Ceasarea

(photo:Ceasarea main building)
Sunday, the first day of the workweek for Israel but still a weekend for Deb and I, we headed up the coast to Caesarea. First we tried to have breakfast at a cool restaurant Deb and her crew have found, but there was absolutely NO parking be found. We drove around for over an hour trying to find a place to park. We debated going back to the hotel and taking a cab to the restaurant but decided to skip breakfast in town and get it in Caesarea. Well Deb's blood sugar was getting so low that it became imperative on the way to stop and get something to eat. We pulled off the highway were there was one of the signs with knife and fork which symbolizes on highways all over the world that food is available at this exit. Instead of being a little shopping center with a McDonalds like the others we had passed, it was the exit for a town. We ended up on the main street in even worse traffic than we had left in Tel Aviv and still no parking! After a frustrated 15 minutes and poor Deb ready to pass out, I said let’s pull into the gas station and get gas and while you do that, I’ll go look for food. A frantic run to a nearby version of a convenience store yielded some nuts and chips and next door was a gyro stand and I made it back to the car as they finished putting in the gas (full serve only in Israel – I'm lovin' it!) After some food, we both began to feel better and could risk talking to each other without it erupting into bloodshed!

We made it the rest of the way to Caesarea without incident. Caesarea is the town that Herod built and named after Cesar. It has been converted into a resort area with Israel’s only golf course, resort hotels and the original excavation site. We first headed down to the aqueducts. This area is known as Caesar’s beach. I had to take a picture of the sign, again, I feel like I am in a Monty Python movie!
(photo:aqueducts) (photo:Cesar Beach sign)







The ancient aqueduct bringing water to Caesarea is here and a beach for swimming and a very mellow, restaurant café complete with couches, tables and barstools. Very Key West! We got drinks and hung out there for a while. If you are going to see anything in this heat you have to do a bit, then rest, do bit more then rest more. Deb got a yummy milkshake – they make great milkshakes here - and I got a lovely lemon mint smoothie. Very refreshing. After we had rested enough, we drove over to the main site of Caesarea. We wouldn’t have enough energy to see the whole thing, so I had to choose between the amphitheater and the main site. I reluctantly decided on the mains site (so hard to choose) We crossed over the ancient mote into the old city. (photo:moat)They have turned it into a park and swimming beach with restaurant, cafes and some art shops among the ancient ruins. They have done a very nice job modernizing it while still maintaining the old feel of it. (photo:cove beach at Ceasarea main building) We shopped and wandered. They sea is so beautiful here it is mesmerizing. We really wished we had brought our swimsuits and were tempted to go in in our clothes!
(photo: Medetaranian crashing on rock outcrop at Cesarea)
Only the thought of the long ride back in sandy, wet clothes stopped us. Deb bought some nice prints, I got a couple of cool dradles made by a local artist and the best find of all, Deb and I each bought an oil lamp from the Byzantine Empire. Israel is one of the only countries left that allows sales of antiquities, through licensed vendors, and they had a museum store there. It is amazing to hold my lamp and realize it was used around 1400 A.D. And they still work! The man there told us how to use them…he said he often has dinner parties by ancient oil lamp. How cool is that! I can’t wait to get mine home and try it out. (and find a place for it that Ama can’t knock it over) After another stop at another café for more cold drinks we finally headed home. I had used all the film I had with me taking pictures and we were pretty dead. We decided to forgo the trip to the grocery store that is mandatory whenever you rent a car and make due with what was in the house. As always I enjoyed the drive. I am beginning to recognize places along the coast. Even driving home is interesting; there is always something to see! (photo: arts and crafts shops at Ceasarea)


(photo: Arched entranceway into Ceasarea)