Golan Heights, part 2, April30

We drove down to visit Ben's cousins and visit the kibbutz a little, then we went to the kibbutz restaurant called Cowboys Restaurant, where we had a delicious lunch with all six of us, and then Ahuva's son, who is 18, stopped by to visit. We really enjoyed visiting with them and watching the horses outside the restaurant - there were about 30 of them. Like many kibbutzim, this kibbutz has guest houses and had horseback riding for guests along with the farming, and a volcanic rock quarry and electric motor manufacturing.

After lunch, we drove the a very scenic road through the Golan Heights to Sha'a Yeshuv, next to kibbutz Dafna, where there was a memorial for 73 young soldiers who died in a double helicopter crash in 1997. It was a really beautiful memorial.

We continued on the road back to Gadot to see the bunker from which the Syrians used to shoot on the kibbutzim in the valley. It was a beautiful view, and we could see how dangerous it was.

From the bunker, we drove through the east coast of the lake and stopped at a kitchen store just to please Ben. Then we went to Beit Gabriel, where the peace treaty with Jordan was signed, and we saw an exhibition of quilts. It is a beautiful center on the south side of the lake that was built with funds from Mrs. Gita Shraber, who built it in memory of her son. It has a restaurant, exhibit rooms, a movie theater and faces on the lake with beautiful flowers.

Then at the end of long and fun day, we came home. Ilana cooked a delicious meal for us before we began this blog.

Visit to Golan Heights, April 30

This morning, after a delicious breakfast with Ben's omelet and cheeses from Ilana and Rani, the four of us started out for the Golan Heights. First we went to a shop called Tamar Bakefar, which means dates in the village. It was a great shop that all kinds of herbs and spices and dried fruits and all different kinds of dates from date palms! We bought dried pears that were delicious!

Then we went up on the Golan Heights on the east side of Lake Kinneret (Lake Galilee), and we went to Kefar Haruv, which is a viewpoint called Peace looking out over the Lake. It was quite beautiful though it was a bit hazy. The important thing that Rani and Ilana wanted us to understand is how the Golan Heights under Syrian control allowed the Syrians to bomb and kill Israelis all around the Lake and in all their Kibbutzim.

Then we went to see a spring of mineral water called Mey Eden. The place was called Salukia, and it was quite lovely with water flowing over rocks into little fountains within wonderful bushes and flowers. We walked all around and enjoyed it a great deal.

After the springs we headed for Mt. Bental and Coffee Anan (Anan is cloud in hebrew), which is a play on words obviously. This mountain had on top of it, besides the coffee shop, an Israeli bunker for fighting the Syrians. We actually went through the bunker - that was very scary. There were recorded devices that told the story of the 6 day war and the Yom Kippur war in 1973. It was so beautiful to look out over all the cultivated fields of grapes and other fruits and olive trees. From the top of the mountain you could look down on Kibbutz Merom Golan, which was developed after the 6 day war and then had to be evacuated during the Yom Kippur war. After our visit to the mountain, we went down to Merom Golan, because Ben's other cousin, Ahuva, and her husband, Tato, live there!

Rosh Pina, Kibutz Gadot, Tiberias, April 29

After we left the visit, we then went to Rosh Pina a pretty town with old, stone houses, and boutique shops. It was very cute and nice. We stopped at the cafe and had coffee, coke, etc and a wonderful chocolate dessert. It was very cute, and the food was delicious.

Then we hurried to the Kibutz Gadot in order to visit before it got dark. We visited with Ilana's friends who live on the Kibutz. We walked all over and asked lots of questions. It was pretty and very interesting. It turns out that none of the kibutz's are really socialistic any more. In most of the kibutz's people live and work either on the kibutz or not, but they get paid by the kibutz and have their own property though they do not own their homes on the kibutz. This kibutz has lots of farm land and grows vegetables and fruits. It also produces lots of cheeses; runs a big guest house (64 rooms), and runs a cafeteria and laundry. There are 150 members of this kibutz and about 300 people living there. Parking is on the outside, and you walk around in between all the buildings in the kibutz. It was a wonderful visit.

From the kibutz, we drove home, but by way of Tiberias, which is right on Lake Kineret with big hotels and all.We will see more of the Lake tomorrow as well as the Golan Heights and Lebanon. We are now home and happy to relax and tell you all our story!

Now we try to have lunch, April 29

After the wineries, we looked for the sisters' restaurant in Shchenia - try to pronounce that! So Rani thought that the GPS was completely stupid and didn't follow it until Ben found the same directions on the map! Anyway, once we got there, we found out it has closed. The sisters are gone, and it is now a catering business. So then we turned around and went to an Arab restaurant in Cowcab in a gas station. It was actually next to the gas station and quite nice. Anyway, we ate a ton of delicious middle eastern food. So good! We stuffed ourselves and then went off to visit Agamon Hahula. Let me explain; it is in the Hula Valley where there used to be a big swamp that polluted the Lake Kineret: Galilee Lake. So starting in the 1950's the people started to dry out the swamp and return the area to a good natural habitat. So one can now go there and with your ticket drive a club car the 6 miles around the whole natural area and see all kinds of birds and plants and animals. It was really quite nice. We really had fun going all around and seeing the Pelicans, and Kingfishers, etc.

Haifa, Trip to Kfar Tavor, April 29

We got up early in our great hotel and had a wonderful Israeli breakfast: Israeli salad - cucumber, tomato, onions; tabouleh salad, cheese blinzes, an on and on. It was great. Then we packed up to leave and drove up the mountain to see Ben's grandmother's house. Well, it turns out that Haifa has grown just a bit in 34 years. There was incredible traffic! Anyway, we found the house, and Ben enjoyed a few moments of nostalgia, and then we got going to meet up with his cousins, Ilana and Rani, who live in Kfar Tavor, which is a small town about an hour east of Haifa pretty close to the sea of Galilee. We had a hard time when we arrived because the number of the house goes with the neighborhood instead of the street. So we had to call Rani who came out in the street to find us!

We soon left with them on our adventure. We first went to visit a winery in their neighborhood and tasted some white wines, but we didn't get a tour. It is called Tavor. Then we went next door to the marzipan museum, actually, just the store. And there we bought lots of marzipan and chocolate covered raisins. Then we visit three more wineries in neighborhoods around them, but on the way, we saw many, many olive trees - is that an orchard? - and we stopped to touch and photograph a 300 year old tree. The whole area around here is farmland for olives and wines and other fruits and vegetables. After the olive tree, the first winery was was Rimon Winery, and it is wine made of pomegranates! We never heard of that, but these folks have been doing it for eight years. They also have a winery for wine made of grapes. Well, we tasted, and I really liked the sweeter wine and the port wine, and we bought that one. Then we went to Mils winery and Ben tasted the red wines. He thought the wine was pretty good, but he didn't buy any. The third winery was a bit more difficult to find, but it had very good wine, and Ben bought it. That winery was Ben Zimra. We really had fun with those.

Daliat-el-Carmel, Ein-Hod, and Haifa, April 28

Just a bit before noon we took off for Ein Hod, but then on the way Ben decided to go to Daliyat El Carmel first because he wanted falafel for lunch. This place is Israel's largest Druze village in the mountains outside Haifa. Ben had been there before and seen the Druze in their traditional dress, had bought hand-made goods from them and eaten great food at their stands.The Druze are Arab who practice a secret religion. They wear black and white, and the men wear pantaloons. Well, we took off only to find that in the mere 34 years since he had been there, this isolated village had become totally developed and surrounded by a Arab area with tons of residential areas and lots more commercial areas. The old town itself has pretty much disappeared in he mix, and Ben was very disappointed and never got his falafel. We did see some Druze, however.

By this time it was about 1:00 in the afternoon, and we were pretty hungry. We went quickly to Ein Hod, which is an artists village also in the hills outside Haifa. There are about 135 families with homes in this village, and they all have to be artists to own a home there. We first got a bit lost and thought that this village might also be a bust, but then we found the right entry and hurried quickly to Abu Yakov, which is a very, very informal restaurant at the top of a stone amphitheater. I was a bit nervous about the food at first, but Ben convinced me to try, and I was really glad I did. We had a view from the hill out to the Mediterranean and ate the best Middle East food; Hummus, Eggplant, salad, pita, avocado, and shish kabob. It was truly delicious! After our very late, very large lunch, we walked around the village and then left to go to Haifa.

Ben went to graduate school in Engineering at the Technion in Haifa, so he was eager to revisited the places of his youth. The problem again, however, was that everything has changed! We drove into Haifa and up the the Technion and into the Technion, and Ben could not find the places where he had studied. After trying a few places, we gave up and went to our hotel, the Colony Hotel, which is right at the base of the Bahai Gardens that we planned to visit on Thursday. It is a really lovely hotel with a big, beautiful room and a jacuzzi! We were very happy. After settling in, we took a walking around the very hilly town and ended up at the Bahai Gardens, only to read that because of a religious holiday, the gardens will be closed tomorrow! Drat! We decided to drown our sorrows in a good glass of wine and some delicious desserts at the restaurant across from our hotel. We have plenty of other activities to choose tomorrow!

Caesarea, April 28

Today we left the home of Raquel and took off for Caesarea, which is about 30 minutes north along the coast. Caesarea is one of Israel's major archaeological sites. In 22 BC, Herod the Great built a city and port over he site of an ancient Phoenician port and dedicated it to Augustus Caesar, his mentor. Flavius Josephus, the first century AC historian, wrote about the site and especially the port that had never been developed at that size before. The site had a long history after Herod, who built a Roman Theater, an Amphitheater for chariot rides and other games, a grand palace going out the the sea, and the port, all in 12 years. To the far north of the site, later leaders built a long aqueduct to supply the area with fresh water, and part of it still stands today. After Herod's death in 6 AD, Caesarea became the seat of the Roman procurators and became a Roman colony for 600 years. The city was then taken over by the Byzantines until the Crusaders came and took over in 1101. The city then became Muslim some time after that. It is only since the 1960's that Israel started excavating the location. We walked around the whole area for a little over two hours. It was just amazing to see all the ruins from Herod's time and then at the different steps since then. It was a great visit!

Tel-Aviv port and Dinner, April 27

From center city we drove to Tel-Aviv Port - we have a borrowed GPS, and I am getting pretty good at using the little maps in our Fodor's Guide! It is north of the city and is not a big port, but it has all been renovated and is quite nice and apparently lively at night for twenty-five year olds. They have created a very wide, wooden board wake and is build to be in waves like the water. It is just beautiful. There are lots of shops and restaurants in the area, and there were tons of people walking and running. Outside the actual port are lots of parks and gardens and a rowing school along with the University of Tel-Aviv.

We drove from the Tel-Aviv Port to Herzliya on the beach to meet Ben's cousins, Raquel and Ela, for dinner at a cafe right on the beach. It was just beautiful though it got a bit chilly by the end. Then home to collapse in bed!

Tuesday Lunch and Farmers Market, April 27

We then drove from Jaffa to Ramat Gan to visit Ben's aunt and uncle, the brother and sister-in-law of his mother. They live in the apartment in which Ben was born. Ben's grandparents owned the apartment, and when Ben was born, his grandparents, parents and he lived there until he was two and a half, and he and his parents moved to Venezuela. The apartment has three small rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, a hallway that functions as a dining room, and a balcony. Ben's uncle was an idealist when young, and he moved to a kibbutz right near the Gaza strip and raised his children there and all. He had lots of good stories to tell about the kibbutz, which was quite socialistic at the time but has now changed. We were offered tons and tons of food just in case were were starving to death. Ben's cousin, Yair, also came to visit.

After lunch, we went back to Center City to visit the Carmel Market and the Nahalat Binyamin Pedestrial Mall. The market has lots of clothing and stuff, but then the fun part is all the fruits, vegetables, and fish and meats and spices! It is huge. At the pedestrian mall there were lots of nice crafts, and we did buy a cut sculpture that holds salt and pepper.

Jaffa, April 27

Tuesday, April 27, 2010: We started the day with a trip to Jaffa or Yafo, which was the Arabic port that became the beginning of Tel Aviv a little over 100 years ago. It still is a small port with fishing boats, but what is most impressive is the old city with very old stone walls along the hill over the port. We parked the car and walked through the big flea market and then walked past the mosque with its high minaret and then up the hill to the town. Many of the old buildings have been restored, and there is still excavation going on. There are many shops and restaurants and art galleries built into the old buildings. It is very lively and full of people, both natives and tourists. It is perhaps the oldest port in the world. According to the Bible the cedars used in the construction of the Temple passed through Jaffa on their way to Jerusalem; the prophet Jonah set off from Jaffa before being swallowed by the whale. We went to the museum of Ilana Goor, who is a pretty famous sculptor of Israel.

Monday, April 26th, Our first full day. We began the day with business; that is, getting Raquel to help us with hotel rooms in Haifa, Jerusalem, and Eilat. We had partial success; we need to try again for Jerusalem.

We then took off for Tel Aviv, driving to the Azrieli Towers and parking our car there. It is a group of three very tall building in the Center City of Tel Aviv, one round, one triangular, and one square that constitute a shopping mall office

complex.

We went up to the observatory on the 49th floor of the square building and looked out over the panorama of Tel Aviv and then the Mediterranean. One interesting fact that

I learned right away is that there are lots and lots of members of the Israeli army - kids really - all over Tel Aviv; some with desk jobs are without guns; the others carry automatics. And you need to stop and have security guards check your

purse and bags before you enter any shop or shopping mall.

From the Azrieli Towers, we took off on foot for Center City, through what Ben told me no other tourists ever see, that is, old neighborhoods that he remembers from 34 years.

It was interesting but not worth a photo. We did stop for lunch to eat falafel, that Ben

has been dreaming about since we began planning this trip. He declared this falafel to be very good but not the best. I thought it was delicious! Then Ben was sure he would know where to turn to get us to the proper location, but he missed it totally, and we walked a half a mile extra before I figured out that we were going too far. So far, he hasn't been the perfect guide! His claim is thathe was looking for two tall buildings as his guide, but we came at the from the wrong direction, and so he missed them.

We did get to Bialik Street, which is a small street for artists.

We first visited the Rubin Museum, one home of one of Israel's major painters, Reuven Rubin (1893-1974). His art is very nice and does remind one of Chagall, and the top floor held his studio. We then walked further along Bialik Street until we came to Bet Bialik (Bialik House), the home of Chaim Nachman Bialik (1873-1934), who is considered the father of Hebrew poetry. It has been restored and looks beautiful, so we took a picture.

Just beyond the house is a nice circle with a fountain with very nice water lilies.

After these visits, we walked south and east and found a turkish market that seemed to be miles long, filled with people. Ben bought some kitchen equipment there, of course, for his cousin, Raquel.

We then went walking east to find Rothschild Boulevard and to find the examples of Bauhaus architecture. It is a very nice boulevard with a middle pedestrian and bicycle way with nice residences and restaurants along the sides.

We found what we think are examples of Bauhaus architecture as wellas a cool statues on the balcony of one house.

We then walked up to Habima Square where there are the Mann Auditorium that houses the Israeli Philarmonic Orchestra, the Habimah National Theater that is under major renovation, and the Helena Rubinstein Pavilion that houses contemporary art. It is a very nice cu

ltural park.

We then walked back to the Azrieli Towers to meet Ben's cousins, Ilana and Rani, for coffee and a very nice visit. They had been to visit us in Philadelphia many years ago, and they will take us around northern Israel beginning on Thursday.

Then we came back to Raquel's home to find Avi and baby Adam, Uncle David and Aunt Ruthie, and Raquel. It's nice to come home to lots of nice family and a meal waiting for you. That's all for today!

Arrival at Ben Gurion and Family Welcome

Ben and I arrived at Ben Gurion Airport at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday after a very long, very squished 12 hour plane ride. We passed by the business class section with great envy. Next time, we spend the money for business class! On the plane, the flight attendant told us that Ben's brand new I-pad would be confiscated in Israel because the signal has not yet been approved. We were a bit nervous! Well, after lots of security in the U.S., it was easy as pie in Israel. Ben thought that the airport was incredibly new and beautiful, which it is, but I commented that since the last time he was here was 34 years ago, he might imagine some things being new!

Ben's cousin, Raquel, and her son, Avi, met us at the airport and led us to Raquel's house in a norther suburb of Tel Aviv. It's a very large, new house. She runs her own business from her home. She does executive search and organizational consulting. So her office space is in the lower level of her home you really cannot call it a basement. She has one large office there and two smaller ones with tons of technology. Then the first floor is a very nice space with kitchen, dining room, living room and a very nice patio and garden. The second floor has the master bedroom and bath and then two guest bedrooms and a bath. Very nice!

Once in Raquel's home, we were welcomed by Ben's aunt and uncle and cousin, Ela, and her daughter, Emily, who is 15. They were all very warm and welcoming with lots of conversation in English, Hebrew, and Spanish. It was great fun. We gave out our gifts to the family, and then we all sat down to dinner. The family is very noisy and warm!

It is now Monday morning, the second day of the work week in Israel, and we will set out soon for our visit to Tel Aviv.

Our new home in Florida

We are beginning our blog for the trip to Israel that begins on April 24, 2010, but we thought that we would share with you all a picture of our new home in Boca Raton, Florida. We will move there on May 17, 2010 to begin our new life.