From the Sea to the Holy Land

We landed at the Tel Aviv airport at 3:30 AM on December 27^th and figured that by the time we made it through customs and immigration and got our rental car it wouldn’t be worth it to get a hotel.  So we immediately headed North to Haifa, using both Waze and Google maps to find our way.  At the start of the drive we were so thankful to have these tools to help us find our way.  But soon, we realized that while they were helpful, navigating roads that did not use a grid system, lacked street signs and when they existed were sometimes written in Hebrew, sometimes Arabic and occasionally English was more difficult than expected.  Especially since the English street names were rarely spelled the same way in the guide book, Google or the hotel website.  Depending on which one you looked at we were looking for Herzl, Hertzl, Hertzel, or Hertsel Street.   And when we arrived at our destination, according to Waze, we arrived on a residential street, several miles from the hotel. 

After checking in to our hotel and grabbing a little something to eat, it was time to start exploring.  We started by heading further north to the walled city of Akko that seems to jut out into the Mediterranean in a way that it is surrounded by water on three sides.  We walked along the coastal wall for a while before entering in to old town to check out some sites.  First stop was the Templar tunnel that was discovered only about 20 years ago when a nearby resident’s toilet backed up.  That unfortunate plumbing incident resulted in lots of tourist dollars for this small town.  After the tunnel we found ourselves lost wandering the streets in search of the citadel.  There were occasional signs marking the path but many intersections that required us to make a turn lacked the friendly brown tourist sign and we inadvertently chose wrong.  But our determination finally led the way.  The citadel looks like it is going to be a great tourist spot in about six months.  For us, there was not much to see but construction and signs indicating new attractions opening in the Spring 2014. 

After leaving Akko, we continued north to the town if Rosh Hanikra on the border of Lebanon. In Rosh Hanikra we took a cable car down a cliff to visit the caves created from the waves of the Mediterranean crashing against the cliffs. You can also see the railroad tunnel built by the British but never opened after Israel took control of the land in the 40's. After a late lunch we headed back to Haifa where we hit the worst traffic either Colleen and I had ever seen.

In Haifa, we headed to the German Colony for a drink before doing at the falafel shop described by one patron on Trip Advisor as the best in the world. It was definitely delicious but I'll be to try a few more before I weigh in.

On our second day, we decided to start our pilgrimage to some of the holy sights of Israel with our first stop in Nazareth. Nazareth is not the small village that one would expect but rather the largest Arab city in Israel. This turned out to be good for us since it was the Shabbat. After visiting the Church of the Annunciation we followed the Jesus trail to the Church of Jesus the Adolescent at which point I decided that Jesus must have had quads of steel under his robes climbing up and down the steps in Nazareth during his youth.

After Nazareth we made a quick stop at the Sea of Galilee. The spot where Jesus walked on water has been turned into a boardwalk complete with a McDonald's and tacky tourist spots. Needles to say, we didn't stay long and instead headed to the car to drive to Jerusalem.