How an an aviary be uniquely Tel Avivian? I didn’t quite believe it, but the birds are just like the local people. First off, there is almost no concept of borders in the aviary. A heron may be sitting in it’s little heron place or walking down the visitors’ aisle. A parrot may be picking at the cage walls from within or without. And the birds outside the Zapari in Yarkon Park are just as interesting as the ones inside. There was a tree of swallows – for example – by the big wooden mazes – that was making so much noise I couldn’t help but stare until i could figure it out. Apparently it is the mating season and everyone is excited. The noise level and the action of wings flapping reminded me of any one of the night clubs on Allenby. And once inside I found the sexual activity even more reminiscent of the city. On the path between the herons and the cockatoos there was a young peacock presenting himself to a rooster who couldn’t care less. This indifference seemed to inflame the peacock even more and as the rooster pecked his way down the road, the peacock was shivering all over. Later the rooster crowed but it didn’t seem to change the peacock’s mind at all. Ah, yes, just like the streets of Tel Aviv.
Tel Aviv Diary: Karen Alkalay-Gut
Begun in April 2002, this diary has been charting one woman's view of the city
