More on the Tel Aviv Promenade

The Tel Aviv Promenade (In Hebrew - the Tayelet) stretches along the Mediterranean shore of Tel Aviv and it is one of the most attractive destinations in the city of Tel Aviv.   We were fortunate to stay just 2-1/2 blocks from this amazing attraction.  Along the Tel Aviv Promenade are restaurants, cafés and bars, and the Promenade (Tayelet) itself luckily combines the beautiful seascape of the Mediterranean, enjoyable breezes, sunshine and sunsets. The Tel Aviv Promenade was begun with Lahat Promenade, built in the 1970s and was named after Tel Aviv’s former Mayor, Shlomo Lahat- between the Dan Hotel and the Opera Tower.  

In recent years particularly the past five, extensive renovation and development has been done at the Tel Aviv Promenade, and today it stretches along 14 charming kilometers, from Tel Baruch to the north to "The Slope Park” ("Park HaMidron”) in Jaffa to the south.  

Jaffa in the distance viewed over the beginning of the "Rockery"

For most of the way, there is a double lane bike path, a very wide walking promenade mostly decorative cement but also some boardwalk, several scenic areas to rest on benches or stones with free WIFI access, and of course the incredibly beautiful Mediterranean Sea.

Besides the Gordon Pool (another post) on the
Promenade, every kilometre or so there was a lending library of
books for beach goers mostly in Hebrew but a few
selections in other languages - take a book, leave a book!

One of the wide sections of the walkway

Another view from the Promenade toward the Port end -
the very clear and amazing colour of the Mediterranean Sea

Elevated boardwalk for fishermen and sightseers

As seen from a high overlook, looking toward the Port

Opposite direction, looking back toward the marina 

There were multiple larger than life size posters on vinyl
displayed along the beach sea wall -- exerciser
on the street -- I really liked this one

Another poster on vinyl - view of the Mediterranean at sunrise/sunset

Abstract vinyl poster of figure painting, looking into reflections?
 There were also many enlarged black/white photos of past
Tel Aviv sea scenes set into the wall - taken before the beach was improved
and well prior to the construction of the Promenade - they didn't
photograph well for me to post these but they were certainly
interesting to see from an unfamiliar tourist's point of view

Sunset from "our" beach called Jerusalem Beach -
our AirBnB at 33 Yona Hanavi was just two blocks away

Another quiet sunset - we walked the path each evening and exercised on it in the mornings.
Needless to say, it was hard to force ourselves away from this area to other tourist
attractions in the city!

Tel Aviv's Carmel Market

Carmel Market -- Tel Aviv, Israel

The market is bordered by Allenby Street and Magen David Square and the market is principally located along Carmel Street and apparently has expanded considerably over time.  It is open daily except Saturday (Shabbat) and sells mostly food but also a variety of items from beautifully made crafts to clothing and “junk”.  A shopper's paradise and a less-than-enthusiastic shopper's hell.  

In the early 1920s the nearby neighborhood called Kerem HaTeimanim, literally 'the vineyard of the Yemenites’, started its own marketplace which was called “HaKerem”, or "the vineyard".

Heading down the aisle shoulder to shoulder
with hordes of locals and tourists

Arthur Rupin, a Zionist leader began to turn the small neighborhood into a bustling commercial center. Noticing its potential and impact, the Tel Aviv municipality, with Meir Dizengoff at its helm, encouraged its growth and permanence further by changing its name officially to Shuk HaCarmel, or the Carmel Market, renaming the road HaCarmel Street and allowing for permanent buildings and renovations within the alloted space.  There are tiny stores selling pet supplies, coffee, prepared foods, even a small beer bar, and many others.  These shops are behind the market stalls that somehow fold up (somewhere) on Friday night in advance of the Saturday closing. 

During Israel’s austerity period of the 1950s, the Carmel Shuk rose to great prominence as the best and most direct source of local, fresh produce. Efforts by the municipality to move the market to a more central location in the city failed in the 1960s and 1970s with locals preferring the market’s intimate and authentic neighborhood charm. And as terrorist attacks tore through the heart of public Israeli life in the 1990s and early 2000s, the open market place suffered a downturn in visitors. But in recent years, as the interest in local produce, outdoor experiential shopping, and blue-and-white purchases increased, as did the number of visitors and vendors to the Shuk.  The walkway is covered.  There are other markets in Tel Aviv (the Port, and near Jaffa) but this one is sprawling and centrally located in the middle of downtown.

Flower vendor booth

All in all this was not my fav destination here in Tel Aviv.  The market is always very crowded and hot (except for one tiny air conditioned coffee shop), boasts many competing smells (and those that won the competition were not the most pleasant), and almost every sale was preceded by a vigorous bargaining session - sometimes not the nicest interaction.  Fortunately, Danny did most of the market visits so I was there only a few times, mostly buying a fig or two (and arguing that I did not want a box full, just one or two - the vendor was very unhappy about that).  Not the most relaxing experience, but somehow, the place continued to draw us in - literally the whole city goes there and certainly the prices were lower than in stores, and there was no large supermarket to be found in any case.

Interesting fact - there are NO decent bananas to be had in Tel Aviv - we saw a few but the selection was pretty awful and they were either bright green or already black, quite sad really.  So we have to forego our banana a day habit for the time being.  And after the literally tons of strawberries for sale daily in Berlin, none of those here either (we missed them a LOT).

Juiceman

Spice Vendor

National Underwear?

More on Vans!

I decided I was enjoying "car watching" so much to do another entry on the variety of vans which can be found on the streets of Berlin.  Small vans - pick up trucks not so many - abound in countries other than the US.  I have photographed a few here which are mostly used for work, and also as passenger vehicles.  I have just taken pictures of the compact ones rather than the standard size - mini vans of the US seem huge here in comparison and there are many more varieties of both mini and standard size panel trucks working on the streets daily.  Thinking about it now as we leave Germany for Israel, I should have begun this retrospective in England!  

Black Fiat "Multpla" and Blue Renault Kangoo

Citroen Berlingo Panel Van - very plentiful here in Berlin

Same vehicle as above, with windows

Mercedes masquerading as Honda Fit - same size, used as
compact passenger and delivery vehicle - there are dozens of
these on the streets of Berlin, mostly compact passenger vehicles 
but used as vans for businesses as well.

Citroen Work Vehicle - many of these of all ages on the streets

Small Suzuki - newer model than the one on the bottom of this page

VW Wagon available in panel van models as well - there are many models of VW
vans on the street here unavailable in the US market.

Teeny tiny Suzuki - very cute, very small, very useful

Suzuki again 

Dacia Wagon

Last but not least - a SMART!  

Tel Aviv, Israel - Gordon Pool on the Promenade

GORDON POOL 

Located on the Promenade between the Hilton Hotel on the hill - then the two land bike path and huge walking street - AND the Mediterranean

This landmark was on our running route.  OK, OK by popular demand, since most of you know we landed (literally) in Tel Aviv last Tuesday, I am foregoing my last two Berlin entries (later later) and now posting on Tel Aviv - we are leaving tomorrow and it's been quite a week.  Of course we have had no rainy days here (best days for blogging).  The weather is hot but not excessively, and humid.  We have a washer/dryer and a drying rack but clothes take a long time to dry even in the sun.  Tel Aviv a hard place for an outsider to get used to - and then becomes equally difficult to leave!

For those residents and visitors who enjoy the salt water bathing but prefer doing laps in a pool, Tel Aviv's Gordon swimming pool offers up the best of both worlds. Gordon swimming pool, which dates to 1956 and is something of an institution in the White City, underwent a complete overhaul in 2009.

28JUN14 0930 am

Located on Tel Aviv’s renovated and beautiful promenade, the pool is surrounded by tall palm trees and overlooks the yachts and waves of the Mediterranean Sea. The facility includes an Olympic-size swimming pool (50m), a children’s pool and a toddlers’ pool but, instead of typical chlorinated water, the three pools are filled with salty ground water drawn from a depth of 150 meters.  It is used by many lap swimmers and lanes are divided by speed and swimmer capability.

27JUN14 2200 - almost empty - 30 minutes later
it was dry with the lines resting on the tiles

We walked by here last night and the pool was EMPTY.  Danny couldn't believe it would be full by morning.  I went on line and learned that every evening, after closing hours, the pools are emptied and then refilled with fresh, clean water. As a result, the water is particularly cold, even in the summer: You can often see shivering visitors wading their way in to adjust to the temperature. Regulars will tell you that the best way to keep warm is to just plunge in and start swimming.

Plaque outside the pool in 4 languages
giving a bit of the history.

The Landmark TV Tower

THE TV TOWER IS A LANDMARK OF THE CITY OF BERLIN

The Berlin TV tower/s amazing appearance and its construction are an outstanding engineering achievement.  For tourists like us who want to walk EVERYWHERE around the city, it's central location at Alexanderplatz, a bahnhof transportation hub, makes it easy to stay focussed i.e. not get lost!   The enthusiasm for technology and space are noticeable in the architecture; in cross-section, the TV tower resembles a space rocket.  And it is REALLY TALL.

The original design of the slender, upward striving tower comes from the East German architect Hermann Henselmann.  The then president of the Academy of Architecture, Gerhard Kosel, developed ideas for the design - and suggested the colours of the sphere.  Only one method was applicable for the construction of the tower: the so-called climbing construction. By which the internal steel frame grew a little faster than the outer concrete shaft that was built around the steel frame. The tower shaft tapers from a 16 m diameter to 9 m and is subdivided by partial stories into five sections.  

Did we climb it?  No - there were always long lines plus we were always on our way to the north, south, east or west of the tower - but I certainly appreciated the focus it lent to my continual touring of the city.  

Far Away View walking by the 1300 meter Mauer 

Getting closer - on an overcast day - no escape from the 

ever present, ever moving construction cranes.

View approaching Alexanderplatz - from the
former central city government building.

View from a city park on one of our treks

As seen through very dirty windows of the bahnhof while waiting for a train.  

View from across the street

View of tower from downtown (photo by DW)

Pipes for (you name it) all external, all over downtown Berlin, over-under and around...

WATER PIPES - SWAMP THING?

On doing some research on the canals and rivers flowing through Berlin, I found more information on the above ground water pipes than on the multiple canals and rivers which flow through the city adding beauty, water bird havens, and the ability of people to boat and live on the canals - at least in the summer.  The city is built on swamp/marsh therefore groundwater is just bellow the surface. Every time construction takes place the water must to be pumped out and (more important) if a wall begins to seep, the construction site must be flooded fast so as to build pressure back up so that no surrounding building might be damaged.  Bottom line - there are many different water pipes in central Berlin, various colours, and above the ground.  They go over the street, dodge buildings, and generally serve to confuse the public.  

You would think that draining a swamp was a one-time deal. You drain the swamp, it’s not a swamp anymore, you build a city on top of your new not-swamp.   Not the case!  Instead, the groundwater stays just below the surface, where it needs to be pumped out of every new construction site and readers, trust me, there are MANY of those. In Berlin this job is done by above-ground pipes in Easter egg colors that carry the water to the nearest canal. Apparently a lot of people take these pipes – especially the ones at Potsdamer Platz – for an amazing and creative art installation.  Not the case - they are essential for the safety of people and buildings alike and they do lend the city a certain look!  Last week, on one of our many walks, we noticed the pastel pipes dumping water into a canal and it looked as though another set (and colour) of pipe was sucking water out as well.

A tourist at rest under a pipe.

Curly Q pipes backed by my fav fish motif - Koi!  Where is this water going?  And why is the pipe twisted in the middle?  Someone must know, but not me!

Visit to the Pergamon Museum on Museum Island, Berlin Germany June 12, 2014 or thereabouts

Detail of very old carpet which has been restored.

With my late entries, the days and weeks are slipping by and merging together it would seem.  We have one more day and we are off on more adventures.  Here in Berlin, we spend much of our time visiting different neighbourhoods or Districts as they are called here in Berlin .  We live in Neukolln and are surrounded by other districts, quite large, reachable by walking through neighbourhoods for about 90 minutes in one direction or another - a great way to become familiar with a new city.  

However we also got museum passes - not big museum goers, I didn't want to get back home and have to say "No" if/when asked did I see this or that exhibit, go to this or that museum.  The best deal on a pass was one for 25 museums for Euro25 - and it's good for a year.  Another one was a lower price for the museums located on "Museum Island" only but had to be used in 3 days which would make me totally crazy.  With this one, we can go late in the day and any time on a weekend and as many times as we want, since half the visit is walking to the museum (wandering through these fascinating east and west German   Districts) - and walking or taking a bus or the Ubahn back to Neukolln.  

Here are some of the highlights from the Pergamon Museum.  

The streets here are in a whirlwind state of construction with cranes everywhere and
buildings going up and up as fast as human beings can build them.  There is still much open
space and I'm sure if I return in a year or two, the streets will look very different again.

Lovely sculpture in the garden (more like a lawn of low bushes) outside
the entrances to several of the museums.

This scene can be "seen" as what is basically the "front lawn" of the
museums on "Museum Island" in central Berlin.

Amazing tile work bordering the entrance area to the Ishtar Gate.  Multiple
lions and other animals surround the viewer.

The one and only Ishtar Gate!

Sitting on the marble steps
overlooking the sculptured
frieze just below the Pergamon Altar

Small frieze of a cherub, beautifully sculpted 

A small portion of the frieze (top) which can be seen in the two photos above - it is
huge (as in circles the room) and is damaged in many locations -
with figures inset and spaces left where they have been broken over the ages.
The bottom piece is actually a photograph, not carvings.

Brass bird.

Selfie with very old, partially
restored carpets.

Examples of very old carpets on
exhibit at the Pergamon - they
do not photograph well.

The museum has a program with staff and interns performing antique carpet restoration.  If you look closely at the exhibits, they are all missing pieces and patched carefully on to backing.