Azrieli center, Tel-Aviv

The first place to visit in Tel-Aviv is Azrieli Center, the complex of skyscrapers with a big shopping mall in the center. The complex consists of three buildings -  circular tower, triangular tower and square tower.

The tallest tower is circular tower, which is 187 meters in height, with 49 floors, which makes this building the tallest in Tel-Aviv and second tallest in Israel. The most important - the last floor of circular tower is the indoor observation deck, that gives the opportunity to observe Tel-Aviv from above. 

Do not forget to take pictures of the posters with amazing view of the city and the buildings!

The most exciting part, besides the observatory, is the shopping mall and cafes. The shopping mall in Azrieli mall is one of the largest in Israel, with brands like Forever 21, Zara, H&M, Mango, and others.

Continuing through safari park

In order to get to the safari part of Ramat Gan safari park, you should get your car, because no one is allowed to enter the safari park otherwise. The cars are entering the park one by one, waiting for their turn, since it is not allowed all the cars enter the territory at once, in order not to disturb the animals. 

One should know, that when entering the territory of the safari, it is recommended to keep the windows closed and not leave the car throughout the trip, since the animals are walking all over the territory and they are very curious. 

 Except for lions, all the other animals are walking around the park without the fence surrounding them. The lions on their turn have enough space to walk around without disturbing other animals. The management of the park tried to make it look as real as possible. 

Before entering the sight, make sure the windows of your car are clean enough to take good pictures =) 

Sincerely, 

Makhina

Tel-Aviv safari zoo

If you visit Tel-Aviv, don't forget to stop by the Ramat Gan Safari park/zoo. The park is divided into two parts - the zoo itself and the safari park. 

Starting with the zoo. One can rent one of these carts to make the trip more convenient, because the territory of the zoo is relatively large.  The entrance fee is around 19 USD (not including the special discounts for children, students, senior citizens, policemen, soldiers and handicaps) without cart renting fee. By the way, if you want to rent a cart, don't forget to present your driving licence. 

The creatures in the zoo are very friendly and pretty quite. What I liked about some of them - they don't care about you starring at them and children pointing their fingers and making noises to attract. If they are sleeping, they do not bother themselves to wake up and entertain the visitors. 

 The giraffes and kangaroos were very funny. The giraffes, for example, were trying to approach you through the fences and posing in front of the cameras.   

 The only thing I don't remember, whether visitors were allowed to feed the animals, but we didn't, so if you want to do that, you should check for information in advance.  

 By the way, in order to take a look at the crocodiles, you should spend a little more time searching for them in the water, grass and under the trees, because these guys know how to hide from the visitors' eyes =)

 Next stop - safari park! =)

Dinosaur park, Israel

If you want to watch some movie, do some shopping or just have fun, then Cinema City in Rishon LeZion is the right place to visit. Right in front of the mall there is a park with dinosaur figures of an actual sizes. Not only the dinosaurs are presented in the park, but also other species. It is something like a mini zoo with dinosaurs within it. The complex is quite big, with stores of various brands inside outside and alongside the mall. 

Inside the mall complex one can find clothing stores, jewelry stores, manicure corner, cafes and restaurants. Moreover, for those who love to take pictures, there are figures of different movie characters and celebrities. First, I thought they were wax-made statues, but I believe that they were rather plastic. 

One can watch movie in two languages - Hebrew and English with subtitles and before buying the ticket don't forget to ask what is the primary language of session. Tickets are sold on the first floor, and the cinema halls along with the popcorn and drinks corner are on the second floor (the whole second floor is dedicated to the cinema halls). 

Movies schedule Cinema City

Mini Israel Park, Israel

One of the attractive sights to visit in Israel is the Mini Israel park/museum with around 350 miniature models of most attractive places around Israel that are worth to visit.  All the models of the buildings are the exact replicas of the originals. Before starting the tour around the park one should watch the 3D movie about Israel and attractive sights around the country. The list includes not only the historical and archaeological places, but also the architectural ones. 

 The buildings are inhabited by the residents that are 7 cm in height and they are as close to the originals as the buildings. Not only they are moving around the buildings and their surrounded territories, but all the actions are accompanied by the music (if it is a festival presented), talks and songs.  Even the airport and the airplanes are looking real, moving around and imitating the flight. 

Some of the most significant buildings are of the size of an adult, for example the Azrieli center located in Tel-Aviv.  Looking at the Al'Aqsa mosque and the Western Wall (both located in Jerusalem) you can see the figures of people praying, moving around, holding their books, for example. 

 Walking around the park you can take a look not only at the historical, archaeological and architectural buildings and tourist sights, but also at the plants and factories, as for example the Coca-Cola and Bosch factories. Pressing on the button in front of the sights you can observe the movement, as for example, when you press the red button in front of the Coca-Cola plant, you can see how the production line supposedly works, how the trucks are loaded with the ready products and leave the factory. And the most fascinating is that, nevertheless, the bottles of the coke are tiny, you still can recognize the logo on the bottles colored in dark. 

Be ready to spend around 3 hours in the park and don't forget the hats, umbrellas and the sunscreen protector, because the territory of the park is open-aired. There you can find a small coffee place with refreshments, ice-cream, that is what you exactly need during the summer.  And before leaving the park, don't forget to visit the souvenir shop (by the way, ladies in the shop speak fluent Russian). And the best part of this park is a free parking, which is  unfortunately not protected from sun, nevertheless, the park is the place worth to visit!

Sincerely, 

Makhina 

Special offers and tours around Mini Israel 
Hotels in Jerusalem

Pamukkale, part II

So, continuing through Pamukkale. After you are done with the cosmetic procedures, applying masks and taking photos, you can continue further to the more dry surface where you can put on your shoes, finally, and make sure you will not slip.

The most interesting place to visit, besides the white hot springs, is Cleopatra's pool, that is called so because it is believed that Cleopatra used to swim here. Of course during her days there were no columns on the bottom of the pool, which were supposedly left here from the Temple of Apollo. 

[Available @ http://www.travelsignposts.com/Turkey/files/2012/07/AJP_1539.jpg]

We didn't manage to swim in the pool, because there were too many people, but we enjoyed the territory of the pool, which consists of beautiful pool itself, modern cafes and green sights surrounding the place - leaving you with the feeling as if you are in the exotic place.  

Moving further you can find the ruins of the ancient Hierapolis. There are a lot of interesting places to see, while crossing the old city to the exit at the end. Very smart decision, I would say, to place the exit at the end of the territory so that tourists will cross the whole complex. 

That is basically it for Pamukkale and Hierapolis city =) I would never stop advising to take care of your skin during your stay in Pamukkale, because I had an unpleasant experience of getting sunburn there, due to which I couldn't fully enjoy the Black Sea and spent most of our stay in Kemer in the pool. So, don't make the same mistakes! =) 

Sincerely, 

Makhina

Pamukkale, Turkey

Recently, I read a blog post on Distractify: "33 unbelievable places to visit before you die" and was fascinated by the natural beauties of our planet. Out of all 33 places, our family have visited only one so far - Pamukkale Hot Springs in Turkey.

[Available @Distractify]

Pamukkale is a beautiful natural site in Denizli Province, which contains hot springs and terraces of carbonate minerals, which supposedly have positive effect on skin and cure other health problems. What I can tell from our visit is that the skin really changes after the masks (you need to sit down into the one of the small pools and scrub the mud from its bottom) becoming more gentle and at the same time attractive for the sunburns, so, be careful and make sure to take the sunscreen protector with you to apply afterwards.

Before entering the site there is the post (small white single-room building on picture) where you would be asked to take off your shoes. Unfortunately, I do not remember about the payment procedures and rates, but take some cash in advance to prevent any inconvenient situation.

By the way, on the left there is a nice place with a pool and snacks place. Since it is private, you would have to pay for entering the territory, however, they have discounts for children up-to 12 or 16 years, as far as I remember. 

Try to walk very carefully when you enter the sight, because the road itself is very slippery due to its unique surface.

And don't forget the hats and sunglasses, because you will spend there at least 4 hours (hot spring is not the only place to visit on that territory) and it is pretty hot during summer season and due to the white and creamy colored surface the eyes feel burning. 

To be continued...

Where to stay?! =)  Hotels in Pamukkale

Continuing through Greece

Today I would like to give a quick overview of some monasteries in Greece I found interesting, not from the religious perspective, but rather archaeological and architectural.

1) Agia Triada - located on the top of the cliff. In order to get there one should overcome 140 steps. The monastery is considered to be one of the most peaceful places, probably because not everyone can handle walking 140 steps.

[Available at: http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/8680418.jpg]

2) Saint Andrew of Patras basilica was constructed on the place where the First-called apostle of Christ, Saint Andrew was crucified. The building is one of the biggest constructions in Greece. 

[Available at: http://www.muraroviaggi.it/fotoviaggistorico/130_7.jpg]

[Available at: http://www.grekomania.ru/attractions/churches/207-sobor-andreya-pervozvannogo]

Thessaloniki, Greece

Talking about places to visit in Greece I was advised to visit Thessaloniki. It takes around 3 hours ride from Blagoevgrad to get there, and around 4 from Sofia.

[Available at: maps.google.com]

Thessaloniki is the second largest city of Greece.The holiday season in Thessaloniki starts in April and ends around October. The most visited months are July & August, thus we decided to visit it in May, right after my graduation. 

[Available at: http://www.grekomania.ru/places/saloniki]

Since Athens are 520 kilometers north, we could rent a car and drive 5 hours to get there. It will be fun, our family has a long experience in travelling by car around the country. Turkey, India, Israel, Kyrgyzstan in the past, why not to try Bulgaria and Greece this time. 

[Available at: maps.google.com]

Interesting places:

• Central Aristotelous Square 
  

                              [Available at: http://www.grekoblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Aristotle-Square.jpg]

• The White Tower that was constructed in the 5th century for protection purposes and nowadays it is a museum and an observation deck. 

[Available at: http://du-lich.chudu24.com/f/m/1307/01/den-tham-thanh-pho-cang-yen-binh-thessaloniki-4.jpg]

To be continued...

Visit Thessloniki official web-page 

Hotels in Thessaloniki

Santorini Island, Greece

I wanted to write a plan for Greece step by step, but could not stop myself from writing about the most beautiful and desirable places first - islands. And we will start with Santorini island.

(Available at: http://ipicturee.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Santorini-Greece.jpg)

Santorini is a group of islands consisting of Thira, Thirassia, Aspronissi, Palea and Nea Kameni. The complex was formed as a result of intensive volcanic activity, and moreover, the whole territory is still an active volcano.

(Available at: http://thpastor.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/santorini-map.gif)

However, the presence of the active Kameni volcano does not stop tourists from visiting Santorini. It is considered to be one of the most romantic places both for honeymoon and wedding ceremony. 

  

(Available at: http://blogathinaios.blogspot.com/p/santorini-island-greece-2011-pictures.html)

Can there be anything more beautiful than these amazing white houses, churches with sky-blue domes and clear water?! 

(Available at: http://www.destinationsgalore.net/images/Greece/Greece_-_Santorini_8x5.jpg)

Fira is a capital of the island, and one the places (together with Oia, Imerovigli and Firostefani) which offers an amazing view of the volcano. Of course, there are other archaeological sights, but Santorini is place to enjoy sun, warm clear waters of Aegean Sea (elongated embayment of my favorite Mediterranean Sea ^_^), amazing view, high quality service, peacefulness and pinkish sunsets. 

(Available at: http://hdw.eweb4.com/wallpapers/9544/)

Hotels in Santorini with Booking.com

Flights to Santorini with Tripadvisor

Next stop - Greece (Acropolis of Athens)

When: end of May.
Where to get visa - Embassy in Sofia (closest to me)

Places we plan to visit:
1) Acropolis of Athens - an ancient citadel with the remains of several ancient buildings.

(available at: http://www.grekomania.ru/attractions/architecture/1-acropole)

2) Propylaea - monumental gateway - entrance to the Acropolis of Athens. 

On the left - what it might have looked like (drawing). On the right - what has remained. 

(Available at: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/AthinaiPropylaen.jpg

& http://www.greece-athens.com/pages_images/6.jpg)

3) One of the most famous buildings located on the territory of Acropolis is a Parthenon - the temple dedicated to the goddess Athena. The temple was constructed on the place of the older temple of Athena, that is known as Pre-Parthenon or Older Parthenon.

(available at: http://www.etravelblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Parthenon-Athens.jpg)

4)  Erechteion -  an ancient temple dedicated to Athena and Poseidon.

 (Available at: http://www.grekomania.ru/attractions/architecture/11-erechtheion)

The supporting columns that are represented in the sculptures of women (known as Caryatids) are actually replicas, and the originals are presented in the Acropolis museum. However, there are only 5 columns out of 6, since the 6th one is in British Museum in London. The 6th column (original one) was removed by Lord Elgin in the beginning of the 19th century for decoration of his mansion. 

(Available at: http://www.grekomania.ru/attractions/architecture/11-erechtheion)

5) Odeon of Herodes Atticus - stone theater structure, which was constructed later than other buildings on the territory of Acropolis. The sitting places and stage were reconstructed in 1950 in order to arrange concerts and dancing festivals, which is I believe was a good idea, since it is not only the historical place but useful space. 

(Available at: http://www.grekomania.ru/attractions/architecture/14-odeon-of-herodes-atticus)

To be continued...

Visit Greece official web-page.

Take me here

Gloomy Saturday. Need something to inspire me. Maybe a trip to the places I haven't been yet... the first place that comes to my mind - Maldives!!! Probably because it is cold in the room and windy outside...

Haven't been to the ocean yet, why not to try?! So far I've visited Red Sea, Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and that's it, and liked the last one more than any others.

[http://www.sethbricks.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/549617355.jpg]

Already imagining myself stepping on the hot sand, the land-breeze messing my hairs, and warm waters of Indian Ocean gently touching my skin.

[http://o.homedsgn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Kanuhura-Resort-04-1.jpg]

The only thing that makes me think twice before entering the water is the creatures living there... Can't imagine swimming and feeling the touch of the fish on my leg.

[http://www.wallcoo.net/human/sz_216_maldives_sky_and_sea_aquamarine_1920x1200/wallpapers/1680x1050/Maldives_beach_fish_JY032_350A.jpg]

But I think I would be pretty fine sitting on my small island with a good novel or pleasant music. 

[http://www.cntraveler.com/hotels/asia/maldives/taj-exotica-resort-and-spa-maldives-maldives-maldives]

Moreover, it would be a great place for meditation and Yoga exercises. Surrounded by my family and at the same time alone with my own thoughts about past, present and future...or maybe only about the present, since the past is what have already happened and you can't change it, and I am on the island to rest and enjoy the moment. 

At the same time, I'm really excited to try diving with a professional instructor, since over a thousands species of fish and other underwater creatures inhabit the Maldives waters, some of which I saw in the Underwater Observatory in Eilat, Israel.  

[http://www.divemasterinsurance.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/maldives_marine_life.jpg]

Another way to spend another lazy day is Spa. As the Maldive's official tourist web-site states: "...the types of treatments vary with each spa but you can get almost any world-class treatment in a Maldivian spa. Every Maldivian resort has a spa; some of them nestled deep within thick vegetation, others sitting in solitude on a wooden jetty built on the lagoon, and some even built underwater."

Maldive's tourist official web-page - Visit Maldives