Caesarea national park












 Caesarea national park has ancient harbor Roman, Byzantine and Crusader ruins, the 2000-year-old theate, beautiful beaches, next to impressive modern residences and a salt water treatment plant. It is located on Israel’s Mediterranean Coast about halfway between Tel Aviv and Haifa.

The harbor was built by King Herod and an engineering marvel. The multimedia explanation of the history of the port inside the museum is a must see. The restored amphitheater hosts modern-day concerts during the summer months like the one in Athen Greece. I know there are better and bigger sites in Italy and Greece, but I should enjoy what in front of me.

I was prepared for Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest beginning at sundown on Friday and ends at sundown on Saturday when the new week begins. However, I did not expect all public transport was closed for “Shavuot”, Feast of Weeks, a Jewish holiday and pilgrimage festival, for the wheat harvest in the Land of Israel.  I was shocked to see the locked train station near Caesarea, and ran around to find out from a restaurant on the other side of station that it was closed today.  Fortunately, my classmate was off today and kindly took me from Caesarea national park to Haifa.

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