Photos: Jann Segal |
I
took the Overseas Adventure Travel trip, Israel: The Holy Land and Time less Cultures
as part of a 45-day sojourn in the Middle East. OAT specializes in family
visits and meeting locals as part of each itinerary. On this trip in particular,
the locals we met and the meals we had with them were not only truly authentic,
but in many cases, superior beyond measure. This was especially true of the
olive farm we visited north of Haifa and south of Galilee, at the moshav
(settlement) Zippori, or Tzippori in Hebrew (about 45 minutes outside of Haifa).
The
small private home we visited one rainy afternoon seemed to be an endless path
of plants, tress, benches and woven baskets, until we found the little house which
doubled as a café, restaurant, and olive press. Of course, olive oil was for sale
as well.
After
getting over how charming the locale was in spite of the rain and having
observed the straw outhouse, we heard quite a bit about olive production. They
family owns professional quality olive presses in a room adjacent to where we
ate, but they showed us what early olive presses looked like – mere baskets. We
learned how to determine which olive oil is best to purchase, since there is a
lot of fraud with big companies selling poor quality olive oil. We learned that olive oil has five enemies: light
(only purchase in dark glass bottles); plastic (never purchase in plastic
bottles); heat (keep it stored in a cool dry place), sediment, and time (use in
under 2 years from time of purchase to preserve the quality).
The sensational vegetarian meal we ate after the presentation was cooked with some of the finest olive oil in the world, and in a locale where some of the oldest olive trees in the world resides; some were hundreds of years old. What oil from that farm and of that high quality does to food is unbelievable!
The
olive branch is a symbol of peace, and so it is on this endeavor as well. The Palestinians
have an abundance olive trees, and the Israelis have an abundance of both
knowledge and technology for olive pressing using modern methods. Olive Oil Without Borders was started in that part of Israel to bring both sides together in a
way that’s mutually beneficial - and
hopefully the continuation of a desire
for peace in the region. This little
olive farm is part of that project.
Anthony Constantinou | Anthony Constantinou CEO CWM FX says Israel has cultural and historical diversity to be explored. I understand that our expectations go way beyond the standard recitation of dry historical facts. Many of us are looking for someone who is deeply rooted and strongly connected to the land, the people and the places. So it is important to have such useful information.
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