No participation fee · A community gift from “Trips and Tales”

Thursday, 13/5/2027 · 18:00

The Trail of Orange Peels in the Footsteps of Nahum Gutman

A nostalgic tour of Tel Aviv, among sand, sea, alleyways, paintings, and childhood memories of the first Hebrew city.

Tour type: Urban cultural tour
Distance: Approximately 2 kilometers
Duration: Approximately two hours or more
Price: Free, a gift to the community

There are places where you can go for a walk, and places where you can remember. Nahum Gutman’s Tel Aviv is exactly such a place. A city of sand and sea, citrus orchards and alleyways, barefoot children, market vendors, boats in Jaffa, and great dreams built out of almost nothing. On this tour, we will follow the writer, painter, and illustrator who succeeded in turning his childhood memories into one of the most beloved portraits of the Land of Israel.

What awaits us on the tour?

A city being born before our eyes

We will see how Neve Tzedek, Ahuzat Bayit, Jaffa, and the seashore come together in the story of one young, dreaming city.

The book that came to life

We will learn about the background of The Trail of Orange Peels, the character of the boy Nahum, and Tel Aviv during the days of the First World War.

Nostalgia you can walk through

We will compare the streets we know today with the figures, colors, and landscapes Gutman left us in his paintings.

Following Gutman, step by step

Beginning in Neve Tzedek, where the story starts

We will meet in Neve Tzedek, at a meeting point that will be sent to registrants one day before the tour. We will begin the tour with the story of Nahum Gutman, born in 1898, who grew up in the Land of Israel at a time when Tel Aviv was still a young city surrounded by sand, citrus orchards, and sea.

We will discuss the connection between his work and the development of Tel Aviv and Jaffa, and the way Gutman combined personal memory, history, humor, and a deep love for the Land of Israel in his art.

Neve Tzedek, alleyways, houses, and childhood memories

We will walk through the alleyways of Neve Tzedek and observe the details that turn the neighborhood into an open book. Small houses, balconies, gardens, shadows, and walls that evoke Tel Aviv before the towers.

During the walk, we will compare Gutman’s painted city with the city we encounter today, and understand why Neve Tzedek continues to be one of the places most strongly identified with Tel Aviv’s memory.

The Trail of Orange Peels, the story behind the book

The Trail of Orange Peels: Adventures from the Early Days of Tel Aviv is a historical novel for children and young people. It connects the adventure of a boy with the story of Tel Aviv’s residents during the First World War, when the city’s residents were expelled from their homes and the city underwent profound upheaval.

The peels in the story are not merely fruit remnants. They become signs, memories, and an imaginary trail connecting fear, courage, longing, and hope. Here, the book becomes more than an old text: it becomes an emotional map of an entire city.

The sand, the sea, and Jaffa through Gutman’s eyes

We will continue to the landscapes Gutman loved to paint: the sand, the shoreline, the fishing boats, Jaffa, and the horizon. We will talk about Tel Aviv as a city born from an open landscape, and about the sea, which for Gutman was not merely a backdrop but a character in its own right.

This is the part where it is worth stopping, looking around, and remembering how little there once was here—and how much has been built since.

The human mosaic of old Tel Aviv

We will meet the colorful figures who inhabit Gutman’s world: children, workers, merchants, fishermen, citrus growers, Jaffa residents, and young dreamers. We will understand how he managed to document an entire era without turning it into a closed museum, instead keeping it alive, funny, and full of movement.

The book that turned the early days of Tel Aviv into an adventure

Tel Aviv of the past, between sand and sea

Jaffa, people, stories, and memories

A little more about Nahum Gutman

Painter, writer, illustrator, and documentarian of the Land of Israel

Nahum Gutman was a painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer. His work moved between art, literature, and memory. He illustrated children’s books, wrote stories, painted the landscapes of Tel Aviv and Jaffa, and gave generations of Israelis a visual language full of color, humor, and movement.

He did not paint only buildings. He painted the people, the sounds, the sand, and the feeling of a place still at the beginning of its journey.

Why is the tour suitable even for those who have not read the book?

Because the book is only a gateway. Even those who do not remember the plot will enjoy a tour of historic Tel Aviv, stories about the city’s early days, the encounter between art and reality, and the comparison between the city of the past and the city of today.

The museum and the artistic context

The Nahum Gutman Museum of Art is located at 21 Shimon Rokach Street in Neve Tzedek and presents the connection between Gutman’s personal story and the historical and cultural story of Tel Aviv–Jaffa. Our tour takes place primarily in the urban environment and outdoors; if desired, the experience can be completed with an independent visit to the museum.

For further reading: Nahum Gutman’s biography on the museum’s website · Information about the book on the museum’s website

Practical information before joining

When and where do we meet?

We will meet on Thursday, 13/5/2027, at 18:00 in Neve Tzedek. The exact meeting point will be sent to registrants one day before the tour.

Who is the tour suitable for?

Anyone who loves history, art, literature, stories of the Land of Israel, nostalgia, and a pleasant urban walk. The tour is suitable for adults and culture enthusiasts and does not require prior familiarity with the book.

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