Romans and Crusaders

Heading North, Caesarea and Akko

          The group got on the bus at the hotel without any incidents or forgotten passports. Our journey was now to head north out of Tel Aviv, passing Herzeliyah and Netanya before arriving in Caesarea. When we entered the historic part of Caesarea there were numerous booths set with activities for children who had a day off from school for Purim.

          Uri provided us with a quick intro reminding us that we were entering a Roman theater and not as some mistakenly say an amphitheater.  We sat as he then gave a brilliant and condensed version of Jewish history from Abraham and Sarah to the Roman period up to Byzantine Christianity. He also focused on Herod who was the great builder under whose rule the theater and Caesarea were built.  We heard how he was tied to the Hasmoneans while actually being an Idumean. Uri did this while standing on one foot (not literally but in a very quick manner) with tremendous knowledge and humor.  This set the stage for the remainder of our visit.

          We moved from the theater to the hippodrome where we encountered a small group of young runners which added a new twist on this ancient locale of Roman sporting events some of which were of a more violent nature. We stopped a few times around the area always having ancient ruins and the beautiful Mediterranean Sea as backdrops to our presentations. We discussed early Christianity as well as modern connections to Hannah Senesh who lived nearby at Kibbutz Sedot Yam. We sang her famous poem “Eli Eli” with the soft waves of the sea as accompaniment.  Her story as a martyred hero during her mission to Hungry was very powerful. We spent some private time on the shore reflecting on private personal thoughts.  Finally we walked out through the gate leaving behind this magnificent place with still so much more to see on our next visit.   

          We drove a short distance to a shopping mall in Or Akiva to grab a quick lunch.  The food court was crowded with many families with young children enjoying a special show for Purim. It was then on to Akko.

          We arrived at the entrance to the Crusader complex. Each time I visit this site there seems to be more to see. Once again Uri provided history and context to the period of history involved.  His line about the Crusaders seeing this land as a holy land and Zionists, Israelis and Jews worldwide seeing this as a homeland is an important distinction. We sat in the courtyard below the prison which was the site of hangings during the struggle for Israel’s independence and played a key scene in the movie “Exodus.”

After making our way through the tunnel and exiting through the gift shop, we walked over to the great mosque.  Since it was right at the time for the call to prayer we were only allowed to enter the courtyard for a moment to get a peek at the extensive grounds.

 

Again the group was provided with a bit of context in regards to Islam as well as to the population mix and makeup of Akko itself.  We proceeded to walk on the rampart walls of the city and get another glorious view of the Mediterranean.  

 

Back to the bus and across the Galilee to arrive at our wonderful kibbutz hotel (The Pastoral) at Kfar Blum.

After time to wash up and rest we had a wonderful dinner followed by a talk about the kibbutz and the changes that have occurred over the years. Then off to bed for a nights rest.