Days 10 and 11: Haifa, the North and the current situation.
We had a leisurely morning Wednesday before heading to the airport for a flight north to Haifa. Upon arriving at the airport for our trip on a small Israir turbo-prop, we learned that two Israeli soldiers had been kidnapped on the Lebanese border by Hezbollah terrorists. We were told that our flight had been diverted to Tel Aviv as the Israeli air force had restricted use of the airspace in the north.
So, we arrived at a small airport in Tel Aviv and boarded a bus for the hour trip to Haifa.
Haifa is a stunningly beautiful city. Our hotel, located at the top of the Carmel looked out over the city down below, the beautiful Bahai Temple and the port. In fact, ironically, we could look all the way north to Rosh Pina … a wonderful sea grotto on the Lebanese border. Obviously, our plans had changed and we were not going to make it there.
We took a brief walking tour of Haifa stopping at an overlook to talk about the city. From there, as we were listening to Hillel, our guide, we could hear the shelling going on just twenty five miles north.
Thursday morning we arose and boarded the bus to Acco, a very ancient coastal city a few miles north of Haifa. While aware of the news, we felt confident that we would be fine as we were still over twenty miles from the fighting in Lebanon.
We spent an uneventful morning touring this town whose walls have seen so much history. Here we are visiting an absolutely amazing Tunisian synagogue, every wall covered in mosaic tiles, 7 silver ark doors, 30 Sephardic scrolls, all lovingly dedicated and painstakingly created by the members of this synagogue.
Acco was an ancient Christian Crusader fort and capital of the Crusaders in the Holy Land. This was the point of arrival for many Christian pilgrims who came to make the 3 month pilgrimage to holy sites. (Only 50%, we were told, lived to make the return journey.)
Later on, an Arab ruler of Acco, repelled Napoleon Bonaparte’s attempt to add the Holy Land to his empire.
The British would later use this fortress as an infamous prison. Here they famously hung 8 members of the Irgun and Lechi. We saw the reconstructed prison wall where Menachem Begin and his Irgun compatriots had exploded a truck full of dynamite in order to free their imprisoned colleagues.
We had an entertaining tour of a famous Turkish bath, (no longer in operation unfortunately) … and then enjoyed a lunch of hummus, pita and such at a small Arab kiosk in the city.
From there we departed in the early afternoon for Tzfat. On the way we passed many Arab villages. We were told that Arab Israelis actually outnumber, Jewish Israelis in the north. We climbed the mountains through beautiful JNF forests towards Tzfat. Just before arriving in Tzfat we passed Mt. Meron, where the great Rabbi Hillel is buried; and where, the Orthodox take their boys, on Lag b’Omer for their first haircut at three years old. On the top of Mt. Meron is a new Israeli air force base, which Hezbollah had unsuccessfully tried to hit with a Ketushah rocket. We passed the smoke from the burning forest where the rocket had hit. It was our first indication of what we were about to encounter.
As we drove up the last incline towards Tzfat, where the mystic Rabbi Luria had developed the mystic practice of Kabbalah, we were passed by and ambulance, police care and news van … all with sirens blaring away. We entered Tzfat to find a traffic jam and our way to the artist colony that we had all so looked forward to visiting, blocked. Our bus driver David, (a George Clooney look alike) opened his door to speak to the policeman and our guide Hillel, commanded him, “Okay, we’re going to Tiberias.”
We were later to find out that the rocket that landed in Tzfat (the first time in 30 years that the city had come under any fire) arrived there just minutes before us. Likewise, (and ironically), another rocket or two hit one of the Arab villages we had just driven through.
It was, needless to say, a rather tense situation. But, everyone handled it with great poise. We got out of the area as quickly as possible, singing Jewish songs along the way. And what to do to calm edgy nerves? We headed to the Yarden winery in the lower Golan. There we learned about the growing of grapes and the production of wine that is both quality and kosher.
After a demonstration we all joined together in tasting … yep I mean ALL … well not the younger kids … but the older kids for sure.
Then we headed down and around the Sea of Galillee (the Kineret). The scenery is quite beautiful. Here are some of the oldest Jewish kibbutzim in the resettlement of Israel that began in the 1890s. We passed fields that had to be farmed at night to avoid the shooting of Syrian gunmen who sat on the top of the hills overlooking the Kineret.
Arriving at Decks Restaurant we boarded a boat for a short trip around the lake. Many of the ladies joined together in a little belly dancing with our guide Hillel’s wife. Then we all joined in some Israeli dancing and some much needed releasing of energy.
This was followed by a wonderful dinner that included a fireworks tribute to the ‘brave’ travelers from Southern California who had made their way through the rocket attacks … and later on a dessert tribute to all of our Bar and Bat Mitzvah children of the last year, including our youngest Bar Mitzvah, Milton Cohen (85) who will celebrate a re-Bat Mitzvah on Sunday morning.
While enjoying our dinner we discovered that a rocket or two had hit Haifa. At that point it was determined that we were returning to Haifa only to pack our bags and move to Tel Aviv.
We arrived in Tel Aviv about 1.30 a.m. – tired but relieved to be out of harms way. While it is not an experience we would wish on anyone, we all came away with a much greater appreciation of just what it means to live in this country …. Living under continual threat from your neighbors, from terrorists, etc. It is difficult for us all to watch the news and know that the picture they are giving is not the whole story … or even always an unbiased view. It has made many of us angry and frustrated. But our experiences have created a cadre of strong advocates for this country and what it stands for.
Tomorrow: Day 11, Shopping and Shabbat in Tel Aviv.
