Tales from The Big Orange

I write this as we laze on Yafo (Jaffa) beach. The children are in the water under the watchful eye of my husband while we sit in the shade of a sun umbrella purchased several years ago but unused until today.

We set off at 8am and arrived in Tel Aviv before 10am. The view of the sea from the coastal road is always soothing and we arrived at the beachfront in good spirits.

The promenade was teeming with people and the beach sprouted umbrellas. We were so fascinated that by the time we started trying to park we were up near Yafo. We realised that somehow neither of us had ever been to Yafo and decided that now was the time.

In the entrance to the port there was a parking space just our size and when we lent over the sea wall there was a sparsely populated stretch of beach.

A refreshing breeze cooled us as we strolled into the port. In some ways it is better renovated than Acco with some rather luxurious looking residences in the old stones houses, the Moorish arches facing the sea. But it is mainly a working port for the fishermen and rather run down.

On one side of the narrow entrance there are old stone buildings with decorative balconies and arches. Facing is a government office of ugly, brutish concrete.

The port itself is full of fishermen and older people sitting on numerous park benches jammed against the buildings. In one corner there are also some functional tables.

Along the length of the wharf is a warehouse sided with corrugated metal that has been eaten into holes by rust. My children play hide and seek with the kittens living within this rusty labyrinth.

It looks boarded up and unused, an eyesore.

The water in the port is incredibly green, phosphorescent and we wonder if it is algae or some chemical reaction. The children spy some minnows attacking a floating slice of bread.

By the time we have taken a few photos my son is complaining of hunger and we return to the car. Some spicy sausage revives us all then we hang towels over the car windows so we can change modestly.

Now we are on the beach. The day has become hotter and more people have discovered the beach but there is still a pleasant breeze and the beach is still uncrowded. Supremely important is the water: wavy but not too violent, warm enough to caress but not bath-water. And I think I shall go for another dip.

ES