Libya, you don't have to worry.
Inside the center there are...
by ClaesDenmark
Inside the center there are entertainment in the evenings. Especially the middle of the center is a good place to see. The BIG sculpture amazed me. It was not possible to have the whole of it in one picture. Notice the woman playing a grand piano just down under the sculpture
Shabbat (Sabbath) in Tel Aviv
by leffe3
As I already mentioned in my Israel page, as a Jewish state, religion is taken very seriously here. But more so in some places than others. Tel Aviv falls most definately into the 'others' category.
So what happens inTel Aviv on Shabbat? Effectively, for most, the weekend starts Thursday evening through to Saturday evening, with Sunday (as in the whole of Israel) being a normal working day (some people work Friday morning). As Friday sunset approaches, shops/markets will close as will kosher cafes and restaurants. Buses will stop running (although sheruts and taxis will continue to provide public transport). Many bars/ restuarants/ cafes remain open throughout, as will 'kiosks' (cigarettes, basic food stuffs etc). The streets tend to be quieter until later in the evening - many non-observant Jews continue the tradition of the family Friday evening meal. Consequently many bars and restaurants tend to be fairly empty until approx 10pm, when suddenly the city comes back to life. And remains so until the early hours of the morning (traffic jams at 4am are pretty normal!!). Saturday during the day can be blissfully quiet and relaxing - 8 months of the year it seems as if most of Tel Aviv is on the beach (with the rest either in cafes over very long brunches or just coffee or out and about at the major sites round Israel, BBQs in tow).
Find the Seashell
by Trillian2005
Unfortunately you can sometimes observe dogs using the beautiful beach as a public toilet. This is not happily tolerated, but after all people tend to be more forgiving when it comes to dogs. It's an absolute no-no for humans and can result in a heavy fine and/or deportation (if you're a tourist). You MUST use a public toilet (a.k.a. "restroom" for our American friends) if you MUST.
The options for the discriminate traveler's taste are either the standard, architecturally-not-very-pleasing public facilities or the beach café toilets, which you may use for free, if you're a café customer or for a small fee (such as 1 Shekel) if you're not. Sometimes non-customers have the chance to sneak into a beach café toilet for free - if the toilet serviceperson took a few minutes off duty to go to the toilet, or, as in some cases sometimes, there isn't any toilet service personnel present at all for a multitude of unknown reasons (which may have certain other disadvantages, however). One Shekel (approx. 20 cents) per person (more if you're a café customer - to pay for your meal and/or beverage). This includes toilet paper, washing your hands afterwards, using the dryer or paper towels, including free use of the mirror above the sink to facilitate combing your hair and applying other beautifying measures if necessary. Please bring your own comb!
This particularly tastefully designed beach toilet (appropriate beach theme: green seashell-shaped plastic toilet lid) is somewhere on the beach, in the Gordon - Bograshov section. Unfortunately, I have forgotten where exactly. Now this is where the sports travel kicks in: you walk along the beach (which is a really pleasant activity at any time - unless you need a toilet extremely urgently) and check out all the café toilets. Eventually you'll be successful in finding the seashell. Enjoy the beautiful ambience and good luck!