: Through a Writer's Lens

Three Israeli authors shed the guise of fiction to tell us about their favorite places in the country they love.

HAIFA: URBAN NATURE THE DESERT SOLUTION I moved to Haifa from Jerusalem 44 Every Jew should spend several days 2 O o years ago, and it was the best move in the desert. After all, half of Israel CO s= I ever made. Haifa itself is beauti­ is desert. Only by visiting the desert UJ Z s ful. When I drove up Mount Carmel can a person understand Israel and the CO 3 to teach at the University of Haifa, I region—our neighbors like and O O would see the sea from both sides of the Syria are also carved from the desert.

D£ car. The university itself is located in David Ben-Gurion once said that the

Z < one of the loveliest spots in the world. fate of Israel would be decided in en <£ O On a world scale, the gardens of the the desert. I believe we can discover >• CO Bahai are famous. Haifa offers both political solutions in the desert. There oc Z3 nature and urban life: The wadis let is much Israel can do that doesn't c_o> co you take a short walk from a totally require going to the West Bank. It

The following pages may surprise you. They re meant to. The Israe l of2009isverydifferen t fromtheIsrae l youfirstvisite d 40,30,20,10,eve n 5yearsago.Israe l is61,TeAviv is100.We'reallgrow n up. o 3

o g

ake a look at Jerusalem's Mamilla Avenue ON the preceding page. IN the shadow OF the Jaffa Gate and David's Tower, century-old buildings have been remolded—under the Tinspired direction of architect, Moshe Safdie— as an array OF 21 st century boutiques and cafes.

Throughout Israel, the visitor is treated to sophistication, style and an array of choices unimaginable just a few years ago. The NewYork Times last August described Tel Aviv as "the capital of Mediterranean chic."

Tel Aviv, this year marking the centenary OF its founding, is brash and bold and beautiful, the Israeli 'NewYork,' while Jerusalem is our Washington DC. But Israel is much much more than a tale of two cities. And within the following pages we're confident you'll discover an Israel you never knew existed. Archaeological wonders such as the ruins at Beit She'an abound throughout Israel.

The unique architecture of Tel Aviv is embodied in buildings like the Eclectic-style PagodaHouse.

Travelers to Israel are often surprised at the array of fabulous beaches—from Eilat in the south to the shores of the Dead Sea to Tel Aviv's dog-friendly shores. OFF-THE-BEATEN PATH STAYS IN ISRAEL

taying in what Israelis refer to as zimmers, or country guesthouses, is a perfect way to stay close to nature Sthroughout Israel. The zimmers were born when locals fell in love with the European pension concept, added an Israeli twist, and transplanted it to the shores of the eastern Mediterranean.

These largely countryside establishments are available countrywide but they predominate in the hilly Galilee and Golan regions and cater to a spectrum of tastes and budgets. Many are located on kibbutzim and moshavim (collective agricultural settlements key to the development of the country in its early years and they offer a glimpse into Israel's pioneering past as well as fresh-from-the-field produce, cheeses, jams, honey, amazing Israeli breakfast feasts and other home-cooked meals.

For couples seeking a romantic getaway, many a zimmer (borrowed from the German word for 'room') offers massages, luxurious Jacuzzis, romantic moonlight walks, fine wines, even Japanese steam baths and rock therapy. Some are just a stroll from the beach or offer horseback riding, bird watching, hiking and activities for the kids. And because distances are so short within Israel, visitors are usually also within easy reach of the country's major archaeological and historical sites.

A glass of wine, a loaf of bread and...wow! Artisanal bakeries and boutique wineries are flourishing throughout Israel. TEL AVIV IS 100: A stroll through -land

ounded one hundred years ago and enobled in the thirties and forties by the great refugee FBauhaus architects' International Style.Tel Aviv has now emerged as one of the great cities of the Mediterranean. Indeed it's one of only two major cities on earth which, in addition to being a bustling, vibrant center of commerce, entertainment and big business, is blessed with one of the world's most magnificent beaches (the other being Rio). As Tel Aviv marks its centenary, it has evolved into the heart of a non-stop metropolitan area that is home to four million Israelis. And for the visitor, it offers an array of moods and sophisticated choices to please even the most jaded sophisticated traveler. Tel Aviv's elegantly curving was laid out in 1909, soon after the city's creation as a Jewish garden-suburb of ancient Jaffa. The boulevard begins in NeveTzedek - an area once crumbling, now experiencing a startling renaissance - and winds its sleepy, tree-lined way to one of the city's foremost cultural centers, which houses the Frederic Mann Auditorium (home of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra), the Helena Rubinstein Art Museum and Israel's legendary Habima Theater (the Hebrew language repertory company founded in Moscow in 1912 - three years after Tel Aviv itself). And it's in front of the modern curves of Habima that you should began your stroll. Rothschild Boulevard is very wide - two double-lane widths of road, divided by a thirty-foot median of gardens, benches and trees. The trees loom high, arching gently to create generous acres of shade. There are no shops on Rothschild, just four- or five-story apartment buildings, and, later on, modern and post­ modern office towers. As you stroll, look around you, admire the simple lines of the treasured Bauhaus buildings which have become Tel Aviv's architectural signature. These structures, created by German Jewish architects who fled in the wake of Hitler, are considered today the world's most concentrated example of this art form. Many are sadly faded, but many more have been magnificently restored. Each is cleanly bordered by hedges and flowering bushes, their exterior lobbies arrayed with tricycles, strollers and the comforting detritus of family life - alive and well in the heart of the busy metropolis. Look up. An elderly lady - perhaps born in Vilna or Vienna, but at home now in this cityTheodor Herzl dreamed - sits on her plant-filled balcony and gazes down, a little bewildered perhaps, at the parade of gorgeous young people in micro-skirts and designer-torn jeans, the occasional sports coupe, vroom-vroom-vrooming to an afternoon assignation. Notice the angled skylights, the glass-brick walls, the tiny windows designed by the Bauhausers to retain interior coolness in those sultry days before the dawn of air-conditioning. And admire the gently curved balconies, the sparsely drawn lines which have come to epitomize Tel Aviv's pre-WorldWar II incarnation as Europe-in-the-Levant. It was in 2003 that the world gave recognition to Tel Aviv's sense of the special, with the designation by UNESCO of Tel Aviv's Bauhaus or "" as a World Heritage Site. Rothschild is delightfully drowsy. There are cars, of course, and bicyclists and children playing on the median, but the overreaching sense is calm and quiet It's an avenue immersed in what evokes a seemingly semi-perpetual sense of siesta. And as you amble along - even if it's a hot and steamy Tel Aviv afternoon - Rothschild manages to retain a delightfully lethargic sense of well-being. When you reach Sheinkin Street, take a detour. Whether or not you're a shopper, Sheinkin is a treat. Its artsy stores, galleries and boutiques exude styles, attitudes and design which are international, yet somehow particularly unique- to-lsrael. You'll find none of theTiffany-Chanel- Missoni-Vuitton glitz of chic North Tel Aviv, nor the Judaica-kitsch of more touristy stores near the beach. No, on Sheinkin, you can find the perfect hand-crafted item which is unique, charming and entirely Israeli. Here and there back on Rothschild, the Bauhaus disappears and earlier reminders emerge of Tel Aviv's pre-Bauhaus "eclectic" architectural style.At the corner of Balfour Street (named to honor the British Foreign Secretary, whose resolve to restore the Jewish homeland in Palestine was outlined in a 1917 letter to Lord Rothschild, a letter which we now know as 'The Balfour Declaration"), a stately building recalls an earlier era. I call it Kiev-sur-Mer. Here, Bauhaus simplicity is replaced by busy-ness: Oriental arches, cloisters, juts, points, Gothic gargoyles - a hodgepodge evoking Odessa or Manchuria, worthy of having been concocted by Disney. At the intersection of Nachmani Street, a tall office block is the first true break you encounter in the Rothschild "look." Yet, it's immensely tasteful. An all-curves post-modern tower, its rooftop terrace complete with single, distantly- spaced pillars, pale-green frosted glass, and punctured portholes - just the perfect backdrop for Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers to dance The Continental in glorious black and white. In contrast, the neighboring mansion - its jugendstil balconies and fiercely red door summon up visions of central Europe's fin-de-siecle - now houses a top-level Chinese restaurants. Restaurants abound on Rothschild and adjacentAcah Ha'am and Montefiore Streets. And luxurious new boutique hotels, too.This is sophisticated Tel Aviv at its most sophisticated. Here, entrepreneurial WHERE IT ALL BEGAN Israelis have combined the best of the West End, the Left Bank, the Meat Cross bustling and you're now approaching the beginning of Packing District, New York, added a dash of Bangkok and Lima and Prague, Rothschild Boulevard - and some of Tel Aviv's oldest houses. Here is Israel's and whisked in a finishing touch of utter Israeli-ness. One restaurant very own Independence Hall, where, in a ceremony broadcast to the world serves breakfast 24-hours-a-day. One is Israeli-Moroccan-Kurdish, one on May 14,1948, David Ben Gurion declared the rebirth of the State of Israel could be in Montparnasse, one in Rome - but each has menu items that are after 1,875 years of wandering. Independence Hall was formerly Tel Aviv's strictly all-Israeli. Art Museum which, in an even earlier incarnation, was one of Tel Aviv's first Back on Rothschild, keep an eye open for the old Russian Embassy, now houses, the square and Bauhaus-spare home of the city's first mayor, Meir restored to its original incarnation as the Czar's pre-revolution consulate in Dizengoff. Opposite, the gorgeously restored cream-colored Beit Eliahu.yet Ottoman Palestine. I wonder how its ostentatious features struck the new another Bauhaus gem - complete with aqua shutters and garden patio - is residents of Tel Aviv back in 1913, so many of whom had fled to the Promised now the home of the Hagannah Museum, recalling the military triumphs and Land from Czarist oppression. Did those stucco urns, turrets, ornamental tribulations of Israel's War of Independence. lintels - not to mention the pagoda spire - make them homesick? Or But the walk's not over - for if you've chosen to take this expedition on a incredulous? Or merely even more thrilled to be gone? Tuesday or Friday afternoon - you've now reached Nachlat Benjamin Street Cross back and you'll come to the Miami Vice dimensions of Zion House, Here, a giant crafts- and people-fest fills the pedestrianized streets with stalls headquarters of Bank Hapoalim. Its blue tint glass sheath and its taxicab-yellow of ceramics, woodcarvings, blown glass and assorted tchotkes - plus, mimes, thrusts and indentations invade the nostalgia. Turn again and the antiquity noise, bustle and clamor. Spend an hour or so browsing, shopping, munching, is restored as you peer across the street at the mansion housing the CLAL people-gazing. And take pride in the knowledge that in this brief afternoon Insurance Company. It's a vision straight off the MGM back-lot, complete with stroll you'll have seen more of the real Tel Aviv - and the "new" Israel - than Cecil B. DeMille palms and pillars ("close, but no Chariton Heston"). many visitors see in two weeks. M9u> | no A ji |8noi j / pu y

Photo Credit: Sasson Tiram Santiago Calatrava's soaring new bridge graces the main entryway to Jerusalem.The bridge is part of the new light rail network that will massively ease congestion in Israel's capital. Less than a decade ago, Israel's major cities had yet to experience a boutique hotel boom...

Traveling with families in Israel

Israelis are obsessed with children. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that they generally marry young and have kids young.The result is that few countries on earth are as family-friendly and family- welcoming as Israel. Virtually nothing is off-limits. From the classic tourist sites - such as Jerusalem, , Caesarea, Haifa, the Dead Sea, Eilat and the Galilee, to the sidewalk cafes and hip markets of Tel Aviv, children are welcome- indeed they're expected. Almost every restaurant has a children's menu -with all the things even the most finicky children love. Off-the-beaten track is perfect for kids too.There are farms where the kids can learn to milk the cows, and moshavim where they can pick (and eat) lychees or cherries.They can inner tube down the Jordan, they can ride horses, they can drive desert buggies, they can snuggle with dolphins, they can enjoy water parks and archeological digs, they can visit zoos and safari parks. Plus, children (and their parents) can see - and remember - some of the most extraordinary sites and holy places the world has ever known. ...in 2009, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and Eilat are brimming with new boutique openings and see-and-be-seen spots. Photo Credit: Israelimages / Israel Talby HANG OUT IN JERUSALEM'S NACHALAT SHIVA

onsisting mainly of quaint late 19th century Jerusalem stone Nowadays, Nachalat Shiva's warren of narrow alleys that give construction, Nachalat Shiva is Jerusalem's downtown way to cozy courtyards, are home to landmark Jerusalem cafes, Cshopping and entertainment district, and a popular meeting pubs, restaurants, ceramic shops, art galleries and even a nighttime point at the bottom of the Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall. open-air market where nargilahs (hookahs or water pipes) can be One of the first three neighborhoods built outside of the Old haggled for and smoked. NachalatYa'akov, the first synagogue built City walls, the first lots in Nachalat Shiva were bought in 1869 by outside of the Old City, still echoes with prayer.Yoel Solomon Street, seven residents of old Jerusalem's then overcrowded Jewish Quarter. the neighborhood's main thoroughfare, is a good bet for reasonably (In Hebrew, Nachalat Shiva the means 'Estate of the Seven' which priced gifts and not so run-of-the-mill souvenirs. refers to the original seven strips of land that abutted Jaffa Street.) Along the cobbled lanes, largely off limits to cars, jazz, live music The purchase was an audacious one at the time, when venturing and all-night eateries draw revelers until the wee hours seven days a beyond the security of the Old City walls, by even a few hundred week. In summer, its courtyards often play host to local musicians in meters, was considered a perilous and foolhardy undertaking. free outdoor performances. THE BEST OF TEL AVIV AND JAFFA

THE TEL AVIV PORT Known as north Tel Aviv's 'entertainment central,' the port—or namal, as locals refer to it in Hebrew—is indeed a sight to see in Israel's biggest city. An undulating boardwalk, whose unusual shape was inspired by local sand dunes, extends for more than a mile along one of the city's most beautiful stretches of Mediterranean waterfront.A breakwater, small marina and the mouth of theYarkon River provide the rest of the backdrop for this preferred destination for joggers, cyclists, families, the perpetually cool—indeed, for anyone looking for a good time.

Established in l936,Tel Aviv port was built during the tumultuous days of the British Mandate over Palestine. In 1965, its shipping traffic moved to the spanking new port built twenty miles south at Ashdod, and Tel Aviv's harbor buildings fell into disrepair. Its latter-day transformation into Tel Aviv's hot-hotter-hottest neighborhood began in the 1990s. Eighteen beachfront restaurants, cafes and bars offer cuisines ranging from seafood and signature Israeli fare to fine ice cream and chocolate. Lazing on couches or at a cafe table, sipping a cool drink under the palm-frond umbrellas that dot the boardwalk is the activity of choice for many, particularly on hot, summer evenings.Time your visit properly, and you'll even witness a stunning sunset. Night owls prowl area discotheques, while contemporary Israeli jazz can be heard into the early morning hours.The port's cobbled streets are the frequent host of outdoor festivals and events, including the weekly antiquity, collectors' and art fair held every Saturday. Shoppers can get their hands on clothing, jewelry, shoes and accessories by Israeli and international labels. Spas are on hand for those who need pampering, and for the more adventurous-minded.Tel Aviv Port boasts a diving school with courses in open-water diving and Photo Credit: Israelimages / Moshe Shai operation—the unique Nalaga'at Center. Opened in December 2007, the center includes the Nalaga'at Theatre of the Deaf-Blind Acting Ensemble, where 11 deaf-blind actors from all over Israel perform three nights a week in a play entitled "Not By Bread Alone," under the direction of Artistic Director AdinaTal. The center also features Blackout Restaurant, where diners eat in total darkness and are served by blind waiters, and Cafe Capish, where all the servers are deaf. Set on a hill, Jaffa is characterized by narrow alleyways, stone steps, art workshops and galleries, cafes, restaurants, and the handsome liana Goor Museum (formerly a Turkish inn). Jaffa is framed by high fortress walls pierced by lookouts to the sparkling sea. The Flea Market has been spiffed up, a couple of small cafes have opened, and the area is now lively on summer evenings until midnight. excursions to the Mediterranean and Red Seas. Tel Aviv Port is at the western end of the expansive JAFFA FLEA MARKET HaYarkon Park,Tel Aviv's answer to Central Park. With Miles away—both geographically and price-wise!—from Tel Aviv's ritzy ample parking, it is easily accessible from seafront hotels shopping along is the treasure trove that is Jaffa's Flea Market. and the rest of downtown on foot, by taxi or car.A wireless Oh, what finds can be had in an afternoon here! zone, it is laptop and business traveler-friendly. The market, located within easy walking distance of Jaffa's landmark clock tower, is demarcated by Amiad, Olei Zion,Yehuda Margoza and Beit Eshel THE ANCIENT AND NEW JAFFA PORTS streets. Open year-round, its narrow alleys offer bargain hunters anything and By contrast, ancient Jaffa, the port from which Jonah pushed everything from new fashions, secondhand clothing and furniture to vintage off just south of Tel Aviv today, is one of the oldest port vinyl records, antiques, toys, even scrap metal. One store is devoted purely cities in the world. It served the Phoenicians, Romans, to lamps, others to antique sideboards and ancient carpets.Those wanting to Richard the Lion-Heart, Napoleon, the Turks, and then pick up gifts and a souvenir or two, will find stylish mother-of-pearl chess sets, served as export central for the famous Jaffa oranges during ornate water pipes (hookahs), mounds of Judaica and unique artifacts from the British Mandate in Israel. Israel's early days. In order to maximize the potential of this unique historic Known in Hebrew as shuk ha'pishpishim, the market has been around fishing port as the cultural, commercial, and leisure-time since the 19th century.Then, the Ottoman Empire reigned supreme and the beacon it could be, a team of renowned architects - Eitan port of Jaffa was a hive of commerce and the chief point of disembarkation Eden, Eyal Ziv and Reli Parto - were awarded the project of for pilgrims visiting the Holy Land.A thousand years ago, Crusader knights completely overhauling the . The revitalized Jaffa inhabited the area today occupied by the market although all trace of their port will now connect the famous "tayelet," the meandering presence was efficiently and unceremoniously effaced by their Mameluke Tel Aviv seashore promenade to the north, with the city of conquerors. Bat-Yam in the south. Additionally, the new Tel Aviv Light Today, shoppers can explore to their hearts' content and then sit down Rail will link the original railroad station which is for a cup of tea or a delicious lunch in one of the market's bohemian-chic being beautifully restored, with greater Tel Aviv. outdoor cafes. During the summer months, the market stays open to the wee The master plan provides for industry, entertainment, hours and is thronged with shoppers and partygoers. residences, docking, storage and fisheries.The century-old Note to bargain huntersrTo be assured of a bargain, flea market shoppers warehouses, complete with their unique moldings, metal should keep the "half rule" in mind at all times. Never be the first to name nails and tin ceilings will all be preserved. Part of one of the your price. When the merchant sets his, your bargaining baseline should be old port buildings is set to be transformed into a stylish about 40% of what is initially quoted. Don't feel guilty about asking for a boutique hotel. Award-winning Ramy Gill's architectural significantly lower price! This exercise is an integral part of the Middle Eastern firm has developed a material that looks like antique glass to shopping experience and will serve you well in future travels and even at preserve the old structures and provide transparency. home. If you choose not to play the game, chances are that the price you'll One of the port's cultural destinations is already in pay won't break the bank anyway. ISRAEL BLOOMS AS A WORLD LEADER IN ECO-TOURISM W transportation towork,includingcar to promotealternativmeansf witnessing oneofthworld'smos t and othercitiesinEuropewillsoob and municipalitiesbeingencourage carpeted hillsinth e northernGalilee, ecologically mindedtraveler.Fro m Israel isanaturadestinationfor the launched. modeled aftersimilaprogramsinPari In TelAviv,abicyclerentaprogram pooling, publictransportationandwalking. practices, withprivateemployers been atrendtowar"greecommuting" Israel isanature lover'sdream. deserto exploringthewildflower- impressive birdmigrationsoverth e photovoltaic facilityintheAravaValley. include athermosolarenergysitand and, evenfoodanwinedestination projects. Theseinnovativundertakings state-of-the-art renewableenergy model oflivinginIsrael)havelaunched prominence asneco-tourismleader. many travelersmanotbeawarofit (the originaleco-friendly,agricultura With itswealtofnaturallandscapes , Throughout Israel,therehasalso In southerIsrael,agroupofkibbutzim worldwide asnimportant historical, culturaldestination hile Israelisrenowned On the Mediterranean shores north of Tel Aviv, the cities of Haifa (with its majestic Bahai Gardens, above) and ancient Akko (with its harbor still bustling, below) offer amazing historical and cultural attractions for travelers of all stripes.