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Israeli street food – the magnificent and humble boureka

The square shape of the bourekas tells us that they are filled with a potato filling One does not have to spend a long time in Israel to get your first introduction to a boureka. These savory stuffed pastries are everywhere You'll find them for breakfast in hotel dining halls, in countless bakeries and coffee shops, on picnics and even at restaurants that only serve bourekas. They are often eaten in Israeli homes as part of a 'light' or diary meal in the evenings. (Most households in Israel usually serve the large cooked meal at lunchtime.) More often than not, bourekas are also an integral part of the wonderful Friday or Shabbat brunch table. To be really honest however, you basically eat a boureka whenever you encounter one. They are that irresistible. If you stop to grab a quick coffee at a coffee shop, the comforting smell of the bourekas will convince you to upgrade to a 'café ve'ma afe' (coffee + pastry). Wandering through street markets, the sight of fres

The Glass Museum at Kibbutz Nachsolim

Kibbutz Nachsolim is right next to Hof Dor (Dor beach), one of my favorite beaches here in Israel. I usually walk right past the kibbutz, straight into the clear (and wonderfully cool) Mediterranean sea!

The Glass Factory Museum 

But a while ago I had the chance to visit the glass museum on the kibbutz and I was surprised at the amazing treasures housed in there. It is not just about glass - even though glass was the reason the building was originally built.

The museum took its name from an extremely well-equipped and state-of-the-art glass bottle factory that the Baron Rothschild had built in 1891 right next to the beach. The glass factory was to supply bottles to the wineries in Zichron Yaakov using the sand from the nearby beach. The chemist Meir Dizengoff ( later the first major of Tel Aviv's) oversaw the bottle making process.

Not a bad idea one might think - but nobody had bothered to check the sand's suitability to be made into bottles. The glass  factory did make bottles .... but the glass of the bottles was too dark and the 'uppity' wine-makers of Zichron Yaakov refused to buy the bottles.  And on top of everything, many of the factory workers succumbed to malaria, and after five years the glass factory was closed.

The old glass factory was nearly pulled down but then the Dutch marine archeologist Kurt Raveh showed up. He, with the help of volunteers and kibbutznikim rebuild the old glass factory with stone from old Roman ruins. The 'new' building was turned into a museum and house some amazing finds.

    

Hof Dor was a harbor in the Bible times and an important trading center. Many artifacts were brought up out of the sea or dug out from the nearby archeology site, Tel Dor. In the museum you can see various relics such as Roman fertility dolls, a Crusader sword, a 1948 pistol from the War of Independence and a large cannon dumped by Napoleon.

                                   
Ancient Grecian urn - those old Greeks must have really loved their urns! They are everywhere :)

This beautiful beach was obviously more than just a place for a nice swim!  The staff at the museum were very well informed and me and my fellow museum goers were following our guide with open mouths. Our children were entertained with a puzzle whose answers they had to hunt for throughout the museum.

The view from the excavation site - Tel Dor

If you ever visit the northern part of Israel - come and visit the glass museum. There is lots to see and you can even go for a dip in Mediterranean afterwards. Who knows...you might even find some treasure at the bottom of the sea! It has happened before.

Here is some more information about the glass museum, the Mizgaga in Hebrew and here is Kurt Naveh's web site.
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