3 Cups Lemon Juice (from about 20 large and juicy lemons)
Juice from 1 pink grapefruit, or 1 cup raspberries, pureed and strained to remove the seeds (optional)
2 Cups Fine Evaporated Cane Sugar
4 Cups Water
2 Tbs Rosewater
Rose Petals
Ice Cubes

Squeeze lemons and be sure to remove seeds. I personally like my lemonade with a bit of the pulp though, so the citrus squeezer should suffice (some like to strain through a fine sieve in addition to that) - but that's entirely a matter of taste.
Stir with the sugar and dissolve. Add spring water or filtered tap water and the rosewater, and chill.
To serve, add 2-3 ice cubes per cup, and garnish with fresh, non-sprayed rose petals if desired. Otherwise, a slice of lemon or pink grapefruit garnish will do.

This beverage deserves to be elegantly enjoyed outdoors and makes a perfect accompaniment to your porch, patio or garden party.

When thinking of the scent of a place, the characteristic local earth is one of the first things I think about. For Tel Aviv, what comes to mind is grass on moist hamra soil. This particular soil is bright red colour and full of sand. It has a particular smell that is slightly musty when moist, and more mineral than earthy. Mingled with the scent of coarse grass that's in the many striving gardens and parks of the city, it is an iconic Tel Aviv smell.

The street scene below is from the not-so-aptly named Rehove HaBosem)(Perfume Street), just a few blocks away from my dear grandmother's home in south-east Tel Aviv. This little piece of shanty town is made up of illegal temporary housing made of wavy tin and scraps of other industrial left overs. The garbage can, bearing the white signage "The Perfume 19" is ironic and immediately caught my eye-phone's camera, for reasons quite obvious.



Tel Aviv, aka Non Stop City, is not exactly renown for its pleasant perfumes. Like most places humid and hot, all the odours get amplified, including the non-polite ones such as garbage, urine-drenched street corners, cat-feces rolled in the sands of the sycamore boulevards, and sweaty people in tightly-packed buses.

I was determined to set on a mini scented journey in Tel Aviv to discover and share with you some of its more elegant and/or intriguing aromas. And here is what I found:

Sycomore figs, ripening on the trees, and further fermenting on the grounds of the boulevards, on benches, etc. Sycamore trees are an inseparable portion of Tel Aviv, and some are many hundreds of years old and are considered protected heritage trees. There was a point in time when these historic trees were attacked by the city of Tel Aviv because the fruit attract flies and bats; now the city has smartened up and forbids any logging or damage to those trees, to the point that some buildings are designed around a tree, in order to preserve it. These are trees that our own grandparents and great-grandparents climbed on and played under their graceful evergreen shade, and our own children can crawl inside their hollow hearts. If you ever visit Tel Aviv, you must seek out these trees and admire them - and if you have little children, they will forever remember the experience of getting inside the "cave" of such an ancient tree.



Frangipani (Plumeria alba) flowers, which can be found practically everywhere, are in my mind, a very Tel-Avivi scent. It was here that I was introduced to the flower and its name 19 years ago when I lived here. To me, frangipani will always be a coming-of-age scent, and a trigger for happy memories of independence and romance.



Banana Ice Cream Bars are a long-time childhood memory from a brief period when I lived at my step-grandmother's in Bat-Yam. My mom took me to the beach a lot back in those days, and did something out of character then, which was to buy me an ice cream bar (she's one of those 1970's granola gals who lives her life in fear of sugar from as long as I can remember) from the ice-cream vendor that would walk on the beaches with a large straw hat and announce his wares carried in an over-the-shoulder icebox. I was glad these merchants are still alive and kicking and made a point of getting ice cream bar for my daughter when we were at the beach (she picked another flavour). The flavour of these banana ice cream bars is very fake, and if anything is reminiscent more of an over ripe, baked banana. If you've experienced Vanille-Banane by Compoir Sud Pacifique - that's bang-on what you get when licking one of these pale yellow treats.



White Chocolate smelling flowering tree. This tropical wonder (not sure of the scientific name) grows on thorny trees, and produces silky cotton-like fruits.



Oleanders, both pink and white, are now in bloom everywhere. They smell powdery and sweet, a little like hawthorn, but also green and not unlike the fresh/waxy aspects of frangipani.

Wherever I go, this summer is HOT. No matter how you slice it, cooling off is a constant desire that's not easy to fulfill. Some scents help, though, and especially these ones, which I have also taken on my sudden travels to the Mediterranean region.

Vanille Banane
Nostalgia at its best, by Comptoir Sud Pacifique: This fragrance reminds me of purchasing a chocolate-banana ice cream bar at the beach, right by the water from one of those vendors with ice boxes that walk the shores trying to entice parents to shell out prime cash for the privilege of eating it right there and then. The salty wind and the direct sunlight would make it melt rapidly, of course, and trickle down the toddlers hands and arms and eventually drop into the sand where they will languidly rest and become a thing of the past.

So Fresh, So Clean
The perfume oil version of Open Source Soap bar of the same name. This beautifully refreshing yet quirky scent combines fresh green notes such as galbanum, lemon and juniper with unexpected notes of mimosa, jasmine and vetiver, creating a fresh yet intriguing fragrance that is a modern twist on an Eau de Cologne.

Florida Water
Minty geranium, citrus and spice make this cologne unique, and oh so American. Buy it when you get your tortillas in your town's Latin grocery store, or make your own from the recipes I've quoted from Poucher earlier this month.

Patchouli Magique by Novaya Zarya
Surprisingly, patcouli based perfumes fair very well in unbearably hot climates. There is something strangely rejuvenating about this earthy note, not quite as cooling as vetiver, but still. This summer, Patchouli Magique is the star of my travel wardrobe.

Five by Bruno Fazzolari
Five brings forth the briskness of mint mingled with orange, cedar and oakmoss. Copious amounts of jasmine-y hedione brings to mind the iconic Eau Sauvage. More on the masculine side, which makes one wish men would wear cologne more often when it's so sticky outside.

Osmanthe Yunnan 
Hardly ever do I reach for this pale, transparent scent. "Invisible" is the word that comes to mind first when I try to describe it, which is rather disappointing from an osmanthus-lover point of view! However, in the heat of the humid Tel Aviv summer, it's iced-tea coolness provides a veil of sanity amidst the smog, sweat and other impolite scents one inevitably encounters on the streets.

Un Jardin Apres la Mousson
Cantaloupes are particularly fragrant this year in Israel, and we've even discovered the equivalent cheese pairing to watermelon and feta: Pecorino and cantaloupe. Try it and enjoy a mini trip to heaven. Un Jardin Apres la Mousson has become a summer staple for me over the years, since it was launched in 2008. I've had a long break from it though, and am  now back with renewed enthusiasm for its sticky melon paired with cool spicy notes of ginger and coriander and a tinge of wet vetiver. It's quite delightful and has a cooling effect in the heat and humidity, which is most welcome.



Le Parfum de Thérèse
There is a prime example of how an obvious fruity notes (melon and under-ripe plum) can be played elegantly and without impinging on the perfume's elegance and abstract beauty. It's permanently sitting in my emergency kit in case I need to go away to a desert island unexpectedly...

Eau d'Orange Vert
This one is a scent that always makes me feel clean, instilling a sense of relaxed well-being and calm amidst the dust, grime and sweat that strikes cities of hot climate. Having this on hand ensures an instant crisply ironed white shirt feel anywhere, anytime. 

Charisma
Tropical, exotic floriental that's together is a few of my favourite things: jasmine green tea, osmanthus flowers, spearmint and a smooth woody-ambery base.

No. 19 
Surprisingly, the Eau de Toilette formulation lends itself very well to hot weather without losing its poise. If you need to attend a formal event in the dog days of summer, consider this timeless composition of austere quality: iris, vetiver, leather, jasmine, rose, lemon and galbanum.

Aveda #4: Key Element Air
With notes of rose, jasmine and ylang ylang this is bound to be the most luxurious of all the Aveda catalog of non-descript numeral titles. It's floral yet light (at least in the alcohol based formulation) and is a simple celebration of jasmine and rose.

Savage Water Soap Bar 
Another bathing gem by Open Source Soap, this is a refreshing melange of verbena, basil, patchouli and jasmine. It's marvelously substantial yet refreshing and like everything that comes from the hands of Shuyler Corry - the talented soapmaker of Open Source Soap - it's very well made from quality materials and does more than it's being asked to do: it doubles as a soap, shaving cream and shampoo!

Etrog
Balancing sweet, tart and aromatic - Etrog is my own little contribution to the world of "eaux".

How is your summer coming along? And how are you coping with the heat scent-wise?