Judaism
Israel’s Jewish heritage spans biblical sites, Second Temple Jerusalem, Talmudic Tiberias and Beit Shearim, and the kabbalistic tradition in Tzefat. Posts here cover the Jewish Quarter of the Old City, the Beit Shearim necropolis, and the Galilee Jewish centres of Tiberias and Tzefat.
16 articles
16 articles
Safed / Tzefat
A return to Tzefat, where I spent three months on my gap year, this time as a guiding student. Akhbara, Mt Canaan, the kabbalists' synagogues of the Old City and a sunset over the Crusader citadel.
Beit Shearim and Zippori
A day in the lower Galilee at Beit Shearim and Zippori: the story of Alexander Zaid, the vast necropolis and tomb of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, and Zippori's Roman synagogue, fortress, mosaics and reservoir.
The Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem
A walk through the modern history of the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City, visiting the Ramban, the Four Sephardi Synagogues, Tiferet Yisrael, the Karaite Centre and the Hurva, and closing at the memorial for those who fell in 1948.
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.
Tiberias
A day in Tiberias, one of Judaism's four holy cities: the Sapir Station of the national water carrier, Ottoman ruins from Daher el-Omar's era, Roman and Byzantine remains, and the ancient synagogues of Hammat Tiberias.
Akko (Acre)
A full day in the old port city of Akko: the British Mandate prison museum, Al-Jazzar Mosque, the Hospitaller Fortress, the Templars' Tunnel, Hammam al-Basha, and the Bahji gardens just outside the walls.
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.
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.
Benjamin and Samaria
A field trip into the West Bank: the archaeological site at Shiloh (briefly home to the tabernacle), a fog-bound viewpoint from Mt Kabir, and Mt Gerizim — holy site of the Samaritans.
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