Shvil HaMaayanot

Israel is at war and we are living through sad times. I have posted a couple of blogs about the situation but have decided now to share some posts about the beautiful side of the country I live in. A country filled with nature trails and historic ruins, gorgeous birds and flowers. The posts were written a year and a half or even two years ago, before I lost my youngest son. I haven’t felt like sharing them but now think that the time is appropriate to show you another side of Israel, a side that you will not currently see on the news.
This is Israel.

I am really not sure why it took me so long to hike Shvil HaMaayanot (The Springs Trail) in the Jerusalem Hills. It was the perfect route for me. The views over Nahal Sorek and its tributaries were spectacular and the spring flowers were at their very best. Perhaps the only downside was that the maayanot, springs, which give the hiking route it's name, were too full of swimmers for my liking, due to it being the Passover holidays. No matter, I will just have to hike the route again!

We passed several springs on the trail, just some of the many small hidden springs which flow out of the hills to saturate the surrounding vegetation. Over the years, man has learned to cultivate the water from these underground springs to irrigate agricultural areas. Villagers would dig tunnels into the rock to obtain a flow of water. The pools in front of the entrance to these tunnels became small reservoirs, used to supply drinking water to livestock and humans. Sometimes the water would be directed downhill from the pool by aqueducts to irrigate vegetable gardens. You can see terraces, now forested, on both sides of the trail.

The trail took us along the side of a mountain ridge and past several caves and springs and other cool things to explore. I dipped my feet in the cold water leading into one cave, then climbed out the back of it to continue on our way. Soon we reached the first big spring on the trail, Einot Uzi. It was clearly a warm weather favourite and was rather busy! We found a spot to rest and to enjoy a kosher for Passover snack, before returning to the trail. Our next stop was Ein Tamar, a shallow spring surrounded by a palm tree and a shaded picnic area. The spring is named after Tamar Natan, who died at a young age. The pool was built by her friends and other organisations.

We continued on the green-marked trail, stopping for a picnic with wonderful views and surrounded by beautiful flowers. It was a very hot day and we could have continued towards Moshav Even Sapir, on the last part of what is officially Shvil HaMaayanot, but at this point we decided to turn back. This time the hike was uphill and a little harder in the heat, but the flowers and views made it all worthwhile. I spotted beautiful red poppies, Pink Butterfly Orchids and some very late Persian Cyclamen. The pink and white rockrose, below, were abundant.

The trail starts near Yad Kennedy, a memorial to John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, who was assassinated in 1963 at age 46. This memorial was built 3 years after his death. It is shaped like the stump of a tree to symbolise his life cut short. The memorial has 51 pillars representing the 50 states of the union plus Washington DC. The emblems of the states are on the outside of each of the pillars. Inside the memorial is a bronze facial outline of John F. Kennedy, and in the centre of the memorial an eternal flame.
Also nearby are Horvat Saadim, the Seadim Ruins, which we visited back in 2020. The ruins were called Khirbet Sa'ida, which means "Fortunate Woman Ruins" in Arabic and are the remains of a Byzantine agricultural farm and an ancient mosque. They can be visited - if you still have the energy - before returning to your car.

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday and Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday).

The Hanut Ruins and Ein Mata

The Hanut ruins or Khirbet Hanut ("ruins of the rest place") is an archaeological site on the side of the main road from Beit Guvrin to Jerusalem. In the Byzantine period it was believed to mark the site where Goliath was buried. Excavations carried out at the site in the 1980s uncovered a Byzantine period church with a colourful mosaic floor. The Mamluks turned the church into a khan or inn known as Khirbet el-Khan, where travellers could spend the night as they made their way to Jerusalem and Bethlehem. A number of interesting artefacts have been uncovered at the site that help us understand how significant this place was at various moments in history.

A large water storage pool from Byzantine times is the first thing we saw at the site, above. The thick walls of the pool were built from large stones. The gaps between the stones were filled with smaller stones or cement. After that, the walls were plastered so that the water in the pool would not leak out.

During the Byzantine period many such pools were built in the Judaean Hills. They collected water for drinking and for irrigating orchards. This pool was the primary source of water for the khan or roadside inn.

Further along are the ruins of the Byzantine church. The floor of the main hall, which was uncovered in 2016, is covered with colourful mosaics illustrating geometric forms, grapes and icons of animals. It is 10x4.25m in size and is based on 1×1cm stones. The eastern edge of the mosaic contained a two-line black and white dedicatory inscription in Greek. It was removed in order to safeguard it. The mosaic was probably the victim of iconoclasm in ancient times. The human and animal figures were destroyed by people who were against the images of humans on public spaces. Based on the Greek inscription the final completion of the church can be dated to 563, 568 or 593 BCE. The church was most likely destroyed in the 8th century BCE.

To the east of the church there is a small crypt. Excavations have revealed an entrance and steps leading down into the narrow chamber of the crypt. Inside excavators found evidence that a single sarcophagi or coffin was once located there, as indicated by its negative imprint.

Next to the church is a large winepress installation from Byzantine times, above. The winepress is composed of 3 levels. On the top level, the floor is paved with white mosaic that is probably a remnant of the 6th century Byzantine church floor. On the 2nd level is the large treading floor where the workers crushed the grapes with their feet. The 3rd level was a covered collecting pit, 1.75m deep, where the grape juice was collected after it fermented.

A short trail took us from the Hanut ruins down to the spring at Ein Mata. Ein Mata means "Spring of the Orchard". The spring is located in the valley of Zanoah and and is named after the nearby Moshav Mata. It was once called Ain Bint-Nuh, named after the daughter of Noah. The ruins of the Arab village of lower 'Allar, which existed here until 1948, are spread along the trail. Near the spring stands a Crusader structure named Salvatio, above and below. The roof is rib vault and the walls are thick. The structure was reused during the Mamluk and Ottoman periods.

Ein Mata is a small spring that is hidden under a cluster of carob and fig trees. It was a nice spot to stop for our sandwiches and to enjoy the shade. The spring itself is too small for a dip. Thick brush surrounds the spring and the irrigation channels, which once carried the water to the nearby fields. The terraced hills around the spring were once used for agriculture and are now filled with greenery: sweet and bitter almonds, olives, grapes, pomegranates, lemons, figs, walnuts, Syrian pears, carobs and hawthorns. 

Another natural spring, Ein Tanur ("Oven Spring"), is nearby but we somehow missed it! According to a local legend, Noah's oven stood there before the flood. When God destroyed the world, Noah's oven began spouting water, proving Noah's great commitment to God. When the flood was over and the water subsided, the oven forgot its original purpose and water continued to flow from it. When Noah passed by in his ark, he only saw the spring rather than his oven, so he continued his journey and finally landed on Mount Ararat.

From Ein Mata and Ein Tanur we followed the trail back up the hill to the parking area at the Hanut ruins where we had started.

* Editing to add that I have just learnt that in 2010 a terrorist attack took place in the Mata forest. Susan Logan, an American Christian, was murdered and Kay Wilson, a British-born Israeli citizen, was critically injured. Sadly this attack is an important part of the history of the area.

** This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday, Friday Bliss, Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday), Our World Tuesday and My Corner of the World.

Twenty One

My eldest son turned 21! Birthdays in our home always come with a handmade card made by mum and it doesn't seem that long ago that the pinky purple Bleeper People, from his favourite pop-up book as a small child Where, Oh Where, is Kipper's Bear?, appeared on his birthday card. Now he's in his third year of service in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and the themes I picked for his special card were slightly different!

This year I have shown my eldest son in his olive green army uniform, holding a certificate he recently received for a course he just completed. When he is home from the army he likes to go on tiyulim (hikes) with his friends. They recently went to Ein Prat, the biggest of three springs along the Prat Stream (Wadi Qelt), a stream that flows along the northern Judean desert, from Jerusalem to Jericho and then to the Jordan River. I have shown the spring in the background and added his pakal kafe (coffee kit), which he often takes with him. The word "pakal" is actually an acronym of the words "pkudat keva lechayal," which means "a fixed command for soldiers," that is - everything the soldier must have with him at all times. But as in many other cases, army acronyms and army slang receive other meanings outside of military life and one such example is "pakal kafe" - everything you might need in order to make coffee (or tea) outside.

Next to my son's coffee kit is an ear of wheat inside a red warning sign. The red circle with a red line through it always means NO. The picture inside the circle shows what you cannot do. My son has been trying a gluten free diet (it seems that army food does not agree with him!), so this red warning sign represents his new diet. A big yellow number 21 marks his age. Finally, I had to include the Arsenal crest on his card too. He has been a keen supporter since he was very young and funnily enough nearly always manages to Whatsapp or call home when they have played!

For the first time in several years my eldest was home for his birthday. It fell on a weekend so we were able to take him out for a nice meal and he was able to celebrate with friends. Of course there were balloons and TWO cakes! One to share with his friends and one with his family. They were both gluten free but tasted pretty good anyway!

* This post has been shared on The Good. The Random. The Fun., Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday), Pictorial Tuesday, Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop and Wandering Camera.