Haifa - Baha'i Gardens

Looks completely artificial. There is no Life inside, no animals. Everything completely clean. What kind of religion can deny Life like that?

To take full advantage of Flickr, you should use a JavaScript-enabled browser and
install the latest version of the Macromedia Flash Player.

Comments

jlavezzo says:

Gosh, I'm not sure what you would prefer to see. The formal parts of the gardens are full of palms, flowerbeds and green ground cover (not grass). This is actually one of the most alive places in town, in both plant and animal life. The plants are chosen for their suitability for this climate, so they require only a little water. Many times of the year, it's full of flowers. A lot of what you're not seeing from the viewpoint at the bottom of Mount Carmel is the areas of the gardens left almost completely wild. With so much of the other parts of the mountain having been developed over the last 100 years, the landscape architects used the terraces here to link up other wild spaces, providing a small bit of reserved sanctuary for wildlife in the middle of the city.

I've actually seen photos on Flickr of turtles and something that looked a little like a hedgehog inside the gardens. Not sure where the pictures are, but you could check the Baha'i Holy Places group.

Here's a link to the website for the Baha'i Faith in Germany:
www.bahai.de/

Take care

Jeff
Posted 19 months ago. ( permalink )

phhesse says:

Only so much as an answer:
- the most alive place in town is by far the carmel nature reserve. And there you find plants and animals that are really suitable for the region.
- the gardens do not look like "wildlife" in any way I know. I turtle in an artificial pool is no wildlife to me, nor some other animals that flee to the only place which is completely locked and deserted most of the day.
- I walked to complete way from the top to the bottom of the garden and couldn´t see the "completely wild" parts of it.
- The worst thing about the garden where the signs everywhere: "The guard may refuse admittance to any visitor or may as him or her to leave" This is not my definition of public.
- And what I would prefer: a more human place, where people can walk and sit whenever they want. It is also far to big for my taste. It cuts the city apart.
Posted 19 months ago. ( permalink )

jlavezzo says:

Thanks for clarifying. The turtle I mentioned was not in an artificial pool. I can see you have a strong opinion on this and I don't think I can equal that. The likely difference between your expectations and the way it was made is mostly the purpose of the terraces. Essentially, it's purpose is to decorate the Shrine of the Bab and not to provide a municipal park. As to the other issues, wilderness, etc, I'll look into it when I'm there later this month.

I've been following news about the terraces for a few years now and haven't heard any comments on it other than, A) very impressive/Wow or B) how beautiful, so your perspective is quite striking. The people expressing these comments were Baha'is, Israelis (both tourism officials and citizens), and American landscape architects.

Jeff
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

jlavezzo says:

Here's a view of an informal portion of the gardens.
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

phhesse says:

Let´s not discuss the meaning of "formal, informal or wild" any further. It won´t lead anywhere. For me (personally) it´s a place, where I can´t feel comfortable. Starting with the guards, the rules and ending with the all so perfect landscape architecture.
I wish you all your best for your pilgrimage. Have fun and enjoy everything you like about Haifa and the Gardens.
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

Would you like to comment?

[?]

This photo also belongs to:

	UNESCO World Heritage Sites (Pool)
		0

	Geotagged : Israel ישראל (Pool)
		0

Additional Information

Taken on June 11, 2008
Viewed 60 times

Add to your map

Yay location removed

...

(Some formats are OK.)

Or, remove it from the map.

Go to the map

You	Sign in \| Create Your Free Account
Explore	Places \| Last 7 Days \| This Month \| Popular Tags \| The Commons \| Creative Commons \| Search
Help	Community Guidelines \| The Help Forum \| FAQ \| Sitemap \| Get Help

Haifa - Baha'i Gardens

Comments

jlavezzo says:

phhesse says:

jlavezzo says:

jlavezzo says:

phhesse says:

Would you like to comment?

UNESCO World Heritage Sites (Pool)

Geotagged : Israel ישראל (Pool)

Tags

Additional Information