Sights in Tel Aviv
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Bauhaus Centre
Bauhaus fans will want to stop by the Bauhaus Centre which is loaded with souvenirs and artwork. The centre runs a Bauhaus city tour on Fridays.
Bauhaus style offers simplicity and egalitarianism, designed by architects who carried socialist ideals with them from Europe to Israel. One result of their collective beliefs is the flat roof, intended to be a communal area for all the residents of each building. Of the 4000 Bauhaus-style buildings in the city, just 360 have been renovated, the rest crumbing in the salty, humid sea air, which is not kind to the plaster used for the building façades. Despite its Unesco status, there are no public funds for the restoration of…
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Nahum Goldman Museum of the Jewish Diaspora
The Nahum Goldman Museum of the Jewish Diaspora doesn't actually display any artefacts from the past. Rather, this is a good collection of models, dioramas, films and presentations chronicling the diversity of Jewish life and culture in exile. The main role of the museum, Beth Hatefutsoth in Hebrew, is to relate the unique story of the continuity of the Jewish people through exhibition, education and cultural endeavours.
Special attractions in the museum include the Feher Jewish Music Centre, the Douglas E Goldman Jewish Genealogy Centre (where visitors can register their family tree to be preserved for future generations) and a Visual Documentation Centre, which is the…
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Rothschild Blvd
This pleasant leafy boulevard was named after the Jewish family of financiers. At one time Rothschild Blvd was the address to have. It's no longer so exalted but former glories are invoked at Independence Hall (16 Rothschild Blvd), where on 14 may 1948, Ben-Gurion declared the establishment of the State of Israel. Previous to that, the building had been the home of Meir Bizengoff, one of the founders of Tel Aviv.
Entry includes a short introductory film and a tour of the room where the Declaration of Independence was signed.
West of the junction with Allenby St, the Haganah Museum (23 Rothschild Blvd) chronicles the formation and activities of the Haganah, the military…
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Almonit (Anonymous) Alley
It's easy to miss this tiny sidestreet while walking up King George St. But as a decidedly non-trendy, alternative hangout, the people that do come here appreciate its obscurity. The alley was originally named after Getzel Shapira, an American Jew who financed civic projects in Tel Aviv in the 1920s.
Later, Mayor Dizengoff, irritated that anyone with money could have a street named after themselves, ordered the street names changed and a clerk gave the alley a name that essentially means 'John Doe'.
Almonit sports a café, a secondhand bookshop, a vintage clothing store and a hairdresser fond of outrageous wall art (which is changed every couple of months). The most…
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Tel Aviv Museum of Art
Part of an attractive modern development that includes law courts and the municipal central library, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art is home to a superb permanent collection of Impressionist and post-Impressionist works, as well as some fine 20th century avante-garde. Works by Picasso, Matisse, Gauguin, Degas and Pollock feature prominently and there are some works by Jewish post-Impressionists Chagall and Soutine. The jewel of the collection has to be van Gogh's The Shepherdess (1889).
The museum often screens films and holds special exhibitions - check the Jerusalem Post on Friday or ask at the tourist information office for the Tel Aviv-Jaffa tourist booklet which usually…
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Azrieli Observatory
Israel's version of the Empire State Building (but without the four-hour line for the elevator) involves a trip up to the 49th floor of the Azrieli round tower to the Azrieli Observatory . Admission includes use of an audio guide (in English or Hebrew) which describes the various buildings and landmarks around the city - you'll get a better grasp of it all during daylight hours.
There is also a film covering the history of the city using 3D animation. Its target audience (four-year-olds) may appreciate the talking, time-travelling camel and flying robot companion, but we recommend you save your money for lunch.
You'd be wise to call ahead to check that the observation deck…
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Kikar Dizengoff
The geographic heart of the city, Kikar Dizengoff is regularly populated by a motley mix of mohawked punks, hippies, ice cream-licking tots and energetic centigenarians.
The square, named after the city's first mayor (1910-1937), is located on a raised platform over the street, a block north of the Dizengoff Centre shopping mall. The Fire and Water Fountain in the centre of the square makes for a somewhat appropriate symbol of the city. Spinning crazily, spurting water at random moments and occasionally launching flames into the air, its outlandish behavior continues naughtily into the night, almost unnoticed by city residents infected by similarly unpredictable manner.…
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Ben-Gurion Ave
Once considered a singles neighbourhood, it's now a popular address for families, a trend that becomes even more evident the further north you head. The bike lane running the length of Ben-Gurion Ave carries cyclists from Rabin Sq to the sea at Namir Sq, a run-down slab of concrete that sports a couple of cafés and a new nightclub.
The historical highlight of Ben-Gurion Ave is the home that once belonged to Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion. Now the respectable Ben-Gurion Museum (17 Ben-Gurion Ave), the site was maintained more or less as it was left at the time of David Ben-Gurion's death, the small rooms are simply furnished and contain part of the…
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Eretz Israel Museum
The Eretz Israel Museum actually consists of 11 linked, small museums built around an archaeological site, Tel Qasile. The museum complex is made up of, among others, a planetarium, a glass museum, a folklore pavilion, a reconstruction of a medieval bazaar, a ceramics museum, and a couple of halls with temporary exhibitions. Perhaps the best section is the multimedia presentation of Baron Rothschild, the financier who paid for many public works projects in Tel Aviv in the late 19th century.
Although not all of it is exactly enthralling, it's very well done and can easily occupy a few hours of your time. To get there take bus No 24, 27 or 86.
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Old Port
Originally opened in 1936 to give newly established Tel Aviv sea-trafficking independence of Jaffa, the port fairly soon went into decline with the construction of a better, deeper harbour at Ashdod. In the early 2000s the municipality went in and overhauled the area, creating a wide boardwalk and transforming the derelict warehouses into commercial space.
It's now the most fashionable piece of real estate in the city, with a 1km-long strip of restaurants, bars and nightclubs. It's at its busiest after dark and on weekends when hordes of young clubbers descend on the strip of discotheques.
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Nahalat Binyamin St
Recent years have seen redevelopment and the biggest success story has been that of Nahalat Binyamin St. Formerly a run-down province of the textile and haberdashery trade, private investment has seen it rejuvenated as a busy pedestrianised precinct full of fashionable cafés and arty shops.
Divert your eyes upwards, too, where there are the vestiges of some very elegant architecture. Take note in particular of No 16 (Rosenberg House), No 8 (Degel House), and No 13 (Levy House), with its beautiful tiled panels depicting caravans of camels.
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Helena Rubenstein Pavilion of Contemporary Art
Named for the woman behind the cosmetics empire, the Helena Rubenstein Pavilion of Contemporary Art is part of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art and is used for temporary exhibits by guest artists, both Israeli and foreign. Admission is sometimes free depending on the exhibit, but a Tel Aviv Museum of Art ticket is valid for here, too. Call ahead before going, as the place is closed when exhibits are in transition.
The Pavilion is part of the large Heychal Ha'Tarbut (Halls of Culture) complex which includes the Mann Auditorium and Habima Theatre.
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Bialik St
A short street lined with attractive buildings, Bialik St is a repository of Tel Avivian history. Look out for the Reuven Rubin House (14 Bialik St), the former residence of the artist of the same name. On display is a selection of his work and part of the artist's private collection of photographs and furnishings.
A few doors along Bialik House (22 Bialik St), former home of Chaim Nachman Bialik, Israel's national poet. It contains memorabilia connected with his life and work, but it was closed for renovations when we checked.
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Tel Aviv University
The wealthy suburb of Ramat Aviv is home to the nation's elite (a sort of Park Ave and Beverly Hills rolled into one) as well as Tel Aviv University , the nation's future elite. The university campus features some striking modern architecture and its departments cover the widest spectrum of all the country's universities. However, for the visitor, there are a couple of good museums here, one of which, the Diaspora Museum, should not be missed. Also proposes intensive, academic level ulpan (Hebrew language school).
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Little Tel Aviv
A knot of criss-crossing lanes that converge most significantly at Yirmiyahu and Dizengoff Sts. Cafés and restaurants crowd the junction, but the main reason to pass by is for a taste of the hummus at the well-known Hummus Ashkara. On Shabbat and Jewish festivals, especially Purim, this junction of streets is closed to traffic and used as extra seating for the local cafés. Nearby Basel St, a family-orientated neighbourhood, is another another area for coffee shops and restaurants.
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Fire and Water Fountain
The Fire and Water Fountain in the centre of Kikar Dizengoff makes for a somewhat appropriate symbol of the city. Spinning crazily, spurting water at random moments and occasionally launching flames into the air, its outlandish behavior continues naughtily into the night, almost unnoticed by city residents infected by similarly unpredictable manner. The fountain was designed by Ya'acov Agam, a leading Israeli artist known for his (obvious) predilection towards rainbow colour schemes.
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HaYarkon Park
HaYarkon Park, a green wooded expanse beside the river which offers some respite to the traffic and noise. The river is a little dirty and the surroundings are marred by some prominent electricity pylons but it doesn't stop students from the nearby campus flocking down here to take advantage of the row boats for hire. On weekends locals flock to the park to enjoy a variety of sports; there is a climbing wall, a skate park, basketball courts and football fields.
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Yemenite Quarter
Tel Aviv may be the city that never sleeps, but the Yemenite Quarter is one parcel of land smack in the centre that seems to have slumbered though the better part of the 20th century. An exotic oasis of narrow lanes, crumbling houses and smoky kitchens, the neighbourhood is just a couple of blocks away from the hustle and bustle of Allenby St. Its low rent has also attracted a bastion of bohemians and students looking for affordable peace in the city centre.
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Ramat Aviv
The wealthy suburb of Ramat Aviv is home to the nation's elite (a sort of Park Ave and Beverly Hills rolled into one) as well as Tel Aviv University, the nation's future elite. The university campus features some striking modern architecture and its departments cover the widest spectrum of all the country's universities. However, for the visitor, there are a couple of good museums here, one of which, the Diaspora Museum, should not be missed.
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Jabotinsky Institute
The Jabotinsky Institute is an historical research organisation with a museum on the 1st floor presenting the history and activities of the national resistance movement, founded and led by Ze'ev Jabotinsky. Several departments show his political, literary and journalistic activities, and also document the creation of the Jewish Legion in WWI (a paramilitary force set up to aid illegal immigration during the time of the British Mandate).
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Palmach Museum
Dedicated to the guerrilla fighters who took on the British army in the late 1940s, the Palmach Museum is a high-performance exhibit that works to both entertain and inform. Presented in a multimedia format, this museum leads visitors through several chambers that collectively describe the rise of the Palmach, their training and triumphs. It's located about 200m past the Eretz Israel Museum.
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Israel Diamond Museum
The cornerstone of the city of Ramat Gan is the Israel Diamond Centre, the vast diamond trading house that has made Israel the number-one exporter of diamonds. Sadly, the Diamond Centre is closed to the general public, but you can still get an upclose look at a woman's best friend at the Israel Diamond Museum, which shows off the process of extraction, polishing and the trade of diamonds.
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Ben-Gurion Museum
The historical highlight of Ben-Gurion Ave and the home that once belonged to Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion. This site was maintained more or less as it was left at the time of David Ben-Gurion's death, the small rooms are simply furnished and contain part of the revered politician's library of some 20,000 books, as well as his correspondence with various world leaders.
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Religious beach
The crowds thin out the further south and north you go. If you want more privacy Religious beach is north of the Hilton up towards the old port. On Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday only women are permitted to use the area and it is a good place for any woman, Jewish or not, to enjoy a swim or to sunbathe without the constant attention of an amorous Israeli male.
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Haganah Museum
This museum chronicles the formation and activities of the Haganah, the military organisation that was the forerunner of today's Israel Defence Forces (IDF). It has been recently renovated in a multimedia format where you follow 'Itsik' (a fictional character) as he escapes from a European ghetto to Israel where he becomes a young war hero.
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