The winter months are the ideal time to experience some of the wonders of the Arava.
By MEITAL SHARABILog cabins at the Rosemary bed-and-breakfast in Ein Yahav(photo credit: MEITAL SHARABI)
Winter is the best season to tour southern Israel. Temperatures are cool, flowers are beginning to pop up everywhere, and many sites have organized outings for the young and the young at heart.Like every year, the largest annual agricultural show, called the Arava Research and Development Exhibition, will take place in the Arava on February 1 and 2. Together with the Yair Experimental Station in Hatzeva, the show attracts visitors who enjoy seeing how Israel has succeeded in creating so many exciting agricultural developments. Farmers are constantly coming up with new varieties of fruits and vegetables that are marketed around the globe.At the Hatzeva exposition, visitors will get to see firsthand how hi-tech agriculture technology is being developed. Guests are welcome to walk around the large greenhouses where scientists are growing tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, strawberries, watermelon and flowers in hanging basket systems.Since you will be already in the area, there are a number of sites that are worth visiting. Here are my recommendations for a great trip in the Arava.Vidor We’ll begin the tour at the Vidor Visitor Center – a Window to Arava Agriculture, which is located at the Yair Experimental Station. Free tours will be held here on both days of the exhibition, during which participants can discover the magic of the Arava for themselves, and find out why dozens of people have uprooted themselves and moved to the middle of the desert.During the tour at Vidor, you will learn how agriculturalists use brackish water that’s pumped up from underground to produce new varieties of vegetables, fruits and flowers. Visitors can watch a 3-D film about the site, take a tour of the greenhouses, and enter the learning zone, where there are interactive stations.You’ll learn about the people who live in the Arava, about water desalination and even get to play with sand at the interactive sand table, where you can build mountains, draw streams and make rain fall down using special sensors that create a topographic map. Tours for groups and individuals take place every day of the week.Hours: All week, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the hour.Price: adults NIS 28, children NIS 22.Details and pre-registration: 077-568-1608, 052-866-6114.RosettaNow that we’ve learned about where the fruits and vegetables come from, it’s time to stop and taste some of them at Rosetta, a vegan café in Moshav Ein Yahav. This small, intimate café, opened a few months ago by Hadas Raz Gilboa, serves locally grown healthy food that is prepared without sugar or processed products. The café is only open three and a half days a week – Tuesday through Friday afternoon – and serves soy labaneh, humus with mushrooms, Greek Rosetta salad with nut cheese, sourdough bread and spelt waffles.Prices range from NIS 32 to NIS 54.Details: (08) 622-8089.Pe’imot Midbar If you are already at Moshav Ein Yahav, the first and largest moshav in the Arava, you’ll find lot of other activities, such as Pe’imot Midbar club cars, run by Merav and Nimrod Amit, who have been in the Arava with their four children for more than 20 years. One trail passes through the Zil parking area (named after the Zil Russian truck that was abandoned there during one of Israel’s wars with its neighbors) and the Shezaf Nature Reserve. Visitors are welcome to take cars on their own and stop anywhere they like for coffee breaks or a picnic.Tours last for at least two hours and cost NIS 480 for a four-seater car.Reservations: 052-899-1336.Ginat FishAnother place that shouldn’t be missed in Ein Yahav is Ginat Fish, where you can take a tour of the tropical fish farm.One of the most spectacular attractions in the Arava, the Ginat family farm specializes in agriculture that requires neither soil nor irrigation. They raise tropical guppies and sell them exclusively to aquariums overseas. During the show, Ginat Fish will be offering guided tours of their premises and they will have a booth displaying their fish at the exhibition hall.During the hour-long tour, guests will hear the Ginat family’s personal story, and learn how to raise fish. In addition, you’ll learn about the stages of fish reproduction, and the specific complications connected with raising fish in the Arava, such as using reclaimed water.Pre-registration required.Price: NIS 25.Details: 052-366-6169, 052-866-6022.Meat restaurantIf all of this activity has made you hungry, then I suggest making your way to the nearby moshav where you’ll find a veteran meat restaurant that is spacious and relaxed. They serve salads made from locally grown vegetables, hummus with lots of fun additions, Lebanese falafel, Beduin pita and spicy kebabs.Open Tuesday to Saturday.Details: 072-328-1299.RosemaryIf you’d like to sleep over in the region, there are a couple of places I can recommend.If you’d like to stay in Ein Yahav, there’s a cute bed-and-breakfast called Rosemary, which has four log cabins that are perfect for couples and families. The two-story cabins all have a large bedroom with a jacuzzi, and also a living area. The open-air loft upstairs has lots of mattresses for the kids, where they’ll be kept busy trying to build a fort. The desert landscape is enticing, which is even more fun knowing that you have modern amenities inside, including a coffee machine. The cabins are surrounded by a green grassy area with benches, hammocks and barbecues, which are available for use by guests.Price: For a couple midweek, NIS 550; weekends, NIS 650.Details: 052-366-6489.Nof Tzukim A second overnight option is Nof Tzukim, which is a 15-minute drive from there. There are seven cabins that are appropriate for couples or families, all of which have balconies and Jacuzzis. Even if you’re not sleeping at Nof Tzukim, I recommend showing up in the morning for their incredible buffet breakfast (adults NIS 80 and children NIS 50 – pre-registration required), an experience like no other you’ll find in the region.Nof Tzukim also offers challenging navigational treasure hunts for families, where at each station you’ll find riddles that need to be solved so you can find the treasure. Games cost NIS 40.Pre-registration required: 052-874-4598.Artist colonyRegardless of whether you decide to sleep overnight or just come to Tzukim for breakfast, you should not leave before visiting the artist colony that opened in the moshav last year. Every Friday, there is a happening in the square with artwork on display and food stalls offering treats. Other companies take part, such as Ellat Ha’Arava (Goddess of the Arava), which produces soaps and personal care products made from natural plant-based ingredients.Some of the raw materials come from the Negev, including the mud and minerals from the Dead Sea, camel milk and local herbs. Shops in the artist colony are open every Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and by appointment.Details: 1-800-225-007.Melo HateneAnother great place you can stop on your drive back up north is Melo Hatene, an organic greenhouse in Ein Yahav where visitors can pick produce to take home with them. There are 30 different types of cherry tomatoes, sweet and spicy peppers, kohlrabi, cauliflower and herbs. When you enter the greenhouse, you’ll learn about organic gardening, bees and pollination and biological insect control. Vegetable picking usually takes between 30 to 60 minutes.Price: Entrance fee is NIS 25, which includes one small basket. Large baskets cost NIS 20 and additional small baskets cost NIS 5 each.Closed on Shabbat.To make an appointment: 052-291-3379 Translated by Hannah Hochner.
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