Sofia Sea of Galilee Hotel

A new hotel has opened in Tiberias following an investment of 150

million NIS

The hotel intertwines the story of Sofia Srugo, the great-grandmother of the

Srugo family which embodies a saga of expatriation, yearning for the Land of

Israel and uncompromising Zionism

45 years after the death of his mother, the late Reuven Srugo took the family story full circle

and bought the historic building in Tiberias that once housed Ottoman and British Mandate

government offices. It was where his mother, Sofia, had her passport stamped before setting

out on a long journey to Argentina, while leaving her heart behind in Israel

When you combine fascinating history, ultra-modern architecture and exclusive accommodations across the

road from the Sea of Galilee – it means you have come to the Sofia Sea of Galilee Hotel in Tiberias. Following

six years of planning and construction, a hotel located next to the newly renovated boardwalk is now open to

the public.

The hotel features elegant rooms equipped with the latest technology, an infinity pool (which will be open to

the public this coming November) and two restaurants, one of which is situated on the hotels roof and is the

only rooftop restaurant-bar in Tiberias.

The jewel in the hotel's crown is, without a doubt, its spa facility. It is the only one in Israel that offers

treatments that incorporate oils and mixtures that Maimonides (the Rambam) prepared for his own use.

Maimonides was a Jewish philosopher and physician who lived in the Middle Ages. According to Jewish

tradition, his tomb is located in central Tiberias. The spacious and well-appointed spa also includes a

Turkish bath.

The hotel was built in the middle of an ancient and beautiful stone house dating back to the late 19 th century.

It served as a government building under Ottoman rule and during the British Mandate period. Following the

establishment of the State of Israel, it was converted into a facility for soldiers and remained that way until

1984.

After undergoing rigorous preservation and restoration, the building was converted into a hotel that was

inspired by and is a tribute to Sofia Srugo and her world-embracing story. She was the grandmother of the

hotel's owners – the Srugo family. Sofia was the mother of the late Reuven Srugo, who was the father of

Yitzhak, Raul, Yoav and Sofia. Reuven founded Srugo Real Estate, which is managed today by his children,

with Sara, his wife, heading the family.

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Sofia was born in Damascus in 1894, which at the time was part of the Ottoman Empire. Those were difficult

days for the Jewish community as it suffered from blood libels and its elders were often subject to severe

torture. Damascus slowly returned to a routine of commerce and religious tolerance following the uprising

of the Young Turks against the sultan and the Ottoman government. Sofia's family – the Cohen Duras family –

were poor and very religious like most other kohanim – Jews who belonged to the priestly class. The

hardships of living in poverty and in fanatical Muslim surroundings shaped Sofia's strong personality and

fortified her for what was still to come.

At the end of the 19 th century, against the backdrop of the declining power of the Ottoman Empire, radical

nationalist movements emerged in Syria that tried to overthrow the Ottoman government and replace it

with an Arab Muslim state under the aegis of the Sharif of Mecca. It was a brutal revolt that disrupted the

peaceful lives of the Jews living in Damascus.

Young people understood that their lives were in danger because they refused to join the ranks of the

insurgents. That threat was in addition to a new compulsory draft law that required all young men to go into

the army. Consequently, many of them decided to leave Syria without further delay.

Around 2,000 young Jews from Damascus and Aleppo made their way to the ports and got on any ship that

would take them as far away as possible in the New World, to the Americas. Yitzhak Srugo was one of them.

Yitzhak, who before leaving sold fabrics in the markets of Damascus, believed that he would return to the

city after things calmed down.

Sofia was 17 when she left for Argentina to meet her betrothed, Yitzhak Srugo. It took little time for her to

understand that her life was about to change. Following a turbulent sea voyage that lasted six weeks, she

arrived in a new world, the Roman Catholic world of Buenos Aires, which she never came to terms with.

The Syrian Jews who came to the new land had to create a social environment and identity of their own,

while living among Christians and Muslims from Syria and Lebanon, Turks, Armenians, and Ladino-speaking

Jews. The immigrants encountered a society in Buenos Aires that was totally strange to them. In those days,

Argentina was much more liberal and adopted western cultural mores. Nevertheless, the Syrian Jews

continued to strictly observe their religious laws.

Yitzhak Srugo adapted well to his new surroundings and worked in the fabric and textile business. Even

though there were single Jewish women in the city of Ashkenazi Russian and Polish descent as well as

women from Aleppo, Jewish men from Damascus asked their families back home to find Semitic brides for

them. (Damascene Jews were referred to as Semites).

Yitzhak was overjoyed when he learned that his bride was en route to Buenos Aires. He knew Sofia's family

well, as they were prominent members of the community and highly respected in Damascus. After they

married, Arabic was the main language spoken in their home.

Sofia considered Yitzhak the strong pillar she needed to rely on, although she missed her life in Damascus

and secretly wanted to emigrate to Israel. When writing to her family back home, she would mention the

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longings for her childhood and the trips she took. In particular, Sofia had fond memories of Lake Tiberias

(the Sea of Galilee), which she and her family visited when they went to Tiberias to have her travel

documents stamped at the government house there – the very same government house where, decades later,

a hotel named after her would be built.

Two tragic events hung like a dark cloud over the family: the death of Sofia's twin daughters of polio, and the

death of Yitzhak in a traffic accident after being hit by a bus. Their deaths traumatized the close-knit family

and transformed their lives.

Sofia, who disliked the life in Argentina and always wanted to move to Israel for Zionist reasons, fulfilled her

dream in February 1963, when she arrived as a pioneer in the Promised Land. At the age of 70, she left

behind most of her family, including a daughter-in-law who was about to give birth to her 34 th grandchild,

Raul, who years later would build the hotel named after her.

Sofia, who moved to Israel with her son Eliyahu and his family, settled in a tenement apartment for new

immigrants on Katznelson Street in Bat Yam (where she lived until her death about six years later). The rest

of the family that was still living in Argentina gradually sold their businesses and emigrated to Israel in the

footsteps of their mother.

45 years after Sofia's death, her son Reuven, who at the time was 81, bought the property in Tiberias.

That business decision would be the last he ever made. Reuven, who inherited his mother's longing

for life in Damascus, often pictured the house she grew up in and always hoped that peace would

come and he would be able to visit the city.

This magical and unusual story has no doubt come full circle, and the family is proud to commemorate Sofia

by naming this beautiful hotel after her.