Northern Israel

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The hillsides of Haifa and Zefat are a tangle of streets. We managed to find out B&B's in each city, though, without maps! In Haifa we can thank the local pizza parlour worker and in Zefat we got tired of driving around and paid a taxi driver to escort us... I wonder about the hillside cities in Israel. Did they develop because its cooler in the mountains? Safer? Certainly they were not planning for cars!!!

Our stay in Haifa was only one night and way too short. Haifa seems like the kind of city you unravel over time. Our B&B overlooked the ocean, with an incredible view. The historic main boulevard, Ben Gurion, has an interesting history. Recently they renovated the street and moved it 163 cm to match it up with the Baha'i Gardens situated on the mountainside that it leads to.

We headed to Zefat and the Golan the next day. Zefat's old city is enchanting. The residents there are mostly Orthodox and the streets close down for shabbat. The end of shabbat is truly an awakening of the city. Boys race to the playground. Girls reunited with their friends in the stone-clad streets. As I walked around Saturday night, I could hear Arabic radio playing from one apartment, Israeli television from another and lots of child chatting and laughing.

While enchanting, the city has its problems too. Its middle and upper class fled two years ago with the war, leaving behind mostly poor families. Trash is strewn about, and our hostess said its a real problem. Piles of rocks and debris lie along the streets that surround the old city. This is a place that could use some good urban planners. Any takers?

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Photos

Zefat Cheesemaker
mmmmm....

Zefat
View from the city

Zefat
Yeshiva boys, waiting

Zefat
Girls and their candy

Golan
Incredible views

Bethlehem
Study in contrasts