Gone in the Golan

August 10, 2008 - 8:31 AM by David · Leave a Comment
Filed under: General, History and Culture, Life, Travel

What do you do when you want to take a summer vacation, but can’t afford Italy, France, or even Slovenia or Cyprus, and you don’t want to go to one of those glitzy Eilat or Dead Sea hotels where doing the “Macarena” and singing karaoke is still part of the nightly entertainment fare?

Well, vacationing at a ski resort in the summer may seem a bit backwards, but in this case, it provided a refreshing break from the city hustle bustle, some spectacular views and hikes, a rustic environment without a huge crowd of noisy vacationers, and a chance to spend some time in a part of Israel whose future is not so solid.

Neve Ativ, a moshav at nearly the northernmost edge of the Golan Heights, just south of the formidable Hermon mountain range, turned out to be the perfect location for a quick family getaway. The Rimonim resort there offered quaint, red-tiled Swiss-style chalets, a spacious pool and Jacuzzi, and a breakfast that made lunch extraneous.

Only three hours or so away from Jerusalem, the Golan is like another country. Highlights – we took the ski lift to the top of the 2,000 meter Hermon peak and enjoyed a 2-hour guided tour that focused not only on the topography but also the history of the area, and then the kids go-karted down part of the mountain on the “Extreme” track; we spent a morning exploring the expansive Nimrod Fortress built in 1228 by the Ayyubi governor Al-Aziz, and reenacted scenes from Gladiator and Spartacus (alright, different eras, I know); we ate some great humous in the nearby Druze city of Majdal Shams, and heard from the locals that they’re not very happy about the prospects of going back to Syrian rule; and we did an amazing water hike in the Masjare River in the southern part of the Golan. At Rimonim, we joined the other vacationers for a hike and ‘kumzitz’ (bonfire) in the area with Avi, a gruff with a heart of gold ex-paratrooper type, who regaled the kids and parents alike with stories about the area, delicious herbal tea made from plants within hand’s length, and some good old fashioned ‘walking the land’ Zionism.

And like Where’s Waldo, Avi showed up everywhere else - checking us off at the dining room, filling the Coke in the vending machines, and manning time at the front desk. Therefore, when we decided to attend the nightly entertainment show in the nightclub, it wasn’t surprising to find Avi leading the karaoke (alright, so it isn’t really another country). If you’re here, you should get up to the Golan now and enjoy its multitude of charms. And if you’re not, then make sure to include it on your next visit instead of one of the tourist traps.

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