May 17-18 sees Israel’s first ever Dragon Boat Festival take place – on the amazing Sea of Galilee!
Yes, there haven’t been too many dragon boat races over the years in the Holy Land, but thanks to the initiative of DBI (Dragon Boat Israel), a Canadian-Israel venture, you can now experience the fun and adventure behind a dragon boat race for the very first time.
You can’t register to take part as all slots are full (there are 39 teams racing, including 19 international teams), but there’s plenty more to check out, including the Dragon Boat races themselves, which are spread over a few hours on May 18, arts and crafts stands, food stalls, a beer garden, jugglers, kids activities, drum workshops, dance troupes, and some live bands.
The fun for racers takes place on the waters of the Sea of Galilee; the fun for spectators takes place at the Ma’agan Eden Hotel, a Kibbutz guest house and resort located on the southern shore of the Sea of Galilee. If you’re coming to cheer the teams on and have a beer in the beer garden, there’s an entrance fee of 15 shekels for adults, 5 shekels for kids.
This unique first-time festival could well be the start of something beautiful…and with their goal “to bring people to the north of Israel for an exciting, team-focused event that builds community, supports Israeli charities, fosters cultural awareness and promotes tourism”, it sounds good to us!
For more info, see the official website: www.dragonboatisrael.com
And here’s a practice dragon boat run from a couple of months ago, just to give you a taste of the action…