Hey Steemians,
I‘d like to share a few experiences and impressions of Israel with you, starting with Tel Aviv-Jaffa!
Last year I traveled through Israel with two friends of mine. Because of cheap flight prices (more or less ...) we decided to book our flights in february. Our airplane started in Brussels and we were super excited to discover a little piece of the middle eastern culture. It was our first journey into a country which is that much embossed by religion, deep faith and different denominations. 5 hours after starting we arrived in Tel Aviv (Ben Gurion Airport). Tel Aviv is located directly to the Mediterranean Sea, accordingly this city welcomes you with palmtrees, beaches and warm temperatures (a gift for everyone who knows -10°C temperatures in the winter season in Germany!).
Tel Aviv and its lifestyle is absolutely west european orientated, a lot of young people and students live there. In Israel Tel Aviv is well known for its excessive night life and the casual and relaxed atmosphere. During our stay we checked out the beach and walked down the really pretty promenade. We met other tourists, jogger, kids playing in the sand, girls relaxing after hard shopping tours and just people having a drink and some conversations.
And then you just turn around and get a look to the modern city with its skyscrapers (ok, proportianate to NYC they are really small scyscrapers :P), its shops, malls, markets, clubs and restaurants. I really liked the combination of architecture because it changes from old, classy to modern and new builded door-to-door. I never saw such a wild mix of different styles before.
So after hanging out at the beach and exploring the inner city we set off to carmel market. This is a traditionell market where you can buy food, spices, clothes and jewelery, decoration etc. It‘s always very busy and full and you should take care of your bags! Therefore it was an amazing experience and it felt like the taste of Israel with millions of different fruits (many of them I never had seen before), fresh made hummus and falafel, oriental spices and bling-bling earrings and bracelets.
Another recommendation goes to Old Jaffa, the ‚second part‘ of Tel Aviv. It‘s the traditional quarter/part of the city and completely contrary to the modern Tel Aviv. On average the habitants of Old Jaffa are older and come up to the cliché of Israelis. Most of them are very believing and the atmosphere turned from ‚vibrant and up-to-date‘ (in Tel Aviv) to ‚calm and contemplative‘ (in Old Jaffa, but of course this was only my own impression). Also in Jaffa we found a big market with a lot of stuff and bling-bling. Never forget to trade before buying, the tourist prices are much higher than the prices for locals. Finally I have to say I really enjoyed our visit in Old Jaffa. You got a great view about the coast and the cultural contrast to the young people of Tel Aviv is really fascinating!
At first this has to be enough information about Tel Aviv-Jaffa and I hope I can enthuse you a little bit for this beautiful country! The next article‘s going to be about our time in Jerusalem and our visit at the Dead Sea and the Negev desert.
Have a great day, Steemians! :-)