I absolutely love spending time with the Sugars. They are good hearted people who feed us delicious foodstuffs. They want to know who we are and attempt to connect with us on different levels. I feel incredibly fortunate to benefit from their hospitality. It warms my heart to see Tal and Adam together. Not only do they slightly resemble each other, (they are blood related, after all) but they get along like brothers. Their bond is so strong, in fact, it provided Adam with his all-time best jumping picture ever among the Roman ruins of Caesaria:
Team Awesome.Caesaria is a very interesting place. To modern Israel it is essentially a coastal resort town, replete with golf courses and luxury hotels. It looks very lush and green from the car window. Yet the "city" of Caesaria is actually a national park filled with ancient Roman ruins from thousands of years back. You can literally walk anywhere and do anything amongst these ruins, then have a delicious and pricy lunch at one of the uppity restaurants in the park. The town itself is right on the ocean. It's really quite exquisite.
Love on the Rocks. Aint no big surprise.
I say, that a-way.
Me, Amy, Shirley, and that gorgeous sea.
Love on the Rocks. Aint no big surprise.We walked amongst the ruins for a good two hours. Unfortunately, our pamphlet-guide didn't provide us with enough information to ascertain what we were specifically looking at at any given time. So, we played and laughed and made up stories. We enjoyed. It was lovely.
I say, that a-way.By noon the heat and humidity were so intense, we could barely function. We sat down for a lovely lunch, recharged, and promptly headed toward the train station to transport ourselves up to Haifa. While Caesaria was beautiful and definitely contained some great things to see, we felt we'd seen it all after only a couple of hours. Future tourists, take note.
We arrived in Haifa around 3 in the afternoon, only to discover the town was shut down. It was more like a ghost town than Jerusalem on a Saturday. There was literally not one shop open, and not one soul walking the streets. There were only cars whizzing past us, and even they were few and far between.
Haifa itself is very impressive from afar. As we pulled into the station we remarked on how much it resembles San Francisco, which of course made me nostalgic and slightly emotional. (More on that later) The vast bulk of the city is built into a huge hill, (Mt. Carmel) with white buildings dotting the greenery and huge hotels at the very top. It really is a sight to be seen.
Yet as we walked the .02 miles to our hotel, we realized that the port area (which is most likely the first thing tourists see, as it is at the base of the hill) was completely derelict. It was disgusting, actually. Buildings were falling apart, graffiti and garbage were everywhere. It was totally unsettling. Luckily, our hotel (which was in this area) was a gem. We had a great room, great service, great breakfast, and it was cheap. But from the beginning, we both felt that Haifa was a bit of a weird city. And the next day, that sentiment was reinforced tenfold.
Saturday morning. Haifa central. Breakfast in our stomachs, coffee in our bloodstreams. We met up with Adam's Israeli-British friend Amy, whom he met on Birthright and who lives in Nazareth. (Like Jesus!) The three of us set off to do as Haifians do. Only one problem. There were no Haifians to speak of. Again, it felt like a ghost town.
Luckily, the Haifa Museum's Contemporart Art wing was open. So, we wandered through the museum's bizarre and totally awesome Israeli Art from the 80's exhibit. It was really interesting and totally wacko, but we enjoyed it. Following that was lunch in the Arab Quarter. I still have no idea what we ate, but it was really delicious. And finally, we hiked and huffed and puffed up to the Science Museum, which was like a poor man's Exploratorium for children. It was there that we found every single Haifian in the entire city. Literally, the place was bursting with people.
At long last, 3pm came around. This was the time of our designated tour of the Baha'i Gardens, the crown jewel of Haifa's tourism. The Baha'i Gardens are essentially a series of perfectly manicured terraces built into the entire length of the slope of Mt. Carmel. Those who practice the Baha'i faith come there on pilgrimmage, as it is the 2nd most important site in the world for them. The gardens are actually quite gorgeous, and the enormity of their presence can be seen from just about anywhere in the city.
From the top mid-afternoon
From the bottom mid-evening
And stuck in the middle with Amy
We arrived in Haifa around 3 in the afternoon, only to discover the town was shut down. It was more like a ghost town than Jerusalem on a Saturday. There was literally not one shop open, and not one soul walking the streets. There were only cars whizzing past us, and even they were few and far between.
Haifa itself is very impressive from afar. As we pulled into the station we remarked on how much it resembles San Francisco, which of course made me nostalgic and slightly emotional. (More on that later) The vast bulk of the city is built into a huge hill, (Mt. Carmel) with white buildings dotting the greenery and huge hotels at the very top. It really is a sight to be seen.
Yet as we walked the .02 miles to our hotel, we realized that the port area (which is most likely the first thing tourists see, as it is at the base of the hill) was completely derelict. It was disgusting, actually. Buildings were falling apart, graffiti and garbage were everywhere. It was totally unsettling. Luckily, our hotel (which was in this area) was a gem. We had a great room, great service, great breakfast, and it was cheap. But from the beginning, we both felt that Haifa was a bit of a weird city. And the next day, that sentiment was reinforced tenfold.
Saturday morning. Haifa central. Breakfast in our stomachs, coffee in our bloodstreams. We met up with Adam's Israeli-British friend Amy, whom he met on Birthright and who lives in Nazareth. (Like Jesus!) The three of us set off to do as Haifians do. Only one problem. There were no Haifians to speak of. Again, it felt like a ghost town.
Luckily, the Haifa Museum's Contemporart Art wing was open. So, we wandered through the museum's bizarre and totally awesome Israeli Art from the 80's exhibit. It was really interesting and totally wacko, but we enjoyed it. Following that was lunch in the Arab Quarter. I still have no idea what we ate, but it was really delicious. And finally, we hiked and huffed and puffed up to the Science Museum, which was like a poor man's Exploratorium for children. It was there that we found every single Haifian in the entire city. Literally, the place was bursting with people.
At long last, 3pm came around. This was the time of our designated tour of the Baha'i Gardens, the crown jewel of Haifa's tourism. The Baha'i Gardens are essentially a series of perfectly manicured terraces built into the entire length of the slope of Mt. Carmel. Those who practice the Baha'i faith come there on pilgrimmage, as it is the 2nd most important site in the world for them. The gardens are actually quite gorgeous, and the enormity of their presence can be seen from just about anywhere in the city.
From the top mid-afternoon
From the bottom mid-evening
And stuck in the middle with AmyOur tour was free, but we had to make an appointment. Apparently there can only be so many people in the gardens at any given time. Our tour was entirely in Hebrew, and at a certain point I gave up trying to translate due to sheer exhaustion and overheating. We started at the tip top of the gardens and walked down the ridiculous amount of symmetrical stairs. So basically, we started at the top of the mountain and worked our way down to the very bottom. By the end, or legs were shaking, our hearts were racing, and we were all in desperate need of some ice cream.
Post-snack, we met up with an old friend of mine from Davis, Shirley. She was born in Israel, raised in Davis, attended UCD, graduated in June, and is currently living in Haifa and working at the Technion. She picked us up in a fantastically air-conditioned car and drove us all around the parts of Haifa beyond the ridge of Mt. Carmel. We saw SO much! So many things were open! So many people were out and about! And there was so much beyond the hill... it really blew my mind. Thank goodness for Shirley and her lovely, lovely car.
We made our way to the pristine beaches of Haifa just as the sun was setting, and the four of us enjoyed a lovely dinner on the sea. It wa so wonderful to see Shirley, and to bond with Amy. That dinner was a delightful end to our interesting, sweat-filled day.
Post-snack, we met up with an old friend of mine from Davis, Shirley. She was born in Israel, raised in Davis, attended UCD, graduated in June, and is currently living in Haifa and working at the Technion. She picked us up in a fantastically air-conditioned car and drove us all around the parts of Haifa beyond the ridge of Mt. Carmel. We saw SO much! So many things were open! So many people were out and about! And there was so much beyond the hill... it really blew my mind. Thank goodness for Shirley and her lovely, lovely car.
We made our way to the pristine beaches of Haifa just as the sun was setting, and the four of us enjoyed a lovely dinner on the sea. It wa so wonderful to see Shirley, and to bond with Amy. That dinner was a delightful end to our interesting, sweat-filled day.
Me, Amy, Shirley, and that gorgeous sea.By nightfall, Adam and I were on an express bus to Jerusalem. He does a much better job of summarizing the ridiculous antics that occured upon our arrival, so I'll send you to his blog!
All in all, it was a great weekend. We enjoyed ourselves in each city, even if some of the moments aired more on the side of muzar (strange). Haifa is physically a beautiful place, especially those glorious beaches. I want to return, mostly to explore the land that lies beyond that hill! And I will say that, while I respect Jews' need to observe and honor Shabbat, I think it's ridiculous that the majority of the city felt completely shut down (more so than J'lem!!) in the midst of tourist season. I mean really, what do Israelis do when they need a little vacay? They have the same days off as we.
Haifa succeeded in reminding me of how much I miss the Bay Area. I was already feeling pangs of homesickness, but Haifa solidified my deep deep longing to be back in the city by the bay. And even though I'm still enjoying myself greatly, and discovering new things and new places each day, there is a part of me that craves my old life, my friends and family, and my network of love. So, if you get a chance, send me an email, or even a letter! Know that I miss home a little bit, and think of it often.
Much love,
Jaclyn
All in all, it was a great weekend. We enjoyed ourselves in each city, even if some of the moments aired more on the side of muzar (strange). Haifa is physically a beautiful place, especially those glorious beaches. I want to return, mostly to explore the land that lies beyond that hill! And I will say that, while I respect Jews' need to observe and honor Shabbat, I think it's ridiculous that the majority of the city felt completely shut down (more so than J'lem!!) in the midst of tourist season. I mean really, what do Israelis do when they need a little vacay? They have the same days off as we.
Haifa succeeded in reminding me of how much I miss the Bay Area. I was already feeling pangs of homesickness, but Haifa solidified my deep deep longing to be back in the city by the bay. And even though I'm still enjoying myself greatly, and discovering new things and new places each day, there is a part of me that craves my old life, my friends and family, and my network of love. So, if you get a chance, send me an email, or even a letter! Know that I miss home a little bit, and think of it often.
Much love,
Jaclyn
No comments:
Post a Comment