Light entertainment
ENJOYING A refreshing swim in Eilat after breakfast and then celebrating a “white Chanucah” in Jerusalem the same evening? Many Israeli hoteliers actually bank on Israel’s unpredictable weather during the winter months, to offer a more varied experience for overseas visitors. With Chanucah starting on December 24 this year, many hotels are gearing up for both Jewish and Christian tourists looking for festivities with a difference.
A representative of one Israel-wide hotel chain says: ”Chanucah is an ideal time for nature lovers. The weather is good enough for hiking through Israel and it can be pleasant to take the children and show them nature in its glory — fields of daffodils and other flowers of theseason,orbird-watchingtoseecoots, herons, storks, cormorants and other aquatic birds in their natural habitat.”
Perhaps the most captivating event of the holiday season for tourists is the annual relay of torch-bearers from the city of Modi’in (via the gravesites of the Maccabees, who are buried just outside the city), through the hills up to Jerusalem (close to 20 miles) and to the Western Wall, the last remaining part of the Holy Temple, in Jerusalem’s Old City. There, they pass the torch to the Chief Rabbi, who lights the first candle of a large menorah.
Some upscale hotels go out of their way to pamper Chanucah celebrants from abroad.
“We offer candle-lighting every evening in front of the most beautiful backgroundpossiblefortheoccasion—Jerusalem’sOldCitywalls,”saysaspokesperson for the David Citadel Hotel. “In addition to the regular (Israeli doughnuts) and latkes (aka
each of the hotel’s venues celebrates the holiday in a different way. In the hotel’s dining room, we offer
from different Jewish communities from around the world, such as Moroccan and crispy South American/Spanish churros covered with cinnamon and sugar, as well as doughnuts frosted and filled with a variety of chocolates and jams and 100 per cent vegan doughnuts filled with carob honey.
“Guests who book spa treatments can enjoy vegan green latkes made from quinoa and organic herbs and spices. And during the course of the holiday, the hotel features wine and cheese workshops with head chef Avi Turgeman and guest speakers. All the attendants also receive a complimentary booklet with recipes for the holiday.”
To kindle your culinary spirit for the festival of lights, Chef Turgeman is sharing his recipe for parmesan cheese latkes with JC readers.
We offer doughnuts from all around the world’