Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the northern district, often referred to as the Arab capital of Israel. It really needs no introduction for anyone familiar with the Bible, being the town Jesus grew up in. Today the city sprawls out over two hills and while it has grown exponentially, the roads and very narrow streets have not. For those of you who decide to rent a car on your visit, I wish you the best of luck. Many streets are impossibly narrow for one car, let alone two. Car parking is a nightmare and Israeli drivers are generally very impatient - so a word to the wise, don't be too courteous when driving around!
Our visit to Nazareth was one of two planned visits, however we would actually end up returning a third time right on the tail end of the trip. Today, however, was much more relaxed and we would aim to visit many of the sights around Nazareth later on. We headed straight away to meet up with our friends Sergio and Rhoda for morning tea where we were looked after very well.
Vinci had an infinite supply of cats to pet and snuggle with, most of which were confused and, in some cases, traumatised. I have been following Sergio and Rhoda's SNRIsrael channel for many months and it was great to finally see many of the subjects in their videos in real life. The view from their rooftop overlooking Nazareth is simply stunning and many of the city's famous landmarks can be seen from here.
Sergio and Rhoda decided a good location for their weekly live stream video would be at Ramat Yishai, where they could run some errands and try out a new drone. As we were headed in that direction also, they kindly invited us to join them together with Rhoda's sister, Joy.
Ramat Yishai
Ramat Yishai lies approximately half way between Nazareth and Haifa on route 75. The land around here is extremely fertile and the entire landscape is lush green at this time of the year. We had arrived right on time to see hundreds of the Anemone flowers blooming, an event that takes place for only a few weeks annually. These are the national flowers of Israel and for a long time were an endangered species. While this status has been removed, it remains illegal to pick them to this day. The most common color is red, but white, yellow and purple variants can also be found.
Ramat Yishai is right on the edge of one of Israel's largest air force bases, Ramat David. A constant stream of F16 jets and Apache AH64 helicopters can be seen in the area, thankfully only on training missions this day.
Sergio and Rhoda had wanted to make a live stream episode for their YouTube channel here showing people a way to find and identify ancient sites around Israel. The location also suited us very well as we would be staying overnight in Haifa. Equally important, Sergio and Rhoda wanted us to sample a local delicacy famous in the area - Bourekas. We were blessed to feature in the episode and you can see it here :
Ramat Yishai, like most of Israel, has a handful of interesting old buildings. A large three storey building here dates back to the Ottoman period, although there have been many artifacts and other traces of civilisation dating as far back as the Roman period in this area. As well as the building, a very deep well was also located dating back even earlier. The Israeli Antiquities website for your reference can be found here : http://survey.antiquities.org.il/index_Eng.html#/
After 'work' was completed, it was time to sample the local fare of Bourekas, a middle eastern pastry dish filled with cheese, potatoes or mushrooms. I was able to sample two types and can vouch for its deliciousness, ever so slightly favouring the cheese variety.
Due to being pressed for time, we had to leave shortly after filling up on Bourekas as out rental car was due back before 5pm. We drove for around half an hour and managed to drop the car off only minutes prior to closing time before taking a fifteen minute hike with all our luggage to HaMifrats Central railway station.
Haifa
I'm sorry in advance to anyone who had wanted a write up about Haifa, but this was not a place we would be spending any time in to explore. It was simply a convenient transit location where we could pick up on the rest of our planned trip the next day. Haifa is definitely on the list to visit next time as there are plenty of things to do and see in the area. I can vouch that the railway system here is awesome and there is even a small railway museum in Haifa, the only one in Israel.
We took the train only a couple of stops to Haifa Bat Galim, which was the closest hotel I could find to a railway station in the entire city. Another ten minute walk ensued and involved walking down into the subway and then back up again carrying the bulk of the luggage, only locating an elevator after completing this feat of strength. Vinci was also stopping every few moments to reach out to as many cats as we were stumbling across on the way. We spent the night at the Sea Plaza hotel, which was without question the worst place we would stay at in our entire time in the country. I could write a thesis on all of the problems; mildew, mould in the bathroom, curious orange stains on the walls, the dirt on the floor or even getting to the room in the first place which involved climbing up and down at least a half a dozen stair cases and through a maze of corridors. However the defining moment of our stay was without question, the body odour coming from the blankets. I have never experienced anything quite like it, even in some of the most character building locations in China.
Fortunately the next morning was much better, largely because we were leaving. The daylight revealed some interesting sights on our walk mostly in the form of street art and mostly cat themed. Vinci was particularly impressed with the fire hydrants that looked like the Disney character Wall-E from her view point. My view point was quite different.
Once back at the train station, the day instantly got better. Trains everywhere! This is the mainline which extends all the way along the coast to Tel Aviv and then further on to Be'er Sheva and Jerusalem. Only passenger trains were seen, however I was able to see most of the entire passenger locomotive fleet and diesel multiple units in a relatively short period of time. Vinci was more excited by this than I was and insisted we cancel the rest of our plans and spend the next two weeks line side to see if we could record the freight fleet as well (pigs fly by the way). We boarded our service to the airport to pick up our second rental car and begin our official holiday again.
Our train ride to Ben Gurion airport followed the coast for most of the way and would have offered some pretty spectacular views of the Meditteranean coast if not for the dirty windows. An interesting side note for the railway people out there, I believe Ben Gurion Airport is the only one in the world serviced by diesel locomotive hauled trains. The line passes directly underneath the arrivals road and continues on to Jerusalem. This will probably only continue for a short period of time as the line is already electrified and the first electric locomotives have already arrived.
"Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked. "Come and see," said Philip." - John 1:46
A house near the beach at Haifa Bat Galim
Continue to Part 9 - click here