After a week in Jerusalem we looked forward to spending some time in Tel Aviv. Before entering Tel Aviv we could see something over the horizon very different from anything else we had seen prior during the trip, a modern city. Our first stop of the day was a visit to the Palmach Museum where we were guided by a current soldier serving in the IDF through a series of environments that included videos about the members of Palmach. We learned just how important the roles of the Palmach were to the birth of the state of Israel while walking through the most unique museum tour I'm sure most of us have not experienced. Upon entering downtown we went to Kings of Israel square, a once peaceful square turned the setting for a large scale political rally that ended in the tragic Assassination of the former Prime Minister of Israel Yitzhak Rabin (1995). After leaving the square, it was lunch time! We got to eat shawarma and falafel while roaming the vast market place. After we went to Independence Hall, the place where on May 14th 1948, the deceleration of Israel's independence was signed. We had the privilege to sit in the very room where Ben Gurion announced that there was now a Jewish state. Did you know Israel's independence was declared on a Persian rug? Finally to end the day we went to the beach. Although it was too cold to swim, we still had a blast running on the sand, playing frisbee and dancing with odd scooter drivers.
The sights and sounds of "sin city" were a nice change of pace from the normal tour.After the day in Tel Aviv we would like to say Viva Tel Aviv! A perfect end to an amazing week.
By: Sammy and Arthur
You guys rocked it! Thanks for sharing in 'almost' realtime.
ReplyDeleteSafe journey home and can't wait to hear more details about your amazing adventure.