Tel Aviv Travel Notes #1

What could have been just a 4 - 5 hour journey to Tel Aviv was actually a 13 hours journey from Chennai for me as I had to fly via Frankfurt. My other option was to fly via Amman or Istanbul which meant more lay overs and was actually going to take longer.

I was expecting extra security screening at Frankfurt and that's exactly what was in store. Our plane took off from a very sterile area and we were frisked thoroughly several times before they let us anywhere near the plane.

Do you want a stamp in your passport?
I was posed this question at the immigration counter. I didn't understand the question and the officer didn't give any explanation. But, later learnt that, some Arab countries refuse entry to anyone who had visited Israel and hence the question.


Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv is the only commercial airport in Israel and looked very modern.


However the immigration and the customs clearance process were rather slow and at times chaotic.


A Beach view from my Hotel room.. I took a walk across to beach and found it full of families playing and resting.


It was sunny and pleasant at the beach..


Memorial for war heroes. Found lot of memorials like this one jotted along the beach. A grim reminder to constant state of war in this country. Some people call Israel as a country under constant seige.


Have never seen this game before. Several people were playing this game in pairs with a wooden bat bigger than the Table Tennis bat. They were using some kind of a hard ball which made quite a sound as it went back and forth. Do you know what game is this?

A graffiti near the beach with Indian connection.. Don't know what it says though..

A vegetable / fruit market near the hotel solved my dinner problem..


Beautiful sunset - A view from my room


One more.. Can you spot the TV screen reflection on the top right?

More photos in flickr