A guest post - introducing my colleague writer David Prosser

I would like to introduce my colleague writer David Prosser, who has kindly received my invitation to share a post in the blog:

Born in 1951 David Prosser led a perfectly normal life until inheriting a manorial title aged 40. Though he didn't become independently wealthy overnight as he'd hoped, he did find his responsibilities changed and his outlook had to broaden exponentially.

 :David writes

 I worked in Local Government for most of my working life but was forced to retire when ill health took its toll. Now having to spend much of my life indoors and unable to communicate easily with people face to  face, I was able to establish good contacts over the Internet and devoted myself, amongst my other fundraising activities, to raising enough money to build a school on Uganda for the street children. Those orphaned and left with no-one to care for them. (Baron) Cornelius von Berenberg Gossler has given up his life of privilege in Germany to devote to these children with his beautiful Ugandan wife Loy. I was fortunate to be able to bring in enough promises to build the school, dormitories and a clinic outside the village of Loy's tribe.

Other projects took my time also. Not least a friendship site (The Buthidars) to cover the world which would allow friendship to flourish despite differences between people by ignoring the religion that would generally keep them apart. We also had on hand voluntary advisers for people with problems like arranged marriages. Peace in the world is a possibility if there are enough examples shining out, and for the sake of our children we need this.

One day a friend on the net asked me 'how my day had been' and I responded in the form of a diary entry. She liked it and asked for more which I did for about a week. Then she suggested it would make a good book. I was very dubious about that but decided to give it a go by doing a chapter a day as though completing a diary and asking my wife to read them overnight. If I heard laughter coming from her room I knew I was OK. Eventually my first book was born called 'My Barsetshire Diary'. At 60 I was an author!

Two more books have followed since then, one a self indulgent bit of fun in the form of a prequel which has me as a poor man's James Bond.  Such fun to write and it got me some lovely reviews.

More recently I joined Gather.com as an alternative social network to Facebook. I was lucky enough to meet Earl Shugerman who told us all about his move to Israel and offered flying tours around the place with his splendid writing. One thing that especially caught my eye was the story of a town where, though the rest of us see as the warring factions, people actually live together at peace. Haifa is the city of peaceful coexistence. It's heartwarming and leaves me full of hope. Earl has a part to play in all this by letting us know how it will be shared. I hope you enjoy his story as much as I have and will share his new site.

Caesarea Israel from Roman Gladiators to Peace?

Caesarea is a small, very well-to-do town and extensive archaeological site on the Mediterranean coast of Israel, located some 50 km north of Tel Aviv and several km north of Hadera. The current population is 4,200. Beyond the ancient remains, Caesarea is a town devoted to tourists and to luxurious living. Some of Israels’ finest homes are located here and it is also home of Israel’s only 18-hole golf course, a luxury hotel, a vacation village, miles of sandy beaches, and a series of attractive restaurants, galleries and boutiques.  And, of course, visitors marvel at its extraordinary archaeological attractions, not least of which is the Roman theatre, where concerts, entertainment extravaganzas and the annual International Opera Festival are held.  I love to visit the city which offers ancient Roman ruins and Israel's only golf course. Golf and jazz are my two favorite hobbies. 





In the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century Baron Edmond James de Rothschild purchased much of the land around Caesarea - with the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the Rothschild family gifted these holdings to the Caesarea Foundation. The Caesarea Edmond Benjamin de Rothschild Development Corporation remains the operational arm of the Rothschild Foundation.

Are you a fan of Roman history? Yes, Caesarea is city that Herod the Great dedicated to Caesar the great two thousand years ago.


Settlement at what became Caesarea, on Israel’s central Mediterranean coast began in the third century BCE by the early Greeks. The population of "Straton’s Tower" remained Jewish until the Romans conquest in 63 BCE, when they granted the city its freedom. King Herod the Great transformed the city beginning in 22 BCE with the construction of its sophisticated port, warehouses, markets, great streets, bathhouses, temples and magnificent public buildings, naming it Caesarea. Every five years the city hosted gladiatorial games, sports competitions and performances.





Caesarea is an important site in Christian history. It was the place where Pontius Pilate governed during the time of Jesus. This was where Simon Peter converted the Roman, Cornelius, the first non-Jew to believe in Jesus.  During the 3rd century, Caesarea was a center of Christian learning. In the 4th century, the site converted to Christianity and became a major center of the Christian Roman Empire.

In 640 CE, Caesarea was the last Palestinian city to fall to the Muslim invaders. After the Muslims swept out of Arabia and across the Middle East, driving out the Romans, Palestine was largely neglected. In 1101, the Crusaders captured the city under the leadership of Baldwin I, only to lose it in 1187 to Saladin. Under the Crusader rule, the Jewish community of Caesaria dwindled until in 1170 only 20 Jews remained. From 1251-1252, the city was entirely reconstructed by Louis IX.

In 1265, Caesarea fell to Baybars, the Mamluk sultan of Egypt, who destroyed the city, which remained in ruins until 1884.  In 1884, a small fishing village was established on the remains at Caesarea by Muslim refugees from Bosnia. The city was abandoned by its inhabitants during the War of Independence (1948).

The city that sadly has such a history of suffering and violence is now one of peace and tranquility.

I have been blessed to participate in interfaith activities in Israel by the Catholic Focolare. The Focolare Movement is an international organization that promotes the ideals of unity and universal brotherhood. The Focolare Movement operates in 182 nations and has five million members. It is the largest Catholic outreach movement in the world. Here in the Holy Land, Run4Unity was held May 13 in the natural landscape and archeology of Caesarea Maritima, with more than 400 boys and girls between 12 to 17 years old, from the Palestinian territories and cities of Israel participating in games to promote peace. Christians, Muslims and Jews enjoyed the glorious scenery and spirit of brotherhood participating in a variety of games. 

www.run4unity.net is a great site to learn more.

Children of different races, cultures and religions ran together, through significant places on the planet, to show their commitment to peace and solidarity. 

I was one of the "security guards". My primary duty was to urge both the kids and their families not to wade into the calm and beautiful Mediterranean waters. I volunteered to be one of the security guards during the period of time prior to the beginning of the organized events. I happened to hear three of the young people communicating with each other in perfect English. They were dressed in the uniforms of the activity. Participation from English speaking countries is rare in this region. I asked them where they were from and they answered in unison and with great pride that "We are Palestinians from Ramallah." Then they proceeded to tell me that they had lived in Indiana for many years, which explained their wonderful grasp of English. We discussed in length my favorite topic, which of course is food. We all reminisced about Mexican Food, Wendy's, barbecue spare ribs, and of course McDonald's burgers. 

They proceeded to add this statement; "We have visited Haifa which is a primitive place". I hesitated and thought it best not to respond. The rules of these activities strongly admonish political discussions. They quickly added to my relief that "You do not have KFC in Haifa", with great glee. KFC opened a branch in Ramallah in February becoming the first American fast food chain to directly open a location in the Palestinian territories. We proceeded to eat Pizza, drink Coca Cola, and enjoy the wonderful event. Food is indeed the universal language. The youth enjoyed a series of beachfront sports activities, drank Pepsi, ate pizza and most importantly enjoyed the sense of brotherhood. Sadly, since the activity took place fighting once again erupted between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza. Fortunately Ramallah was not involved in the battles, but I now have friends in Gaza as well. I also know many Israeli kids who served during the warfare. How far have we come from the days of the Romans and the gladiators? I feel reassured to know that people from both sides of the border are seeking ways to live in peace through dialogue. Let us hope that they succeed.

Hadar (Splendor) in Haifa Israel

I am sitting at my favorite cafe in Haifa, the Kapiot drinking Cafe, and am blessed to have met a nice Israeli bachura (young lady) named Tal Or who is an Israeli Hayelet or soldier. She is nineteen and like all Israeli women is expected to serve two years in the Israeli Defense Forces.  She is from Haifa and suggested that I tell the readers about her favorite neighborhood of Haifa. We can see Hadar and the famous Baha'i Gardens from the pub which is located in central Haifa or the "Mercaz".

Hadar, which is located in the downtown part of Haifa, derives its name from Isaiah 35:2. The name Hadar is roughly translates into the word splendor in English. The neighborhood of Hadar Hacarmel was founded before World War I.  By 1944, most of Haifa's 66,000 Jewish residents lived in Hadar Hacarmel. Haifa's city hall, courthouse and government buildings were located in this neighborhood, but relocated to the lower city (Downtown) in the turn of the 21st century.  Israel was then part of the British Mandate of Palestine. Hadar at the time was a bustling booming community that served as a government, commercial, and residential center of Haifa. It indeed deserved the description of glorious.

The Technion which is a public research university in Haifa, Israel, was founded in 1912 and is located in Hadar. The Technion, the oldest university in Israel, was located in Hadar until the new Kiryat Hatechnion (Technion City) campus was inaugurated in Neve Sha'anan in the late 70's. The old historic building, dating from 1912, is now a hands-on science museum - MadaTech - the Israel National Museum of Science, Technology, and Space. One of the Technion founders was scientist Albert Einstein. 

The Carmelit, Israel's only subway, runs from the Carmel Center to Paris Square via Hadar Hacarmel, where three of its six stations are located. It is unique in the sense that it is the world's shortest railway. I enjoy a weekly visit to Hadar to drink a cup of coffee on Nordau Street which is the entertainment center of the neighborhood. It is great Keff or fun to travel there on the Carmelit from my home in the Mercaz.  My favorite McDonald's in Haifa is on Hertzel street which is the main shopping thoroughfare in the area. I love to eat an ice cream cone and window shop at the many shops located on Hertzel, which are often family owned. 

Beit HaGefen, an Arab-Jewish cultural center, is located on the seam line of Hadar HaCarmel and Wadi Nisnas. The neighborhood has many Bauhaus Staatliches. Commonly known simply as Bauhaus, the Bauhaus Staatliches was a school in Germany that combined crafts and the fine arts, and was famous for the approach to design that it publicized and taught. It operated from 1919 to 1933. At that time the German term Bauhaus, literally "house of construction" stood for "School of Building" - buildings designed by German-Jewish architects who settled in Palestine after fleeing the Nazis.

Sadly, many of the challenges facing urban areas in most of the world today face Hadar as well. Many of the government agencies have relocated and in addition many Haifa residents are mall shoppers who prefer the Big Malls over the streets of Hadar, and yes Haifa has suburbs. Many of the once splendid homes are now run down and often overcrowded. However, the city is taking steps to renovate the neighborhood. The same challenges and changes facing urban areas in The United States are common in Israel.