I arrived in Haifa late at night, flustered and broke, after forking out for a taxi from Caesarea when the last bus failed to show. Caesarea – Herod’s summer base on the Mediterranean - was beautiful and had been worth it, but I was already thinking that Haifa had better be good!

The next morning, I climbed Mount Carmel before the heat kicked in, and Haifa did not disappoint.

The Bahai faith has its major temple here, with stunning hilltop gardens open to everyone, however flustered or broke! I walked through some of the 19 terraces to the gold-domed Shrine of the Bab. The shrine is beautiful, but I found the real beauty was in looking back out, to the clean, white city and the clear blue Mediterranean beyond. What a wonderful spot to found a town.

I jumped on the Carmelit funicular railway for a couple of stops to the zoo, and lasted about half an hour there before leaving in protest. Here were the saddest, scruffiest group of animals I had seen in a long time, and I was really stunned by the low standards of the zoo, when everywhere else was clean, modern and tourist-friendly.

I hadn’t seen such dispirited bears anywhere but Turkey, where the roadside ‘photo-op’ bears are a true disgrace. It was the only time that day I felt that I was not in a modern, European city.

At the German Colony, lunch with my friend Galit restored my sense of humour, as we pottered around the galleries and stopped for ice cream and coffee. This charming 19th Templar district is Haifa’s hub for art, café culture and general relaxation; much more so than the fairly Spartan beaches.

Later that afternoon, we took a bus to the beach at Bat Galim, and from there the scenic cablecar up to Mount Carmel National Park. We paid a visit to the famous Carmelite Monastery where, according to tradition, the Prophet Elijah fought the Prophets of Baal.

The Carmelite order was founded here in the 12th century and the monastery has an ageless, contemplative atmosphere, though the order are far from the hermits they once were. Monastery buildings near the pretty Stella Maris lighthouse served as a hospital for Napoleon's soldiers during his unsuccessful siege of Acre in 1799, and visitors have been invading the area ever since.

That evening, we compromised on an average restaurant and an amazing view of the Med. People-watching, it was striking how Israeli Jews, Arabs, Druze and foreigners all mingled on the promenade and ate at the same cafes.

Haifa has many sights to see, but its relative harmony remains its most attractive feature.