The Galilee is not a large region. A mere 80 miles separate its northern border-the peak of Mount Hermon from its southernmost boundary along the Jezreel Plain, the site of biblical Armageddon. Its eastern reaches, on the far edge of the Golan plateau, lie only 50 miles from the Mediterranean sea in the west, but these 5,000 square miles encompass amazingly beautiful and contrasting scenery: mountains and valleys, .fertile plateaus and stark cliffs and glimmering seacoast
The dirve just one hour from one end of the Galilee to the other, and it is also a short hop from major attractions all around Israel: a two hour drive from Tel Aviv,under three hours from Jerusalem or the Dead Sea.
The Galilee mountains were the birthplace of Jewish mysticisim. Shimon Bar Yohai, regarded as the first Jewish mystic, lived in the Galilee in the second century CE.
In the sixeenth century, the small town of Safed became the birth-place of Kabbalah.
More in the area
NAZARETH
The Galilean town where Jesus lived. Visit Mary's Well and the grottos where Joseph is said to have worked as a carpenter.
ACRE
One of Israel's oldest and most important coastal cities, Acre is filled with 4000 years of history. The church steeples and minarets are reminders of the various powers that rules here. To this day it keeps the flavor of its origins as a fishing village. Destroyed in 1291 by the Crusaders, it was rebuilt by the Ottoman's in the 1600's. Visit the Crusader and Ottoman ruins, pedestrian mall, El Jazzar Mosque and Crusader courtyard. Enter the Halls of the Knights Hospitallers, one of the most interesting remnants of Crusader rule. Descend into the crypt from the upper halls. Pass by the old Turkish bath - once a social center of the city. Walk by the port entrance, once one of the many khans (hostels) that were open to pilgrims in the 1800's. Visit the Prisoners of Underground Movements Museum, dedicated to underground fighters and battle for independence against the British army.
SAFED
At 800 meters above sea level, Safed, Israel's highest city is one of the four cities holy to Judaism. Safed's offers picturesque alleyways, historical sites, and mystical synagogues along amazing views of the Galilee.
DRUZE VILLAGES
A visit to villages such as Osafia and Daliat El Carmel offers a peak into the Druze's unusual and interesting life style. Established by the Egyptian ruler El Hakem Bamer Allah almost 900 years ago, the rules and beliefs of this religion remain a secret, known only by it's followers. The Druze live in the Carmel, Galilee and Golan Heights.
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