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TourismChurch built in 1927 and decorated with Armenianceramic tiles. Some of the old Templer homes stillhave biblical inscriptions in German on their lintels.Interwoven with the architecture is the exuberant andcolorful variety of trees, flowers, hedges and creepersinviting the wondering visitor to follow one street afteranother. Even the street names tell a story adding to theGerman Colony’s mystique.StreetwiseMany of the side streets are named after Gentilesupporters of Zionism and the Jewish people. Apartfrom the French author Émile Zola, CzechoslovakianPresident Tomas Masaryk, and South African PrimeMinister Jan Smuts, a number of the streets are namedafter Britons, such as the Liberal Prime Minister DavidLloyd George, British Labour Party leader JosiahWedgewood, Colonel John Henry Patterson, commanderof the Jewish Legion in World War I and the pro-ZionistBritish general, Wyndham Deeds. Walking these streetsand piecing together why these particular personalitiesof the past were so honored to have streets named afterthem, offers the curious visitor a history lesson on thehistory of modern Israel.Corrine Devar is an English-speaking resident and anestate agent in the German Colony and neighboringBaka for over 25 years. Baka, nestled between the oldrailroad track of the German Colony - today a newlyopened railway park, where the main pedestrian pathfollows the original track and well worth a visit - andDerech Hebron, “has merged both physically andatmospherically with the German Colony,” says Devar.Situated up until 1948 on the border between JordanheldJerusalem and Israel, Baka today, like the GermanColony, is also well-known for its quant cafés and leafylanes.Hebrew is only one of many languages you hear today inthis area – the most common could even be English. Asa metaphor of the area’s rich cosmopolitan atmosphere,Devar refers to an impressive residential developmentthat she had been selling ever since it was built twentyyears previously on Lloyd George Street. A complexwith majestic arches and internal garden walkways, itruns from Derech Beit Lechem (Bethlehem Road) inBaka to Emek Refaim in the German Colony. “Thereare residents here from the UK, USA, Canada, Holland,Denmark, France and of course, Israelis.” She jokinglyKety KatavMeticulously Restored. This 1877 Templer house on RehovEmek Refaim is today the new offices of the philanthropicfoundation Keren Bracha.Cultural Landmark. The Smadar Theater founded in 1928continues to pack in the arty crowd.refers to the complex as the “United Nations”. Wherein the early days, overseas people used to purchaseproperty as holiday residences, “today most buy tosettle here. It’s such a wonderful area, well located andhas everything to offer.” Devar says many of her clientstoday are children of earlier clients and “looks forwardto selling to their grandchildren.”Residents today include bankers, investment consultants,international lawyers, those in hi-tech and industry andmany in academia and the arts.Culture Oasis“The area,” says Devar, “prides itself as being a culturalhub and it comes as no surprise that top writers andjournalists chose to live here.”Preserving its cultural heritage did not come without afight as typified in the ‘Save the Smadar’ campaign. After80 years as a place of entertainment, the famed andiconic Art Deco style Smadar Theater on Lloyd GeorgeSpring-Summer 201220