Cousin Ruthie has lent us her car so we can make some stops along the way. Just above Tiveria there’s a lookout point. We leave the car to get the first glimpse of the city. It looks so peaceful as it curves around the shores of the Kinneret.

“What will we be doing here?” I ask Grandma

Grandma smiles her special smile and I know she has a surprise for me. We get back into the car and drive to our hotel right on the shores of the Kinneret. “Let’s leave our bags and walk along the promenade” says Grandma.

I grab my new camera. It only takes a minute to get to the water’s edge. We’re going to take a boat ride across the Kinneret but a quick look at the sign at the dock tells us that the next boat is not for two hours.

“Never mind Dvorah Rivkah. Let’s go into the city” says Grandma. We walk through the center of Tiveria passing the thick black walls of its old city. We go through the market and turn into HaPerachim Street. On the corner we face a building with a wooden door. “Hotel Dona Gracia” it says over the entrance. Grandma leads the way in. I wonder why.