The beginning of Allemby (a walk from the beach)
Tel Aviv is one of the grand walking cities in the world. One of the forgotten streets in the city is the lower part of Allemby. In the past, Allemby, one of the first commercial streets, was the fashion and entertainment center. As Tel Aviv evolved and malls started sprouting up, retail and fashion moved away. Allemby is a perfect example of the changing winds of fashion in the city.
Lower Allemby: a short walk
As the fashionable stores moved to locations in Ramat Aviv (just north of the old Tel Aviv) and the suburbs (Hertzelia, Ramat Gan) and into large malls like the Dizengoff Center, the commercial tone of Allemby shifted downwards. But notice the architecture of the 1920's. Tel Aviv has some of the best examples of original Bauhaus buildings. Allemby has a mix of eastern and western architecture. On the southern part of the street is the border of the old Yemanite neighborhood. Look for the old arab style buildings which are going renovation. On the northern part of the street you will see the begining of the western building influence. Tel Aviv municipality decided to push for renovation of the old buildings. This is an effort long in the making and you will start seeing wonderful results. On the southern part of Allemby is the border of the old Yemanite neighborhood (Kerem Ha-Teymanin = Yemenite Orchard) and on the northern part is the western styled building. As Tel Aviv was being built world building styles took hold. In Tel Aviv you will find a grand muslim building next to a Bauhaus design. If you like architecture, take a tour of the Bauhaus buildings, the city has some of the finest examples completely original and mostly restored!
So, this is not the place to go shopping for fashion, but it's still an interesting walk. On one end of lower Allemby is the Opera House. This is a new building with upscale apartments at the top and a small court with stores at the bottom. During the day the cafes and stores here are busy with beach goers. At the other end of lower Allemby is the Carmel market (shuk or open air market) and on Tuesdays and Fridays, a wonderful arts and crafts open air market on Nachalat Benyamin.
The section between the two is dotted with cafes and restaurants. During the day the area is also busy with camera store buyers. The camera sellers have not moved and actually offer a great selection of used film cameras. If you want to look for an old lens or a good deal on an old Nikon body, this is the place to come. There are a few cafes which mostly attract the local crowd. On the corner of Bialik and Allemby there are two cafes, Bialik cafe (the one away from Allemby) is a busy local hang out. Besides coffee and cold drinks it offers a nice local food menu. The daily specials are what to look for. Once you approach the large intersection of Allemby, Ha'melech George (King George), Shenkin, Ha-Karmel and Nachalat Benyamin, you will see the markets.
Nachalat Binyamin crafts market
On Ha-Karmel is the old vegetable market. Down this crowded street is Tel Aviv's main open air market (this market deserves it's own series of blog articles). On the adjacent street, Nachalat Binyamin is the crafts market of Tuesday and Friday. This market also deserves it's own blog article, it's definitely a great place to come see and buy Israeli crafts in one central place.
This post is a mere introduction to this section of Tel Aviv. Posts on each of the main attractions will follow. If you are interested in any of these, please post a comment below, we need feedback on what interests readers ;8~)'
If you want to see a few more Tel Aviv locations, take a look at Tel Aviv Guide
Lower Allemby: a short walkAs the fashionable stores moved to locations in Ramat Aviv (just north of the old Tel Aviv) and the suburbs (Hertzelia, Ramat Gan) and into large malls like the Dizengoff Center, the commercial tone of Allemby shifted downwards. But notice the architecture of the 1920's. Tel Aviv has some of the best examples of original Bauhaus buildings. Allemby has a mix of eastern and western architecture. On the southern part of the street is the border of the old Yemanite neighborhood. Look for the old arab style buildings which are going renovation. On the northern part of the street you will see the begining of the western building influence. Tel Aviv municipality decided to push for renovation of the old buildings. This is an effort long in the making and you will start seeing wonderful results. On the southern part of Allemby is the border of the old Yemanite neighborhood (Kerem Ha-Teymanin = Yemenite Orchard) and on the northern part is the western styled building. As Tel Aviv was being built world building styles took hold. In Tel Aviv you will find a grand muslim building next to a Bauhaus design. If you like architecture, take a tour of the Bauhaus buildings, the city has some of the finest examples completely original and mostly restored!
So, this is not the place to go shopping for fashion, but it's still an interesting walk. On one end of lower Allemby is the Opera House. This is a new building with upscale apartments at the top and a small court with stores at the bottom. During the day the cafes and stores here are busy with beach goers. At the other end of lower Allemby is the Carmel market (shuk or open air market) and on Tuesdays and Fridays, a wonderful arts and crafts open air market on Nachalat Benyamin.
The section between the two is dotted with cafes and restaurants. During the day the area is also busy with camera store buyers. The camera sellers have not moved and actually offer a great selection of used film cameras. If you want to look for an old lens or a good deal on an old Nikon body, this is the place to come. There are a few cafes which mostly attract the local crowd. On the corner of Bialik and Allemby there are two cafes, Bialik cafe (the one away from Allemby) is a busy local hang out. Besides coffee and cold drinks it offers a nice local food menu. The daily specials are what to look for. Once you approach the large intersection of Allemby, Ha'melech George (King George), Shenkin, Ha-Karmel and Nachalat Benyamin, you will see the markets.
Nachalat Binyamin crafts marketOn Ha-Karmel is the old vegetable market. Down this crowded street is Tel Aviv's main open air market (this market deserves it's own series of blog articles). On the adjacent street, Nachalat Binyamin is the crafts market of Tuesday and Friday. This market also deserves it's own blog article, it's definitely a great place to come see and buy Israeli crafts in one central place.
This post is a mere introduction to this section of Tel Aviv. Posts on each of the main attractions will follow. If you are interested in any of these, please post a comment below, we need feedback on what interests readers ;8~)'
If you want to see a few more Tel Aviv locations, take a look at Tel Aviv Guide
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