Afternoon in Haifa

With the Olympics being over and our TV in dire need of a rest, we turned off the tube and headed north to Haifa for the day. Built on the slopes of Mount Carmel  (the place where Elijah challenged the followers of Baal in a cook-off as documented in 1 Kings 18), Haifa is Israel's largest port and third largest city. 

Our first stop was Elijah's Cave. Located at the base of Mt Carmel, this site is thought to be the cave mentioned in 1 Kings 19:9. Here is the entrance sign  which is written in Hebrew (for Jews), English (for Christians), and Arabic (for Muslims)--all of whom believe the stories of Elijah. The woman who's head is shown in the bottom left (according to someone who interpreted for us, at least) wanted me to give her money because she'd thought that I'd taken her picture. 

Upon entering the cave, Nicki and I needed to split up--no, not because only one of us belongs to the Khaduri Family, but rather because I am a "gever" (written in Hebrew like this: גבר, which is Hebrew for "man") and she is not. 

This is what the men's side of the cave looks like (shhh...don't tell Nicki). The guys on the bench were praying (and bowing), and there were some unintelligible sounds coming from behind the curtain. 

On the way out, I turned and snapped this picture of the women's side. 

Rest assured, Elijah had a nice view. That's the Mediterranean Sea (with silhouette of Nicki and Sammy, of course) as viewed from the entrance of the cave. 

Our next stop was the Baha'i Gardens. Perched on the slopes of Mt. Carmel, these immaculate gardens are considered "holy" ground in the Baha'i faith--of which, Haifa is apparently the world headquarters. Here's a view from atop Mt Carmel looking down at the Gardens and the city of Haifa. 

And here is the same view, but looking a bit more to the east. The domed building is the "Shrine of the Bab", which is currently closed for cleaning. "Bab" was the founder of the Baha'i faith, which was founded in Iran in the 1800's and seems to be a conglomeration of all religions. 

Another view of Bab's shrine, with the Haifa port in the background. 

Nicki, Sammy, and the Bab...

After soaking in the views, we looked forward to fueling up with some German food (bratwursts, perhaps?) in Haifa's "German Colony". Instead, we found only local-food-type-restaurants as well as an Italian one. We settled on Fattoush, an Arab-owned joint. As the sign states, it was very welcoming...which is apparently a trait that Haifa is known for, as Jews and Arabs reportedly mix in a mostly peaceful and tolerant manner. 

The "colony" is really just a single street--but despite the lack of German cuisine, it does seem to have some German flair. Apparently this area was the center of a late 19th-century German Templar religious reform movement. 

Here is a view looking back up at Mt Carmel and the Baha'i Gardens. 

After our late lunch, Sammy was in dire need of a nap, so we headed for home. Speaking of Sammy, below are some recent pictures...

Here he is showing support for Team USA with Mom at a park near our apartment in Tel Aviv. 

Notice the necklace (a new staple), and the sandals (also relatively new). Oh, and the walking! Though his first steps were a few months ago, Sammy is now walking full time. He made the transition from mostly-crawling to mostly-walking just a few days after we returned from our US (grandparents' and new cousin's houses!) trip in July. 

Other new milestones, for better or worse, include climbing on the sofa and tables, turning on the oven, biting, and shoplifting (yes, he's secretly dropped candy bars into his stroller on two separate occasions--both of which his mommy later found and returned to the store). 

Here's one more from the park, and that's all for now.