Today we spent a good portion of the day wand

ering the old streets of Tsvat. Tsvat became important during the Spanish Inquisition as a refuge for Jews fleeing the persecution. These Jews brought with them a culture of mysticism that was prevalent in Spain and North Africa at the time in both the Moslem and Christian communities. This is where the Kabbalah (recently made famous by Madonna) finds its roots. The present town is a mix of beautiful old synagogues and artists’ galleries

The highlight of Tzvat was lunch. We ate at a stand that sold aYemenite dish called l’choch (that’s throat clearing "ch")that looked a bit like pizza, but was very middle eastern.

It was a cooked pancake that was reminiscent of a crumpet covered in za’atar (a middle eastern spice, hyssop), olive oil, mozzarella, parsley, tomato, and olives.

The owner/chef, though, was the most entertaining part of the experience. He was a combination etymologist, philosopher, and standup comic. One of the most unforgettable characters you’ll ever meet. We also helped stimulate the economy here in Israel by buying a painting, and Molly by buying a Jewish star.

Our next stop was a winery in the Galilee, the Dalton Winery. After a brief overview by a very British guide followed by a viewing of the operation, we began to taste the wines produced here. Israeli wines have become very competitive with other major wine regions in the past few years. We tasted some excellent wines including a viognier, two cabernet sauvignons, and a shiraz. Molly and Dave split a bottle of cab with us for dinner this evening.

We had our last dinner tonight with our new friends Yonathan and Kobi. We hope they enjoyed our company as much as we did theirs. Tomorrow we are off to Tel Aviv to the airport for our flight to Eilat.