Nightlife and the arts
Jerusalem is not the place for exciting nightlife . If it's pubs, clubs or discos you want, then Tel Aviv is the place to be, and many Jerusalemites will take a sherut or drive to the coast for a night out. In general, and certainly in the city centre , bars are your best bet for a night out. East Jerusalem is a virtual ghost town at night, due to both pressure from Islamists and the difficulty faced in getting here by people from its West Bank hinterland on the other. Even in West Jerusalem , due to its conservative nature, you'll find that lovers of classical music are generally better served than clubbers or pop fans.

For up-to-date entertainment listings check Your Jerusalem, or the Friday supplements of Ha'Aretz (with the Herald Tribune) and the Jerusalem Post. The problem with all of these is that they tend to omit mention of anything in East Jerusalem, for which you will have to make your own enquiries: the Palestinian National Theatre and al-Kasaba Theatre, backing onto each other in al-Nuzha Street and Abu Obeida Street respectively, are good places to start. Tickets for concerts and theatres in Jerusalem can be obtained from Bimot, 8 Shamai (tel 624 0986), and Klaim, 12 Shamai (tel 625 6869).

Public talks, seminars and poetry
Public talks and lectures are a significant feature of Jerusalem life, many of them given in English. In general they're about issues only of relevance to practising Jews - many are aimed at Jewish visitors, with the intention of persuading them to "make aliyah" (immigrate), or to become more religious - but if you do practise, or want to know more about the faith, they can be very interesting. Of talks that may interest a larger audience, many are still about religion but from a wider perspective ("Science and the Bible", "Christianity and Zionism"), while others deal with subjects such as history, politics, science, trade and business. The best listing of talks can be found in the free newssheet Your Jerusalem.

If you are interested in delving more deeply into the teachings of the Jewish religion, a number of yeshivot and similar organizations run seminars and classes, sometimes open to non-Jews too. Often, the seminars are free, and some of them even tempt the lapsed back into the fold with free meals. Organizations running seminars and classes, mostly in the Old City's Jewish Quarter, include Isralight, 25 Misgav Ladakh (tel 627 4890), and Aish HaTorah, 70 Misgav Ladakh (tel 628 5666). Young Jewish tourists are invited to have free Shabbat dinner with orthodox families on Friday nights: meet outside the Jewish Student Information Centre, 5 Bet El, on Hurva Square, an hour before sunset if you are interested.

Finally, on the entertainment side of culture, Tmol Shilshom hold regular English book readings and poetry slams, the latter a fast, furious and free-for-all reading session.

Kids' activities
There aren't too many attractions in Jerusalem aimed specifically at children , but almost all attractions are half-price for kids, and places popular with the youngest generation include the Bloomfield Science Museum and, of course, the zoo. The Bloomfield also puts on story and workshop sessions on sound creation (Tues 4.30-6pm), while the Bible Lands Museum offers introductory tours to the museum for 3-4-year-olds every other Monday, and for 6-7-year-olds every Tuesday (both free, though you pay for museum entry). They also run plant study sessions in conjunction with the Hebrew University botanical garden for 9-11-year-olds (Sun 4-5.30pm). The Israel Museum holds occasional story and song sessions, and introductions to art for children, while Ticho House have a story-telling theatre (Sun 4.30pm) for 4-8-year-olds. Check before going that any given session will cater to English speakers. Th Train Theatre puts on puppet shows, especially in the school holidays, but these are in Hebrew only.