HaKirya in Tel Aviv

4 June 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  9 minutes

Sarona Compound © Doraharon/cc-by-sa-3.0

Sarona Compound © Doraharon/cc-by-sa-3.0

HaKirya, or The Kirya (lit.: The Campus), is an area in central Tel Aviv, consisting of an urban military base north of Kaplan Street, and a civilian area south of it. HaKirya contains the Tel Aviv District‘s government center and the major Israel Defense Forces (IDF) base Camp Rabin, named for Yitzhak Rabin. It was one of the first IDF bases and has served as the IDF’s headquarters since its founding in 1948. Being located in a dense urban environment, the base serves mainly command, administrative, communications, and support functions.   read more…

75th anniversary of the State of Israel

10 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  9 minutes

David_Ben-Gurion declaring independence in Tel Aviv on 14 May 1948 beneath a large portrait of Theodor Herzl, founder of modern Zionism © Rudi Weissenstein - Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs

David Ben-Gurion declaring independence in Tel Aviv on 14 May 1948 beneath a large portrait of Theodor Herzl, founder of modern Zionism © Rudi Weissenstein – Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs

In 1948 the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel sparked the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, which resulted in the 1948 Palestinian exodus (Nakba) from the land that the State of Israel came to control and subsequently led to waves of Jewish immigration from other parts of the Middle East. The latter half of the 20th century saw a series of further conflicts between Israel and its neighbouring Arab nations, most notably the Six-day War, which resulted in further expulsions and subsequent waves of inward migration, and the occupation and settlements of the West Bank, Golan Heights and East Jerusalem.   read more…

Hadar HaCarmel in Haifa

2 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  5 minutes

Central Hadar with Herzl Street © Orrling/cc-by-sa-3.0

Central Hadar with Herzl Street © Orrling/cc-by-sa-3.0

Hadar HaCarmel (lit. “Splendor of the Carmel” or simply known as the neighbourhood of Hadar) is a district of Haifa, Israel. Located on the northern slope of Mount Carmel between the upper and lower city overlooking the Port of Haifa and Haifa Bay, it was once the commercial center of Haifa.   read more…

Petah Tikva in Israel

3 March 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  10 minutes

Haim Ozer street © Юкатан/cc-by-sa-3.0

Haim Ozer street © Юкатан/cc-by-sa-3.0

Petah Tikva (lit.: ‘Opening of Hope’), also known as Em HaMoshavot (lit.: ‘Mother of the Moshavot, is a city in the Central District of Israel, 10.6 km (6.6 mi) east of Tel Aviv. It was founded in 1878, mainly by Haredi Jews of the Old Yishuv, and became a permanent settlement in 1883 with the financial help of Baron Edmond de Rothschild. In 2021, the city had a population of 252,270. Its population density is approximately 6,277 inhabitants per square kilometre (16,260/sq mi). Its jurisdiction covers 35,868 dunams (~35.9 km² or 15 sq mi). Petah Tikva is part of the Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area.   read more…

Dizengoff Street in Tel Aviv

2 February 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  5 minutes

Bauhaus Center on Dizengoff Street © MichaGross/cc-by-sa-4.0

Bauhaus Center on Dizengoff Street © MichaGross/cc-by-sa-4.0

Dizengoff Street (Hebrew: Rehov Dizengoff) is a major street in central Tel Aviv, named after Tel Aviv’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff.   read more…

The European Union: European Neighbourhood Policy

8 January 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Editorial, European Union Reading Time:  11 minutes

Flag_of_Europe The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) is a foreign relations instrument of the European Union (EU) which seeks to tie those countries to the east and south of the European territory of the EU to the Union. These countries, primarily developing countries, include some who seek to one day become either a member state of the European Union, or more closely integrated with the European Union. The ENP does not apply to neighbours of the EU’s outermost regions, specifically France‘s territories in South America, but only to those countries close to EU member states’ territories in mainland Europe.   read more…

Magdala in Israel, home of Mary Magdalene

24 December 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  8 minutes

© AVRAMGR/cc-by-sa-4.0

© AVRAMGR/cc-by-sa-4.0

Magdala was an ancient Jewish city on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Tiberias. In the Babylonian Talmud it is known as Magdala Nunayya, and which some historical geographers think may refer to Tarichaea, literally the place of processing fish. It is believed to be the birthplace of Mary Magdalene. Until the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, a small Palestinian Arab village, al-Majdal, stood at the site of ancient Magdala, while nowadays the modern Israeli municipality of Migdal extends to the area.   read more…

Florentin in Tel Aviv

9 November 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Harvey Sapir/cc-by-2.5

© Harvey Sapir/cc-by-2.5

Florentin is a neighborhood in the southern part of Tel Aviv, Israel, named for Solomon Florentin, a Greek Jew who purchased the land in the late 1920s. Development of the area was spurred by its proximity to the Jaffa–Jerusalem railway.   read more…

The Crown Iris

1 October 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Cruise Ships, Yacht of the Month Reading Time:  10 minutes

Crown Iris © Sotiris Boutsaxis/cc-by-sa-4.0

Crown Iris © Sotiris Boutsaxis/cc-by-sa-4.0

MS Crown Iris is a cruise ship owned by Mano Maritime. She was originally ordered by Birka Line as MS Birka Queen from the Wärtsilä Marine Turku Shipyard in Finland, but completed by Kvaerner Masa-Yards as MS Royal Majesty for Majesty Cruise Line. In 1997 she was sold to Norwegian Cruise Line as the MS Norwegian Majesty and lengthened by 33.76 m (110 ft 9 in) at the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Bremerhaven, Germany. She was sold to Louis Cruises as the MS Louis Majesty from 2008 to 2012 when she was chartered to Thomson Cruises as the MS Thomson Majesty before being returned to Louis Cruises/Celestyal Cruises, as the Majesty. In 2018 the ship sold to >Mano Maritime.   read more…

Return to TopReturn to Top