Our first day in Haifa was very different to the normal cruise passenger's day. We had a late breakfast. Normally people have to leave the ship early. Our friend Lynn from Target Tours, picked us up at 10am. Lynn does wonderful work arranging tour groups around Israel and in other countries. She is also Ingrid's friend since nursery school!
Lynn brought her father with her, who is visiting from South Africa. What a nice surprise. Lynn also brought, her partner Rafi, whom we met in February (in Israel), a friend Raymond and a friend and tour guide Irma. We went to the German Colony where we walked around briefly. Irma gave us a lot of very interesting information about the buildings, the architecture and the history of the area. We walked over to the lower gates of the Bahai Gardens. Again Irma gave us some interesting information.
We drove up to the top of the Bahai Gardens where we visited the Shrine. The interesting aspect was the belief of the Bahai that all the prophets contribute to humanity and that the various religions should live together in harmony.
We then drove to Nazareth, where we visited the Church of the Annunciation and the Synagogue Church. We also walked through the market to a unique small hotel with frescos on the ceilings.
We eventually drove back to Haifa where we met up with Irma's husband, Mike. He has his office directly across from the dock where our ship was berthed. He took us to his favorite local restaurant where we thoroughly enjoyed a selection of the Mediterranean dishes. We also sampled some local beers and Arak, the Israeli version of Ouzo.
We returned to the ship for drinks in the Sky Lounge, after which we went to the show in the theatre. It was not good. We left early and went for a late sushi and salad dinner at the buffet. We did not like the selection on offer in the dining room.
A full day in Haifa.
The second day in Haifa was very relaxed. We had breakfast on our balcony. I went to the Michael's Club to watch the Wales France rugby world cup semi-final. After the game, we went for a walk through the Wadi Nasri Arab quarter close to the docks. We walked over to the German Colony and back to the docks where we boarded a Haifa Tourist Agency bus. It took us up to the Stella Maris observation area, Church and Monastery. After enjoying the view over haifa, the bus took us to the Carmel Centre. We walked down the 1,000 steps through various area of Haifa, through the Arab Quarter all the way back to the ship.
It was now after 3pm. We sat on the stern of the ship, again outdoors, having a cool, healthy salad. After a short rest, I went to the fitness centre for a light workout. After a quick shower we went to the dining room for a delicious dinner. The seared tuna was perfect!
The show after dinner was a variety show featuring four of the artists we had seen plus a short aerial act. It was really good.
Time to relax on our balcony while the ship sails out of Haifa towards Ashdod, our gateway to Jerusalem......
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