It is one of the four holiest cities for Jews. The holiest city is Jerusalem. The other holiest cities are Hebron, which is where the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were buried, and the city of Tiberias, which is the home of the Jerusalem Talmud and is a famous center of Jewish learning.

Tsfat is one of the holiest cities for several reasons. It is famous for being the home of Kabbalah, which is Jewish mysticism. Kabbalah is the study of the inner meanings and significance of the Torah (Hebrew bible) and rabbinic literature.

When Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492, the ones who remained were either forced to convert to Christianity or were killed during the Inquisition.

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Others went off to explore with Christopher Columbus or traveled overland, eventually ending up in Tsfat. Many well known rabbis made Tsfat a center for Jewish learning. The city is known for housing the graves of some of the most famous rabbis and scholars in Jewish history.

A Modest Charge

My tour bus was for Israelis, not tourists to Israel, so the guide only spoke in Hebrew.

At least my American friend could translate for me.

For only $50, the tour included a 2 1/2-hour bus trip (each direction) with the guide pointing out interesting sites along the way, a tour of old Tsfat (there is the ancient city and a new, modern city), and dinner at one of the best kosher restaurants in the area. A bargain!

Getting to Tsfat reminded me of the twisting roads climbing the mountain to Big Bear, CA. Scary.

I looked to my left at the pine and fir trees and tried to avoid looking to my right at the steep mountainside.

Who Could Resist?

However, sometimes I could not avoid a sneak peek at the magnificent view. On the way home at midnight, I kept my eyes closed and prayed that the bus driver could handle the downhill winding roads in darkness. The city is about the elevation of Palmdale, CA (2600 feet above sea level), and it is the highest city in the Galilee.

The old city makes you feel like you are living in the 15th or 16th century.

The streets are paved in cobblestones with some streets not more than 5 or 6 feet wide. The buildings of the city take on a strong Moorish influence with their arched windows and doors. Most of the area has a prevalent Spanish and Arab architecture.

However, there are parts of the old city that remind me of New Orleans with the battened window shutters and balconies with colorful, ornate, scrolled wrought iron. Because the city is also known as an artist’s colony, some building have murals painted on their facades.

Quake, Rattle and Roll

Almost every century there is a devastating earthquake that levels the city.

It makes me — I was raised in California and always worried about the San Andreas fault erupting — think of the Big One as nothing compared to what Tsfat has endured.

The Tsfat quakes leveled the city and buried thousands of people in their homes.

From the rubble, the city was rebuilt. But the city also suffered other tragedies. Plagues wiped out 80 percent of the Jewish population in the 18th and 19th centuries, in 1929 the Arabs massacred the Jewish population, and it wasn't until 1948, during the War of Independence, that the city was recaptured and the Arab marauders fled the area.

Music That Is Different

I visited one of the synagogues that was almost entirely destroyed during one of the quakes. It dates back to the 15th century. It had been rebuilt, and is famous because its members did not take shelter during the War of Independence. They continued to pray while bullets were
being shot over their heads. Miraculously, no one was injured.

Every summer there is a 3-day Klezmer festival in the old city.

Klezmer is a type of music with lyrics in Yiddish, not Hebrew. Originally known as traveling musicians, the instruments they play tend to be violins, cymbals, clarinets, trumpets, trombones, flutes and accordions. It makes for an interesting sound.

The Klezmer festival is a “must do” event in Israel. I was there on Day 2. It was so crowded I thought all of Israel was there that night.

The carnival-like atmosphere of the festival made me think of it as being a combination of New Orleans Mardi Gras without the costumes and San Francisco Haight Asbury without the drugs.

What with the music, dancing in the streets, artists’ wares, cotton candy, corn on the cob, crepes, and traditional Mid-Eastern food, the crowds of people were jubilant.

L'hitraot. Shachar

Shachar is the Hebrew name of a California-based attorney and former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy who moved to Israel last year.