Honeymoon In Israel

Welcome to Our Honeymoon In Israel!

2010-01-15T20:47:00.019+02:00

In this blog we gladly share with you two of the most beautiful weeks of our lives – our honeymoon, which was very special and adventurous. Looking for a honeymoon location? Here you can find travel ideas and information about locations, tours, trips, biking, hiking and sightseeing in Israel.

Israel is a great honeymoon destination and offers many different types of attractions such as hotels, beaches, guest houses, historical sites, nature reserves, national parks and much more!

Our honeymoon tour starts in Tel Aviv and is focused in the beautiful north of Israel. We have included many photos of Israel which portray our honeymoon's memories. We hope you would enjoy visiting Our Honeymoon In Israel and hopefully one day – your own vacation in Israel!

About us:

Ilan was born in Israel and is a graphic designer, Thamara was born in Holland, is a tennis coach and used to be a professional tennis player, we met online, fell in love, got married in Holland and had our very special wedding celebration in Israel.

Day 1 – Renaissance Hotel, Packing and Driving To Amirim

Renaissance Hotel
Our first honeymoon day started very early at 1:00 Am, it was actually our first night after the wedding celebration. We spent it in a fancy hotel in Tel Aviv called Renaissance; it was a gift from a good friend of us. Interestingly, the name of the hall where we had our wedding celebration was also called Renaissance. It was a great start and a chance to get some rest before continuing on our honeymoon adventure.

In the photos you can see the view of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea from the balcony of our hotel room and the rich Israeli breakfast we had there. Click on the photos to see bigger images.

Packing
We left the hotel at noon and went back home to pack and get ready for our honeymoon adventure. We hadn’t had time to do so earlier because we were so occupied with the preparations for our wedding celebration and looking for nice places to stay on our honeymoon.

We packed quickly, had a small meal and loaded our bicycles on the small car we had rented. Seppo, Ilan’s uncle who came all the way from BC Canada with his wife Annikki to our wedding celebration helped us loading the bicycles.

Amirim

Finally as the sun was going down (in Israel the sun sets around 5:30 PM in late October) we left from Tel Aviv to Amirim. Amirim is a beautiful Moshav in Galilee 2.5 hours north of Tel Aviv (a moshav is a cooperative Israeli settlement something like a village). Amirim is about 650 meters above sea level overlooking the Sea of Galilee, which is about 200 meters below sea level. Amirim established by vegetarians offers guesthouses known as zimmers (guest chalets), art galleries and vegetarian restaurants.

We arrived around 8:00 PM to a beautiful zimmer we had reserved. It was beautiful; we had some food, wine, candles, incense, a Jacuzzi, bathrobes, a nice kitchen, Stereo, DVDs, TV and a nice bed waiting for us there. Though it was dark we had a beautiful view of the twinkling lights of the villages below us. We also got a greeting card from the owner of the zimmer and a gift: elephant shaped salt and pepper shakers!

We had a romantic dinner, later we danced to the sounds of the beautiful classic folk Israeli music we brought with us and then enjoyed a good warm Jacuzzi.

View more gifts at Zazzle.

Day 2 – A Peaceful, Quiet Day In Amirim

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Morning

As we woke up in the morning we saw a great full moon through the window as you can see in the photo, very appropriate for a honeymoon:)

When we went out of our zimmer we could see how beautiful it was in daylight.

Lunch

We went for a late breakfast (almost lunch) at a very nice vegetarian restaurant, we were amazed by the variety, quantity, taste and wonderful service we received for a very low price (see pictures of day 4).

Observation Point and Memorial Monument

Not far from the restaurant there was a beautiful observation point, there stood an old fighter jet as a memorial for a pilot who died in the war of 1973. Israel is full of memorial monuments because it has suffered many wars.
It was nice to see how the doves (a symbol of peace) found their place on the jet’s nose.

In the next pictures you can see a clear view of the Sea of Galilee and the city of Tiberias.

Afternoon and Evening

We got back to our zimmer for a nap (we had few days of rest on our honeymoon and many days of activity and adventure) then we had to do some business arrangements, yes it doesn’t sound very romantic but you’ll understand as we explain: You see, in Israel you get only money gifts for weddings or other big events, usually to cover the expenses of the event, leaving us with many checks and money bills which would only be safe in the bank. So we had to count and arrange our gifts to be able to put them in the bank the next day. The nice thing was the chance to read all the greetings and blessings in the greeting cards that came with our gifts. Our second day of our honeymoon ended with another romantic evening.

View more gifts at Zazzle.

Day 3 – Tiberias, Biking Along The Sea of Galilee

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Another beautiful day has begun and we enjoyed a nice breakfast. During our honeymoon we started practicing our cooking skills, which was also a great experience.

Arbel
We left to Tiberias to deposit our gifts, on the way we past by Arbel cliffs which are on the western side of the Sea of Galilee. Arbel is about 400 meters above the Sea of Galilee, used to be populated in ancient times and has a great view of the area. In the picture you can see the many caves where people used to live, and a cactus full of sweet fruit full of tiny thorns.

Tiberias
In about 30 minutes we reached Tiberias, we found a bank and finished with our business arrangements and went to eat a nice falafel for lunch. Falafel is one of the most popular Israeli foods; it’s like round chickpea burgers with salad and t’hina (known as tahini) plus other tasty and spicy things altogether in one pita bread, yummy! In Tiberias there are some streets where all the shops sell falafel (big competition!), in every street the price is different.

Biking Along The Sea of Galilee
We saw some places around Tiberias and then we unloaded our bikes for the car and went on a nice ride along the Sea of Galilee. As we were riding we found a new bike path surrounding the southeastern side of the Sea of Galilee. It was great riding surrounded by eucalyptus trees and banana groves. Ilan took this next video while riding his bicycle, he almost crashed though.

Then the bike path suddenly ended, so we went closer to the Sea of Galilee close to a banana grove. The water was a little rough and the sun was going down, then we had a nice ride back to our car, loaded the bikes and went down town Tiberias to buy some groceries.

What a beautiful smile!

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Day 4 – Vegetarian Restaurant and Trip to Mt. Meiron

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Vegetarian Restaurant

Another beautiful day has begun and we started it with a wonderful breakfast at our local vegetarian restaurant in Amirim. If you visit Israel looking for a beautiful and quiet place to stay, Amirim is a great place and this restaurant experience is highly recommended!

We started with appetizers. You can see in the picture the large variety of appetizers.

Later we had the main course made of eggs and a nice yogurt for desert.

But that wasn’t the end, after desert we got a teapot full of fresh herbal tea with allsorts of cookies!At this restaurant you are welcome to enjoy your tea on the back balcony with a beautiful view of the valley and the Sea of Galilee far bellow, or outside in front of the restaurant on the nice low sofas as we did that day.

We even had a little friend giving us company!

Riding On Top of Mt. Meiron

After the great breakfast we had (well, it was brunch actually), we had a beautiful drive to Mount Meiron. Mount Meiron is the second highest mountain in Israel after Mount Hermon. Mount Meiron is 1204 meters above sea level and is one on Israel’s nature reserves. On Mount Meiron there is a field school that provides accommodation and camping places. There are many beautiful walk paths on the top of the mountain and the view is amazing. When we arrived we unloaded our bikes and started riding on one of the paths. Paths are marked very well in Israel so it’s quite easy to find your way around. Some small parts of the paths were not suitable for bicycles so then we had to carry our bike by hand.

In the beginning we found a nice observation point with a great view of the city of Zfat and the Sea of Galilee very far away.

Then, when we were riding on the path you see in the photo, Ilan’s bike chain broke. What do we do now? Should we walk back to the car when it’s still not too far or continue on the same direction walking with our bikes? Ilan tried to fix his bike chain with a rock and it actually worked! We were amazed and happy, not knowing how long the bike chain would stay connected, to our surprise it’s still connected to this day!

After we finished riding the first path we had about an hour before the sun goes down, so we decided to ride another beautiful path, 30 minutes each direction. The ride and the view were wonderful. In the next pictures you can see some of that path.

We saw some big old oak trees.

On the way back, there was a trail that was on a sandy side slope, suddenly, Thamara who was riding in front, slipped and rolled few meters down the slope with her bike – it was scary. Thamara’s elbow was a little scratched but otherwise she was OK, her bicycle was new was slightly damaged – the rear wheel became a little crooked and also the front basket. Still, we were able to continue and enjoy our way back.

Later we met a group of young girls singing and playing a recorder (a flute), they were surprised to see how we got there with our bikes since we had to carry them climbing some big rocks. They offered us some coffee (several times on our trips in Israel we met people on nature reserves who kindly offered us coffee), Since we wanted to go back before it was too dark, we had to say no.

We got to the car loaded the bikes and started driving, not far from the field school we saw a wild bore crossing the road, it was the first time we ever saw a wild bore, it was big. Too bad we weren’t fast enough to take a picture.

Browse other gifts from Zazzle.

Day 5 – A Lazy Day In Our Zimmer And A Great Romantic Dinner In A Restaurant

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After our adventure on Mount Meiron we slept in quite late on our fifth honeymoon day and had a lazy day in our nice zimmer, the whole day just relaxing!

By evening we just had to do something so we went out to look for a nice restaurant. We found a very nice restaurant; of course it was also vegetarian since it was in Amirim. The meal, the desert and the atmosphere were just great!

Day 6 – A Bike Ride To Amud Creek

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On our 6th honeymoon day we did some road cycling from Amirim to Amud Creek, the night before we had looked in a sightseeing book for nice places to see around Amirim and we found Amud Creek a beautiful nature reserve. Since Amud Creek was close about 6 kilometers, we decided to go there by bike. The way was very hilly with hard uphill riding and fast and fun down hill riding.

In the pictures you can see a view of amirim from above and the hills we had to climb.

Thamara’s bike wasn’t working well with its crooked wheel and we had to stop for some fixing. It took us a couple of hours to get to Amud Creek. When we entered we were told at the sites office that the paths there are not suitable for bike riding and that we were too late for taking the tour by foot, since it’s about 4 hours walk and it was closing soon. We decided to come back the next day with our car since we were told that Amud Creek is one of Israel’s most beautiful nature reserves. Then we headed back to Amirim to enjoy another romantic evening.

A view of the city of Zfat while riding.

From Amud Creek you can see a great view of Mount Meiron and see how high it is.

In this funny photo we forgot to take off our hats, so Ilan was trying to take them off just before the camera would take the picture.

Day 7 – Leaving Amirim, Visiting Amud Creek & Moving To Had-Nes Zimmer In Golan Heights

2010-01-09T02:19:00.089+02:00

Leaving Amirim

Our seventh honeymoon day was full of activities and adventures. First, we had to pack our things and get ready to leave our beautiful zimmer in Amirim and move to our next place in another beautiful zimmer in a place called Had Nes on the Golan Heights. In the picture you can see our dining room where we had great romantic meals with windows overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

Then after checking out, we left and had one more look at this beautiful place.

Amud Creek

On the way, we went to see Amud Creek. This time we were early enough for a 4-hour hike in this beautiful place. Amud Creek is a beautiful nature reserve and is one of Israel’s most beautiful national parks. We went to the reserves office to pay the entrance fee and then we learned that we could buy a yearly pass for all of Israel’s national parks. It was a good bargain since for the price of visiting 5 national parks we could see them all - over 60 places!

We highly recommend visiting Israel’s beautiful national parks and getting their special offers to see them all. If you’re a tourist then you can get a pass that is good for 2 weeks which is also a good deal. For more information, visit the website of Israel’s national parks at this link: http://parks.org.il/ParksENG

When we started walking we saw some big lizards (about 30 centimeters long) on the rocks, as in the picture.

Then just before going down to the creek, stands an old abandoned British police station full of bullet holes.

To enter Amud Creek you first need to go down the valley, it’s a long walk down and coming back is a long climb up. On our way down we saw groups of visitors climbing up some were school groups. Some of the kids warned us that it’s a hard climb up, but we were willing to go for this adventure.

In the picture you can see the entrance to Amud Creek, the valley and a great view of Mount Meiron.

An old water fountain.

Amud Creek has many old abandoned buildings that served as water powered flourmills and workshops.
The water in the creek is full of fish.

Amud Creek has a large variety of trees and different plants such as fig trees, oak trees, plane trees, olive trees and many more… In the picture you can see the beautiful red fruit of the Rough Bindweed plant known as Smilax Aspera in Latin.

There are also bridges to cross to the other side of the creek. We took this picture at the end of the trail and crossed the bridge to the other side.

Right across the bridge we saw all those old abandoned workshops.

We took short videos of the creek. In this video you can see and hear the creek, it was just beautiful. Later in the video we sang a praise song to the God who made all this and the God who brought us together. It’s a song from Psalm 118 in the Bible “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endures forever”. We also sang this song on our wedding.

An Adventure On The Way To Had Nes On The Golan Heights

After we finished our tour of Amud Creek we sat down on one of the sites picnic benches and had our lunch. Then, we took the car and drove to our next wonderful zimmer in Had Nes, which is a small village on the Golan Heights. This time Thamara was driving and Ilan was looking at the road map. Driving on the hilly highway was beautiful and easy.

Later, Ilan saw a shortcut on the map; it was supposed to be a small road, which leads to Had Nes. We made a left turn to that road and were looking for the smaller road, which was hard to find. While searching, we saw this very mysterious cloud.

Eventually we found a small and bumpy gravel path not suitable for our small car. We took it and drove slowly on it. On the way we saw some cows, Thamara always said that she had never seen cows on the fields of Israel as in Holland where she comes from. So this view was a surprise for her.

In this picture you can see two cows but only one head, can you tell to which cow it belongs?
We drove farther and farther until we reached a remote ranch. By this time Ilan was getting worried that we were loosing our way, it wasn’t clear where we should turn and it was also getting dark and we were afraid we would get stuck there.

A view of the Sea of Galilee from the gravel path:

Later when it was already dark we saw a pickup truck behind us, the people in the pickup truck were probably wondering what we were doing there with our small car, we asked them for instructions and they guided us. Thamara was cool about the situation unlike Ilan, which was very relived to be back on a good asphalt road. We still made a few mistakes on the road before we eventually arrived to Had Nes but that was easy.

We found our zimmer and unloaded our stuff.

This is how we first saw our zimmer in Had Nes.

Later that night, we drove to Katzrin the biggest town on the Golan Heights to do some groceries. The roads at night on the Golan Heights are very dark since there are no lights on the roads.

In Katzrin we saw fireworks, later we learned that it was celebrating 30 years since it was established.

Indeed our seventh honeymoon day was a full day!

Day 8 – Hexagon Pool And A Nice Swim In The Sea of Galilee

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Another beautiful day has begun; we started it with a nice breakfast on the zimmer’s porch overlooking the Sea of Galilee. In every place we stayed we had a view of the sea!

While eating we saw a few Honey-Suckers flying by, attracted by the many flowers.

In the next photo you can see how our zimmer looked by day, with Thamara enjoying the hammock. In the back you can see our bikes tied to the porch.

Hexagon Pool

Then we left to another national park called ‘The Hexagon Pool’. Now that we had bought a yearly pass for all of Israel’s national parks we had a good plan for the rest of our honeymoon!

The Hexagon Pool is a unique creek and a natural pool made of hexagonal shaped rock. In the picture you see a view of Hexagon Creek and the Golan Heights before we went down into the valley. It’s about 20 minutes going down.
Then the creek is very close and you can see it nicely streaming. It’s amazing to see so much water in Israel especially after the hot summer.

When we reach the Hexagon pool we saw some people swimming in the cold water, later they were kind to take a picture of us together.

In these pictures you can see the unique hexagonal rock structure and shape.

Since it was on a Friday, we had to leave an hour earlier because the national parks close one hour earlier on Fridays. So we didn’t try to go in the cold water. Instead, we used the time we had left to see some more of the area.

We crossed the bridge over the Hexagon creek and started climbing up the mountain; it was a very steep climb. We were walking fast to see as much as possible Thamara’s leg was aching from a tennis injury but she had the desire to go farther. Eventually we reached this nice oak tree and headed back down.

On the way down we saw this snake hiding in the rocks.

Swimming In The Sea of Galilee

After the Hexagon pool we went to the Sea of Galilee for a swim. We found a beach where we could drive off the road to. We put on our bathing cloths and enjoyed the warm, peaceful water of the Sea of Galilee. It was so beautiful and relaxing.

We saw some nice clam shells, no pearls though.

We saw the sun going down.
Later we saw some fishermen boats going in for fishing. In this picture you can clearly see the city of tiberias on the other side of the Sea of Galille.

Going back to the main road was scary since the road level was much higher then where we parked our car. We weren’t sure we’d make it without our car rolling over, then we were so relived that we made it

Dinner or Late Lunch

We went back to our zimmer got organized and got ready for a romantic dinner or maybe a late lunch since we hadn’t had time for lunch or maybe because our breakfast was more like brunch!

Later Ilan took a picture of Thamara cooking without her knowing about it.

In the next video Ilan tried to take a surprise video of Thamara preparing dinner, later she thought Ilan was just taking a picture.

When dinner was ready, we set the table lit a candle and enjoyed the nice meal Thamara had made.

Day 9 – A Trip To Korazim

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BreakfastThat morning Ilan was in charged of preparing breakfast. Ilan was experimenting his cooking skills with eggs and eggplant. This time Thamara decided to take a surprise video of him. It was a great meal!

Morning Devotions

Every morning after breakfast we would have our daily morning devotions. We would read one chapter of the Bible and the daily verses from a book called ‘The Daily Light’; we would also do this after supper.

In the mornings we would read out of the Old Testament and in the evenings from the New Testament.

Our Faith

Since those photos were taken on the ninth day of our honeymoon in Israel, we would use this day to share our faith with you. We believe in the almighty God of the Bible who created all things. Once we were lost with no hope or joy, because our sins and sinful nature have separated us from God. But God made it possible to know him and be close to him by sending His Messiah (Christ) His perfect sinless son Jesus (Salvation in Hebrew) to this earth about 2000 years ago to pay for our sins. He paid for our sins by giving His life for us. He loved us so much and He loves you so much that He died on the cross for us as a sacrifice for sin, the only sacrifice that can remove sin – sins of the past, present and future. Because He was perfect and sinless God raised Him from the dead and He sits by God’s throne in heaven until the day He would return to this earth. Jesus gave us a new and meaningful life, full of hope for this life and the life after death. We believe that nothing can separate us from God’s love, which is in Christ Jesus and we live our lives for Him. If you would like to know more about our faith, if you have questions or doubts, you can find the answers in the Bible. You can also visit this link: http://www.goodnewsnow.info/

If you can read Hebrew you can visit our local congregations web page: http://www.baj.co.il/

Korazim

Later we drove to another one of Israel’s national parks around the Sea of Galilee called Korzim. On the way to Korazim we crossed a bridge over the Jordan River as you can see in the picture.

Above it further away you can see Hadnes were our zimmer was. Then we arrived to Korazim.

Korazim is an historical town mentioned in the Bible. Korzim or Korzin (Corazin KJV) is mentioned in the book of Luke chapter 10 verses 12-14 where Jesus says:

"Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.

In Korazim we had a nice surprise, this park offers guided tours for free! We almost had a privet tour since we were just two couples on the tour! It was great to go back in time and see the historical ruins of the town. There are great remnants of a beautiful synagogue there, and other interesting structures.

Here's a photo of us looking through a great millstone that was used for grinding olives and making olive oil.

Nice Arches.

We saw many rock hyraxes there; they were so fast that we could only take picture from far away.

Later we drove along the Sea of Galilee, looking for more places to see. We found a new building that Ilan had never seen before. We entered and we found out it was a catholic center. The place was very fancy and they offered free guided tours of the place. Since we weren’t catholic, we were hesitant to take the tour but there were many other tourists there including Israelis so we decided to join the tour. It was interesting to see how the different symbols from the Bible and a good link between the Old Testament and Judaism to the New Testament and Christianity. There was a focus on God, serving Him and the Bible as His word. However, they didn’t speak about Jesus nor about the way to be saved and receive eternal hope. The place was very beautiful though and the view of the Sea of Galilee was amazing!

Here are two pictures we took at the library there. In the first photo you can see a scroll of the law (5 books of mosses) with the verse “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet” Psalm 119:105. The scroll was in the center of a glass dome, above there were small lamps that looked like stars and a great view of the Sea of Galilee.

In second picture you can see the Ten Commandments with the same principles from the New Testament, in Hebrew, which was very nice to see. You can also see the glass dome symbolizing the earth and the stars above.

Another beautiful sunset for the end of the day!

Day 10 - A Bike Trip To The Jordan River Park

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On our tenth day of our honeymoon in Israel we made a bicycle trip to the Jordan River Park. The Jordan River Park is a park that belongs to the Keren Kayementh Le Israel - Jewish National Found. http://www.kkl.org.il/kkl/kklmain_blue_eng.aspx

The park offers good camping and picnic facilities, beautiful hiking/biking paths along the river Jordan. The park also includes the agent biblical town of Bethsaida which was recently excavated. The park has a website in Hebrew with pictures and videos of the place. Here is the link to park's site: http://www.parkyarden.co.il/

That day we didn't use our car at all. We rode our bikes from our zimmer in Hadnes which is up on a hill, down to the Jordan River Park which was down the road. It was a great downhill ride!

Bethsaida

When we entered the park we found the excavations of the biblical town of Bethsaida. Bethsaida is mentioned several times in the New Testament. It was the town where Peter, Andrew and Phillip came from. In Mark chapter 8 verses 22-23 we read how Jesus healed a blind man in Bethsaida.

In the picture you can see us hiding in one of Bethsaida's wine cellars.

The paths of Bethsaida are not suitable for bike riding, very bumpy! In fact, the bumpiness of the paths made Thamara's bicycle basket fall off. We found a piece of string and we tied it to the back of the bike.

Later we enjoyed riding the beautiful paths of the park. In the first two pictures you can see us sitting in front of an old water powered flour mill.
In the next 3 photos you can see a view of the Jordan river.

The paths along the Jordan are rocky and sandy but good enough for bike riding. Many reeds grow on the side of the paths and sometimes close over them creating another interesting and beautiful dimension to them.

A beautiful water canal with small dams.

A strong water flow on the other side of the canal.

We enjoyed visiting the Jordan River Park very much. We still had to ride back all way up to Hadnes. Thamara was hungry, tired and rode far behind Ilan. We even switched bicycles to see if it would help. It was a hard climb riding uphill but a good workout.

Later we enjoyed another good romantic dinner on the zimmer's porch. This time we had a guest visiting us – a large and beautiful Gecko Lizard!

Day 11 – A Fantastic And Adventurous Hike Through Yehudia Canyon

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On our eleventh honeymoon day we went to see Yehudia Canyon in the Golan Heights, it was one of the best places we have ever been to for a hike. Yehudia is also one of Israel’s nature reserves and includes the ancient village of Yahudia, a canyon with water running through it, water falls, water pools suitable for swimming and plenty of plants.

We first went to the reserves office for instructions; we received a map and had to carry 3 liters of water per person. In the hot weather of Israel drinking plenty of water is a must. Near the office we saw a large black snake that disappeared into the bushes. Later we had to leave a note on our car’s window with our details: names, time of departure, trail and cell phone number. This way if we’re not back on time, they would know that something had happened to us and would look for us. The trail we took was over 4 hours long.

The trail first lead us first to Yehudia village. Yehudia village is an old Syrian village built on the remnants of an ancient Jewish town. The Jewish town was there more than 2000 years ago and had a synagogue in it.

In the pictures you can see the houses built of the local black stone.

Later we went down to the canyon. From the top we could see the canyon and the first waterfall.

It was a very steep down hill walk.

Then we reached the first waterfall, which was very high and beautiful.

There were a mother and son bathing there. In our hikes through Israel we often saw religious Jews, men and women that would swim in the cold water with their cloths on for modesty reasons.

We continued walking in the canyon along Yehudia Creek; many times we had to cross the creek from one side to the other on the rocks.

Sometimes we had to climb higher above the creek.

Walking through the canyon was just breathtaking. So beautiful, so quiet – all we could hear were the sounds of the water and the birds, and very important: the plants and the canyon provided plenty of shade in a hot sunny day!

On the way we saw some water snails.

The best part – Going down to the pools

As we continued walking we reached another big waterfall that fell into a big pool about 10 meters bellow.

In order to continue, we had to go down a long ladder into the deep-water pool and then swim to the other side of the pool. We were prepared for this since we had read about it before.

Thamara put on her bathing cloths and went down first. The water was cold! Later, Ilan took off his cloths and wrapped every thing including his camera and cell phone in many plastic bags and placed them in his backpack. Then he went down the ladder. When he reached the water he tried to swim but his bag was too heavy to stay above the water! We also had our water bottles and lunch in the bag. So he called Thamara for help. Thamara swam back to Ilan, then we lifted the bag together with one hand and used our other hand and legs for swimming.

It was a great adventure! There was another smaller water pool to cross, this time by foot on the sharp slippery rocks.

Our bag was wet but very little water has entered the first layers of the plastic bags! We dried our selves, put on dry cloths and were ready for lunch.

While eating we enjoyed watching a group of travelers trying to figure out how to get down the same ladder and cross the deep water pool.

After lunch we continued walking in the beautiful canyon, then we had to climb up again to get out of it, went to our car and drove back to our zimmer in Hadnes to enjoy another honeymoon evening.

Day 12 – Tel Hazor and Hula Agmon Bird Paradise

2010-01-04T20:36:00.030+02:00

On the twelfths day of our honeymoon, we drove about an hour north of our zimmer in Hadnes. We visited Tel Hazor and the Hula Agmon in the Hula Valley. On the way we saw another monument for remembering the soldiers who died in the war on the Golan Heights. In that place there were audio guides about the place, all you had to do was to press the button.

A view of the Hula valley:

Tel Hazor

Tel Hazor is one of Israel’s national parks. Hazor is an historical excavated town mentioned in the Bible. It was established about 5000 years ago and was regarded one of the biggest towns in the north of Israel. In the beginning it was settled by the Canaanites, later by the Israelites until it’s destruction by the Assyrians.

The town includes findings from those periods of time. Joshua first conquered it in the book of Joshua chapter 11. Later we read about it in the book of Judges chapter 4. King Solomon in the book of First Kings chapter 9 rebuilt it. Later in the book of Second Kings chapter 15 we read about the Assyrians taking it’s people into exile.

Hazor had a very deep water cistern in it. We had to go many stairs down in order to reach it.

We found a dead eagle in Hazor. We think it was some how poisoned. It looks like a beautiful bird too sad it was dead.

The fields of Hazor:

Hula Agmon – Bird Paradise

After our visit to Hazor, we continued north to the Hula Agmon. The Hula Agmon is a small lake and a bird paradise. Many type of birds come there for food and rest as they migrate from place to place. The Hula Agmon is a very beautiful nature reserve with many paths that are also great for bicycles riding. There are guided tours that include a ride through the reserve and you can also rent a golf cart. Hula Agmon is a great place for the whole family to see and it’s a great place for nature photographers too. You can visit their web site at http://www.agmon-hula.co.il/

We unloaded our bicycles and started riding; it was just beautiful to see so many birds and to listen to their sound.

We saw some coypus (nutrias) near the water.
There were many cranes flying through the red skies of the sunset.
The colors of the sky just kept changing as you can see in the photos.

A type of water bird:

A view of the lake:

Some donkeys:

There were many people there even though it was already dark.

Indeed visiting the Hula Agmon was very special, we enjoyed it so much.

Day 13 – Ancient Mosaic In Israel

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On the 13th day of our honeymoon we left our beautiful and wonderful zimmer in Hadnes and moved on to our next place – Beit Oren guest house on the Carmel Mountain, where we would spend our last two nights of our honeymoon. That day we visited three national parks: Kursi – on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, Hammat Tiberias national park – in Teberias and Tzipori – in the Galilee.

Kursi

Kursi is an ancient Byzantine Christian church and monastery built on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. Kursi is traditionally regarded as the place where Jesus released a demon possessed man and then sent the demons into a herd of pigs, which later ran into the water and drowned. You can read about it in the Bible in the gospel of Luke Chapter 8 verses 26 to 39.

Here you can see Thamara in front of the reconstructed remnants of Kursi:

Kursi has a very beautiful mosaic floor; here you can see two doves and a basket.

There was a wall with a window there; we’re not sure what the window was used for, maybe for puppet shows. But we used it to frame our photo.

Hamat Teberias National Park

Later we arrived to Tiberias where we visited Hamat Teberias National Park. Hammat Tiberias is near the hot water springs of Tiberias. It provides an interesting view of the history of Tiberias. There are also excavations of an ancient synagogue with a marvelous mosaic floor.

A general view of the synagogue:

Two seven candle lamps:

A lion:

An image representing the time of the Hebrew month of Tishrei:

A Greek writing with the Hebrew word ‘Shalom’ (peace):

A view of the Sea of Galilee from Hammat Tiberias hot springs:

Later we got back into the car and had a banana before driving to our next place in the Galille. Thamara took this funny picture of Ilan eating a banana.

Tzipori – An Israeli Mosaic Celebration

An hour later we reached Tzipori national park. Tzipori (or Tippori in Wikipedia) is an ancient city influenced by many nations and cultures such as the Israeli, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Muslim and the crusaders. Was a very important city in central Galilee about 6 kilometers from the city of Nazareth. In the picture you can see some of the findings in Tzipori:

The streets of the city:
It was interesting to see the road marks made by the many wagons and chariots there.

A mosaic image of a Roman soldier:

A mythological creature:

Mosaic floor of a Roman villa:

Music players:

A face of a woman known as the Mona Lisa of the Galilee:
A fortress built by the Crusaders and later by the Ottomans:
They used a sarcophagus (a stone coffin) for a corner stone:
Later it became very cloudy and it started to rain and we ran for shelter.

Beit Oren guesthouse and dinner at a cowboy restaurant

Next, we drove to Beit Oren guesthouse on mount Carmel. It was dark when we arrived. we found our room and were very hungry. This guesthouse doesn’t offer any supper only great breakfasts! There are many restaurants in the nearby Druze village of Isfiya and a great cowboy restaurant called Cat Ballou. We decided to visit Cat Ballou, which was within a walking distance.

Outside the restaurant there were horses since they offered horse ridding on the Carmel Mountain.

We entered the restaurant and were surprised that to see all those people wearing cowboy hats, speaking American English as if we were in America. The place was full of people. We tried to find a table but it was too full because of a cowboy party. Later we talked with some of the workers there and they set a special quite table for us. Finally we could satisfy our hunger with a delicious meal!

Thamara at Cat Ballou restaurant:

Day 14 – Bicycle Tour Through The Carmel Mountain

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After a goodnight rest we woke up and opened our room window. We were surprised to see the sea! We hadn’t known that this time we would also have a view of the sea as in all the other places were we stayed. It was just beautiful!

Breakfast

We went to Beit Oren guesthouse dining room for breakfast. We had a great variety of food to choose from and it was very good. In the picture you can see the view from the dining room window.
Later Thamara went back to our room to get something so Ilan took this picture of a Bubul bird from the window of the dining room.
Later Ilan took a picture of thamara waving from our room’s window.

Biking On Mount Carmel

Beit Oren offers bike trips on the Carmel plus bike renting. Since we had our own bikes we went on our own tour. We first drove to look for a nice path to ride. We found a place where we were able to get a good map of the paths around. We drove to the path we chose, unloaded our bikes and started riding.

In the beginning we saw some big cows there and in one part of the path a cow was blocking the path we were scared and also the cow, eventually the cow moved and we were able to continue.

It was a beautiful sunny day; the path and the view from the Carmel Mountain were great.

A view of Haifa bay up to Lebanon on the other side of the mountain:

A view of the path:

The path went up and down, hard climbing and fun downhill riding. After few hours of riding we decided to go back before it would be too late. We decided to climb the mountain straight up into the Druze village of Isfiya. It was a hard climb walking with our bikes. We finally made it, now we had to find our way around the village and get to the main street where there are also many restaurants.

Finally we found the main street and also found a good place to eat a nice falafel. We bought some extra falafel for later and continued riding through the village.

As we got out of the village Ilan saw a small path through the forest and thought it would be a nice shortcut leading us back to our car. We took it and it was quite a wild ride but also fun.

On the way we saw a herd of black goats and a shepherd.

Later we were not sure where to turn but we decided on a certain direction. As we were riding toward a curve we saw a group of jackals running away from us into the woods, this was scary! We went on and it was getting dark, suddenly we saw that the path was going to the wrong direction. Now we were really worried not to get stuck there by night. Ilan was praying in his heart that God would help us; Thamara was hungry again and was riding far behind Ilan (in the beginning she was always first while Ilan was trying to catch up).

Later we saw some picnic tables, this was a good sign that the main road was not far and indeed we found our way out. We were so relived to be out of the forest in time before the sunset. As we got to the main road we saw a big sun setting into the sea.

Riding on the road we reached a place where the road was curving down the mountain, this was a very fast ride and we had to use our breaks all the time to slow down since we were riding as fast as the cars. We finally made it to the car, loaded our bikes, went back to our room to relax and enjoy another falafel! That was our last honeymoon night, with just one more day to go!

A view of Haifa Bay by night, taken on the way back from the bike path to Beit Oren:

Day 15 – Prehistoric Caves On Our Last Honeymoon Day In Israel

2010-01-01T21:05:00.011+02:00

Well, our last day of our honeymoon has arrived it was wonderful and now we had to go back home. We started the day with a rich Israeli breakfast at the guesthouse dining room. In the picture you can see the large variety of food we had there.

Then we went back to our room to get organized. In the picture you can see the entrance to our room.

Thamara looks at the view from our room’s window for the last time.

After checking out of the guesthouse we drove through a beautiful road on the Carmel Mountain. We decided to visit another national park on the Carmel Mountain called Nahal Mearot (Caves Creek).

Nahal Mearot (Caves Creek) National Park
Nahal Mearot has many caves used by prehistoric people. When we arrived we were offered a guided tour of the prehistoric caves. In the tour there was just another young couple, our guide and we. It was nice to learn about the life of the prehistoric people and the history of the Carmel area.

Outside the caves are different excavations representing different periods of time.

There was one cave that illustrated the life of the prehistoric people.

Some skeletons were found there and they have made a copy of one.

We entered one of the caves and saw many fusils on the cave’s walls. Later we saw a video in the cave about prehistoric people.

A picture of Thamara in the cave:

The cave was about 20 meter, long as you can see in the picture.

Here we are sitting at the cave’s entrance.

After our visit to Nahal Mearot National Park we went back to the car put on some nice folk Israeli music and drove back home.

That was our honeymoon experience in Israel, which was very special to us and is full of good memories. Our official honeymoon is over but practically our honeymoon continues every day as we go together through the journey of life with love. We hope you enjoyed visiting Our Honeymoon In Israel blog, may the Lord bless you!

Ilan & Thamara