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With the Blues preparing to travel to Israel this week for the Uefa Cup tie against Hapoel TA, our man in the Tel Aviv branch of the CFC supporters’ club, Jonathan Perez, provides the travelling fan with some valuable information.
For those of you brave enough to venture out here, the CFC Supporters Club in Israel felt it only right that we do something to make your stay as pleasant as possible.
So here are a few tips for your stay.
Those arriving on the Official Chelsea package will have transportation to take them from Ben Gurion airport to the city centre. For those arriving independently you will have to rely on either bus or taxi. The distance from the airport to the city centre is about 20 km (11 miles) and by taxi takes about 20 minutes.
Bus: The Tour Bus company operates Route 222 which goes from the airport to the area of the hotels along Hayarkon Street (opposite the beach). The service runs hourly from 6am until midnight. The fare is approximately 15 shekels (£2.50)
The Egged Bus Company runs a regular service to Tel Aviv (Route 475) and costs about 9 shekels (£1.50). This service is definitely NOT recommended because the journey takes approximately one hour and doesn’t go close to the main city hotels.
Taxi: Perhaps the easiest way to reach the city centre is by taxi. The supervised taxi service from the airport is located as you exit from Gate 8.There is a standard fixed fare from the airport which is openly displayed. I think the fare to Tel Aviv is about 85 shekels (about £14). The only other additional cost is usually a shekel per item of baggage. There is no need to tip taxi drivers in Israel.
Once you arrive in the City and check into your hotel you may have time to spare….the good news is, that Tel Aviv is a city that never sleeps. So many bars are open into the early hours of the morning. There are loads of bars in Tel Aviv especially in the area around the beachfront including Allenby Street and Hayarkon Street.
For a detailed map of Tel Aviv in English go to the following URL www.dan.co.il/english/Download/TelAviv2000.pdf (requires Acrobat Reader)
At the meeting of the CFC supporters last Thursday our resident bar expert gave me a list of approved and recommended watering holes, so any complaints should be expressed to him and not to me.
Molly Blooms Irish Pub. Is located at 2 Mendele Street, close to Hayarkon Street between the Dan and Sheraton Hotels. For further details go to:
www.molly-blooms.com
MASH (More Alcohol Served Here) is located at 275 Dizengoff.
www.mashpub.com This is the place Chelsea supporters currently watch live Chelsea games on a large screen. However since they seem to be fairly anti-Chelsea, this place should definitely NOT benefit from the Chelsea supporters in towns.
- Terminal on Hayarkon Street.
- Bus Stop on Herbert Samuel Street.
- Mike’s Place on Herbert Samuel Street.
- Jerry’s Bar on Allenby Street.
- Jerry’s Brother 2 on allenby Street.
- Blue Bar on Allenby Street.
There are also plenty of restaurants and coffee shops in this area; including the usual fast food outlets.
WARNING!!!!
At the junction of Allenby Street and Haknesset Square there are many bars. Most of these are filled by migrant Rumanian workers. Thursday night is one of their big drinking nights, and it is not unusual for them to become extremely aggressive. So if you happen to be in this area and find yourself confronted by a boozed up Rumanian just keep saying the name Dan Petrescu. This should be sufficient to escape without any further problems.
THE GAME
The Bloomfield stadium is located in North Jaffa, approximately a 10 minute bus and taxi ride from the centre of Tel Aviv. If you are not travelling with the Official Chelsea party and will be making your way independently to the ground, it is highly recommended that you arrive at the ground between 2 and 3 hours before kick off. Security will be extremely tight and every person entering the ground will be searched, so entry to the ground will take some time.
Unfortunately the Chelsea supporters living over here are not allowed to sit with the Chelsea supporters from England. (UEFA Regulations) :-((
You will be in Gate 8, whilst we will be sitting as close as possible in Gate 9.
Buy your ticket from Chelsea and not from over here. I don’t know what price Chelsea will be charging for tickets, but unfortunately the Hapoel Tel Aviv management have decided to screw us. The price of a ticket for Hapoel supporters will be 80 shekels (£13) and for Chelsea supporters 220 shekels (£35). Not even our esteemed chairman would do such an evil thing.
Nevertheless the majority of Chelsea supporters have decided to pay the full amount so that we can enjoy the company of our fellow English Blues. We are currently fighting to have the prices reduced but we are unlikely to succeed.
By the way if you have time to sightsee, Jaffa is definitely worth a visit. Although it is part of the Tel Aviv area it is culturally very different being a mix of both Christains, Muslim and Jews.
THE WEATHER
The last rain to fall was back in early May!!! However the first rains of the season usually arrive in October. It looks as though the first rain may arrive towards the end of this week. It is also likely to turn much cooler; however still expect daytime temperatures to be between 25 and 28 degrees and nightime temperatures between 17 and 21 degrees. The sea temperature is currently a warm 27 degrees, but if you decide to go for a swim beware strong currents. The Mediterannean off the coast of Israel is particularly dangerous, even for strong swimmers.
Sunrise is just after 6am and sunset about 5:15pm (we’ve already switched our clocks back by one hour).
That’s all I can think of at present. Anyone who has any questions please feel free to contact me; other than that have a good journey and look forward to seeing some of you soon. Oh and please lets get a good result on Thursday, the Chelsea supporters will have to go into hiding if the unthinkable happens.
And last but not least, there is no fear or panic over here. As much as there are occasional terrorist attacks we generally feel safe and lead normal lives, despite the security procedures that are always in place.
