Galilee is an area in Israel that amazes with its vibrant landscapes. The mountains are covered with haze, here and there on the tops, buried in lush needles and foliage of trees, there are the ruins of ancient fortresses, streams murmur in the gorges and the roar of waterfalls is heard. No less beautiful are the fertile valleys with date palms, citrus, olive trees and even tropical bananas. And all this splendor is reflected in the wonderful Lake Kinneret.
Galilee is an area in Israel that amazes with its vibrant landscapes. The mountains are covered with haze, here and there on the tops, buried in lush needles and foliage of trees, there are the ruins of ancient fortresses, streams murmur in the gorges and the roar of waterfalls is heard. No less beautiful are the fertile valleys with date palms, citrus, olive trees and even tropical bananas. And all this splendor is reflected in the wonderful Lake Kinneret.
You can get to Galilee from Israel. To do this, you need to cover about 200 kilometers by car. The first guests are greeted by the lake. It opens up unexpectedly - it is enough to go down into a deep depression formed by the Galilee Mountains and the Golan Heights, and you can see a huge surface of water. Surrounded by yellow-green mountains, the lake looks incredibly fabulous and harmonious. The Kinneret is not only a natural reservoir that is a source of fresh water, but also a resort area loved by many Israelis. Hotels, boarding houses, equipped beaches - everything is provided for recreation. Many people prefer to relax as a savage, using the services of campgrounds equipped with showers, toilets, restaurants, cafes, fireplaces and barbecues.
The excursion boat will allow you to make an unforgettable walk along the lake, after which you can recuperate and improve your health in the hot springs rich in sulfur and salts.
The next attraction of Galilee is the resort of Tiberias. It is located by the lake, but has all the characteristics of a seaside resort. There are beaches, palm trees, promenades, luxury hotels, discos and restaurants. The city is small - about 40,000 inhabitants, but its size should not scare you with the fact that the rest will be boring. The history of the city is almost 2000 years old, modern buildings are here side by side with ruins and ancient monuments. Many sights have survived from biblical times - these are excavations of ancient settlements. There are buildings from the Roman period, such as the remains of a tower and an aqueduct, as well as mosques and buildings erected in the 18th-19th centuries. The Greek Orthodox Church of the Twelve Apostles can be seen in the city center next to the lake. It was built on the ruins of a Byzantine church dating from the 4th century.
The narrow streets of the old Lower Town will surprise you with houses built of black basalt. Once among them, you can understand that you are in the Jewish quarter, outside of which Jews were forbidden to live until the beginning of the 20th century. The contrast to this place is the area of mansions and luxury villas. It appeared in the last century in the 20s and is called Kiryat Shmuel.
Just two kilometers south of the city and you can find yourself at the famous sources "Hamat Tiberias". Even the Romans appreciated all the advantages of these places and began to build baths here. Not far from the springs, you can see the ruins of an ancient synagogue, on the floors of which the signs of the zodiac are depicted. It is impossible not to see the remains of the settlements that were built on this site in the 1st-4th centuries. The springs did not go unnoticed by the Turkish authorities, who built a hydropathic establishment here.
30 kilometers north of Tiberias along the serpentine highway to the picturesque mountain ranges, and you will find yourself in Safed. This city, without exaggeration, can be called the capital of world kabbalism. This mystical and mysterious trend of Judaism was brought to Israel from Spain by fleeing rabbis. The Kabbalah had many students in Safed, and religious schools began to open. Today there are modern educational institutions, where Kabbalists come from all over the world, and old synagogues. The atmosphere in the city is cheerful and a bit mystical. It literally fills the winding streets and alleys, in which, in addition to the synagogues of the Old Town, there are art salons and numerous souvenir shops of the Artists' Quarter. Safed does not live by Kabbalah alone - its amazing landscapes attract painters who form a kind of colony. There are so many works that they do not fit into galleries and workshops.
You definitely need to walk a lot in Safed in order to get to the top of the mountain along the streets going up, at the foot of which the city is located. Let the height of 900 meters not be intimidating, the ascent is worth it to see the breathtaking landscapes from the very top - the Mediterranean Sea, Lake Kinneret, the snow-capped peak of Mount Hermon.
