A Different Kind of Bethlehem -Bethlehem in the Galilee

Most pilgrims and Christian tourists will make it a point to visit Bethlehem when they journey to the Holy land. Few, however, have even heard of Beit Lechem HaGlilit, Bethlehem of the Galilee.

An idyllic town adorned with beautiful European-styled stone houses, set deep into the hilly countryside of the Galilee this quaint village is very reminiscent of Provence. Interestingly, some scholars have even suggested that this town might have been the actual birthplace of Jesus, due to its proximity to Nazareth, approximately 25 minutes away.

Its European roots stem from its establishment as a farming village by Christian Templars in 1906. Over the next two and a half decades the village atracted an additional 20 Templar families. Two oterh neighboring villages, Waldheim and Arnhem also attracted a Christian german population and together the three towns became the heart of what would later be during the rise of Hitler, a resident enemy population.

The village is easy to explore by foot or bike and the local historian, Kobi Fleishmann (04-953-2901), will gladly take around tour groups for a two hour stroll through the village by pre-arrangement. Kobi and his family live in a beautiful historic old Templar home and have converted a portion of it to a bed and breakfast as well as a local museum, chronicling the Templar roots of the village as well as the rise of the local Hitler Youth movement, which rose to prominence in this town during the 1930's. Photographs on display in the local museum chronicle this dark period of local history and provide visual evidence of the Nazi Youth parade that occurred in the village to mark Hitler's birthday. The museum showcases much of Kobi's collections of historic Nazi memorablia including flags, pictures and other artifacts, that were from the area.

During the war the British rounded up the local "enemy" German-sympathizing residents and put them into local interment camps where they remained until they were deported. Some 222 of the local prisoners were swapped with 222 Dutch prisoners of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. During our tour, Kobi showed us the actual list of the prisoners released from Bergen-Belsen and we, coincidentally, found the names of our relatives on the list.

Finding the right spirit in the Golan; a family reunion

Family reunions are not generally the reason d'etre for spiritual inspiration but hence, when selecting the Golan Heights as the venue for a celebration, it is so easy to transform the party into a biblical exploration of local produce as well as a culinary experience. The selected venue for our three night stay for 14 people was bikta belavan (http://www.biktabelavan.com/) , an Israeli guesthouse situated in Moshav Ramot overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

The guesthouse facilities included four large cottages, each offering a private master bedroom with a king size bed, flat screen television and oversized Jacuzzi, a large living room with a pull out double sofa bed, room for a third cot if needed, a television a fully equipped kitchen complete with an espresso machine as well as a large bathroom with a stall shower. The oversized porch overlook expansive grounds complete with large hammocks, a pool, chaise lounges, barbeque, all with the most tremendous view overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

Our accommodations came complete with a homemade breakfast, served to us outside on fine Victorian-inspired china and linens. The tasty breakfast included a selection of fresh local cheeses, finely cut Israel salads, shakshuka (an Israeli morning specialty of eggs cooked inside a deep heavy skillet of sauteed onions and tomatoes), cheese borekas, danish, chocolate milk, lemonade and pancakes as well as the necessary local accompaniments of olives, jams and fresh butter. In addition to amenitizing our units with bottles of wine, Victorian-inspired appointments, milk, water and espresso, Michal, the owner, would keep a jar of freshly baked homemade rugelach (sweet pastry cookies filled with nuts and cinnamin) filled daily in each of our units. It would have been quite easy to just stay at the bikta all day long ounging by the pool and taking in the view, but our location put us so close to many interesting sites that we couldn't help exploring our surroundings just a little.

We made a number of local stops learning about wine production, olive oil production, shofar production, meats as well as biblical archaeology, all within a twenty minute drive of our base at Ramot. Please note that because of the high interest level in each stop, I profiled every visit in a separate entry on this site.

Having enjoyed so many unique experiences together brought us all closer together. Family reunions should be an opportunity to bond and find pleasure in each other and, amongst the olive trees, vineyards, antquities and seaviews found in the Golan, it was a simple, yet memorable experience.

A culinary, musical and biblical adventure in the Golan Heights

Still in the southern Golan Heights we came upon the moshav of Geshur, where we visited the new olive oil visitor's center (http://www.eretz-gshur.co.il/), watched a movie on local production, spoke with a local producer and taste tested at least seven different varieties of olive oil, purchasing several litres upon departure. Though the tour was offered in hebrew, we were able to translate everything to our guests.

Our next stop was a mere five minute drive away, in the moshav of Givat Yoav.There we had a lecture and demonstation at Kol Shofar, the largest shofar factory in the country (http://www.kolshofar.co.il/). We sat outdoors in the shade as the owner, Shimon Keinan, elaborated on the tradition of the shofar, and the complexities of accurately creating the instrument. Both children and adults had the opportunity to try to create the shofar sounds. Unfortunately we were not allowed to film there because of concern over the publication of any trade secrets regarding shofar production. On the way back to Ramot we stopped by Moshav Nov, known throughout the country as the best place to buy locally raised beef. There we purchased our flavorful steaks for barbeque that evening, and they were so delicious that we returned the next day for an encore.

First stop on the wine road in the Golan Heights

Twenty minutes southeast of Ramot, up the windy road to the top of the southern Golan Heights, we visited Chateau Golan, (http://www.chateaugolan.co.il/) a boutique winery next to Odem that produces approximately 70,000 bottles of wine annually. Aside from its highly reputed wine, the winery has one of the most spectacular wine rooms I've seen. The room is set like a scene right out of a Harry Potter movie, and the extensive mahogany table centered between the concrete Roman-inspired pillars, is cut from one piece of wood and can seat 22 people for a tasting or more elaborate celebration. Our English speaking tour guide accompanied us throughout the winery, explaining the production process, both ancient and modern, and providing us with various selections of different wine. The non-kosher winery is available for free tours for groups of 10 or less. Advanced reservations are required.

Quick stop at Kursi

At the base of the Golan, we stopped by Kursi (http://www.parks.org.il/ParksENG), a Jewish fishing village during the mishnaic and talmudic periods, remains of which were accidentally discovered after the Six Day War, when a road was paved along the eastern bank of the Sea of Galilee. Excavations revealed the largest Byzantine-period monastery in Israel. The monastary as well as the church inside were built in the middle of the fifth century C.E. and were later damaged most likely during Persian invasion (614 C.E.). The church was repaired but abandoned in the eighth century and never again used for prayer. A mosaic floor with pictures of animals (chickens, geese, doves, cormorants, and fish), and pictures of plants such as citrons, dates, pomegranates, and grapes were uncovered, some of which was vandalized. According to the New Testament, Jesus healed a man possessed by demons in Kursi.

Kursi is run by the Israel Parks Authority and is open daily.