FROM THE GOLAN HEIGHTS TO EILAT. USEFUL ADVICE FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO SEE ISRAEL IN A NEW WAY
FROM THE GOLAN HEIGHTS TO EILAT. USEFUL ADVICE FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO SEE ISRAEL IN A NEW WAY!
Israel is a special country, I just can’t pass by and not share useful tips to make your trip more memorable and unbanal - being banal in Israel is unforgivable. Unfortunately, the offers of travel agencies in Israel are not original, so if you do not have the courage to explore the country on your own, do your best to diversify your ready-made tour as much as possible!
If you read reviews about Israel and have not yet decided whether to go to Israel, read Leon Juris' Exodus - this is a book, after reading which it is impossible not to go to Israel; Moreover, there is such a feeling of love for a country where you have never been, that you begin to feel Israel as almost your second homeland.
And if you have already decided on a trip - congratulations, you made the right decision!
Avoid the advice of two categories of people who were in Israel, and do not consider them experts:
1) these are tourists who bought a one-day air tour from Turkey, flew to Israel, visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and Bethlehem mixed with a diamond exchange and returned back to Turkey. Such people say later: we were in Israel, there is nothing to do there, we looked at everything in 1 day, what are you going to do there for 2 weeks?
2) These are guests who came to Israel to their relatives, firstly, probably in a small city, and secondly, completely dependent on their hosts, who will take them to the nearest resort / historical place on the weekend or buy a one-day excursion to Jerusalem.
Israel is such a multifaceted country, so unlike other countries in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, where there is something to do not only for 2 weeks, but also for the next 3 trips of 2 weeks. Traveling a lot, to be honest, I thought that it was already difficult to surprise me, but this fertile land combines the fullness of tourist happiness, from which side you look at a vacation: and beautiful resorts on 3 seas; and successive and nowhere repeating landscapes and cities; and an abundance of souvenirs and quality goods for shopping; and original culture; and a colorful mixture of peoples and religions; and holy places! Oh, how many countries of the world are hard at work on their tourist self-identification and come up with funny slogans, such as “Cyprus. Island of Aphrodite” and building their advertising campaign on an event that has not even happened in history! Meanwhile, the Israelis are conserving the most interesting places for future generations of archaeologists, so that they can bring some sensation to the world! Something, but Israel has more than enough archaeological sensations and tourist attraction! We are accustomed to consider Rome and Athens the capitals of the ancient world, but against the backdrop of the history of Israel with its archaeological finds of ancient civilizations, Greece and Italy even somehow get lost. . .
Before the trip, you need to clearly understand one thing - read EVERYTHING and prepare, "as you should", it will not work for the trip! I tried, half a year was spent on elementary things (but I personally needed it - I was traveling with my mini-group). If you are one of those who carefully read guidebooks, surf the entire Internet and read all the reviews - really - relax!
1. HISTORY YOU WILL NOT REMEMBER: this is not Europe for you with semi-wild tribes –> Christianity –> Middle Ages –> revival. The history of Ancient Israel is, consider, the complete Bible, then 2000 years of conquests and change of cultures and civilizations. Plus, a new history before and after 1948, which is interesting even in itself.
2. YOU WILL NOT READ ALL THE REVIEWS - a lot of people have visited Israel. But if you do, sort out those who describe hotels and prices on 3 pages, and those who were in Israel on day trips. This is not your case.
3. YOU WILL NOT REMEMBER THE ENTIRE BIBLE at the right moment when the guide will tell you which battles took place on which field. Better vice versa, visually memorize places and you will remember them later, reading the Bible.
4. ALL THE BOOKS WRITTEN ABOUT THE JEWISH PEOPLE before the trip you will not re-read either - the Jewish theme is one of the most interesting and powerful in modern books, articles, magazines and Internet articles. At the end of the review, I provide links to books and films that really amazed me and I am glad that I read them before I got to Israel.
5. GUIDES - I'm not even sure if it's worth buying them - none of the three popular Russian publications came in handy for me. Israel is presented there somehow one-sidedly: the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is painted on 15 pages, and those places that are really interesting and interesting to everyone are not even mentioned. I'm afraid that many fans of inquisitive active trips, having bought such guidebooks, think about whether it is worth going there and whether there is anything in Israel besides the Dead Sea, Eilat and Jerusalem with the already mentioned Church of the Sepulcher. I repeat that, probably, the amazing book of Leon Uris "Exodus" can become the best guide! And I also want to say thanks to Leonid Keller for his article "Piece of Old Jerusalem" - this is the best essay I have read on the Internet. Read in one breath! Be sure to print it out and take it with you!
I challenge you to get to know Israel the way it deserves! Israel is not only the sea, it is not only 3 temples in Jerusalem, it is not only the standard excursion programs offered by our travel agencies!
TIPS FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS: when packing your suitcase, try to avoid beige, gray, white and black colors, otherwise you will generally get lost in the photographs against the background of ancient walls and crowds of beige and white tourists. Ideal in all places look bright shades of pink, blue, turquoise, orange, purple.
ADVICE FOR PARENTS TO GASTRONOMIC NEWS:
• Don't pass by Israeli fast food - even if the signs are vague, felafel and shwarma are almost everywhere. So: passing by felafel is simply a crime! This is a local specialty, very interesting, hearty and inexpensive - fried brown vegetarian balls with spices. Each time you can take different fillers in the pita - and you will get a new dish. You will see a bright orange mango amba sauce - feel free to ask to pour it into pita, delicious!
• Pay attention to the beige mashed pasta at your breakfasts in the hotel, laid out on plates - this is hummus, which is spread on bread. After 2 weeks in Israel, you start to wonder, how are we going to live at home in Novosibirsk without him?? ? Also in the hotel and in the street fast food there is "shakshuka" - a hot dish of tomatoes, onions, eggs and white bread, vaguely resembling very spicy scrambled eggs or scrambled eggs. There is even a restaurant called “Doctor Shakshuka” in the Jaffa flea market area!
• Meat in all variations and even sausage - an incomparable pleasure in terms of taste and freshness. Thanks to the kosher rules for slaughtering animals, checking their health and processing in Israel, you can temporarily turn off the memories of TV horror stories about the quality of meat and sausages in Russia! I don’t talk about fish at all - make it the main dish when ordering lunch / dinner.
• Self-made yogurt ice cream can be called one of the attractions: you never know what the result will be. Probably, it is considered that it is more useful than usual, because it turns out to be non-tarry. Where: next to the usual ice cream, which is placed in a jar or cone, there is a whole display case with frozen pieces of fruits, berries, nuts, seeds, muesli, white and dark chocolate, and a bunch of unidentified trinkets. How to order: choose the size of the jar, name all the ingredients in the display case that you want to see in your ice cream. Next, the machine mixes it all with yogurt ice cream and it turns out... what it turns out. My most delicious variation was bananas, peaches, muesli and dark chocolate. The most tasteless - from watermelon-melon-kiwi. Thought it. . .
• Pastry is beyond description, both traditional Arabic baklava and European buns, donuts, rolls. In Tel Aviv, there is a Roland chain bakery on Allenby and in the Azrieli shopping center. Their roll with poppy seeds is SOMETHING unearthly!
• Freshly squeezed juices - as usual - yummy! Israeli citrus fruits are worth including in your daily tourist street snack and drink! And fruit mixes are also the highest score (pieces of oranges, pineapples, bananas and tropical fruits whipped in a blender). A very large variety of interesting soft drinks in bottles and jars! For example, banana-strawberry nectar and cold pomegranate tea.
• The final touch is wine. Read about it in advance and decide what you will drink in Israel and what you will bring with you. Wine from the ancient country of winemaking, where the logo of both the Ministry of Tourism and the Carmel winery is two little men carrying a huge vine - Caleb and Joshua - this, whatever you say, is a wonderful gift with meaning! In 2008, the influential American magazine Wine Spectator published a long article about wine in Israel, which ended with the statement that "Israel produces world-class wines. " A funny case: we saw in the hotel that by Saturday they had opened a special bottle of wine for their employees, and so it became interesting what kind of ritual Shabbat wine that we had not tried yet, that we went to the supermarket and bought ourselves bottles with the same label with big red bunches! At the airport, as usual, they asked for a long time what kind of wine, where they bought it, how many bottles - 15 minutes were lost, and already at home in Novosibirsk it turned out that we had brought 100% natural grape juice in a beautiful wine bottle !! ! Learn Hebrew, dear, or at least ask for help in the supermarket so as not to carry heavy bottles of grape juice with you for a thousand miles!
• The so-called ice-shakes - thick drinks of different flavors swirling with crushed ice - have been called into question. I took banana and coconut - well, unbearably icy... Try it, maybe you will like it!
ADVICE TO PARENT SHOPPING:
Israelis themselves love shopping and really appreciate good service, so there is a very friendly atmosphere in the stores, making shopping in Israel is a pleasure. Many sellers speak Russian, and almost everyone speaks English. What to buy for a gift to friends and relatives? And what is this, unbanal, in addition to magnets and T-shirts, what will remind Israel and what is not found in other places?
• You will find a huge number of stylish souvenirs in Jewish stores: the menorah menorah is a symbol of the state of Israel, a mezuzah for your front door with a verse from Deuteronomy 6 inserted inside (you will meet mezuzahs of various forms on absolutely all front doors in Israel, even hotel room! ), signs with a blessing for the house in Russian, English or Hebrew, crazy beautiful ceramic lacquered red pomegranates, elegant Shabbat tablecloths, glasses for wine and communion, figurines on biblical themes. Considering that in recent years I have not bought frankly pagan souvenirs, masks, magnets, so as not to clutter up the spiritual atmosphere of my home and avoid the curses heaped on them, in Israel one simply feels dizzy from such a wide selection of "clean" souvenirs and gifts - in no other country The world has never seen such diversity!
• Very beautiful Mogen Dovids - six-pointed stars of David, especially in jewelry!
• Jewelry is a separate issue: both those who are going to buy precious and semi-precious stones and those who love jewelry will not be disappointed: very stylish little things that will definitely make an impression! Pay attention to the stands of silver jewelry "Magnolia" (available in almost all shopping malls in Israel). These are inexpensive and elegant things with different types of stones and simply made of silver, which are exported by many countries of the world, but, it seems, not yet to Russia.
• I advise you not to take a swimsuit with you - in Israel it simply blows the roof from the abundance and beauty of both inexpensive and branded designer models (and Israeli swimwear is valued throughout Europe, and here, in Novosibirsk, they are sold at prices 5 times more expensive than Eilat or Tel -Avivsky). One of the good shops in Tel Aviv is at the beginning of Allenby Street on the right side if you walk from the embankment. In Eilat, swimwear is everywhere.
• Dead Sea creams - they say that the prices in the Dead Sea and in Eilat (which is considered a duty-free zone) are the same, our guide even advised us to buy everything in any of the Tel Aviv pharmacies, so buy where there will be more time. It is very profitable to buy sets and creams according to the 5 + 1.10 system for specials. price, etc. , since these 5 and 10 may include different creams from the same manufacturer. Our guide did not take us to the Ahava factory, where most tourists usually go - it is quite hyped and costs much more, so it makes sense to try other brands that the Israelis themselves use. I was very satisfied with my purchases: the difference in effect between the usual Dead Sea cream and good Loreal or Yves Rocher creams is amazing. If in doubt what to bring to your friends and relatives - stop your choice on the cream - their joy will know no bounds.
• I also want to pay attention to hats. Yes, do not be surprised - hats. Since in Israel a religious married woman must cover her head, the interest in hat fashion never fades - this enables craftswomen to make such amazing and elegant models that even we, who are rather indifferent to this accessory, go to the store on the street. HaMelekh George V (King George) in Jerusalem (this is the very center, the intersection with the Ben Hilel pedestrian street), could not leave without a purchase! These are classic hats, and something similar to berets, all made of very beautiful materials, with handmade ornaments and decorations - words cannot describe. One thing is for sure - if you take it on, you won't be able to take it off! An absolutely unearthly woman will look at you from the mirror and say: “You must take it! ”.
• And, as I already mentioned, you should take wine, olive oil and spices, ground Bedouin coffee with cardamom (for example, from the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem or from the Carmel market in Tel Aviv) for yourself and for gifts! If parting with fellafel is a sad moment for you, buy spices for it in the market - the seller will mix several types of unfamiliar spices in the right proportion in front of you. At home, having bought chickpeas (chickpeas) at the market from Central Asian comrades, you can easily find a recipe on the Internet and... amaze your family with such an exotic and so familiar dish!
• "The Secret of the Company": if you suddenly somehow refrain from souvenir shopping in Jerusalem....uh, is it real? If you stay in Tel Aviv before your flight, head straight to the Arab flea market in Jaffa: without even haggling, you will buy everything at prices 60% lower than in tourist places, but if you haggle....Everything is there: from magnets, Judaica, T-shirts to stylish jewelry, vases, stoles and things.
BRIEFLY ABOUT MY TOUR TO ISRAEL
Our tour was called "The Author's Tour of the Biblical Sites of Israel". We visited places such as the Golan Heights (borders with Syria and Lebanon), the Sea of Galilee region, the Biblical nature park Neot Kdumim, where we planted trees as a group www. neot-kedumim. org. il, Jaffa, Nazareth, Armageddon, Haifa, Muhrak. More than usual, we looked at Jerusalem and were delighted with the tunnels of the Temple Mount and the light and music performance at the Tower of David, finishing the tour at the Dead Sea. More details of the tour program can be seen on the website of the company "Olympia-Reisen-Siberia". But we did the whole program at such a frantic pace (only thanks to the mobility of our group of 11 people and the experience of our guide Emma) that I'm not sure if everything can be repeated if you go on your own.
If you do not live in Siberia, then to organize such a tour, contact the host company in Jerusalem, which organized our trip - Rejwan. As an employee in the field of tourism, I can say that I was amazed at the clarity and creativity of the company's employees. I will be happy to share contacts, write! I am delighted with the work of our guide Emma Edelstein, who put her whole soul into the work. I am amazed by her erudition and I am sure that in no other country in the world does the work of a guide require such dedication and good memory as in Israel! One story of this country is worth something! As Leon Juris writes about Israel in Exodus: "A small country, every inch of whose land is soaked in glory and blood. " By the end of the tour, when everyone had to make sure that each biblical event has its own geographical coordinate and it suddenly became so natural, one participant even asked the question: “I didn’t understand, have we already been to the Garden of Eden or are we just going to go? ” Eh, now the borders of Israel will expand to Iraq, then you will have to show the Garden of Eden! : -)
Further, those of us who stayed for the second week went on our own to Eilat on the Egged company regular bus, and in the same way, after 5 days, we arrived in Tel Aviv, where the last participants of the tour left us. The four of us left with friends, we once again went to Jerusalem on our own and calmly walked around Tel Aviv and Jaffa.
YOUR INDEPENDENT TRIP IN ISRAEL (WITHOUT A CAR RENTAL)
Tourist buses often fly past wonderful places for one reason only - there is not a minute for an extra stop. There is still a special joy in not living according to a schedule during your vacation and choosing the places and times of visits yourself! I do not consider myself an expert on Israel, but I dare to offer you my vision of an ergonomic planning of an independent trip, easily feasible by ordinary tourists without any special experience of independent travel, which would cover the most interesting places with minimal costs and maximum freedom. Hotels and insurance can be pre-purchased from a travel agency or booked online, to be sure to avoid any unpleasant surprises associated with crowded hotels during Jewish holidays or during major events, exhibitions and symposiums.
You will need to stock up on good maps (at least visit the tourist offices in Israel), but be prepared for the fact that working with them is somewhat similar to linguistic quizzes. I liked how one journalist wrote about this: “Israeli geographical features are difficult to find on the map. Half simply do not, others, on the contrary, have a dozen names - old, new, Jewish, Arabic, secular and biblical. But a trip without adventure is, really, just money down the drain!
Traveling on your own without a rental car will give you the opportunity to appreciate the excellent work of the intercity buses of the Egged company. It will be possible to plan all transfers in advance by finding out prices and schedules on the website. For popular long-distance routes, such as the Dead Sea-Eilat and Eilat-Tel Aviv, it is better to book and redeem tickets in advance by calling the company's phones (on the Russian-language line) and paying with a credit card. The password that you will be told will allow you to get on the bus, giving the driver only the password, or print tickets in a special machine. Very convenient and inexpensive! It is also a pleasure to travel on a modern air-conditioned train from Tel Aviv to Haifa or Akko.
Attention: Intercity trips and outings from Tel Aviv are best done by train from the Ha-Shalom Central Station or by bus from the nearby Terminal 2000 / Arlozorov bus station (everything is much easier here than in the dimensionless Tel Aviv central bus station).
Taxis in Israel are everywhere at an affordable price, and if there are three or four of you, it is generally cheaper to take a taxi rather than a bus. I noticed that when the drivers offered to go off the meter, the amount turned out to be the same - apparently, they just wanted to earn extra money by the checkout, but not at the expense of tourists. Well done. But for your peace of mind, it’s still better to turn on the taximeter! Exceptions were cases in tourist places: there taxi drivers work without a meter at their “branded rates” for 10-20 shekels more (Taxi rank at the Jaffa Gate of the old city of Jerusalem, taxis at the exits from the central bus stations of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, railway station and Arlozorov bus station in Tel Aviv). If you don’t want to overpay in principle, step back 20 meters and stop an ordinary taxi, and if you are with luggage, put up or bargain! Or rather, on the contrary, first bring down the price, and then put up with the fact that it is still 5-10 shillings higher : -)
So, if you are going for the first time during the swimming period in the Mediterranean Sea (May-October), then the optimal program for 14 days, balanced in terms of sea holidays and excursions, may look like this: 4 nights in Tel Aviv (TLV) /3 nights in Jerusalem/2 nights at the Dead Sea/ 4 nights in TLV:
1. Arrival in Tel Aviv. Book an excursion to the Galilee on the 4th day immediately at the hotel. In the evening, be sure to take a walk along the promenade!
2. In the morning go to the Carmel market - feel the flavor of the Middle East, and spend the day at sea!
3. Full day trip to Haifa by train from HaShalom Central Station (opposite the bus Terminal 2000-Arlozorov, tickets can not be bought in advance, trains leave frequently, 27 school hours) In Haifa: walk around the German colony and drive to the top of Carmel, from where the "perfect Bahai gardens" (Yefe Nof St. ) begin - excursions are held every hour. I strongly advise you to extend the tour and stop by ancient Akko, mentioned in Acts in connection with his visit by the Apostle Paul (at that time it was called Ptolemais). It's 20-30 min by bus 262/272 from Haifa (departure every 10 min, 16 school hours). You can return to TLV by train directly from Akko, but it is better to look at the exact departure time in advance on the Israil website or buy a ticket back in TLV. In Akko, the first thing to do is to visit the Tourist Office in front of the Jezzar Pasha Mosque to buy a good card and a combined ticket for visiting attractions. Nowadays Akko is known for its fish restaurants and walks along the ancient ramparts, the underground city of the Crusaders and the caravanserai. The old city is full of surprises, stroll through a real Arab market and buy what you have never tried - black cumin energy cookie squares, fig cookies, fatair cheese and wild spinach puffs - at Abuk Qahir sweets. In the Hassan Taha shop: Arabic sweets, caramelized nuts, pink soft Turkish delight in powder, fresh halva, puff baklava with pistachios. At the baker Barzek Jihan, you can try delicious Druze pita with soft labaneh cheese and olive oil, as well as sambusak puff pastries with cheese and zatar (hyssop). Bader-Bader, the cap-wearing guy from Beit Keliya's "roasting house" roasts coffee beans, and you can immediately taste his coffee, either as it is or with cashews, walnuts, pistachios or ginger added to the beans. Try homemade hummus at Bashar(Osman)’s hummus place. Hamam-Basha / Turkish Baths (12 schools) - the project of this interactive museum in Akko was so liked by the Turkish ambassador that he asked permission to take over the experience, but he was refused. For lunch / dinner, go to any of the following restaurants: Oudeh Brother, Abu Christo near the lighthouse (there is a terrace overlooking the sea), Uri Buri (a more expensive restaurant where special people come to eat from other cities on weekends) or just a small bakery on Saladin Street!
To the attention of women: Medieval Acre is charming, but women, without men, even alone or in a group, attract too much attention of the Arab population in the labyrinths of the old city, especially after dark! Return and overnight in TLV.
4. Organized excursion to Galilee. Since all interesting places are dispersed relative to the lake, it will be very difficult to find and visit everything when traveling on your own without a car. Taking a guided tour in this case is the easiest and most enjoyable way out (preferably with a boat ride on the lake)! Overnight in TLV.
5. Transfer to Jerusalem from the bus station "Terminal 2000-Arlozorov" (Departure every 30 minutes, you can not take tickets in advance, approx. 19sh). Check-in at the hotel in Jerusalem. See Jerusalem program below.
6 and 7. Jerusalem.
8. In the morning departure to Ein Bokek (Dead Sea) from the central station of Jerusalem. Warn the driver in advance about which hotel to stay next to (there are bus stops every 200m).
9. Ein Bokek and sea holidays. If you really want to visit the Massada fortress, book a tour immediately upon arrival at the hotel.
10. Moving Ein Bokek - Tel Aviv. Order tickets in advance and wait for the bus at any stop in the direction of TLV.
11. TLV. In the morning the sea, in the afternoon - to Jaffa by taxi (if you live not very close to it). Lunch at the Aladdin restaurant overlooking the sea and the skyscrapers of Tel Aviv. Walk along the ancient port and along the narrow old streets. Try to guess in such a way as to return to TLV on foot at sunset / at dusk (about 30-40 minutes on foot if you live in the Allebi St. area). Get great pleasure from walking along the promenade and from the beautiful view of the evening / night Tel Aviv!
12. TLV and the sea
13. TLV and the sea, and do not take the trouble to make a trip in the opposite direction today - towards Jaffa at sunset (and you can already go back by taxi). You will be rewarded in full! Night Jaffa is a fairy tale!
14. Departure from TLV.
If the trip falls on November - April, or if in any case you want to go to the Red Sea, then after the 9th day the program is as follows:
10. Ein Bokek - Eilat (also by regular bus, tickets - in advance, approx. 50sh)
11 & 12 – Eilat
13. Eilat - Tel Aviv (by regular bus, tickets - in advance, approx. 70sh)
14. Departure from TLV.
(Total we book 4 nights in Tel Aviv (TLV) / 3 nights in Jerusalem / 2 nights at the Dead Sea / 3 nights in Eilat / 1 night in TLV before departure).
If you are visiting Israel for the second time and have already seen all the standard main attractions that are included in most programs, try this one:
1. Arrival in TLV and overnight in Haifa.
2. Trip to mystical Safed (bus)
3. Trip to Akko (bus or train)
4. Moving to Jerusalem (bus)
5. and 6. Jerusalem.
7. Transfer by bus from Jerusalem to the sea where you want to relax and for any number of days (Dead, Red - Eilat or Mediterranean - TLV).
TIPS BY CITIES AND REGIONS
This is the only place where an independent excursion program, unless you are in a car, is difficult. As I wrote earlier, it is better to book a full-day excursion to Galilee with a group and a guide, and preferably with a boat ride on the lake - this is if you have enough sights related to the life of Jesus and concentrated around the lake. Oddly enough, I remember most of all the boat rides on the lake and those moments when, when visiting churches, I had the opportunity to go to the lake itself, take off my shoes and stand in the water: at these moments, other tourists disappeared from sight, you were transported 2000 years ago and remained alone with the Jewish people, with the fishermen, with the Sermon on the Mount and 2 loaves and 5 fish. . .
If you want to see more, you can buy a tour that includes a detailed visit to the Galilee, which, for example, we had. In addition to the Christian places of the Lake of Gennesaret, we visited the famous Golan Heights on the border with Syria, the Dan National Reserve with the remains of the 4000-year-old city of the same name described in the Bible on the border with Lebanon, with a visit to Kibbutz Neot Mordechai, a silverware factory in the city of Katzrin (very cheap and sooo beautiful! ), with baptism in the Jordan, Nazareth, Mukhraka (the place where the Prophet Elijah dealt with 450 prophets of Baal) and Armageddon - the place of the last battle between Good and Evil.
Nazareth has its own special flavor: firstly, an Arab city with digital street names (try it, find a house at the intersection of 6647th and 5478th streets! ) - and this is such a big difference from neat Jewish cities! Secondly, the Basilica of the Annunciation with mosaic paintings of the images of the Virgin Mary, which were presented to the basilica by various Catholic countries - you should definitely look there, at least as a museum. Well, where else can you see the Japanese Virgin Mary with narrow eyes and in a kimono, about the same Korean, Ethiopian (written off from a UFO), American (in an evening dress on the catwalk) and the one that struck me the most - the classic scantily clad Taika in the national head attire - in "nail extensions", and even on a snake ! ! And what is it like to look at this whole pantheon from heaven to a simple Jewish girl Miriam? : -)
In Nazareth, there was still that synagogue where Jesus went and where he read the scroll of Isaiah with prophecies about him - when the Pharisees thought that He was blaspheming and drove Him out of the city.
A few words about our hotel in Tiberias, from where we made trips to different places in the Galilee:
A good hotel, considering that Tiberias is not the most touristic region of Israel. It is not located by the lake, but since we were taken on excursions and returned for dinner in the evening, it was all the same. Food - one of the best in Israel, if you take into account the taste of the dishes - everything is very homemade and natural. Cozy halls, a swimming pool on the 2nd floor, tables by the pool in the open air, from where in the evening there is a very beautiful panorama of the city on top of the mountain. You can see very interesting tourists: Catholic groups with padres, Orthodox groups all in headscarves and with priests, Korean Christians coming to dinner with Bibles. A very touching German group danced around the pool in the evening and sang "Eveynu Shalom Aleichem" - this can only happen on the Sea of Galilee! Very nice atmosphere in this hotel!
Jerusalem is said to be one of those places that must be seen to be believed. Not a single description of this city will convey the feeling that you will feel when you arrive there! No city or place is mentioned in the Bible as often and with such love as Jerusalem. Religion, chronicles, the geography of the Holy City and the everyday concerns of the inhabitants of Jerusalem are closely intertwined here. This is probably the only place on earth that has both spiritual and real history. Instead of the words “I will go to the city”, the locals say “I will go up to Jerusalem”, just like biblical words! But all the words are meaningless - I just offer you, as it seems to me, an optimal and non-one-sided program for 3 days, which will give you a sense of belonging to Jerusalem as a resident or a dear guest, and not as an Icubator tourist - one of the million that pass in Jerusalem in Via Doloros to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and consider the program completed. And then the statistics appear: “Attraction No. 1 in Israel, according to foreign tourists, is Via Dolorosa”, I re-read this phrase 10 times, not believing in its seriousness... And this is with all the diversity that Israel - or even Jerusalem alone - can offer? A 13th-century route that Jesus never walked against real walls that witnessed events described in the Bible, such as the 2.700-year-old Hezekiah Tunnel in the City of David, or Armageddon excavating the overlapping layers of 26 civilizations? And all from the fact that time is extremely short, and there are many groups, and it is much easier to lead tourists along standard trails according to a program well rolled out for decades than trying to offer tourists something new. And I challenge you to correct these statistics!
But first, the program of your free day in Jerusalem, if you are on tour and the program includes this free day in Jerusalem! Hey, cut your shopping and aimless walking to a minimum and see what is usually not included in the traditional excursion program - you will not regret it! Even if you have a free day at the Dead Sea, in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Netanya, do not be too lazy to come to Jerusalem by regular bus! We did this program for 1 day, having arrived in Jerusalem from Tel Aviv (from the Arlozor station). Stock up on a large amount of memory in your camera - I ran out of it already when visiting the first objects, and in the absence of photo workshops on the way, I spent the whole day deleting super-pictures with tears, because it was impossible to resist further photography!
So, YOUR UNFORGETTABLE DAY IN ANCIENT JERUSALEM:
(Points 1 and 2 can be crossed out if the program falls on a Saturday! )
1. The Middle East is hard to imagine without markets. Jerusalem is no exception. Mahane Yehuda Market is the busiest and most colorful fresh food market in Jerusalem. A riot of smells, colors, shapes, interesting sellers, fuss of buyers, halva collapses, bags of spices, carts with freshly baked buns and pitas, etrog honey, circles of chocolate-covered sheep's cheese - everything you have heard and read about oriental markets minus the dirt and disorder which you won't find here. Noisy, colorful and juicy. Entrance from Agrippas street.
3. Next: Jaffa Gate, where you have probably already been with the group. At the entrance, on the left, they sell tickets for a walk along the walls - we go there! It's called "The Ramparts Walk" (16sh, keep your tickets - they can check them again at the top). It seemed to me that this is an incomparable feeling - to walk along the walls of the old city at the level of the roofs of houses. It is worth going here even just to break away from tourist groups and understand that there is only Jerusalem and you - you two, in other places of tourist crowds you will not feel this! Very, highly recommended! There are two routes: from Jaffa to Garbage Gates along the Armenian quarter and from Jaffa to Lions for about an hour and a half (or you can leave the race ahead of time at Damascus or Flower) through the Christian and Arab quarters. I advise the second route - it is much more interesting, and the views of the city, the roofs of houses and the dome of the Rock on top of solar panels and antennas are quite picturesque! In addition, in the Damascus Gate area, in the Arab part of Jerusalem, you will see a rock in the shape of a skull behind the bus station. It was her and approximately from this angle that the English captain Charles Gordon saw in 1882 and, remembering that Golgotha is translated as “skull”, “frontal place”, explored the rock and burials at its foot, which belonged to the 1st century AD, and decided that this place looks like a real Golgotha. This version is now considered more plausible than the "classical Calvary" - the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, since according to Jewish laws, the place of crucifixion and burial could not be in the city itself, but only outside its walls, which, in fact, the Gospels say (Mt 27 Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19). Our program included a visit to Gordon's Calvary, and if you manage to escape somewhere or persuade the guide to go there, then you will say thank you very much! Other names: Garden Tomb, Garden Tomb if you take a taxi. Awesome place!
4. So, we descend from the walls in the area of the Flower Gate (earlier) or the Lions Gate (later), which will allow you to go through the part of the Sorrowful Way once again). Here I allow you to get lost in the Arab old city - this is MUST, and this is a special buzz and charm! There are fewer tourists here, but more real life. Your map is with you, and the old city itself is incredibly small, so boldly step forward, look into the shops, bargain with Arab sellers until you lose your pulse. But do not bargain if you initially decided not to buy anything - this is already ugly in relation to sellers. When you get tired, take a map in your hand - you need to go to El Wad (HaGay) street and move down to the platform at the Wailing Wall, h
