Gethsemane in East Jerusalem

7 April 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  < 1 minute

Garden of Gethsemane © Tango7174/cc-by-sa-4.0

Garden of Gethsemane © Tango7174/cc-by-sa-4.0

Gethsemane is a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem where, according to the four Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus underwent the agony in the garden and was arrested before his crucifixion. It is a place of great resonance in Christianity. There are several small olive groves in church property, all adjacent to each other and identified with biblical Gethsemane.   read more…

Derinkuyu underground city in Turkey

28 March 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  7 minutes

Deep ventilation well © Nevit Dilmen/cc-by-sa-3.0

Deep ventilation well © Nevit Dilmen/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Derinkuyu underground city (Cappadocian Greek: Μαλακοπή / Malakopi; Turkish: Derinkuyu Yeraltı Şehri) is an ancient multi-level underground city of the Median Empire in the Derinkuyu district in Nevşehir Province, Turkey, extending to a depth of approximately 85 metres (280 ft). It is large enough to have sheltered as many as 20,000 people together with their livestock and food stores. It is the largest excavated underground city in Turkey and is one of several underground complexes found throughout Cappadocia.   read more…

El Ghriba Synagogue on Djerba

5 March 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  10 minutes

© flickr.com - Bellyglad/cc-by-2.0

© flickr.com – Bellyglad/cc-by-2.0

The ancient El Ghriba Synagogue, also known as the Djerba Synagogue, is located on the Tunisian island of Djerba. It is situated in the Jewish village of Hara Seghira (currently known as er-Riadh), several kilometres southwest of Houmt El Souk, the main town of Djerba. The synagogue is the oldest in Tunisia, and besides being the center of the island’s Jewish life is also a site of pilgrimage, one of the legends associated with its founding claims that either a stone or a door from Solomon’s Temple or the Second Temple is incorporated in the building.   read more…

Petah Tikva in Israel

3 March 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  10 minutes

Haim Ozer street © Юкатан/cc-by-sa-3.0

Haim Ozer street © Юкатан/cc-by-sa-3.0

Petah Tikva (lit.: ‘Opening of Hope’), also known as Em HaMoshavot (lit.: ‘Mother of the Moshavot, is a city in the Central District of Israel, 10.6 km (6.6 mi) east of Tel Aviv. It was founded in 1878, mainly by Haredi Jews of the Old Yishuv, and became a permanent settlement in 1883 with the financial help of Baron Edmond de Rothschild. In 2021, the city had a population of 252,270. Its population density is approximately 6,277 inhabitants per square kilometre (16,260/sq mi). Its jurisdiction covers 35,868 dunams (~35.9 km² or 15 sq mi). Petah Tikva is part of the Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area.   read more…

Mardin in Turkey

28 February 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  6 minutes

© panoramio.com - Ben Bender/cc-by-sa-3.0

© panoramio.com – Ben Bender/cc-by-sa-3.0

Mardin is a city and seat of the Artuklu District of Mardin Province in Turkey. It is known for the Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris River. The old town of the city is under the protection of UNESCO, which forbids new constructions to preserve its façade. The city had a population of 129,864 in 2021.   read more…

Dizengoff Street in Tel Aviv

2 February 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  5 minutes

Bauhaus Center on Dizengoff Street © MichaGross/cc-by-sa-4.0

Bauhaus Center on Dizengoff Street © MichaGross/cc-by-sa-4.0

Dizengoff Street (Hebrew: Rehov Dizengoff) is a major street in central Tel Aviv, named after Tel Aviv’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff.   read more…

Latrun in the West Bank

14 January 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  8 minutes

Trappist Monastery © Bukvoed/cc-by-2.5

Trappist Monastery © Bukvoed/cc-by-2.5

Latrun is a strategic hilltop in the Latrun salient in the Ayalon Valley, and a depopulated Palestinian village. It overlooks the road between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, 25 kilometers west of Jerusalem and 14 kilometers southeast of Ramla. It was the site of fierce fighting during the 1948 war. During the 1948–1967 period, it was occupied by Jordan at the edge of a no man’s land between the armistice lines. In the 1967 war, it was occupied by Israel. Latrun is located outside the 1967 Green Line and therefore part of the West Bank in Palestine.   read more…

Magdala in Israel, home of Mary Magdalene

24 December 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  8 minutes

© AVRAMGR/cc-by-sa-4.0

© AVRAMGR/cc-by-sa-4.0

Magdala was an ancient Jewish city on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, 3 miles (4.8 km) north of Tiberias. In the Babylonian Talmud it is known as Magdala Nunayya, and which some historical geographers think may refer to Tarichaea, literally the place of processing fish. It is believed to be the birthplace of Mary Magdalene. Until the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, a small Palestinian Arab village, al-Majdal, stood at the site of ancient Magdala, while nowadays the modern Israeli municipality of Migdal extends to the area.   read more…

Alaçatı in Turkey

21 December 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  9 minutes

© panoramio.com - Nihat1988/cc-by-3.0

© panoramio.com – Nihat1988/cc-by-3.0

Alaçatı is a part of İzmir on the Western coast of Turkey, often noted for its architecture, vineyards, windmills, and sea. Alaçatı is one of the most traditional towns in Turkey, with stone houses, narrow streets, boutique hotels and restaurants with tables on the streets. The area is also home to the Alaçatı yacht marina and the famous Port Alaçatı development, created by the French architect Francois Spoerry and his son, Yves Spoerry.   read more…

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