Magen David Square, 1958, junction of Allenby, King George, Sheinkin and Nahalat Benyamin Streets. Photo by Willie Polander. (Historical photo courtesy of Tel Aviv Municipality Archives)

Wander down King George Street in Tel Aviv and you can't help but be struck by the ironic dissonance between the name of the street and the character of the person after whom it was named. What on earth does a lively, bustling street in the heart of Tel Aviv have in common with George V, the correct, dull, dutiful ruler of the British Empire who was, perhaps, most famous for his stamp collection? Not much.

So why did the worthy powers that be of Tel Aviv choose that particular name for the long street which runs between Masaryk Square in the north to Allenby in the south? The answer is that in 1935, the street, formerly Carmel Street, took the name of the monarch in honor of his Silver Jubilee. This was not as strange as it seems today because at the time, of course, Palestine was a British mandate. There is even a Zionist connection: the Balfour Declaration was issued during King George V's reign.

Today, there is nothing remotely regal about the street, but on the other hand, no one could possibly call it dull. It may not have the trendiness of its neighbor, Sheinkin, the sleaze of Allenby or the faded glory of Dizengoff, but King George offers more surprises – not to mention bargains – than any of them.

It's attractions can all been seen in a walk of discovery down the street.

Starting near the more glamorous end, near Dizengoff, the most imposing landmark on the street lies at number 38. This is the Jabotinsky Institute at Metzudat Zeev, which  disseminates the legacy of Zeev Jabotinsky and the Revisionist movement. It houses an archive of more than one million documents, a historical research organization and a museum with multimedia presentations on Jabotinsky and on the 'Af-Al-Pi' illegal immigration to this country. Plans are to move the Institute to Ramat Gan, but that may take years, so there is plenty of time meanwhile to drop in. Entrance to this conveniently located museum is free and it is open Sunday to Thursday, 8 am to 4 pm.

Opposite the park, is Gan Meir, a pocket of greenery with a history in the midst of the urban jungle, named after Meir Dizengoff, the first mayor of Tel Aviv. Dogs are welcome in the section assigned particularly to them and it's fun to stop and watch the dogs get acquainted while their owners do the same.

Across the road lies the venerable M.Pollak Antiquariat. In fact there are two M.Pollak stores, one located conveniently behind the bus stops to Raanana and Kfar Saba, at number 36, and the other a few doors down at number 42. One shop specializes in antique maps and prints and the other in books about the Holy Land and the Middle East, art and Judaica, many of which are in English. There are boxes of books outside to browse through.

Another bookstore on the street is 'Hanasich Hakatan' (The Little Prince) which is everything a secondhand bookstore should be – a warren of dusty rooms crammed to the ceiling with volumes that invite browsing. English books are in the last room and I spied some very current ones, such as the latest Elizabeth Gilbert. Books are NIS 10; four for NIS 30.

Not too far away is a comic-book store which also sells guy-type collectibles such as Star Wars and Big Lebowski action dolls.    

Enough of culture. Let's hit the shops.

King George was once known as "Bathtub Street" because it was the home of many bathroom fixture shops and it is still home to many shops devoted to homeware.

One hardware store whose worn sign informs passersby that it has been here since 1926, but neglects to give a name, is a veritable cave of tools, brooms, plastic table mats, bathtub plugs and odds and ends and there are a number of other shops of the same ilk on the street.

Many businesses have been run by families for generations, including 'Tachshitei Dan', a pocket-sized jewelry store. Dan Mordo, aged 24, now runs the shop, first opened by his father Rafi 25 years ago, and sells hannukiot, kiddush cups and an assortment of gold and silver jewelry. "Baruch Hashem," he says, "I'm doing well" and he invites readers of ESRA to come and look.

Mary, at number 13, has been located at the same place for 48 years and the décor probably looks much as it did decades back. Here you will be offered personal service in choosing bras and lingerie. Another veteran shop is 'Tabac Oz', a purveyor of tobacco, cigarette papers and ashtrays, among other goods. (When is the last time you saw an ashtray?)

On the corner of Hachashmonaim Street is 'Ish Hakash' (The Straw Man) which is a useful place to know if you happen to have cane-seated chairs. They repair cane here and also sell all manner of baskets and bamboo furniture.

'Weiss Konditoria' at number 4 has been selling glatt kosher Hungarian poppyseed cakes (samples available for tasting) and strudel, not to mention rogelach, croissants and cinnamon buns, for 50 years and is still run by the same family. (I can vouch for the apple strudel.)

But the prize for longevity goes to D. Lublinsky and Son Ltd at number 14, which has been in business no fewer than 70 years and is still owned by the same family. Knives are sold and sharpened, as well as scissors and kitchen equipment. It has been modernized and is doing a booming business; it's a great shop.

Shoe shops are plentiful here, both high fashion/low price and what my kids call 'bubbe shoes'. At 'Na'alei Moran', a long-established business on the corner of Rashi St, the motto is "comfort is always in style" and imported shoes by brands like Waldlaufer and Rohde have nary a high heel in sight. The women who frequent this shop might well also like the beauty salon, Ateret Rosh, a few shops further at number 23, where women in curlers sit under old-fashioned hair dryers on stands.

By contrast, there are any number of shoe stores where fashion trumps comfort and prices rarely rise above NIS 100 a pair.

One of the joys of King George St is noticing how the old and venerable cohabit peacefully with the new and startling. On the corner of Rashi, for example, is 'Eros Sex Toys'. From the open door it's possible to see an intriguing example of its wares – a so-called Love Swing which hangs from the ceiling, with illustrations of how it might be used. There is also a tattoo and piercing parlor on the street.

As you walk south towards Allenby Street, quality goes down and so do the prices. And now comes the fun part. Approaching the Allenby Street end, clothing shops proliferate, culminating in the Bezalel market which runs off to the right. Who knows where the goods sold here come from? Better not to ask. When I told a stall-holder that I was from an English magazine, he told me to get lost (in not so polite words) and tried to tear the page out of my notebook.

Some shops have garments hanging up, but most have them are scattered helter-skelter on tables, inviting bargain hunting. And what bargains! Gottex bathing suits at NIS 80 (not this season's, to be sure, but so what?)  Less exclusive brands at NIS 60 or less. Men's underpants at two for NIS 10. Babygros for NIS 20. Children's towelling robes for NIS 35. School T-shirts from an odd assortment of schools, including Herzog School in Kfar Saba and Savyon Ganei Yehuda, for NIS 5. Strange stuff (a chopsticks cage holder for NIS 14); useful stuff (foil baking pans at 14 for NIS 10); terrific stuff (children's clothing with brand labels for NIS 10). You can come here with NIS 100 and walk out with an armful of bags and change.

And now we've come to the end of the street where Allenby, Sheinkin, Nahlat Binyamin and Carmel Streets meet. Note the interesting International Style period architecture of the, admittedly, somewhat crumbling buildings on the corners. The original town planners laid out this junction in the form of a six-sided Magen David, assuming that Allenby is counted twice for its two directions. Opposite lies the tempting Carmel market – but that's another story.