20.05.2009 Information page Dear Dorians, Welcome to the Tel Dor excavation project!! Below you can find some general information that will help you prepare your trip to Tel Dor. At all times (before and during the season) remember that the Israeli/American staff will be happy to assist you with any problems or questions you might have. Arrival at Ben Gurion airport: At passport control you will be asked for the purpose of your trip to Israel. The answer is "tourism". You will be staying at Kfar Galim during your stay, a boarding school just south of Haifa. After you have collected your luggage and entered the arrivals hall you will have the opportunity to change your money and/or traveler's checks into shekels. The exchange rate is around 4.1 Israeli shekels (NIS) to US dollar, the rates at the airport do not necessarily represent the best exchange rate and it changes daily. Alternatively there are ATM machines that accept MasterCard and Visa. (The nearest banks to Kfar Galim are in Haifa, just a few km away. 1
Traveling from the airport to Dor: 1) We have contacted a taxi company (Ha- Nadiv taxi) that can wait in the airport and drive participants to the boarding school for 450 NIS (approximately 110$) and can take up to four persons; another model will cost 800 NIS (approximately 190$) for the journey and can carry five to ten persons. If you are interested in this service you must contact the company four days in advance (Tel +972-(0)52-2419-350; Fax +972-(0)4-6271-496). 2) Regular airport taxis are also available on level G of terminal 3 (Arrivals/Departures Terminal). Prices range depending on time and day of the week (weekends and nights are pricier). If you take a regular taxi make sure you agree upon the rate beforehand. You can find a map below with directions to the boarding school from the airport. 3) The Ben-Gurion Airport Line of the Israel Railway Company has a line that runs from the airport (ticket-booth is located next to the arrivals-hall of terminal 3) to Haifa Hof Ha-Karmel (Razi'el) Station (about 3 km from Kfar Galim). This line costs 35 NIS (about $9). You can download the railway company schedule from the web site: http://www.rail.co.il/en/pages/homepage.aspx. This is a very convenient and fast way to get to Haifa (journey takes approximately 1hr 20min). From the train station you can take a taxi that can be found outside the train station and should cost $5-10, depending on time of the day. If you arrive at night, make sure you have trains running at the 2
time you arrive (but basically they run all night, though not frequently). Do remember that trains do not run from Friday early afternoon until Saturday evening because of Shabbat. 4) If you drive to Kfar Galim with a rented car, you should proceed from the airport in the general direction of Haifa (see map below). Follow the signs from the airport to highway number 1, to Haifa and Tel Aviv. After driving through Tel Aviv on the highway you should turn off to highway number 2 (follow the blue signs to Haifa). Keep on highway 2 northwards for about 60 km. and take the exit to 'Atlit. At the first intersection turn left to route 4. Continue north about 8 km. Turn left at Kfar Galim Junction, the gate is just off route 4. Check in: You should contact the Tel Dor staff office in Kfar Galim to receive your room key. There is a guard in the entrance to Kfar Galim that will instruct you how to find us. If you arrive during night time (after 23:00-00:00) or during Tell working hours (04:00-13:30), please call Bronwen in advance so that she can arrange to leave your key for you at Kfar Galim. Also please send your flight number and the time it is scheduled to land in Israel to the Tel Dor office in Jerusalem dor-proj@mscc.huji.ac.il. ** During orientation day (July 7 th ) we will travel to Tel Dor sometime in the early afternoon. Please note that if you arrive after we leave you will need to arrange your own transportation from Kfar Galim to Dor! 3
Local transportation: Kfar Galim is located a few km. south of one of Haifa's shopping mall areas. There you can find restaurants, shops, ATM and cinemas. The ride to this area is about five minutes. Busses run during the day every 5-10 minutes on route 4, going north to Haifa for about 5 NIS (about 1.5$). Bus stops are close to the school entrance on route 4. Additional destinations to the south, such as Tel Aviv, Hadera and Zhichron Ya'akov are also accessible with route 4 busses. You can check schedules at the 'Egged lines' site:http://mslworld.egged.co.il/eggedtimetable/webforms/wf rmmain.aspx?width=1024&language=en&company=1&state= ** Remember that local busses and trains stop service on Friday afternoon till Saturday because of Shabbat. During nights and weekends there are private cabs running on main routs called 'sherut' cabs. These cabs leave Tel Aviv/Haifa only when they are in full occupancy, with no pre-planned schedules. You can wait for a ride for a very long time and even then the cab stops only if it has vacancy. It is thus better to take regular, private, cabs during weekends and nights. If you share the ride with other people this is not expensive. 4
The Dor excavation has made a deal with a local taxi company and a man who lives in Kibbutz Nahsholim to transport volunteers at a fixed price. Mr Zvika Keidar (Kibbutz Nahsholim) Contact: +972 (0)522414700 or +972 (0) 523505157 Email: zvikeidar@walla.com From the airport to Kfar Galim, 4 places = 500 NIS From the airport to Kfar Galim, 10 places = 700 NIS From Kfar Galim to Tel Aviv, 4 places = 400 NIS From Kfar Galim to Jerusalem, 10 places = 800 NIS Day Trip for 10 people = 1,200 NIS Day Trip for 14 people = 1,500 NIS Day Trip for 20 people = 1,900 NIS Local Taxi Company "Hehalutz Atid" Contact: +972 (0)4 8570570 Kfar Galim to Haifa: Small taxi is 47 NIS; large taxi is 55 NIS Kfar Galim to the Central Bus Station: Small taxi is 25 NIS; large taxi is 35 NIS Kfar Galim to Kibbutz Nahshloim (Tel Dor): Small taxi is 80 NIS; large taxi is 100 NIS (these prices do not include the 15.5% VAT) 5
Trains run to Tel Aviv, Haifa, Akko and to the airport. Busses to Jerusalem are available from Tel Aviv (either at the train station or the central bus station). Laundry: Laundry service (washing and drying) will be available for extra charge (6 NIS per kilo). Each participant should have his/her own mesh laundry bag. The laundry will be washed inside the bag and will be returned after 2 to 3 days. Shopping: There are plenty of shops in Haifa malls located not far from Kfar Galim. Communications: The excavation will keep an emergency mobile phone. The number will be provided shortly before the field season and it will be manned from July 6 th to August 12 th, 24 hours a day, including weekends. PLEASE contact us at this number for ANY problem or question concerning safety issues or any other problem that may need immediate intervention by a staff member during the season. We highly recommend that each volunteer rent his/her personal mobile phone. They are moderately priced and can be useful if you get lost or if the folks back home want to get in touch with you in a hurry. You can register on-line at the company web-site www.talknsave.net/groups/tld.asp. Do note that no phone calls are allowed during work in the field, except on designated breaks, and, of course, in case of emergency. The cell phone company is willing to make two free deliveries to Kfar Galim during the season. After all reservations have been made we will inform you where and 6
when you will receive your phone. As noted in the web site, special delivery is also available for an extra charge. Phones may be dropped off at the airport before you leave. There are no landline phones in the rooms. Internet connection: There is a Computer room with internet for the use of the Dor volunteers at Kfar Galim. There is no wireless connection and no possibility to connect your personal laptop to the internet. The cell phone company offers a relatively pricy offer for plugging in your personal laptop to the internet using a USB stick they provide. Accommodation: Volunteers will stay in a dorm facility with bathroom for males/females on every floor. The bathrooms will be cleaned daily, and the rooms once a week. Every room has closets and A/C. We will provide clean sheets, blankets etc., but volunteers should bring their own towels. Any problem you have in your room should be referred to Bronwen Manning- Rozenblum, one of our staff members, she also will respond to any calls made on the emergency number (which will be posted on the website one week prior to the excavation). Meals: Kfar Galim provides (kosher) lunch and dinner. Breakfast will be served next to the Glasshouse museum, adjacent to Tel Dor. Coffee / tea bags and light sandwiches / cookies will be provided from 04:15 in Kfar Galim, before the bus departs to the tell in the morning and then again before the afternoon activities at 16:30. 7
The beach at Tel Dor is one of the loveliest in Israel and all of us will enjoy it. The Mediterranean Sea can be treacherous, especially if you are not used to swimming in surf. Next to the Tel there is a designated swimming area with lifeguards on duty (08:00-18:00, every day). Volunteers should swim ONLY on this beach, during lifeguard hours. Be aware that there may be jellyfish in the water. Thankfully they are seasonal creatures and so are not expected to be around for a long time. Volunteers can stay at the beach during lunch break and arrive to Kfar Galim for afternoon activities. The beach next to Kfar Galim does not have a lifeguard and is very dangerous for swimming. A few km to the north of Kfar Galim - the Haifa beaches have lifeguards and other beach facilities. There is a swimming pool in Kfar Galim that will be open daily for several hours. Opening hours will be given in the beginning of the season. Daily Timetable 04:00- Wake up, coffee and biscuits outside the office 04:30- Buses leave Kfar Galim to the tell 04:50- Taking tools out from the container 05:00- Excavation begins! 06:50- Coffee break 09:00- Breakfast at the Glasshouse 10:00- Work resumes 11:20- Fruit break 12:30- Cleaning the Area and putting the tools in the container 8
13:00- Buses leave the tell to Kfar Galim 13:30- Lunch at Kfar Galim, and Noon Break 16:30- Coffee & biscuits; Pottery washing & Pottery reading 17:30- Field School lecture (parallel to pottery reading) 19:30- Dinner at Kfar Galim 20:30- the rest of the evening is free (we advise volunteers to go to sleep early ) Helpful Items for the Dig 1) Hat, Sun screen and water bottle 2) Gardening/Work gloves to protect hands 3) Because of safety closed shoes are mandatory when on the tell. Safe travel and see you soon! The Tel Dor Staff The Co-Directors Dr. Ilan Sharon Hebrew University Dr.Ayelet Gilboa Haifa University The Group Directors Dr. Elizabeth Bloch-Smith Dr. Sarah Culpepper Stroup Dr. Ann E. Killebrew 9
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