Tel Dan Nature Reserve

Gan Eden - Garden of Eden. This way to Paradise!

Tel Dan Nature Reserve is located in the Golan Heights near Mount Hermon, the tallest mountain in Israel. The Dan River is the largest and most important source of the Jordan River. Its springs provide water fed by the snow and rain on Mt. Hermon to the area. Because of its location Tel Dan is rich with plant life and animals. Within Tel Dan there is Ancient Dan which includes walls and gates and ritual sites dating back to the Neolithic Age - the beginning of the 5th millennium BCE. There is evidence that there was a city built early in the Canaanite period.

The tell is identified with the city of Laish, captured by the tribe of Dan. The tribe found it difficult to deal with the Philistines and so headed up north. "They proceeded to Laish....they rebuilt the town and settled there, and they named the town Dan, after their ancestor Dan who was Israel's son." Judges 18:27-29

Entrance to Tel Dan and next to the sign...my son Dan - no relation.

This is a must do on your next visit.

Local wildlife.

The Israelite Gate - built of three pairs of pilasters, apparently from the First Temple period (1006 - 586 BCE).

The Dan River

The Wading Pool. This is a shallow pool where everyone can wade in the cool water from one of the springs. The day we visited there was a field trip for a group of school girls. They were having a great time!
The Flour Mill was built around 150 years ago and operated on water power until 1948. The mill has two pairs of millstones.

Pistachio Lookout. Here you have a view of the reserve, the Hula Valley, the Naphtali Mountains, Mount Hermon and the Golan Heights. The lookout is named after the large Atlantic pistachio tree that grows there.

This is a remarkable reserve with so much to explore. Ancient ruins, flora, fauna, springs, a wading pool, hiking - really it is Paradise.

Amirim

Welcome to Amirim. Amirim is a vegetarian moshav in the upper Galilee about 20 minutes from Safed. WOW! This is the place to go if you want some good food, great accommodations and a spectacularly relaxing visit while you are in the Galilee.

Pardon the infomercial here but...we stayed at Zivon Guesthouse. The rooms were warm and lovely and very large each with its own kitchenette. When I entered my room there were balloons on my bed!!! I think I had the honeymoon suite. What were they thinking? We really enjoyed our two night stay and agreed that we really didn't need to see anything else after Zivon!

My front door.

Anat, the guesthouse owner loved gardening. Her roses were quite lovely and she had lemon verbena, mint and lots of other herbs planted around Zivon. We could pick them and make tea in our rooms.Outside of the room next to me where my son stayed was this swinging chair. Which, of course, we all fought to sit in. How antithetical to such a quiet and peaceful place.

The view from the porch and the swinging chair - see what I mean?

One of the better features of Zivon was the hot tub. I'm a hot tubber from way back - eat your hearts out Marcia and Chuck. This is the way down to the hot tub inside of the little cabin. The view as you can see was marvelous.
The TUBView from the tub at night.

The Ancient Seaport of Akko

Akko, on the cost of the of the Mediterranean Sea, is a mix of Crusader ruins, Gothic archways and Mosques and minarets. The Old City of Akko is charming and filled with atmosphere and history. If you ever happen upon this part of the world, Akko is a place that you must make a priority to visit.

"The origins date back to Canaanite times, but the form in which it survives today was set by the Arabs and their Crusader foes. After the Crusaders took Jerusalem in 1099, they seized Akko as their main port and lifeline back to Europe. Lost at one point to the Muslim armies under Saladin, it was regained by Richard I, the Lionheart. Crusader Akko was destroyed by the victorious Arab armies in 1291 and what can be seen today is largely an 18th century Turkish town built on the site of the old."

There was so much to do here and our time was limited. Here are just a couple of highlights from the ancient city. We didn't get to see even half of what there is to see in the Old City. Inside the Citadel and the Subterranean Crusader city.

Listening to the self guided tour.

The Story of the Last Bath Attendant...Turkish bath that is...during the Ottoman Period. The baths served as a social center where people met for rest, entertainment and banquets. An imaginary story tells the history of Akko during the period.

Old meets new
Mosque of El-Jazzar. "Akko lay semi-derelict for more than 400 years after its destruction in 1291. Dahr el-Amer and his successor, Ahmed Pasha el-Jazzar governed the Ottoman city in the second half of the 18th century. El-Jazzar was a prolific builder and among his legacy is the mosque which bears his name." A walk down through the souk to the ancient seawall netted a BIG catch.

Sunrise on the Galilee

This beautiful sunrise was over the Sea of Galilee in Tiberias. The next few days I will post photographs from places that we've visited in the past week. My son and his girlfriend have been visiting from the States. They leave this evening and then my other son and his girlfriend will be in on Friday! Lot's of travel, lots of fun.

Yesterday in Rehavia

Yesterday was Yom Ha'atsmaut in Israel. A day set aside to celebrate her independence after the UN voted to establish the State of Israel in 1948. This year was the 60th anniversary which was marked in a very grand fashion. As Yom Zikaron - Remembrance/Memorial Day -ended at sunset on Wednesday, Yom Ha'atsmaut began in the same breath. Fireworks began about 11:00 pm and there were parties and singing that went on into the wee hours of the night. In the morning at Gan Sacher, a park near me, the bar-b-ques were already beginning. At noon an air show flew right over my apartment building.
I've talked about my neighborhood, Rehavia, in previous blogs. It's a great place with narrow, tree lined streets and geraniums, roses, honeysuckle in full bloom. Rehavia is an older neighborhood where Hebrew Gymnasia, the first school to educate boys and girls together was established in 1929. The neighborhood has quite a history. The home of the second and longest running president of Israel, Yitzhak ben Tzvi is preserved a few blocks away from me.

Each Yom Ha'atsmaut Rehavia closes off its streets and treats the residents from all over Jerusalem to a street fair. At different intersections men and women were dressed in period costume and dancing, singing and telling the stories of Israel and of the neighborhood. There was music, street vendors, antiques dealers, cotton candy, candy apples and lots of good fun. The day was stunning and people were joyful. The Israeli flag was flying almost everywhere you looked.

An antique Egged bus!
The day ended with a spectacular sunset. Happy Anniversary Israel.

Israel Celebrates 60 Years

Yom HaZikaron, Day of Remembrance

Yom HaZikaron, Day of RemembranceToday in Israel the memory of her fallen soldiers is being observed. It is quite a mournful day as Israel remembers the men and women of the Israeli Defense Forces and Israeli Security Services and victims of terrorist action who have lost their lives. It is Memorial Day here. At 11:00 am a siren sounded for two minutes throughout the country. Traffic stops no matter where you are in remembrance of the fallen. It is not like Memorial Day in the United States filled with parades and bar-b-ques, it is filled with prayer and reflection.

I attended a ceremony at the local high school in Rehavia which is not far from my house. Although in Hebrew, parts of the service I could understand. We stood when the siren wailed the two minute salute and then recited Kaddish Yatom - a special prayer that praises God. Kaddish is said during a time of mourning for people who have lost loved ones. A torch was lit and the ceremony began.

The high school has been functioning for 99 years and during that time 137 individuals, students and teachers have lost their lives. Their names were read individually according to the period in which they lost their lives. The students read poetry and sang songs. It was quite moving. The service ended with Hatikva, the Israeli National Anthem. Hatikva means 'the hope', the hope of Jewish people to return to their homeland.

I am not an advocate for war but I do believe that we should honor those whose lives have been lost in defense of his or her country. As the names were being read I heard my last name among them. My name is not a common one here and so when I heard it, it jarred me. I thought of my own children and it reminded me that the fallen soldiers were so young with so much potential and hope for a nation.

In Israel every young person, after high school does military service for three years. Everyone. I'm sure that families are prepared in the corners of their minds for the very real possibility of losing their loved one. The reality is, they could..and many do.

Let us remember all of the people who have died, no matter what country that they are defending, for in their death they have given a nation and life to us.

Israel in Bloom

Almost anytime in Israel there is something blooming. But now, it's pretty extraordinary and I have a feeling that the best is yet to come. God's love just keeps getting better and better.

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