Where: Tel Aviv, Israel
When: September 13, 2012
With: Dave
Tel Aviv was an interesting city. For the most part, it was surprisingly modern with the feeling you were in Miami rather than the Middle East. Along the ocean, large condos rose high above the skyline and cars buzzed around people in their designer sunglasses and shorts. As we turned to explore the inner part of the city, the "White City" as it's called, we expected more of the same, just smaller and whiter.
The White City is famed for its unique architecture, called Bauhaus, a style that was banned in Nazi Germany, and therefore, came to Tel Aviv with the Jews escaping the Holocaust. The neighborhoods built to house these immigrants took on this style, with signature white-washed walls and wrought iron balconies, thus giving the area its name.
We were mildly surprised to find that while the buildings didn't lack in character, the area actually seemed fairly rundown. We weren't sure if we'd even found the right place. We learned later that the area took a hit when wealthy locals left the neighborhood, and things fell into disrepair. However, there's recently been a massive restoration in place, evident by some of the faded exteriors hiding thriving businesses within them. The store below is actually a designer clothing boutique.
We continued walking along the main road through downtown Tel Aviv, Rothschild Boulevard. All around gave a view of the best examples of the Bauhaus architecture.
Our favorite spot on the walk was a square that was supposed to reflect the ultimate in serenity and isolation for this neighborhood. Dave went to sit for a moment to reflect...
...what you don't see in that picture is that the "square" is more like a median, and that no serenity can be achieved as cars whiz by all around you.
When: September 13, 2012
With: Dave
Tel Aviv was an interesting city. For the most part, it was surprisingly modern with the feeling you were in Miami rather than the Middle East. Along the ocean, large condos rose high above the skyline and cars buzzed around people in their designer sunglasses and shorts. As we turned to explore the inner part of the city, the "White City" as it's called, we expected more of the same, just smaller and whiter.
The White City is famed for its unique architecture, called Bauhaus, a style that was banned in Nazi Germany, and therefore, came to Tel Aviv with the Jews escaping the Holocaust. The neighborhoods built to house these immigrants took on this style, with signature white-washed walls and wrought iron balconies, thus giving the area its name.
We were mildly surprised to find that while the buildings didn't lack in character, the area actually seemed fairly rundown. We weren't sure if we'd even found the right place. We learned later that the area took a hit when wealthy locals left the neighborhood, and things fell into disrepair. However, there's recently been a massive restoration in place, evident by some of the faded exteriors hiding thriving businesses within them. The store below is actually a designer clothing boutique.
Our favorite spot on the walk was a square that was supposed to reflect the ultimate in serenity and isolation for this neighborhood. Dave went to sit for a moment to reflect...
...what you don't see in that picture is that the "square" is more like a median, and that no serenity can be achieved as cars whiz by all around you.
We had to hightail it back to the hotel at this point, so we didn't really get to explore as much as we would have liked. I think we'd need another, more in-depth visit to the White City to truly appreciate everything we were seeing.
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