New Yorkers to stroll on Tel Aviv beach - in Central Park

New Yorkers strolling through Central Park later this month will be surprised to find the iconic park pulsating to an Israeli beat. On June 21st, truckloads of sand from Tel Aviv will be poured across sections of the park, bringing the Tel-Aviv beach to Manhattan.

During the day-long project, called "Tel Aviv Beach", "bathers" will be given popsicles and the ping-pang of racquetball will echo through the park, an experience any visitor to Tel Aviv's beaches is familiar with.

Bathers will be able to sample Israeli street food, sold from a number of food stalls set up on the transplanted sands. They will also get an earful of Israeli reggae band "Hatikva 6" and Israeli D.J. Hadar Marcus.

The project is being held in part to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Tel Aviv's founding. It is being organized by the Israeli Consulate in New York, in conjunction with the City of Tel Aviv.

The "Tel Aviv Beach" project was held earlier this month Vienna, where "bathers" were met by protestors who set up a "Gaza beach" demonstration protesting the event.

An additional "Tel Aviv Beach" in Copenhagen will be bring the sunny shores of the first Hebrew city to Scandinavia in July, where, ostensibly, sunscreen may be less of a concern.

According to organizers of the event, the laid-back, care-free atmosphere of Central Park is just like a Saturday afternoon in Tel-Aviv, all that's missing is the sand.