Zion Square (Tolerance Square), Jerusalem

The heartbeat of shopping in the City Center revolves around Zion Square, nestled between King George Street and Yafo Street and serving as the base for both Ben Yehuda Street and Yoel Moshe Salomon pedestrian malls. While these bustling shopping areas typically close down for Shabbat and Jewish holidays, a handful of restaurants keep their doors open. The array of shops in the vicinity caters to various needs, offering souvenirs, Judaica, embroidered kippot, T-shirts, camera gear, electronics, housewares, and local fashion brands.

Venturing from the pedestrianized Yoel Salomon, just off Zion Square, to nearby Rivlin Street, you'll encounter Nahalat Shiv'a. Once the heart of Jerusalem's bar scene, this area is also one of West Jerusalem's oldest neighborhoods, established in 1869. Its charming small houses, built around patios with water storage cisterns, set the architectural tone for subsequent homes in the area. These cisterns proved invaluable during the 1948 siege when West Jerusalem's water supply was cut off by Arab forces. Thanks to the foresight of Haganah commander David Shaltiel, who ordered the cisterns filled before the British withdrawal, the neighborhood managed to withstand the siege, albeit with stringent water rationing.

Despite City Hall's attempts to replace these quaint houses with skyscrapers, local residents fiercely resisted. Their perseverance paid off in 1988 when the council opted to restore and preserve the neighborhood's historic charm. Today, Nahalat Shiv'a teems with lively bars, inviting restaurants, and eclectic artisanal shops.

Tip:
For book lovers, a must-visit is The Book Gallery, located at 6 Schatz Street on the corner of 26 King George Street. Israel's largest secondhand bookstore, it spans two floors with a dedicated section for rare and antique books, plus a spacious basement awaiting exploration.