Fun places to explore with kids-Israel

We spent April-June in Tel Aviv, Israel a few years back and loved it! My husband was working with the New Israeli Opera and had a few concerts with the Jerusalem Symphony.   We had an apartment about two blocks from this beach, which we did not mind at all.  We were delighted by many, many things in Israel.  

My stroller obsession really started in Israel. This is the stroller we brought, which we realized was a bit of a joke. In Tel Aviv we were walking 1-3 hours a day. Our son did not seem comfortable for sleep, and this stroller was very much made shorter people than my husband and me. A few months earlier, my husband was working in Detroit where my college friend who taught me to fire breath lived. She introduced me to phil&teds by giving me a stroller demo in her living room. I emailed her to find out more as I needed a better stroller. I started doing my research on-line and found an e3 on ebay. I made a bid, assuming I would not win, but the next morning I woke up as the owner of a new phil&teds!! Sadly since we were in Israel (and then traveling to England and Mexico), I could not have it shipped to me. I would have to wait  few months to use my new toy. In the mean time, we upgraded to a great Spanish made stroller in Israel. We liked it for the full recline and the fat wheels.  Below, we are outside the walls of Jerusalem with a stroller we could comfortably push for hours a day while waiting for our phil&teds.   
A few Tel Aviv favorites:  Carmel Market!!

This place is amazing, and as you can tell, we were very excited by the gummy candy.  The produce was spectacular, so fresh and flavorful.  On the weekends, there frequently would be craft and artisan  fairs at the market. We bought my son a little pop up toy there that is still a favorite almost 6 years later.       

An easy Tel Aviv favorite, the gorgeous BEACH!! 

 

And although it was about an hour walk from our apartment, if you follow the beach you can walk to Jaffa.  Jaffa feels much older and we loved the contrast to modern Tel Aviv.  I would LOVE an hour to walk along that beach right now.   

 

In Jaffa, we were wandering around some alleys with lots of artist galleries and came upon this hanging tree.  This is one of my most favorite photos of my little boy.  

Below, yet another Tel Aviv favorite, walking on Dizengoff.  

We had heard that Dizengoff used to be the main thoroughfare in Tel Aviv, before the shopping malls.  There is still excellent window shopping, like the crazy dress below.    

 

And, it is very worth it to go out of your way to visit this juice bar called Tamara.  It is where Ben Gurion boulevard crosses Dizengoff.  One of my favorites was to get the watermelon and fresh mint smoothie, which just tastes like summer to me.  This place was always busy and for good reason.  

We spent a few days in Jerusalem, which was an amazing maze and extremely beautiful city.  It is impressive that tourists have been coming here for thousands of years.  

We also spent a day at the Dead Sea.  We learned they do not allow little kids in the water as if they swallow too much, it can be fatal.  And I learned that if I cover myself in mud, my child may be a bit alarmed by muddy mommy.   

On a bit of a tangent, we have a running little joke with this Skipper shirt.  I got the shirt from my brother years ago.  Since it photographs so well, I started taking it on trips to see how far Skipper could go.  Once I started nursing, Brian took over on Skipper duty as the effects of nursing were a bit intense on Skipper.  He wore Skipper to a rehearsal when a photographer was taking candid photos for the program.  Much to our delight, Skipper made it into the Israeli opera program.  We have Skipper photos from around the world, and it makes me giggle.