Akko/Acco/Acre…oh my!
Potential Ferry Boo Boo
We sleep well and the plan is to go to take the ferry up the coast to Akko also known as Acco or Acre. We drive to the ferry terminal and traffic is crazy. There are a lot of one way streets so we often have to drive way down one street only to turn around and come back the way we came. Vince is doing an amazing job driving.
We finally find a parking spot and we run to the ferry entrance and stand in line only to find that the Akko ferry only runs Saturdays (contrary to what we read online) and the line we are in now is the ferry to Greece.
Train Troubles
We next run to the train station….it is 10:55am and we are told the train leaves from track 2 at 11:00. We buy the tickets, rush down the stairs and up to platform 2. We enter the train at 10:59 and it leaves at 11. We congratulate ourselves on our good luck.
The train travels for 40 minutes and stops; everyone gets off except us. Something is not right. John and Vince frantically check their phones. John’s navigation device has gone wacky. Vince turns on his data. We are on the wrong train.
The train reverses direction and heads back to Haifa…at least we think we are going back to Haifa. A few minutes later we pass Akko in the distance….aaargh.
We get off the train when it terminates at a station in Haifa which is a different station than we originally got on. A guy tells us that the next train to Akko leaves from track 2 at 12:43…ok, here goes again…
Old Akko
This time we make it to Akko. John consults his map and we walk 25 minutes to the old town.
Old Akko (a Unesco World Heritage Site) is an ancient city on a peninsula in the Mediterranean. How old you ask? It was mentioned in ancient Egyptian texts from the 1900 BC and in Greek Mythology. This city has seen the likes of Marco Polo, Pompey, Crusaders, Saladin, Al-Jazzar and Napoleon to name a few.
With its alleyways and streets leading here, there and everywhere, it is impossible to get anywhere in one straight line. Akko is a great place to get lost and wander in.
Akko reminds me of Rhodes or Malta. We walked along the tops of the ancient walls, enjoying sparkling views of the Mediterranean.
Amazing Hummus
Our first stop is Hummus Said, which is known for having exceptional hummus. It did not disappoint….delicious!
Templer’s Tunnel and Knight’s Hall
We roll our way to the Templer’s Tunnel which was only just discovered in the 1994!
From there we make our way to the Knight’s Hall which presents the history of Akko in very interesting, bite sized pieces. It was well done.
Parrot Watching and Sunset
I sit and watch the ring necked parakeets on the walls.
It takes us awhile but we finally find our way past the harbour (bathed in the light of the setting sun), to a restaurant overlooking the water. A guy is jumping off the high wall into the sea below for a swim.
More Train Troubles
We catch the train back to Haifa. This time we get on the right train but we are confused and pass our stop. We get off at the next stop. Vince wants to walk back to the last stop but my legs are yelling “No”.
A passenger explains to the staff our predicament and they let us back onto the platform going to the station we want.
Manch Pizza
The car is parked not far away. We head back into the Carmel Centre area where we are staying and stop into Manch Pizza to get some take out for the apartment. We are greeted by staff and we hear singing in the kitchen. The staff call the owner of the place out front to help when they realize that we don’t speak Hebrew. He speaks English and is so friendly. He makes us a special pizza and gives us another pizza for free. Awesome people making great pizza. I highly recommend Manch Pizza in the Carmel Centre area of Haifa.