Seaside Revelation

On September 24, 2007 David Kaufman of the TIME magazine, portrayed Tel-Aviv's profile under the title: Night and Day, Tel-Aviv weds local charm to worldly confidence. "Awash in foreign investment, the city's culinary, cultural and clubbing scenes are all reaching world-class status - only without the high-end prices", states Kaufman who believes that Tel-Aviv is quietly emerging as the Mediterranean's most unlikely capital of cool. Needless to say, we completely agree with him. Visiting the city's oldest quarter, Neve Tzedek, which was founded more than a century ago you'll find a maze of Ottoman-era villas and artists' studios as well as the city's first true boutique hotel, chic yet casual shops and cutting-edge restaurants.

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the White City takes its name from Tel-Aviv's vast trove of Bauhaus architecture, whose functional, boxy aesthetic arrived in the Middle East along with Jewish refugees from 1930s Europe. Today, meticulously renovated Bauhaus gems line major thoroughfares such as posh Rothschild Boulevard and quaint Ahad Ha'am Street. Along with its cultural renaissance, Tel-Aviv is going through a major urban upgrade and the building frenzy is only just beginning as the city prepares for its 2009 centennial. Next up: new luxury residential towers by the likes of Philippe Starck, Richard Meier and Donald Trump. Tel-Aviv today, with its haute hotels and chic cuisine is adopting a cool vibe that is no mere passing fashion. It has come a long way from the city's traditional falafel in pita, but the nicest thing about Tel-Aviv is, that if you are a falafel in pita guy, you can still easily find it and have it for only $2.99.