Israel at 62

As we celebrated Israel's 62 years of independence last Tuesday - with parties and bar-b-que fests, here are some off-the-beaten-track facts about Israel for you to know. (Courtesy of the daily newspaper Israel Today).

People here, people there: Israel's population has grown ninefold in the past 62 years, from 873,000 Jews and Arabs in 1948 to 7.54 million today. Of these, 1.53 are Muslims, 154,500 Christians and 110,000 Druze. Forecasts are for the population to reach 10 million by 2025 (Ahmadinejad permitting).

763,600 people live in Jerusalem, while 392,500 in Tel Aviv. The most populated city per square kilometer  is Bnei Brak, with 21,003 people per square kilometer, compared with Tel Aviv's 7,577. Israel is one of the most densely populated countries, third in the world after Holland and Belgium.

Hi Mom, its me: It appears Israelis love to talk on the phone: 91% of the population has cellphones, compared with 90% of the population that has TV sets. 74% of the population has airconditioners at home while 71% has computers.

Shop till you drop: In 70% of cases, household shopping is done by women. They spend their start of their weekend break - Friday - shopping, cooking and cleaning the house. They'd much prefer to have coffee at the beach instead. More and more women choose to give birth after the age 40.

Single women beware: Above the age of 38, there are 673 men per 1,000 women, whereas until the age of 38 the ratio is 979 men per 1,000 women.  More couples marry today than in 2003 (46,448 vs 33,000) while the divorce rate remains stable at 30%.

Happy to be here: About 83% of the population says they are happy with the country and of their lives in Israel.

Photo: http://www.ritualwell.org/holidays/israeliindependenceday/index_html/picture