Near Akko - Lohamei HaGeta’ot

Lohamei HaGeta’ot ("Fighters of the Ghettos"), a kibbutz founded by concentration camp and Warsaw Ghetto survivors, lies outside Akko toward Nahariya. The Ghetto Fighters’ House (tel. 82 04 12 or 82 55 42) is dedicated to the memory of World War II resistance fighters and ghetto rebels. The heroic Warsaw Ghetto uprising is examined extensively, as are Nazi atrocities in other countries. Much of the museum displays the rich and vital Jewish cultural life of the Warsaw Ghetto (in particular the poetry of Yitzhak Katzenelson), as well as paintings, drawings, litho graphs, sculptures, and prints by prisoners and survivors. To reach the kibbutz and ; museum, take bus #271 (which runs on Sat. too) toward Nahariya (make sure that j the bus is local (me’asef), not express, or you’ll end up in Nahariya). (Museum open 1 Sun.-Thurs. 9am-4pm. Fri. 9am-lpm, Sat. I0am-5pm. Small donation requested.)

The Roman aqueduct, just outside the museum to the south, is remarkably well preserved, largely because it’s not Roman. AI-Jaz2ar had it built in 1780 to carry water 15km from the Kabri springs to their stronghold in Akko. Good views of the | aqueduct can be had from the bus between Akko and Nahariya.

Two km south of the kibbutz bloom the Baha’i Gardens (tel. 81 27 63), arranges in a riveting combination of Occidental and Oriental styles. The gardens hold the villa and shrine of Baha’if Ilah (Glory of God), the prophet and founder of the Baha’i faith. The gardens were planted from 1952-56 to beautify the site. (Shrine open Mon. and Fri.-Sun. 9am-noon; gardens open daily until 9-4pm. Free.)

The gate on the main road is for Baha’is; all other tourists should get off the bus just north of the gate , at the sign for Shomntt. Walk east about 0.5km, past Kibbutz Shomrat, and enter the gate on the right just past the military camp, marked by a small sign. The gardens are on the main Akko-Nahariya road, via bus #271 (about lOmin.). For a more arduous daytrip, consider the lkm hike through Nahal Shagur (also called Nahal Beit Hakerem), a tributary of the Hilazon River that extends east of Akko and is part of the valley dividing the Upper and l-ower Galilee.