One can see from the ruins of the ancient port city (and with the help of a very well made audio/visual presentation), that the city was a marvel for its time, rivaling only Jerusalem in its splendor. Around the year 21 BCE, King Herod constructed a deep water port here with massive walls to protect the harbor from the sea. He named the place Caesarea in honor of Augusts Cesar. A Roman temple, a massive amphitheatre, and a hippodrome were also constructed here. An aqueduct was built to bring fresh water from the hills to the north to supply water for drinking, and for the bathhouses and pool. Caesarea became the civil and military capital of Rome in Judea around 13 BCE.
In its prime, the population of the city was about fifty percent Jewish. The massacres of Jews here in the first century lead to the Jewish rebellion against Rome. The Musaf service for Yom Kippur recounts the tale of the ten martyrs who were put to death here. Rabbi Akiva, one of Judaism’s greatest sages, was also executed here along with his disciples for participating in the second Jewish revolt (the bar Kokhba revolt) in 135 CE.
After leaving Caesarea, we stopped at Beit Shearim to explore the burial caves discovered there. After the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, the entire area, including the Mount of Olives, was off limits to Jews, so Beit Shearim became the central burial place. Rabbi Judah haNasi, who compiled the Mishnah, established this town as the seat of the Sanhedrin in the second century, and he is buried in one of the many tombs. The city was later destroyed during a Jewish revolt in 352 CE.
Later in the evening, we arrive in Tsfat and get settled into the hotel. After dinner, we study for a while about Rabbi Yochanan and Resh Lakish.
Though it is New Year's Eve by the Gregorian calendar, no one stayed up to usher in the new secular year. It isn't a recognized holiday in Israel, anyway. It has been a long day, and we'll be getting an early start in the morning. After a few glasses of wine, we said goodnight around 11:00pm and went to bed.
Below are some pictures of Caesarea and one of the burial caves at Beit Shearim.
