My trip to Israel wouldn’t have been the same if I didn’t experience one of the world’s renown cities for both nightlife and financial prowess. While Jerusalem may be the cultural & political center of Israel, Tel Aviv is the blood that feeds the veins of the country. TeI Aviv is nowhere near as large as New York but it does resemble the great American city similar to how every phone manufacturer copies an Iphone.
The only way that I can try to describe the city is a bit how Toronto resembles New York, if Toronto is little New York, Tel Aviv is the New York of the Middle East with a little spice added to it (let’s make that a lot of spice.. and some falafel). On the Mediterranean coast of the country, this is where the companies are bread into the finest Filet Mignon that they can be.
It’s where every Israeli comes to live the Israeli dream if there is one
Not everyone can cook a good Filet Mignon and most startup companies fail within the first two years. It’s very impressive that a country the size of New Jersey with roughly 7 million people has more companies listed on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange after United States and Canada. The twist in Tel Aviv is the gorgeous beaches that lines the coast, the history that is just a suburb away, and even the laid back attitude of the entire city.
My hotel in Tel Aviv
When the Once In A Lifetime 2.0 Crew was introducing us to many of the startup companies scheduled to meet us everyone was in jeans and a t-shirt, no suit or ties. We arrived at a company called The Time, which I can only describe as a venture capital company that invests in many of these start ups, everyone in the building was in jeans. I started asking some questions and it turns out that if you go to a job interview in Tel Aviv in a suit you would be frowned upon like the gift you gave away as another gift during Christmas. Shame on you.
This obviously isn’t always the case but who wouldn’t love to go to an interview in jeans?
Most buildings are new and there is a Hollywood vibe that roams through the city. You can find the playboys in their Dolce & Gabana tang tops and jeans that are 3 sizes to small and even the ladies with the Coach purses so big you could fit Oprah’s weight in. I love you Oprah!
Some Graffiti in Tel Aviv
You can’t find parking if your life depended on it and just like New York, Tel Aviv never runs on empty. You can find anything that your heart desires at any time of the day or even during the midnight shift.
One thing that I loved is the scooters all around the city. Imagine seeing the playboys with their sunglasses larger than the bottles of hair gel they use riding around in scooters, I love it. Ever since I decided to go on a scooter road trip in Colombia I deem any cities with scooters cool. It’s definitely a unique city that I think everyone should get to know.
There are plenty of opportunities including the one I am going to take by living there! The only difference is I wear tight shirts not tang tops and jeans that are only 1 size to small, now where is that bottle of hair gel?
