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Tel Aviv - Jaffa
Tel Aviv is Israel's first modern city, and certainly
its most secular. On the Sabbath - known as Shabbat - while
Orthodox Jews are at prayer, Tel Aviv's young fashion victims
are out and about. Clubs here don't even begin to get going
much before one in the morning, and then they're packed. It's
something of a biggest is best culture in Tel Aviv - the central
bus station in Tel Aviv is reputedly the biggest bus station
in the entire world, and the city is also home to a huge 6
floor shopping mall - truly a place to 'shop til you drop'.
It's a modern city, sprung up from sand dunes in the last
century and Israel's centre for business, culture and nightlife.
With flash hotels, good weather and pristine beaches it is
an all year round tourist destination. It is home to 40% of
Israel's 5 million population, in and around the city and
suburbs. It is the northern most part of the greater metropolis
of Tel Aviv-Jaffa as the two cities were combined in the 1950's,
and represents the alternative to ancient Jaffa, full of modern
architecture and modern history, colour, and city bustle.
In Tel Aviv the attractions are entirely modern, you can even
visit the Wax Museum with models of Michael Jackson
amongst others!
Jaffa is where Christian civilisation began, the site
of God's "great flood", and where Noah's son Japheth
settled, naming it "Jaffa", Hebrew for beautiful.
It is a biblical city, one of the oldest in the world, and
an early and important trading point for the Mediterranean.
The architecture of Old Jaffa was reconstructed in the 1960's,
and it is the home to bustling fish restaurants provided for
by local fishermen, artists quarters and galleries, a stunning
flea market, tourism and nightlife and a composite community
with many immigrants from North Africa and Central Europe.
If you're interested in the local history, you'd be well advised
to visit the Jaffa Museum of Antiquities, with artefacts
of recent digs.
If you're interested in a holiday with a combination of
sight seeing, museums and attractions coupled with sandy beaches,
Tel Aviv-Jaffa is a great place to touch down.
Jerusalem
Jerusalem has been fought over for the last three thousand
years - Egyptians, Persians, Romans, Crusaders, Marmelukes,
Turks, British, Jordanians and now Israelis have all laid
claim to the Golden City, also known as The Eternal
City and the City of David. As you would expect
of one of the world's oldest and most turbulent cities, it
is a wealth of every changing history, battles and many reigning
conquerors. Whatever religious sides of Jerusalem you wish
to explore there is plenty to see and do, with ancient market
places, shrines, mosques, churches and ruins. It is a city
in which the rhythm of the city is dictated by prayer and
ritual.
Jerusalem is divided into four parts; the new city in the
west, West Jerusalem in the south west and south, East Jerusalem
and at its heart, the Old City, a collection of bazaar
and sacred shrines. There are four distinct quarters in the
Old City - Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Armenian. The Old
City is heavily occupied by the Jewish Quarter, which hosts
the Temple Mount and the Weeping Wall, a Mecca for Judaism.
The Old City streets in the Arab quarter can sometimes be
unnerving for women after dark, so you should always be a
little wary. The Dome of the Rock, The City of David excavations
and the Mount of Olives are all classic places to visit in
the old city.
The New City was a creation of the 20th century, rebuilding
stinking and rotting old Jerusalem when the Jews returned
to Zion. Now it's a relatively luxurious and bold modern city.
Whilst not as happening as Tel-Aviv, there's plenty of cultural
life to explore here.
Jerusalem is now the highly disputed capital of Israel. The
eastern part of the city was captured from Jordan in 1967.
Hebron
In the hills of Judea, a little south from Bethlehem,
lies Hebron, a place of rich history and progressive farming
community, famed for its peaches. Hebron has long been a centre
of fierce opposition to the occupation. The troubles mean
that few travellers come here. But if you do, you'll find
the locals surprisingly friendly, given the tension in the
air. There is nowhere for travellers to stay in Hebron, and
before visiting you should always check on the current political
climate. The Intafada is the name given to the uprising that
began in 1987 when some Palestinians were believed to have
been deliberately killed by a Jewish motorist. Towns like
Hebron are still affected by strikes, curfews, military roadblocks,
and even riots. It's best not to talk politics if you get
invited into a local discussion or home.
The Hebron Casbah is a great place to meander and pick
up artisan crafts like olivewood sculpture and colourful blown
glass. It boasts the Tomb of Joseph, and the Oak of Abraham
where Abraham was visited by three angels telling him of Isaac's
birth.
Between Hebron and the biblical town of Bethlehem lives the
Kfar Hetzion Kibbutzi, and agricultural-religious community
established after the original Kibbutz was wiped out during
the 1948 War of Independence, and stands as a symbol of Jewish
courage.
Al Arish
Like many Arab towns, Al Arish comes to life at night. In
the coolness of the evening the streets fill with Egyptians
trading, eating and just going places. Apart from shopping,
playing chess and smoking, sheeshas are the only real nightlife
pursuits. Although women are visible in the crowded streets,
you'll never see any in the cafes.
By Susi O'Neill
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