Shlomi | A Sanctuary Overlooking Lebanese Mountains

My 100th post!!! How fitting that I finally get to post pictures from my trip around Israel on my 100th. I have been a little overwhelmed with pictures from trips I have taken but not yet posted about. Looking through them and trying to decide what to post first has caused me to steer clear from them, instead I opted for what seemed easier; London. I hope you enjoyed posts covering some of my favorite spots in London. This is a first of a series of posts showcasing some of the places I visited in Israel.

Having debated on where to stay while we were in Israel we settled on Shlomi. A town in the Northern District of Israel. Much of the town had sustained damage in the 2006 Lebanon War. Having arrived in Tel aviv fairly late meant by the time we picked up the rental car and drove to Shlomi we arrived at the hotel at 3am. There was no way of telling what the city looked like in darkness.  When we finally emerged after much needed shuteye we were in scenic small town with our humble aboard overlooking beautiful mountains on the boarder with Lebanon. With no tell-tell signs of previous wars between neighbours. Our Log Cabin retreat came with full blown sunny days and dark nights that revealed star-studded skies away from the major-city light pollution. 

For a small town sitting close to the coastline, Shlomi's main town area is only five minutes from the beach. Right on the beach or cliff side is also where you will find a unique tourist attraction on the border with Lebanon; Rosh HaNikra. These are grottoes created by pounding waves that have left underwater caves. There is a cable car that descends down to a tunnel that allows visitors to see the sea caves. The caves also go as far as 7 meters below sea level. Thousands of people flock here to see beautiful effects of what global warming has created in the resulting geological process that created the caves. The operators now call it "A love story between sea and the rock". With plenty of beautiful spots to watch the sun go down we decided to head back down to the beach and explore the area. Driving passed the Kibbutz Rosh-Hanikra, created in 1949, they initiated the tourist project which includes the cable car and restaurant around the grottoes that are still open to the public today. 

Relaxing in the quite surrounding of the Shlomi's beach fronts you will instantly forget that the border still has UN peace keeper presence and over across into the seas you have clear sight of the coast guards watching over the boundaries. Waves crashing into shoreline while the sun disappeared into the sea beyond,  it was the perfect start to a fully packed itinerary that was going to see us drive to the Dead Sea, Tel aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem and stops to smaller towns such as Nahariya and Akko. Nahariya is another prime tourist town with beautiful beaches, great spots for cycling, hiking and lagoons waiting to be explored. It also has one of the most unusal spots for a cemetery; On the beach!

We spent some time in Nahariya visiting my boyfriend's family, while having to juggle Russian, English and Hebrew at the dinner table with such diverse heritage from his family. Both Nahariya and Akko(Acre) are within a few minutes(30 minutes give or take) drive from Shlomi.  Although quite away from the major tourist cities of Israel, nevertheless beautiful towns that are worth a visit. Israel operates a rail link to Nahariya from Tel aviv then from there you can use cabs or buses to get to Shlomi. Buses are fairly frequent but none existent after 8 or 9pm.

Below are some of the shots from our exploration of Shlomi and our stay at Barzilay Mansions.

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