“Maps, Matzah and More” Festival during the Passover holiday at 12 heritage sites nationwide
- LoveLoveIsrael
- Mar 27, 2023
- 5 min read
Updated: Mar 28, 2023
The Society for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites (SPIHS) brings you the FREE “Maps, Matzah and More” Festival during the Passover holiday at 12 heritage sites nationwide
When?
Chol HaMo’ed; Sunday 9th and Monday 10th April, 2023
What?
Free entrance to plays, shows, tours and activities for the entire family.
Where?
12 heritage sites around Israel – from North to South
Reservations are not required but recommended to phone the sites on the numbers provided below before heading off to anywhere, in case of any last minute changes.
North
The Valley Train Site, Kfar Yehoshua
Near the entrance to the village of Kfar Yehoshua, a narrow road runs alongside a row of impressive stone houses. Tel al-Shamam station operated here for nearly 50 years - one of the main stations of the mythical "Valley Railway" site. Built at the beginning of the 20th century to connect Haifa with Deraa, Jordan, the train ran until Israel’s independence. The heritage site includes a miniature model of the train, historical photographs and fascinating documents, such as the timetable for the journey between Haifa and Damascus.
Free Activities during the Festival
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours of the Valley Train site (between 9.00 and 14:00)
- Ninja climbing equipment.
- Train set located in an original train carriage.
- Theatrical shows
Call: 04-9014230
Founders’ Museum, Ma’alot-Tarchishah
The museum explores the history of Ma'alot and the story of its establishment. It focuses on the story of the founders of the city: the pioneers who built the country. The museum is in a residential neighborhood from the 1960s, intended to house families who immigrated from North Africa.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours of the Founders’ Museum
- Theatrical shows
- 10.4 – 18:00 – Spectacular dance and drum show in the spirit of North African women.
- Mural painting workshop – Special technique using stencils
- Arts and crafts
Call: 050-4076264
Founders’ Courtyard Museum, Kibbutz Ein Shemer
Surrounded by a wall, with a museum located within is an impressive historic stone house, the Ein Shemer Founders’ Courtyard boasts interesting items such as agricultural tools from the last century.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours and workshops following in the footsteps of the pioneers –pitch tents, wash clothes on an original scrub board, plow, and ‘guard’ at the historic guard post.
- Ride in a tractor-drawn wagon
- Visit the Tractor Museum
- Theatrical shows
- Arts and crafts
- Mural painting workshop – Special technique using stencils
Call: 04-6374327
Historic Nahalal Police Station
On the line between Nazareth and Yagur lies the historic Nahalel Fort. It was inaugurated in 1936, during the bloody events that took place throughout the country, to protect the civilian population in the Jezreel Valley - Jewish and Arab - and the members of the British government. The working police station houses a visitor’s center.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours of the historic Nahalal police station (every hour between 10:00 and 13:00)
- Theatrical shows
- Arts and crafts
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 04-6415073
Jerusalem Region
Gush Etzion Visitors Center
The center is dedicated to the story of Gush, its fall in the War of Independence and its reestablishment 19 years later, after the Six Day War. The site includes a sound and light show which recreates the story on the ruins of the bunker where the last defenders of Gush Etzion fell in battle.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers wearing period costume.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours of the Gush Etzion Heritage Center
- Theatrical shows
- Arts and crafts
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 02-9938308, 02-9935160
Yellin House, Motza
This house, built in 1890, is the home of the Yellin family, the first Jewish family that moved out of the walls of Jerusalem’s Old City, to live in Motza Valley
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers wearing period costume.
- Traditional games and activities
- Guided tours around the Yellin House heritage site (between 09:00 and 13:00)
- Workshop making scent bags from spices picked in the Yellin House orchard
- Theatrical shows
- Arts and crafts
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 02-5345443
Central Region
Ben Gurion House, Tel Aviv
The permanent home of Paula and David Ben Gurion and their three children was bequeathed in the first Prime Minister’s will to the State of Israel. A year after his death, in 1974, the house was opened to visitors and is now used as a historical museum, as well as an educational and cultural center.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers dressed as Paula and David Ben Gurion.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours around Ben Gurion House (at 10:00, 11:30 and 13:00)
- Workshop to make ‘Kuch Much’, Ben Gurion’s favorite food.
- Arts and crafts
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 03-5221010
Mikveh Israel
In the heart of Gush Dan, at the entrance to Holon, lies a small pastoral French village from the 19th century. Mikveh Israel was the first agricultural school in the Land of Israel and many important chapters in all areas of Zionist activity can be credited to it: agriculture, education, defense, immigration and absorption.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers wearing period costume.
- Traditional games and activities
- Guided tours of Mikveh Israel (at 10:00, 11:00 and 14:00) and the Botanical Gardens (at 12:00 and 13:00)
- Arts and crafts
- Theatrical shows
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 03-5030489
Southern Region
Founders Hut Museum, Hatzerim
The hut was built in 1946 as part of the 11 settlement points which were established in the Negev that same year. Visitors can view historical items from the kibbutz– old photographs, films, tokens used by kibbutz members and notebooks.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Guided tours the museum (between 10:00 and 13:00)
- Arts and crafts
- Theatrical shows
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 0806473817
Founders’ Museum, Sderot
The museum is an innovative and spectacular visitor’s center in Sderot, which tells the story of the city, and provides a glimpse into Israeli society. The state-of-the-art center pays tribute to the original residents of Sderot who came as pioneers to build the city.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family and the chance to perform in a dramatized movie which will be sent to the participants.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Embroidery workshop (at 12:00)
- Guided tours the museum (at: 09:00, 10:30, 12:00, 13:30)
- Arts and crafts
- Theatrical shows
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 054-9444405
Atid House in the Desert, Yeruham
The founders' house in Yeruham, established in 1951, looks at Israeli pioneering and entrepreneurship in its various forms and the fascinating history of this town.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Traditional games
- Embroidery workshop based on traditional Bedouin embroidery (at 10:00, 11:30, 13:00 and 14:00)
- An interactive escape-room game for families
- Guided tours the museum (at: 09:00, 10:30, 12:00, 13:30)
- Arts and crafts
- Theatrical shows
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 08-6585484, 054-4244093
Be’arot in the Negev, Kibbutz Alumim
This heritage site tells the story of the first religious settlement in the Negev Desert, Be’arot Yitzchak. The site includes a tour of the historic water tower which recently underwent restoration, and the fascinating visitor’s center.
Free Activities during the Festival:
- Photo booths with pioneer costumes for the whole family.
- Musical corners and street performers in period costume.
- Traditional games
- Guided tours around the site (09:00, 10:30, 12:00 and 14:00) following in the footsteps of the pioneers of the Negev.
- Arts and crafts
- Theatrical shows
- Mural painting workshop
Call: 08-9937300, 054-7756070
This information was contributed to by Tania Shalom Michaelian, Content Creator for the Society for the Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites SPIHS
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