Ein a-Tina
We took a nature hike through one are of the Golan Height region, a park called Ein a-Tina. We waded through a river and up to an irrigation pipe. The farmers aren’t allowed to draw away all the spring’s water for their crops, so on random days they open the pipe’s extension and let water flow free to the surrounding plants. The tan reeds and scrub-like trees surrounding the river seemed perfect for lions and straight out of a religious painting. (Which is naïve of me to say, of course, as this is Israel, after all). It was actually several days before I saw green grass.
We were out
here at the same time as many native Israelis were vacationing. Hassidic Jews
waded into the water in full skirts and headscarves for women, pressed black
pants and white button-downs for men. I’m told boys don’t cut their hair until
they are three years old, and then they leave just the front curls untouched.
If their hair grows straight, they twist it into curls.
Droze, a minority religious group, live in this area. They
are very secretive and one can only read the holy book after converting. I
wonder if anyone leaves after realizing what the beliefs they’d signed on to actually
are.
(Another very secretive group is a Jewish mysticism sect which
only men who were over 40, married with kids, and very religious were allowed
to read the holy book).
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