Druze
The Druze are a small religious community whose villages sit across the Carmel, the upper Galilee and the Golan plateau. Posts here include the Druze villages of the central Golan and around Mount Hermon, the Carmel communities visited on a Mount Carmel tour, and the wider upper Galilee context in which they sit.
10 articles
10 articles
Hiking to the top of Israel: Mt Hermon
Hiking the 2,040m peak of Mt Hermon on Israel's northern border in the middle of summer: the heat, the army permission, the views from above the clouds, and the berry picking on the way home.
In the Classroom
Although the blog has mostly tracked our weekly field trips, the tour guide course also involved a huge amount of classroom time. Here's what we actually had to study: history, geography, the main religions, contemporary Israel and the practical side of guiding.
Eastern Lower Galilee
A field trip around the eastern lower Galilee, the basalt-cliff region between the Sea of Galilee and the central Galilee: Mount Arbel and its ancient synagogue, the Druze shrine of Nabi Shu'aib, ancient Korazim, Domus Galilaeae and Tel Mutilla.
Campus Upper Galilee day two: Central Upper Galilee
Day two of our Upper Galilee campus: the Druze village of Pekiin and its synagogue, Nebi Sabalan, the summit of Mt Meron, the Paar Cave, the tomb of the Rashbi, Rehaniya's Circassian community, and the Baram synagogue.
Campus Upper Galilee day one: Western Upper Galilee
The first day of our three-day campus in the Upper Galilee: an arab cemetery at Kfar Yasif, a crusader sugar refinery, the Adamit and Goren parks, the grottoes at Rosh Hanikra, and two memorials to war-of-independence operations.
Haifa
A day in Haifa: the Bahai Gardens spilling down Mount Carmel, the Ahmadiyya mosque, Stella Maris and the cave of Elijah, the German Colony, and a hike in Nachal Siach to round off.
Campus Golan Day 3: Mount Hermon
Day 3 of our Golan Heights course: up the Mt Hermon chairlift for views into Syria and Lebanon, then the Druze tomb of Nabi Hazuri, the Nimrod Fortress, the waterfalls at Banias and a sombre stop at the Helicopters Memorial.
Campus Golan Day 2: the Lower Hermon and the Northern Golan Heights
Day 2 of our Golan Heights course: Tel Dan's salamander, the world's oldest arch, the Hellenist temple at Banias, the Yom Kippur battlefields at Mt Bental and the Valley of Tears, and a kumzitz to close.
Campus Golan Day 1: Central Golan Heights
Day 1 of the Golan Heights campus: a hike down Nachal Jilabun, wine tasting at the Golan Heights Winery, the Talmudic Village of Katzrin, and memorials at Mitzpe Gadot and Tel Faher.
Mount Carmel
A day on Mount Carmel, from the panoramic Mishmar HaCarmel viewpoint and the burn scars of the 2010 fire to Little Switzerland, the Chai Bar wildlife reserve, the Druze town of Daliyat-al-Carmel and the Muchraka monastery linked to the prophet Elijah.
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