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Photo: udi Steinwell, CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons
Sarona was a Templer colony founded in the late 19th century. The Templers were removed in World War II and the area continued to be used for British and later Israeli government and military offices. Today it is a shopping and entertainment district filled with restored German Templer architecture. It is known for its picturesque paths and buildings, upscale restaurants, and luxurious food market.
Sarona is a neighborhood of Tel Aviv, Israel which started as a German Templer colony in Ottoman Palestine in 1871. It was one of the earliest modern villages established by Europeans in Ottoman Palestine. In July 1941, the British Mandate authorities deported 188 residents of Sarona, who were considered ardent Nazi sympathisers. By the 2000s, the area had fallen into disrepair and was a haven for drug users. However, since 2003, the area has undergone massive renovation, which involved moving and relocating historical buildings before their restoration. The area is now a popular shopping district, as well as home to museums, cultural artifacts centering on its history, and IDF complexes.
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cinematheque and movie archive with 5 cinema halls and space for watching movies from its archives. The Cinematheque screens Israeli and foreign films, and private events. Film festivals include held at the cinematheque include TLVFest, "Doc Aviv" Documentary Film Festival, "Moments of French Cinema", an Australian Film Festival and more. Its lobby hosts photo exhibitions by Israeli artists. The current building was designed by Israeli Architect Salo Hershman, and was opened in 1989.
Head to the Azrieli Center to see Tel Aviv from above. This complex with its three geometrical skyscrapers (with circle, square, and triangle footprints) is a graphical icon of the city. The bottom 3 floors contain a full-size and very popular shopping mall. But we've come here in order to climb up to the 49th floor of the circular tower, from which, they say, you can see on a good day as far as to Haifa. There’s also a posh restaurant up there, 2C Tel Aviv, which naturally charges extra for the location, it is circular kind of like the Space Needle in Seattle, but it doesn't spin, (Kosher; Tel. 03-6081990; about ₪200 per person). To get to the lookout, go to the top floor in the center of the shopping mall, and from there you can enter the circular tower where there is an elevator to the top.
Hosts opera, ballet, theatre, and concerts.
The city's main art gallery focuses on modern and contemporary work. Changing exhibitions are housed here, in the Rubinstein Pavilion and in the Amir Building. (Enter via the Amir as the main frontage and entrance are being rebuilt.) The children's basement is great fun and not just for kids. Within the same complex is the Golda Meir Center of Performing Arts, hosting opera, ballet, and theatre (see "Do"). The city library is also here.
A seven-story office building. With oscillating wave-like layers, this is a more modern take on Tel Aviv's traditional white Bauhaus architecture.
A museum run by the daughters of Joseph Bau, an artist who saved many lives during the Holocaust and is featured in the movie "Schindler's List". The daughters give an original and uplifting presentation describing their parents' lives in the context of the Holocaust.