Hiking Mt Arbel, Druze Village and Shabbat in Akko

Shabbat Shalom from Akko Israel!!  Today was very laid back with a wonderful hike down Mt Arbel and then learning about the Druze culture in Israel and touring the city of Peqi'in before heading to Akko for our 3rd Shabbat together.  This Shabbat we will be at the Tunisian Synagogue which is a gorgeous orthodox synagogue and great for everyone to see this part of Judaism in Israel since the service will be all in Hebrew, men & women separated and some incredible mosaics all over the interior. Click on this link to check out the synagogue

We wanted to wish everyone a Shabbat Shalom!  

Blog post - Alissa Geller

Israel has by far exceeded my expectations. Poland was very tough, but I think it was important to realize how amazing and how essential it is to have Israel. The desert experience is one that I will never forget. Not only am I so proud to have accomplished all that we did, but we did it in our homeland, in the land of our ancestors. I couldn't help but thinking of Jews for thousands of years walking around where we did. Yet the moment that has hit me the most was the Friday night  Shabbat service we had at Kibbutz Keturah, which has an active conservative synagogue. There was a bat mitzvah the following morning and the family welcomed us into their evening service with open arms. What was so amazing was that even though I was halfway around the world from my home, I still could follow the service and knew almost every prayer. I think it showed me the power of prayer in Judaism. It is a link between Jews throughout the entire world. I am so excited to continue this adventure and see even more of Israel.

Hike down Mt Arbel

Druze city of Peki'in

​Peki’in is a story of harmony: a village where Christian Arabs, Druze and one ancient Jewish family have lived peacefully together for centuries​.  Peki’in was a farming village since the time of the Second Temple 2,000 years ago. Since that time only one Jewish family has stayed in place. Arab settlement in Peki’in started in the 11th century CE with Arab Christians who were joined a century later by Crusaders. In the 18th century Druze families moved into the village and another 10 Jewish families have moved there during the past few years.

Shabbat in Akko