30,000 celebrate the end of the Centennial Year
30,000 celebrate the end of the Centennial Year
10/18/2009 An extravagant water show and lighting of the city's historic lighthouse mark the end of a season of events.
30,000 enthusiastic spectators witnessed the lighting of Tel Aviv's historic lighthouse in what marked the beginning of the end of the Centennial Year. The Centennial Party, which took place at the Yarkon Estuary on Saturday October 17, began with a special projection on water screens located in the Yarkon River. A famous ballad by one of the country's most famous singers, Shlomo Artzi, depicted the love many feel to Tel Aviv, as 20 typical residents – a nurse, a biker, a fisherman and a drag queen among others – recited the words.
Following the water show was a lighting of the historic lighthouse, built in 1936 at the edge of the Tel Aviv Port. Mayor Ron Huldai invited two children to assist him: Dapha, great-granddaughter of one of the city's founders, and Libani, a new immigrant from Georgia. The lighting included an extravagant fireworks display, accompanied by Israeli singer Kobi Afllalo who performed his biggest hit, "I have light." Following the ceremony was a rock concert of leading artists and an open-air party.
The Centennial Party marks the end of a season of hundreds of events, educational and community processes, inaugurations of buildings and monuments and large-scale festivities. The Centennial Year will conclude on December 15th with the opening of a new museum of the history of Tel Aviv-Yafo, which will open in the old municipal building on Bialik Street.