MARCH 14, 2018 -- DAY 3

We eagerly began our third day in Israel with another amazing breakfast at the Carlton Hotel. We bid “shalom”  to Tel Aviv  and boarded the bus for our drive along the Mediterranean Sea coast to Haifa. Our tour guide, BG, filled our time on the bus with a detailed explanation of israeli and Jewish history.

Our first stop was the Leo Baeck school, located on Mount Carmel in Haifa. It is the Israeli  Reform movement’s flagship school!

The school ranges from kindergarten to high school and its goal is academic excellence and community service. The school welcomes students of all economic backgrounds and those with special needs.

The “goodness of mankind” and “making the world a better place” are the school’s philosophy. Everyone enjoyed the students’ presentations!  You could feel the pride they had in their school.

We planted flowers and trees with the middle school children. What a treat that was!

After this, we headed to the Baha’i gardens. The Baha’i people celebrate the unity of G-d, religion and humanity. The spectacular view of the city of Haifa and these beautiful gardens Reflect the serenity and peacefulness of the Baha’i beliefs. It is apparent why it is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Israel.

We then traveled to Akko (Acre), a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the oldest ports in the world. It is a city with a non-segregated population of Jews, Christians and Muslims.  Before we learned about the Crusade’s impact on this region, we had a delicious Middle Eastern meal. We have eaten more than our share of hummus and falafel on this trip.

On very full stomachs, we explored the ruins of the Crusader’s fortress that were discovered and excavated in the past 90 years. It was quite amazing!

We finished our day by once again boarding the bus and heading to the Upper Galilee! What a beautiful ride with the scenery changing from mountain to valley, all remarkably green!

We settled into our kibbutz hotel and shared a wonderful buffet dinner with everyone! Off to bed, anticipating our exciting Day 4!!

(Keith & Becky Myers)