Ramat Gan - Our Little Corner Of Israel

We've decided to go local for this post.  True, Ramat Gan is not nearly as exciting as Jerusalem, Haifa or nearby Tel Aviv.  There's no beach, no world renowned cultural or historic sites, no glamorous destinations.  But, hey, it's where we spend most of our time these days.  So, we felt it was important to write a blog post about it.

Ramat Gan (which means "Garden Heights") was established in 1921 as a small communal farming town just to the east of Tel Aviv.  In its early days, the town's economy was based on the production of wheat, barley and watermelons to serve Tel Aviv's growing population.  In the 1940s, Ramat Gan became a battleground in the country's "language war" (which in turn reflected a larger conflict over the nature of Jewish national identity), as a Yiddish printing press in the town was blown up by Hebrew language extremists.  (Hebrew won, and you'd be hard-pressed to find any Yiddish these days in Ramat Gan, although there is plenty of Russian.)  Also in the 1940s, after a massacre of Jews in Baghdad, many Iraqi Jews emigrated to Israel, and they established a large community in Ramat Gan.  Over the years, the population of the town grew rapidly, and the economy shifted from agriculture to commerce and industry.  Today, the population is approaching 150,000, with one of the highest population densities in Israel, about 10,000 people per square kilometer.

But Ramat Gan has also been dubbed one of Israel's greenest cities.  The municipality requires 25% of the land within the city to be public parklands.  One of our favorite of Ramat Gan's many parks is Park David (also known as Marom Naveh, which signifies the neighborhood where the park is located).  There's a large playground, plenty of trees and grass, a pretty fountain, and a very pleasant outdoor commercial area with pizza, ice cream, and a friendly cafe.  It's only a short walk from our apartment and we spend a lot of time there.  On occasion, we meet people we know from the neighborhood, like when Talia recently ran into Amit from her kindergarten class and they shared some snacks together.  Here are some pictures:

     
Another great park within walking distance of our apartment is Park Leumi, an enormous urban park with a lake; a huge covered playground; a small electric train; a vast lawn (with plenty of shaded benches for reading a kindle and enjoying some bamba, Israel's leading snack food); and Israel's biggest zoo.      

The zoo in Park Leumi is particularly impressive and includes a drive-through "safari."  We were amazed at how close you can get to the animals.  (We were even more amazed by how close some Israelis try to get to the animals to feed them snacks, which is of course against the rules.)  The kids loved the zoo and we all can't wait to go back. 

Jeremy keeps Talia's egg warm while she hatches in the zoo play area

In addition to Ramat Gan's numerous recreational spots, the city also boasts a variety of good eats.  One of my personal favorites is a hole-in-the-wall sabich stand that's been around since 1961.  The place has a very devoted following - one of our Israeli friends from the neighborhood claims that "it's the best sabich in Israel."  It's not all that surprising that Ramat Gan has such good sabich - it's a traditional food among Iraqi Jews and the Israeli version started right here in Ramat Gan when Iraqi Jews settled in the city in the middle of the 20th century.  All of our visitors have given sabich rave reviews, inspiring such quotes as "It's so creamy and delicious!", "Can we get more sabich tomorrow?", "Where can we find this at home?", and "I ate it until I cried, then I ate it again!"  (Ok, I made up that last one.)  I recently read an online article commenting that sabich is quickly becoming the alternative to felafel as Israel's leading fast food.  Apparently, it's also made its way to New York City.  I like it with plenty of amba, a spicy orange condiment made from pickled mango, and an Israeli grapefruit soda.  

There's also a great place nearby for turkey and lamb shawarma - it's so much better than the shawarma back home and the pickled condiments alone are worth the 15-minute walk from our apartment.  I'm addicted and Talia loves it!  (Jeremy not so much.)

He uses an electric carver and a hand-held pan to collect the meat

That's Talia pointing, to remind me to get some pickles
(note the amba, the orange condiment on the lower right)

Eden and I are also big fans of Eclair, a small bustling cafe with outdoor seating, excellent espresso drinks, and delicious, flaky bourekas.    

Yummy assortment of sweet and savory bourekas

There's also a homey brick oven bakery that makes fantastic sambusas (the Middle Eastern version of a samosa), our Friday challahs, and other baked goods.  The place apparently attracts some pretty famous visitors, like Charlie Chaplin and Bart Simpson.

And for a change of pace, there's "Tommy," where they cook thinly sliced meat and onions on a griddle and roll them up with avocado, spicy peppers, and a kind of Middle Eastern salsa into a large house-made pita "tortilla."  It's nothing like real Mexican food, but the meat is high quality and the end result is quite tasty.  They also make excellent hamburgers and french fries, and there's always a lively atmosphere.    

Ramat Gan is a pretty big city - indeed, according to the population statistics, it's larger than any city in Connecticut, the state where I grew up.  It's a thriving commercial center, with plenty of skyscrapers (including Israel's tallest), high-tech industries, and, unfortunately, traffic congestion.  But at times it feels like a small place, or at least a collection of small neighborhoods.  There are major arteries, but there are also many quiet sidestreets attractively lined with plants and trees.  There are pretty pedestrian pathways connecting one area with another.  There are parks and pockets of greenery everywhere.   And the city is filled with small, independent "mom and pop" storefronts.  

Ramat Gan is a very livable city that offers a host of benefits to its residents - proximity to Tel Aviv (with lower rents and easier parking), attractive leafy streets, a myriad of well-maintained parks, excellent schools, delicious sabich, and even a handful of decent museums.  And when you wander the streets, you never know what you're going to find.  During my parents' recent visit, my mother and I went for a stroll in our neighborhood and we ran into a horse, with attached cart, waiting for its owner in a vacant lot.  (I'd peg him as a favorite in the next Ramat Gan Derby.)  Ok, so maybe Ramat Gan isn't always as modern as it seems, but good luck finding a parking space for that thing in Tel Aviv!