Centre
Central Israel covers Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and the coastal plain between them, a stretch packed with history. The posts here range from Caesarea on the coast through Bethlehem in the Judean Hills, the Jordan Valley, and Tel Aviv’s modern skyline. The geography is small but the historical and cultural concentration is hard to overstate.
37 articles
37 articles
Old Tel Aviv
Zichron Yaakov and surroundings
A field trip from Zichron Yaakov and the First Aliyah pioneers to Baron de Rothschild's mausoleum at Ramat Hanadiv, the Etzel and Roman ruins at Shuni, the Mei Kedem aqueduct and the Atlit detention camp.
Jerusalem: a miscellany
A miscellany day in Jerusalem covering sites that don't fit a single theme: the Church of St Etienne, the École Biblique, the Armenian Ceramics Workshop, St George's Cathedral, and Hezekiah's Tunnel in the City of David.
Crusader Jerusalem
A walk through the Old City focused on the Crusader century: the Cenacle on Mount Zion, the Nea Church, the German Knights' hospice, the Crusader market, the Church of the Redeemer and the Holy Sepulchre.
The Shfela (Judean Lowlands) in the Roman & Byzantine Periods
A day across the Judean Lowlands: Tel Maresha's underground caves, the Roman city of Beit Guvrin (Eleutheropolis), and crawling through the Bar Kochba Revolt tunnels at Horvat Midras.
Christianity in the Judean Hills
The final of five field trips on Christian sites: Abu Ghosh, Ein Kerem and Beit Jamal. Crusader churches, the birthplace of John the Baptist and a Salesian monastery on the way home.
Muslim Jerusalem
Exploring Muslim Jerusalem: a morning on the Temple Mount platform with the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa, then through the Muslim Quarter learning to read Mamluk architecture, with a stop at Abu Shukri and the Little Western Wall.
Jerusalem in the Second Temple period
A field trip through Jerusalem's Second Temple period sites: the City of David, the Tyropoeon valley drainage channel, the Davidson Centre, the Burnt House, the Wohl Museum of Archaeology, and the excavations beneath the Western and southern walls of the Temple Mount.
Ramla and Lod
A field trip to two adjacent cities in central Israel: the Karaite Centre, White Tower, Arches Pool and Great Mosque in Ramla, plus the Church of St George in Lod. A surprisingly rewarding day for return visitors.
The Via Dolorosa
Walking the Via Dolorosa, station by station from the Antonia fortress to the aedicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. With a morning stop at the Garden Tomb, the Church of St Anne and the Pool of Bethesda.
If you are going to Israel, you would be mad not to give him a call.
Amol Rajan, BBC presenter and broadcaster
Having been on trips in Israel with seven different tour guides, Samuel stood above all the rest.
Seasoned Israel traveller
Samuel is one part walking encyclopedia, one part storyteller, one part stand-up comedian.
Berkeley Haas Business School student