Sarona
A comfortable island of tranquility in the middle of a hectic cosmopolitan city: a real story or a smart developers’ move?
“Only when Jewish women will learn the work of milking cows will Jews become real farmers”.
This wisdom was pronounced by Arthur Ruppin, a prominent Zionist of the last century and one of the founders of Tel Aviv. The idea was inspired by a comparative analysis of the methods of managing Jewish farms and Templer colonies at the beginning of the 20th century.
For referential use: Templers are followers of one of the sectarian branches of the Lutheran church who founded colonies in Palestine in the second half of the 19th century.
One of the former colonies is Sarona. The colony emerged as a land plot of 60 hectares and had a population of 125 people, 57 of which died in the early years from malaria. But persistent Germans did not give up, drained swamps and planted eucalyptus trees. Thanks to the progressive methods of agriculture and cattle breeding of the Europeans, by the middle of the 20th century, the colony occupied an area comparable to the territory of Tel Aviv of the time that had population of 170,000 people. Many goods were exported. For example, oranges from Jaffa became famous worldwide.
Only God knows to which extent Sarona would have developed if World War II had never happened. When it began, the colonies were reduced to settlements protected by the British troops. By the end of Wold War II, the British transported colonists to Cyprus, where a military base was established on spots which had become vacant “by happenstance”.
Obviously, when independence of Israel was proclaimed, Sarona land plots were nationalized to house the headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces (Tzahal). The cost of land in the city center was skyrocketing. Part of the former colony was sold to became private-owned. People remembered the same bitter experience of the demolished Herzliya Gymnasium, so part of historical buildings was preserved. This is how Sarona Gardens (Ganei Sarona) emerged. Today a showpiece land plot with cozy little houses are rapidly surrounded with more and more skyscrapers springing up like mushrooms after the rain.
It is worth mentioning that the government of Israel paid the compensation for nationalized property in 1962.
By the way, unlike any other Ministry which moved to Jerusalem, Israel’s Ministry of Defense remained here, in Tel Aviv. You can clearly see their headquarters and well-known tower from Sarona.
This wisdom was pronounced by Arthur Ruppin, a prominent Zionist of the last century and one of the founders of Tel Aviv. The idea was inspired by a comparative analysis of the methods of managing Jewish farms and Templer colonies at the beginning of the 20th century.
For referential use: Templers are followers of one of the sectarian branches of the Lutheran church who founded colonies in Palestine in the second half of the 19th century.
One of the former colonies is Sarona. The colony emerged as a land plot of 60 hectares and had a population of 125 people, 57 of which died in the early years from malaria. But persistent Germans did not give up, drained swamps and planted eucalyptus trees. Thanks to the progressive methods of agriculture and cattle breeding of the Europeans, by the middle of the 20th century, the colony occupied an area comparable to the territory of Tel Aviv of the time that had population of 170,000 people. Many goods were exported. For example, oranges from Jaffa became famous worldwide.
Only God knows to which extent Sarona would have developed if World War II had never happened. When it began, the colonies were reduced to settlements protected by the British troops. By the end of Wold War II, the British transported colonists to Cyprus, where a military base was established on spots which had become vacant “by happenstance”.
Obviously, when independence of Israel was proclaimed, Sarona land plots were nationalized to house the headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces (Tzahal). The cost of land in the city center was skyrocketing. Part of the former colony was sold to became private-owned. People remembered the same bitter experience of the demolished Herzliya Gymnasium, so part of historical buildings was preserved. This is how Sarona Gardens (Ganei Sarona) emerged. Today a showpiece land plot with cozy little houses are rapidly surrounded with more and more skyscrapers springing up like mushrooms after the rain.
It is worth mentioning that the government of Israel paid the compensation for nationalized property in 1962.
By the way, unlike any other Ministry which moved to Jerusalem, Israel’s Ministry of Defense remained here, in Tel Aviv. You can clearly see their headquarters and well-known tower from Sarona.
Task 13.1
Visit Sarona Gardens. To be more precise, go to its large indoor food market. Compare the assortment with what is offered in similar locations in Moscow, New York, Lisbon or other places. Find a Mortal Kombat slot machine and a nice bar next to it at the market. The name of the gorgeous barmaid will help you earn 2 points.
2 points
Task 13.2
Can you find a secret tunnel, which was built by Templers and which today connects two drinking establishments? One serves whiskey, the other’s favorite beverage is beer. In case you are interested, an expert of the Visitor’s Center will be glad to help you for a modest fee. Please be kind and mind your Ps and Qs with this nice lady. To get 5 points, take a photo of your team in the tunnel.
5 points
Task 13.3
You can also rent Kegelbahn play set in the same Visitor’s Center. You will earn 5 points for the video of your team playing this traditional German game using a special wood lane against the background of Sarona skyscrapers.
5 points
Task 13.4
Will you find the base of the radio tower which was used by Mossad headquartered in Tel Aviv to communicate with the other cells abroad? If you take your photo in front of the tower, you will get 1 point.
1 point
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