Exploring Haifa -- Day 1

Looking back, it might be argued that Haifa didn't warrant a visit of two days and three nights. The primary attraction is the Bahai Gardens, which dominates Mount Carmel. Otherwise, Haifa doesn't have too much in the way of typical tour destinations. But we enjoyed our stay in Haifa none the less -- and one reason is the great small hotel -- the Port Inn. It was comfortable and relatively inexpensive, had a neat courtyard with potted plants, and was run by really pleasant and helpful folks. And the breakfasts were great, particularly the cappuccinos from the coffee machine (see picture).

After checking in, we went and had lunch along Ben Gurion Street, which is in the center of the German Colony and faces the main gate of the Bahai Gardens. It was kind of restaurant row, so we picked a place that didn't have a line to get in and where you could sit outside and watch crowds pass by. This was the first time I was worked over by one of the Arab street traders. In this case it was a kid selling small items from a box. There was nothing I needed or wanted, but to be polite I picked out a ball point pen and we negotiated a price of, say 10 shekels. Trouble was, I only had a 100 shekel note (about $20) and he lacked change. I ended up with four pens and a handful of coins. Two of the pens were worthless and the rest became so quickly.

Later in the day we took a cab to a movie theater, but were unsuccessful in actually finding it. So we decided to walk back down toward the center of town and return to the Port Inn. That's when we found our first Haifa 'gem' in a series of stairway streets through residential areas. These were leafy byways passing rooftop gardens and apartment blocks, side alleys and other back streets. This was when we discovered the extent of feral cats, which occupied every dumpster cover and scurried around the gardens and pathways. The stairs finally emptied out and we found Jaffa Street and the hotel entrance. It was a good walk.

The next day, after breakfast, we took a cab to the intriguing "Museum of Clandestine Immigration and the Navy." Not too many foreign tourists come here, but there were a number of groups of young soldiers learning their nation's history. It's not an uncommon sight. The museum featured panels and displays of the "exodus" of Jewish refugees from Europe following the end of WWII. The main display was a converted freighter which brought immigrants to Haifa -- often to be turned back by the British Navy. The ship's name was "never the less."

Later we walked back toward the port, found the main bus station and boarded a bus toward the direction of Jaffa Road. Lily almost got left behind because the driver was a bit cranky about the speediness of people to board the bus.



A poem from the Illegal Immigration museum, above, and just below it picture of the freighter on display at the museum.