Yes, it seems that the Japanese have fallen in love with sushi restaurants in Tel Aviv. The number of Japanese tourists, as well as those from other Asian countries such as China, has grown some 20% in the last year and, yes, there must be a valid explanation. It has to be the sushi in Tel Aviv.
The numbers of Japanese tourists interested in Israel has grown so fast over the last couple of years that the publishers of Japan’s biggest tourist guides have included Israel in its latest series of Globetrotter books, the apparent tourist bible of the Japanese. The equivalent to the Lonely Planet guides, I guess. Sales of this guide have proved successful – the new guide book has climbed to second place on the company’s best-seller list of guide books by country.
Could that mean that real soon we’ll be sat alongside hordes of Japanese tourists in Tel Aviv’s sushi bars, with cameras flashing and V signs aplenty? I’m going to start perfecting my “mashi mashi” and “konnichiwa”, as well as brush up on my chopstick skills…