Netanya (Israel)
Netanya, the place where I live, is located on the coast of the Mediterranean sea and it's only 20 minutes drive from Tel Aviv. The city is the capital of the Sharon plain. It's about 28km and it has approximately 175.000 inhabitants. In the city there are a lot of people that come from English-speaking countries but our language is Israeli.
It was created in 1928 in honor to Nathan Strauss, a Jewish American. Don't forget that my city fought to win the Israel Independence. Netanya isn't certainly a safe place because it has suffered some Palestinian attacks. But I would like that the city was in peace.
Netanya is a lively seacoast town and a center for tourism that attracts thousands of visitors each year. The lovely beaches,the numerous vacation facilities, and hotels have made it a popular tourist resort.Netanya was originally a moshava – a small agricultural village with citrus groves and a flourishing tourist trade. Since the 1930s it has also become a center for the diamond cutting industry, which provide work for many of its residents.
Today Netanya is a popular resort city. It has dozens of hotels and guesthouses, cafés and restaurants. Festivals and other events are held in Netanya throughout the year, making the city a lively gathering place.
The finest feature of Netanya is its beautiful beaches that extend for 12 kilometers along the city's seacoast.Above the beach is a ridge of rugged cliffs - the only ones of their kind in Israel - with a long promenade overlooking the sea. The promenade constitutes part of the "Israel Road" - a marked walking path that extends the entire length of the country from Kibbutz Dan in the north to Eilat in the south.
Netanya has also a rich history. There are several interesting sites such as the Um Khaled Khan that dates back to the Mamluke period. In the nearby park there is a sycamore tree that is 1,000 years old. The Pninat Shabtai Museum has an exhibition of Yemenite folklore, and the Diamond Center Museum has an exhibition of diamonds and a miniature model of a diamond mine.
I think that it's the best place to go on holiday because it has a lot of great museums, galleries, culture events and other activities.
