Ein Hod
Ein Hod is an artists village just south of Haifa. Strolling through this quaint little town you'll find lots of flowerbeds, sculptures, and open workshops (go earlier in the day for more options). Our first stop was a pottery studio, run by an American, because she had the best signage. We were directed to her studio almost as soon as we entered the town. We also visited her husband's antique book shop and Ms. Silver's photography shop. Ms. Silver is a celebrated expert on Israeli photography, unfortunately we did not have much time with her as she was running out to catch a concert in Tel Aviv. We had dinner at the Ein Hod Cafe where they were having Indian night, a pleasant break from hummus and pita. The community is very friendly and relaxed, and seems like a very pleasant place to live. Also, the cats roaming around Ein Hod are the plumpest that I've encountered around Israel.
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| Ein Hod Cafe |
Tiberias
Tiberias is one of the 4 holy cities in Israel, it is situated on the Sea of Galilee (more like a lake, if you ask me). The Sea of Galilee is important to the Christian faith because it's where Jesus did much of his ministry and performed miracles, like walking on water. Modern day Tiberias is a large sprawling city. The Old City is home to a few churches. It has a nice promenade alongside the water with a host of restaurants and souvenir shops. Other than that and the tombs we passed by, there was not much to see. But the drive along the water into and out of Tiberias is beautiful as you see the city sprawling up into the hill from the sea.
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| Sea of Galilee, as seen from Tiberias |
Nazareth
Nazareth is Jesus's hometown. There we visited the Basilica of Annunciation. This is where the Angel Gabriel told Mary that she would bear God's child. The basilica was beautiful inside and out. Outside, the white stone walls rose majestically and the Crusader flag blew proudly in the wind. Inside, there were mosaics from around the world, depicting the annunciation, as well as beautiful stained glass windows.
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| Basilica of Annunciation |
Qatzrin and the Zavitan River
The following morning we headed out early to Qatzrin, the capital of Golan, for our hike. The drive through the Galilee into the Golan Heights is beautiful, and the landscape changes within the blink of an eye. One second you can be looking at lush greenness, and the next you're looking at desert. My poor navigating led us on a detour north, but we got to Qatzrin in due time. We passed by the small city of Qatzrin in search for the Zavitan River. Upon finding the trail head, we hiked along the river. Enroute to the deep pools we encountered interesting flora and fauna. We saw cacti next to leafy trees. We saw long streams of ants carrying things 100 times their size. We even saw a large family of what looked like gophers dash across the path in front of us! The trail was long and hot, so getting to the deep pools and jumping in was a relief and a lot of fun. I started out with the lower rocks and did baby jumps into the water, but after much coaxing (and watching little boys jump from much higher), I graduated to the higher ledge. From there we hiked a bit more down to the falls. The hike back to the car was hot and miserable, and we were running dangerously low on water. We were like the walking dead by the time we got to the car, and we guzzled cold water to the point of brain freeze at the nearest gas station. But we survived to tell the tale.
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| Upper Zavitan River. |
Safed
Safed (Tzfat in Hebrew) is another one of the four holy cities in Israel. It was the site of an important victory during the War of Independence and where Kaballah, Jewish Mysticism, was founded. On a Saturday afternoon, Safed is a quiet town for Shabbat. The community is predominantly Jewish, moreso than other cities in Northern Israel, because the Muslims fled during the War of Independence. You see families taking their babies for a stroll and kids playing hand-games and football by the schoolyard. Young boys lounge on the grassy hills and young girls chatter as they walk along the sleepy streets. There is a calmness that seems to have settled upon the city, and it makes me somewhat envious. In the US we put so much pressure on ourselves to constantly be productive that we constantly rush to get to some destination, never stopping to appreciate the little things in life.
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| View from Safed. You can see the Sea of Galilee in the distance. |
In the center of town, there is a large park, called the Citadel. Atop the Citadel there is a memorial to commemorate the soldiers who had lost their lives. Many (Birthright?) groups stop here to reflect and enjoy the view.
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| In memory... |
I eavesdropped on a group of Americans as their tour guide read passages from The Prince. He also shared one quote from St. Augustine that speaks to me:
People travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars;
and they pass by themselves without wondering.
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