EIN KAREM, JERUSALEM

Ein Karem, my village.

Our picturesque village of Ein Karem (meaning: spring of the vineyard), is nestled in a valley near Jerusalem’s southwestern suburbs, it contains some holy Christian sites pertaining to John the Baptist and Mary. With its terraced hillsides, gardens, and orchards, Ein Karem is a lovely neighborhood full of artists, local gourmet cuisine and guest rooms offering authentic hospitality.

A bit of history…

In the last hundreds of years a small village existed here and in 1948 it was deserted and was inhabited by Jews, who generally managed to maintain its original character of small stone houses and narrow alleys which wind between them. This small village has great importance in Christian tradition, according to which it was the birthplace of John the Baptist. You can find the Church of St. John the Baptist at the top of the village, prominent for its bell tower. A more modern church in Ein Karem is the Church of the Visitation, named in honour of the visit paid by Mary, the mother of Jesus, to the house of her relative Elizabeth, John the Baptist’s mother. One can also find in Ein Karem the Gorny Monastery, a Russian nuns’ village, the church of which is built in Russian style, with golden onion-shaped domes.