Hollywood stars usually come to Israel on a VIP tour with media hype before, during and after their trip here. Mayim Bialik – aka Amy Farrah Fowler on television’s The Big Bang Theory – is in Israel on a low-key, family visit that includes off-the-beaten track accommodations and sights.

Bialik, who has numerous relatives here, announced her visit in a ‘by the way’ manner on a blog she wrote for the Jewish parenting site, Kveller. Haaretz blogger Allison Kaplan Sommer spoke to the Emmy-nominated star about her first visit to Israel since her divorce (she’s been to Israel many times).

Bialik, who draws family ties back to the great Hebrew poet Haim Nachman Bialik, said her boys loved the Yad Lashiryon museum in Latrun, are enjoying time on a kibbutz, and said that her vegan family can’t get enough hummus.

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