Star man Adrian Brijbassi in Jerusalem for Star Travel Grand Tour of the World

JERUSALEM — David Weinberg and Gerald Segal grew up together on Charlton Street near Finch and Bathurst in Toronto, they both attended the University of Toronto, and now more than 10,000 kilometres away they’re still part of a community. Weinberg and Segal are among a large, active, expatriate Canadian contingent that has moved to Israel to build a country their Jewish ancestors couldn’t. 

They and Paul Shindman, another Torontonian, joined me for dinner the other night at Gabriel, a five-year-old restaurant on Ben Shetach Street in Jerusalem.

David and Paul, who studied together at U of T, arrived in Israel more than 20 years ago while Gerald made the move in the mid-1990s. David's father, Henry Weinberg, taught at U of T and became an elected member of Israeli parliament. Paul is a freelance writer who started the Israeli Ice Hockey Federation and Gerald is an investment banker living in a suburb of Jerusalem.

They've watched their nation emerge as a significant economic power with a number of high-tech and bio-tech companies growing fast over the past two decades.

"There's an excitement here," says Gerald. "People are very entrepreneurial. There's a desire to create things and people aren't afraid to take risks."

Israel got through the global recession suffering only flat GDP growth, in part because the savings rate of its people is high and its homeowners didn't buy into subprime mortgages. It expects good economic expansion this year and one big area of increase is tourism.

Close to 3 million people have already visited Israel in 2010 and this summer there was a shortage of rooms in Tel Aviv while luxury hotels are among those recently opened or expected to open soon in Jerusalem.

Tourism, which David says had been decimated following the bloody conflict with Palestinians earlier this decade, is of significant importance to Israel for more reasons than just the money it brings in.

"We want people to see that side of Israel," says David, "the side that's welcoming to all kinds of people, that's democratic and pluralistic."

He and Gerald point out that it's not just religious tourism that comes to the country. Medical tourism is increasing and so is leisure travel as Europeans arrive for beach vacations in Tel Aviv and elsewhere.

Of keen interest to David, is wine tourism, another exploding industry that continues to see amazing growth. A self-professed wine nut, David remembers when Israeli wines were limited to a small handful as recently as 15 years ago. Today, there are nearly 300 wineries in the country and they're getting big-time recognition for their quality.

"It's warm and dry in the day, and cold at night," says David. "Ideal for making wine."

The industry started to boom when grapes were planted on the Golan Heights by wine entrepreneurs. In 2007, there was a high point when The Wine Advocate's Robert Parker gave 14 Israeli wines an "outstanding" rating; the publication's highest rank.

David ordered us a bottle of Carmel Winery's 2007 Mediterranean, a wonderfully velvety and fruity blend of four red grapes and one white.

"We have some excellent wine tours now," says David. "You'll have to try one."

I hope to, and I also plan to attend a hockey game at Israel's only regulation-size ice rink, which was made famous on "Hockey Night in Canada" back in January. I also plan to continue exploring the elephant in the room - the tensions with the Muslim groups in the area. All three Canadian-Israelis I dined with lamented the lack of peace.

"The Palestinians could have exactly what we have," says David, the director of the Canada-Israel Committee's Israel Office, and a noted commentator and writer on Israeli politics (www.davidmweinberg.com).

He says the rigid stance of Islamic groups like Hamas is keeping that wealth from coming to Palestinians. I hope to report what the Palestinians say later in the week.

IT'S HOT IN TEL AVIV

Temperatures on the weekend in Tel Aviv were up beyond 30 Celsius, a surprise to everyone since temperatures are usually comfortably in the low- to mid-20s as winter here nears.

The beaches along the Mediterranean Sea were full with sunbathers and swimmers who congregated outside of the long stretch of hotels in the centre of the relaxed city, and sailboats were out on blue waters.

Tel Aviv is a real treat for more reasons than just the weather (although you can't understate how great it is to be in a warm climate with fresh air at this time of year). It feels like a west coast city, with a laid-back attitude, active lifestyle and vibrant café culture.

Neighbourhood after neighbourhood is packed with bars, restaurants and clubs. Plus, the streets are impressively clean and although we all know there are serious security issues in the region, there isn't a palpable sense of anxiety in this leisurely city.

Lots more about Israel in coming weeks in Star Travel.