Tzfat Artist Colony

Kinneret cemetery was our first stop today. We saw the graves of Rachel and Naomi Shemer. Naomi wrote the song Jerusalem of Gold, and Rachel was a poet and songwriter. The perpetual rain added to the somber air of the cemetery. We learned that greenery is planted on the graves in celebration of the life that exists even in the home of the sleeping dead. The affirmation of life is a beautiful way of celebrating the lives of the departed, and inviting rememberance and respect.
Our next stop was one of the hardest to get to due to the all encompassing fog. Props to our driver, Joby, for getting us up safely even without visibility. We arrived at the trail head of a hike up Mt. Arbel the second highest peak in Israel to rain, fog, and biting cold. We stepped off the bus and almost immediately turned around; getting frostbite would put a bit of a damper on our experience in Israel....
We left the mountain for the mystical city of Tzfat where we ate lunch, explored, and visited several city artisans. We listened two musicians, Yaniv and Avram, playing traditional music inspired by the prayer lecha dodi, which was written in Tzfat. They played several different instruments including a bell drum, and ud, and a few other strings and drums. This was an amazing method of prayer. No matter the language, everyone can appreciate music. We then visited the Tzfat Gallery of Mystical Art, presided over by Avraham Loewenthal. This artist was inspired to leave his home in Michigan and come to Israel to study and depict the learning of the Kabbala.
Despite the weather, the north has been beautiful and we are looking forward to going to Tel Aviv.