When you climb into a taxi and ask to be taken to “Patio Antenna, inside”, you’re actually going to a small residential neighborhood of homes that are built with an internal patio (hence the name). There are several of these blocks, and Patio Antenna (Literally, the “Antenna Patio” in English), is known for being home to the first ever ham (amateur) radio antenna in Eilat, decades ago.

Antennas – namely TV antennas – later became commonplace over many houses in Eilat, and have long since then been replaced by satellite dishes and underground cables, but the name stuck; and what with Arie, the legendary retired English teacher of many Eilatis, having lived there for so long, pretty much everyone now knows where “Patio Antenna” is.

As you come up the main road leading from downtown, you’ll drive (or walk) past a large mural of wild horses. For the decade that Arie has lived in this neighborhood, I’ve always been amazed that this mural has remained untouched, and unvandalised. It is a testament to the close-knit sense of community that the Eilatis possess, that something so delicate is so long maintained in such pristine condition.

As food for thought, I urge you too take this appreciation of local history and folklore into consideration, as you tour the beaches and waters of the Red Sea; the large pebbles that originally lined the various beaches along the promenade have been replaced by rough sand for the convenience of local tourists, and the coral reefs and marine wildlife have suffered a lot of damage at the hands of many fascinated visitors who are unaware of how delicate and fragile this environment really is. (To fully take in the beauty of aquatic life here in Eilat, you should definitely check out our underwater nature reserve while you’re here. We’ll be telling you more about it in the upcoming Things to do in Eilat part 1 – beaches)

In the same way that the Eilatis preserve their frontier heritage, help us preserve the local wildlife for those that follow you in their travels.
Have a wonderful stay!

or: why our addresses are so funny

For historical reasons, much of the city doesn’t use the traditional street-name-and-number address system. For years, people referred to locations by number – each building had its own number, and many Eilatis didn’t even know their proper address. If you wanted to go somewhere, you simply hopped in a cab and asked to be taken to “1024″. The driver usually knew where it was, or one of the nearby numbers.

Now, that would be fine, if the streets were sequentially numbered; that is, if the 1100s block were anywhere near the 1200s. Indeed, that would be a reasonable assumption – but it would be wrong. While there is some grouping, you would often find the next sequence across town from where you were. Somehow, though, everything just worked.
Nonetheless, over the years new neighborhoods have been built that follow the familiar pattern that you’d expect. In reality, streets always had names, we just didn’t used to know them.
This is why Arie’s Awesome Eilat Guest House is located at 7035/2 (read “7035 over 2″ or “by 2″): lot number 7035, unit 2, though the actual address is located on Ochem Ln.

Over the years, Arie has cared for quite a few pets, though he probably wouldn’t reveal just how much he cared. Chantalle originally belonged to two friends of Arie’s. When they separated, he was somehow awarded custody of their dog. Thus Chantalle moved into Casa-de-Arie, where she lived for almost 15 years, along with Francesca, who still resides at the Guest House, and the late Teddy, a patchwork mix of terrier and Spitfire fighter plane.

In the past year, Chantalle developed a severe swelling of the heart, which applied a lot of pressure on her lungs, making it more and more difficult for her to breathe.

After trying a few unsuccessful treatments, a short while ago Arie and Chantalle’s doctor decided it would be best to put her to sleep.
Chantalle was a sweet dog, small and energetic, friendly but never needy. She could often be found sleeping on the sofa or playing with the other animals, or walking the guests and tenants from the house to the road. Occasionally, she would even follow us when we walked down to the beach, huffing and puffing as her little legs made the brave effort to keep up

She will be missed.