Seeking Tel Aviv Information

I was in Tel Aviv in 2013 and other places in Israel.

I found the Diaspora Museum in Tel Aviv interesting and worth going to. It doesn't have a lot of artifacts, but the museum tells the diaspora story well through multi-media, models, story boards and through other means. It's on the campus of the University of Tel Aviv, which is 5 to 7 miles outside the city center. I took a city bus to the Diaspora Museum. It was the only museum in Tel Aviv I saw.

On the bus I met a professor of Yiddish Studies at the university. He spoke 5 or 6 languages, but English wasn't one of them. We communicated in Spanish.

I liked seeing Carmel Market, an open-air market near the city center. I bought grapes for probably $5, and the vendor gave me enough to feed a family for probably three days. I took me 10 days to eat them all.

Finally, I swam in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. As you see from my name, I'm in Chicago, where Lake Michigan is freezing for 11 months a year. The Mediterranean was like bath water. What a difference!

Just walking around central Tel Aviv is worth it. The city is very cosmopolitan. I loved it.

In Jerusalem, I saw three excellent museums.

As a follow-up: It looks like the Diaspora Museum has changed its name and focus. Now it is the Museum of the Jewish People. I am sure it is excellent.

I have researched the Museum of the Jewish People. I have also researched the Tel Aviv Art Museum. Do not remember the correct and full name of the latter. Looks like Tel Aviv has a nice art museum.

As you can see from my profile, I live in Austin Texas which is very hot 6 months out of the year. We have no ocean anywhere close so I will love being on beaches for a few days.

I hope to get to Ramat Gan and Carmel Market as well.

Tel Aviv has the best string of beaches I’ve been to, probably because I’m not a beach person. Jerusalem Beach is next to Ge’ula Beach that’s furthest south. I suggest walking north along the coast until you’ve reached the end.
I too recommend going to the Carmel Market. Are you going to Jerusalem? On day two take a direct 30-minute train. Jerusalem is prettier than Tel Aviv.

Persons have suggested that I stay in Jerusalem rather than Tel Aviv But I live in Central Texas and do not get to beaches except when I travel. I want to spend time on the beaches. I travel alone so it is not always easy to get in the water because where am I going to leave my stuff. My hotel is right on the beach and I am hoping that I can leave everything in my room but for my key card and splash in the water. Did I read that some beaches have lockers?

I am going to be taking a cruise. From Tel Aviv, I will be going to Haifa. Jerusalem is more or less the first port on my cruise. Our first port is Ashdod and from there I will spend several hours in Jerusalem before sailing on through the Suez Canal.

Thank you for your feedback.

Here's an idea on beaches:

Most beaches are roughly the same. I go there to swim a bit and read under an umbrella on the beach. The only beach that broke the mold is in Ein Gedi, Israel, on the Dead Sea.

Because the Dead Sea is made up of one-third of salt, it supports swimmers. People bob on the surface of the Dead Sea with practically no threat of drowning. It's the most interesting beach experience I have ever had. I saw a man who was probably 5 ft. 10 inches and 250 pounds floating on the Dead Sea. Over on the other shore is Jordan. And you don't need sun tan lotion because of the physics and biology at sea level. I'm fair skinned, like a Swede in spring, yet I didn't use sun tan lotion on the Dead Sea. I had no sunburn from my visit.

Ein Gedi was roughly an hour bus ride south of Jerusalem. I took the Egged bus (https://www.egged.co.il/HomePage.aspx) from Jerusalem to Ein Gedi. Ein Ged is surrounded by the desert and mountains. It's packed with religious history. Supposedly David and Jesus each wandered in the desert nearby. The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in that area. I saw the caves from my bus.

I stayed at the Ein Gedi Resort: https://ngedi.co.il/en/. It's a former kibbutz. A bus takes guests from the resort down to the beach something like 10x a day. Guests don't have to pay at the beach.

Also nearby are the Massada site (https://en.parks.org.il/reserve-park/masada-national-park/), easily the most fascinating antiquity I've seen in 17 trips abroad; it features Roman, Jewish and early Christian history. Also, the Ein Gedi National Park is nearby.

On lockers in Tel Aviv, I didn't see any lockers.

One last bit: You can eat on the Tel Aviv beaches. There are a couple great eateries.

Craig,

I would love to go to the Dead Sea but i do not know how to fit it in this visit. I do have two full days in Tel Aviv and maybe I can take an excursion. It sounds wonderful and spiritual.

Sometimes when traveling, you can not do everything that you want to do and must be forced to make choices.

If you have any interest in architecture Tel Aviv is a UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "White City"

Here's a good description

https://www.touristisrael.com/the-white-city-tel-aviv/344/

or this one

https://www.timeout.com/israel/things-to-do/the-white-city

And various tours are available

https://bauhaus-center.com/tel-aviv-white-city-tours/

Laurie Ann

I love architecture. I think that I realized Tel Aviv had great architecture but did not realize how great.

i have a master's degree in Urban Planning and my program was in the School of Architecture. Sadly, I have no design skills.

This cruise is not until October 2024 but I am finding out, I am going to some incredible and magical places.

I sail from Haifa Israel to Istanbul Turkey. I will be spending pre-cruise days in Tel Aviv and a few post cruise in Istanbul.

Jaffa port area is very interesting and beautiful.