Visit Israel as part of a study trip! Take a tour of Israel and explore the most important cities such as Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Rishon leTzion, Ashodd, Nazareth and Beersheba; as well as the country’s numerous religious attractions. The biggest attractions in Israel are the numerous holy sites of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Do not miss Jerusalem’s sights such as the Israel Museum with the Shrine of the Book, the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, the Historical Jewish Cemetery, the New Gate, the Damascus Gate, the Golden Gate, the approximately 400-meter-long Western Wall, the Church of the Redeemer, the four Sephardic Synagogues and the Citadel, the Jewish Parliament Knesset and other admirable structures and monuments. Also visit Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, the largest airport in the country; the coast and skyline from Tel Aviv; the Hanging Gardens and Dagon Silo from Haifa; the Evangelical Church of the Swiss architect Ferdinand Stadler and the town hall of Nazareth; the Abraham Fountain or the Negev Museum in Beersheba. Get to know Israel on a study trip!
The Western Wall
According to topschoolsintheusa, it is the most important religious place of Judaism, the most visited place in Israel and probably one of the most incomparable, atmospherically densest places in the world. The Western Wall stands in the old city of Jerusalem on the spot where the western wall of the Second Temple once stood. It is therefore called “Ha Kotel hama’aravi” (the western wall) in Hebrew. For Jews it is a place of prayer and a symbol of the eternal covenant between God and his chosen people.
History
After the temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70 and a Christian church was built on the Temple Mount around 530, the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque were built by Muslim conquerors on the same site in the 7th century. The holy place of prayer of the Jews has been desecrated several times in the course of history, from 1948 (Palestine War) to 1967 (Six Day War) they were completely denied access to the area controlled by Jordan at the time.
The approximately 57 meters long and almost 19 meters high section of the wall and the large plaza in front of it were exposed after the Six Day War. Thousands of Jews and tourists are drawn here every year.
Religious tradition
Since men and women have separate places in the synagogue in Orthodox Judaism, a fence also separates the sexes in front of the wall. Men as well as married women must wear a head covering when entering the sacred area – this should also be respected by tourists.
Traditionally, the believers stick small, handwritten notes with their prayers, requests and wishes in the cracks in the wall. Several times a year these are then collected and solemnly buried on the Mount of Olives (according to Jewish law, something on which the name of God is written must not be burned).
Today there is even the possibility of sending a message to the wall from all over the world by fax or e-mail.
Access
There are three entrances to the square in front of the Western Wall, at which the visitor has to pass security checks. Access is possible around the clock, every day of the week and free of charge for believers and tourists alike. Photography is generally allowed, but should be kept within a respectful framework. Adhering to an appropriate dress code is also expected of tourists and should be a matter of course.
Fortress City of the Crusaders (Akko)
In the footsteps of the crusaders
Akko shows that the crusaders also left edifying traces of their often blind rage. The much circumnavigated and perhaps even frequented city on the coast of Israel bears witness to an epoch that was glorious for the actors, whose shine has now faded badly, but can still be revived at any time. The slightly morbid, but still quite ostentatious scenery encourages you, study trips here broaden your horizons in many ways. If you want to visit Israel and the legendary Galilee region on the eastern edge of the Mediterranean on your travels, you shouldn’t skip exploring the fortress city.
Impregnable by Napoleon
The multitude of their different names reflects the turbulence of their history. Up until the 19th century, Akko was regarded as a hub for international shipping, although it also experienced periods of rest and was hotly contested several times because of its favorable location. It experienced its heyday as an impregnable fortress more than 100 years earlier, when even Napoleon, the conqueror, had to fail because of its defensiveness. With the up-and-coming development of Haifa and Beirut, the port city lost its importance, but the Palace of the Crusaders in the northern part still gives information about their dependence on the favor of well-heeled Italian traders.
Franciscan monastery with mosque
The citadel, like various knight halls, is still waiting for its final renovation, it gets really exciting and mysterious underground when walking through the Templar tunnel. From the city wall you have the best view of the corners of the old town, here the air is better and the view is less restricted. The destination of the trip is to be reached by train, choosing the route from Tel Aviv to Nahariya. It is right next to the coastal road and can also be accessed from the Sea of Galilee via a direct connection. In addition to the caravanserai, the Franciscan monastery and the Ahmed Jezzar mosque can be visited.
Bauhaus architecture in Tel Aviv
Destination for city trips: Bauhaus architecture in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv, founded in 1909, is a young city. Nevertheless, it houses an ensemble of historically significant cultural monuments, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2003.
The white city
The city of Tel Aviv, on whose territory there was only a small settlement in the 19th century, was originally a kind of suburb of Jaffa. The city grew rapidly. Many architects settled here in the 1930s, who had left Nazi Germany for Israel because of the professional ban on Jews. They brought the ideas of the Bauhaus to the emerging city. More than 4,000 buildings were built, which realize socially just and healthy living and whose design language should express functionality and aesthetics, material-appropriate design, craftsmanship, as well as the inclusion of industrial production processes. The clear design language of the “New Objectivity” was adapted to the climatic conditions in Palestine with regard to shading and ventilation options.
Between urban development and monument protection
The White City is located in the center of Tel Aviv, it extends to the coast. Rothschild Boulevard in particular is known for its many buildings, some of which have been luxuriously renovated, in the New Objectivity style. Since being recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the city administration has increasingly placed buildings in the Bauhaus and Internationalism style under monument protection. Because the prices for living in Tel Aviv have been on the rise for a long time. This was often accompanied by neglect, demolition or reshaping of the historical building fabric. In the Bauhaus Center on Dizengoff-Straße, interested visitors can also get an impression of the living space design in the Bauhaus style. Guided tours to the White City also start from there, where travelers interested in architecture can familiarize themselves with the background.
