Tour Israel Blog

Both James Bond and Simon Templar will be in Eilat for the Fifth Chamber Music Festival!

Special guests Sir Roger Moore,  Ambassador to UNICEF, Italian actor Moni Ovadia, author Amos Oz, recipient of the Israel Prize,  Krzysztof Penderecki, composer, recipient of UNESCO, Wolf and Grammy Award, and composer Fabio Vacchi will be in Israel’s southernmost city, Eilat, for the 5th Chamber Music Festival.

Join us in Eilat for 10 days of superb chamber music under the batons of Aleksey Igudesman (Austria), Salvatore Accardo (Italy), Andres Mustonen (Estonia), Julian Rachlin (Austria),  and George Pehlivanian (USA) from February 18-27, 2010.

Reserve tickets and hotel accommodations at Drive-Israel.com

The grapes on the vines  are deep purple and delicious to pluck and eat. But these juicy perfectly round  Concord grapes that we grow in our own tiny vineyard in Israel are meant to be turned into wine. First we carefully clip the bunches of grapes from the vine. We gather them and wash the grapes many times – which may ruin the musk but we feel is essential anyway. Now the fun part: bring in those little feet.

Two pairs  of  dainty feet get a good scrubbing. And the stomping begins. It actually is harder work than it looks and the little girls work hard smashing those grapes so there will be sweet preservative-free grape juice for the Sabbath.

Grapes are harvested in Israel from August to September, and then the wine making process begins. In these photos and short film, we feature a teeny tiny boutique winery in Rehovot. This year’s grapes yielded two bottles of pure heavenly Concord grape juice.

If you visit Israel in late August or September, you can join a wine making workshop and create your own label!

Drive-Israel.com creates your custom self-drive trip in Israel.

Contact Judy to plan your absolutely BEST trip to Israel!

Belz Synagogue, Jerusalem

Mark your calendars for the bi-annual Open Houses event that takes place in Jerusalem on Friday, Sept 11 and Saturday,  Sept 12. The event is free and many of the tours do not require pre-registration.

Among the open buildings are the Belz Synagogue, an extremely lavish edifice, that from far looks like the Second Temple. The tour takes place on Friday morning 8AM – 9 AM. Wear modest dress and head coverings for men and women. Registration not required.

Italian Hospital, Jerusalem, Israel

The former Italian Hospital, now the offices of the Ministry of Education, is located at 34 Shivtei Yisrael St. Originally built as a private residence in the 1800s by a wealthy banker, the building has gone through many phases and purposes. The tour,  led by an art historian,  takes place on Friday at 10 AM. No registration required, but ID will be checked so arrive no later than 9:30AM.

Bridges for Peace, Jerusalem, Israel

Headquarters of Bridges for Peace, this building was built in 1905 at 7 shaul Adler St, near HaNevi’im. The organization promotes better relationship between Christians and Jews. Biblical scenes adorn the courtyard. Tour is on Friday, 14:00-19:00;  and Saturday, 9:00-14:00.

To mark the publication of his latest book, Mamila/Alrov Quarter – High Tide, Low Tide and Rejuvenation, Jerusalem-based architect David Kroyanker will tour the Mamilla compound with 40 pre-registered guests and talk about the area from the time of the British Mandate and the emergence of the neighborhood from a poor border area to its current affluence. Saturday, 10-12:30.

Mamilla Compound, Jerusalem

The 4th Eilat Spring Migration Festival will take place on March 18-25, 2010.

Migrating birds in Israel

Hundreds of birdwatchers from all over the world are expected to flock, once again, to Israel’s southernmost resort for the 4th Eilat Spring Migration Festival, which will take place March 18-25, 2010. The festival, which is organized by the Israeli Ornithological Center of the SPNI and the International Birding and Research Center Eilat, offers birders the opportunity to combine the spectacle of spring migration at its best with a relaxing vacation in the warm spring sunshine of Eilat on the Red Sea.

Birdwatching Festival in Israel

Every spring, the skies of Israel fill with the sight of 500 million birds, migrating north from the warmer climates in Asia and Africa to Europe – a paradise for birdwatchers. Israel’s unique strategic location, the only land bridge between Europe, Asia and Africa, provides the migrating birds with a large variety of habitats and the warm air currents they need for perfect soaring conditions. This makes Israel one of the most exciting and accessible regions for bird watching in the whole of the West Palearctic.

The Israel Ornithological Center, which operates three bird watching centers in Israel and aims to protect the region’s biodiversity through activities with birds, has recorded more than 540 different species of birds in Israel at various seasons in the year, with over 400 occurring annually – and this despite the fact that the country is only 500 km long.

Birdwatching Festival in Eilat, Israel

The week long festival includes day and night birding tours to all the best sites in southern Israel, many bird related activities, presentations, talks and more. Guests are hosted in the Isrotel Agamim Hotel, where the opening banquet and evening activities will take place. A special Birders Pub will help birders quench their thirst from the long days in the field.

Contact  your Israel travel expert at Drive-Israel.com – to plan your best trip to Israel!

Resources for Explorer Tourists
Underground row boating in land-locked Ramle? Too strange to be true. Yet, there was the sign beckoning us on: Boating Under the Arches. Our companions for the day were two adorable almost 13-year-olds: a post-Bat Mitzvah girl, and a pre-Bar Mitzvah boy — the perfect cover to “gone rowing” in the middle of the day.

We passed through the center of Ramle — a town with a mixed Christian, Muslim and Jewish population — that lies between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, as we followed the signs.

We were led down the steep stairs into the underground pools where the rowboats awaited us. As the two navigators oared among the spiring 8th century arches, the feeling was of Disneyland — but no, this was the real thing: underground, under arches, built during the rule of Harun al-Rashid in the 8th century. The Unayziyya Cistern, also known as the pool of St. Helena, served as reservoirs for this once strategic town and the surrounding area.

Today the reservoir is a tourist site where visitors are invited to learn about the ancient water collection system as they row between the arches.

In addition to the reservoirs, do not miss the Square Tower, built in 1318 by the Mameluk Sultan, Klaun Zelach. The tower, which stands 30 meters high, was built with a dual purpose: both for the muezzin to call the community to prayer and as a watchtower. Adjacent to the tower is the White Mosque dating back to the 8th century.

From the tower looking to the east one can see the bell tower of the Franciscan church, Nesher Concrete Factory, the hills of the Shefelah (lowlands) region, Ben Shemen forest, and as far as the Judean hills and Samaria. Gazing west, the new water tower in the Ben Gurion neighborhood of Ramle and the Tel Aviv skyline can be seen. The city of Rehovot, home to the Weizmann Institute and the Faculty of Agriculture of the Hebrew University is visible.

Today as in the past, this multi-cultural city welcomes new immigrants to the region: the most recent influx of immigrants is from the Former Soviet Union and Ethiopia.

Hours for Boating Under the Arches:
8:00-14:00 Sun-Thurs, open until noon on Fridays and holiday eves; open until 15:30 on Saturday and holidays.
Tel: 08.977.1484

The latest phenomenon to reach Israel’s spa culture, is Couples Spa. There are a few versions to this.

One type of treatment is where the couple share a massage therapy room, and on separate treatment beds, each person receives a massage – whether that be shiatsu, Swedish, hot stone massage, aromatherapy, Thai massage, or the Indian massage, Ayurveda. The couple decide together which therapy they prefer and receive the same one from different therapists.

Interestingly enough, when I spoke with a representative of the day spa in Holmes Place, a fitness center with locations around Israel, she told me that they recommend separate treatment rooms for couples so that each person can concentrate on the massage and not think about the partner.

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Check it out! The absolute best beach time along these Mediterranean shores is on bright sunny winter days – and yes, there are some swimmers too. My little pal was prepared to enter the turquoise blue waters – until – we found the jellyfish – medusa in Hebrew – lying in the sand. Oops! better re-think that, she said to herself as she backed away.

No swimming, huh? Dunes are better than swimming anyway, so we climbed, jumped, rolled (is that why my back is kaput?), dug, built, blew bubbles, and watched others bike, fish, jog and walk. Read the rest of this entry »

During a Chanukah vacation visit from our frequent-flyer family in the U.S., we decided to break the mold of touring and looking, with a hands-on workshop. Options were discussed until we unanimously voted to try our scissors at papercutting, a popular form of art practiced for hundreds of years by Jewish artists.

Intrigued by a Yehudit Shadur papercut hanging on my wall – how do all those teeny tiny cuts form an elegant meaningful composition? – we took up ruler, scissors, tracing paper, and secret tools of the trade.

Under the patient instruction and guidance of Susan, a student at the Pardes Institute in Jerusalem, we used tools that I, for one, had not held for quite some time.

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Kakadu Wood Designs offers a unique opportunity to work alongside the company’s chief designer, Reut Shahar, an accomplished artist and sculptor.

Reut’s most recent work can be viewed at the Picabu Restaurant in Disneyworld, Florida. Reut designed Picabu with highly colorful original artwork.

The workshops revolve around the highly colorful unique wood sculpture – both 2- and 3-dimensional – that Kakadu is known for around the world.

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Talented saxophonist, professional open source specialist, and long-time good friend Danny Lieberman asked for our support of the annual Alyn bike-a-thon, Wheels of Love, when he and hundreds of others, Israelis and tourists, will be riding from Jerusalem to Eilat the week of October 29, 2006.

According to David Arnovitz, WOL 2006 Ride Committee Chairperson, this year over 425 supporters of Alyn will join the week-long bike ride from Jerusalem to Eilat – an increase in the number of supporters from 325 in 2005. $1,927,000 was raised then, but the bar has been lifted and this year’s goal is to raise $2,500,000.

Read the story of Tzur who benefitted from funds raised by Alyn in WOL 2005

Tzur aged 11 is a victim of terror. He suffered multiple injuries as a result of a drive-by shooting and was hospitalized in Alyn’s In-patient Active Rehabilitation Unit. As part of his personalized multidisciplinary rehabilitation plan he received intensive physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, hydrotherapy, animal assisted therapy and even humor therapy with Alyn’s medical magician, “Magic Michael“!

Here is the letter we received so you too can support this excellent non-profit organization too.

Dear Friends,

I am riding a bike from Jerusalem to Eilat the week of October 29th.

We are raising money for the Alyn Childrens Hospital that specializes in intensive rehabilitation of children. Alyn’s work is especially important in Israel with many children having been injured by Arab terror and the recent war with Hezbullah.

I know that this difficult summer, you may have already stepped up to the plate to help; but these children depend on the expertise, love and hope found at Alyn and the money we raise helps make that happen.

Together we can do this. We have to because the children of Alyn are depending on us.

Every rider has taken a commitment to raise at least $2,000 and I’m hoping you will find it in your heart to help us reach our goal.

You can donate online here in Israeli currency or here in U.S. dollars or here in other currencies.
Shana Tova,

Danny

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