ISRAEL PORTS & CITIES
ISRAEL PORTS & CITIES
| Haifa | Jerusalem |
Haifa
Black Sea Cruise to the Special and Ancient City of Haifa - Israel
Cruise to the north side of Mount Carmel to Israel's main port of Haifa, with its famous fortress. Haifa was known as Sycaminum in antiquity and as Caiphas during the time of the Crusades in the 11th and 12th centuries. In the 12th century a castle built on the site by Crusaders was destroyed by Saladin, sultan of Egypt and Syria. Haifa is also close to Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. In Nazareth you will find the striking Basilica of the Annunciation (where the archangel Gabriel is said to have appeared to Mary), the Church of St Joseph (traditionally the site of Joseph's carpentry shop) and St Mary's Well. The Sea of Galilee (Lake Tiberias) is a clear freshwater rift valley lake completely encircled by a beach. In the past, the vicinity of Lake Tiberias was well populated, and several of the great trade routes of Asia Minor converged at the lake. Nine cities flourished on its shores, and it was the centre of an extensive fishing industry. Of the biblical towns only Tiberias, on the western shore, still exists. From Haifa it is also possible to visit the Holy City of Jerusalem, sacred to Christians, Jews and Muslims alike.
Jerusalem
Cruise to Israel's Most Ancient City, Jerusalem
Jerusalem is Israel's largest and most ancient city situated on a cluster of hilltops and valleys between the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea. The main religious and historical sites are in the Old City, which is contained inside a wall constructed in 1538 during the reign of the Ottoman ruler Suleiman I, the Magnificent. Enter by one of the famous ancient gateways like the Damascus or Jaffa Gates. The area inside the Old City wall is roughly divided into four: the Muslim, Jewish, Christian, and Armenian quarters. The Old City is sacred to Jews as the capital of the first Jewish kingdom, to Christians as the site of Christ's crucifixion and to Muslims as the site of the ascent into Heaven of the Prophet Muhammad.
WORLD MAP
