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Jaffa, Israel

Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel

A small monument in the Jaffa area

Jaffa, or Yafo, is a city on the Mediterranean Sea just south of Tel Aviv, in Israel. It's a fairly old city, and as a tourist, there are a couple things to see in the area.

There is a park area with several archaeological sites, a square, visitors center, religious buildings, several shops and restaurants, and a market.

Jaffa is also located fairly close to the Tel Aviv Beach - there is a nice promenade along the water. There are a couple restaurants along the promenade, and if it's Friday, be sure to check out the Drum Beach.

The Old Area

Narrow, old-looking streets in Jaffa

The old part of the city has some old religious buildings (mosques and churches), and a couple small monuments. Walking through the old buildings is also neat - the streets are very narrow, and it's a bit like a maze! The old area has turned into a touristy "arts & crafts" area - most of the stores sell things like clay/ceramic/glass art pieces.

Jaffa Market Area

The market area

The market area is a little bit on the dirty side (by American standards). The area itself isn't the cleanest, and many of the vendors are selling pornography (either in magazine or DVD form). Nobody was really selling anything of value, but if you had the time to look at what people had, you could probably find anything you want here.

Estimated Visiting Time

We were able to spend 2-3 hours walking around the area. There were parts of the city that were neat to explore. Part of the old section of the city is fairly touristy, and felt completely comfortable.