Tel Aviv Rooftop

After 4 years of faffing around at chaotic rehearsals and playing sets of wildly fluctuating quality at private parties, Mid Life Crisis (you can call us MLC) is finally playing a real gig, in a real bar in Tel Aviv. The seminal event will take place on Tuesday, August 12 at 22.00 at the Bloom Bar, 1 Rehov Hamelekh George. B there or B square. This of course means that we actually need to learn the songs; something never quite achieved. I've taken holiday from now on to be devoted (partly) to memorising the lyrics, many of which I wrote myself! It's so embarrassing having a music stand with the lyrics next to me when we play. I mean would the Stones do that ??! We've also set 8 hours of rehearsals but you'd still have to be a naive optimist to believe that we're going to get it down pat. We also don't have any sort of stage presence to talk of (although this could conceivably part of our charm??). As for interaction with the audience -does anyone know some goo...

Tel Aviv is “half Iran, half California; it’s a synagogue meets a sushi bar,” the writer and lifelong Tel Aviv resident Etgar Keret tells travel writer Henry Alford in an insightful and amusing article on a first-time visit to TA. In our particular stretch of the woods, Manhattan would be a more accurate reference point. On the one hand, work has at long last started on restoring a beautiful old building (one of twins)over the street that used to serve as a labour disputes court. We've been waiting for this for about a decade in the knowledge that the newly restored building would spruce up the street and create a lovely refurbished neighbour for the rooftop. Who knows, the municipality might even decide to repave the road and fix the pavements. A corner of no 6 , taken from the rooftop a few months ago. On the other, the towers are on the march. Our joy at no 6 being renovated is tempered by the threat of plans for a massive tower which would stand about 100 metres behind it, dwa...

This week, a small but determined group of local citizens succeeded (at least temporarily) in blocking plans to construct a 30 storey tower in our neighbourhood. In the wall of planned towers surrounding Neve Tzedek in the illustration above (click to enlarge) , the tower in question - Niva Tower - would be the first on the top right hand side. In a rare flurry of activity, "action committees" of Neve Tzedek and Florentin joined forces to submit a writ of opposition to the plan which was signed by numerous local residents. They also made a convincing presentation to the local planning committee which decided to recommend to the regional planning committee not to proceed with the plans until the municipality submits a master plan for the whole area. street in Neve Tzedek If the regional committeee agrees (we'll know on July 21) the municipality, instead of authorising individual towers - thereby carrying out a creeping Manhattanization of this low -rise area - will at lea...

"eych omrim, Iran o Iraq?" ("whatsitcalled, Iran or Iraq?") was a joke circulating around the time of the 1991 first Gulf War. It poked fun at the local tembelim (dummies) who were finding it difficult to distinguish between these previously vague entities who - especially Iraq - were suddenly new enemies. No-one 's asking that question anymore. It's Iran, Iran, Iran, and, as someone mentioned on the radio this week, we'll all getting pretty fed up with hearing the word. This week there was sudden buzz of heightened anticipation that Israel was preparing to attack Iranian nuclear facilities by the end of the year! Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of America's Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently paid us a visit but, according to Israeli officials, was not reassured by what he heard here. This is apparently why he complained on Wednesday that an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities would be a high-risk move that could destabilize the Middle East. As...