Shirley (my wife) and I have been traveling since 1970 - enjoying our travels, but I know that there are many genealogists who would like to travel, but are afraid and/or don't know how or where to start. That is why, I
decided to create this page. It contains links to background information you will need -- once you have decided
to take the plunge and visit your roots. What an experience it can be!
CK Travel Services is owned by a good
friend of ours. Carole Kracer has been arranging both personal and
group travels to Russia, Baltic Countries, Eastern Europe countries (all of
them), South America and Cuba as
well as Israel for many years. Each
tour is tailor-made for either a group or an individual and she is a
stickler
for detail. She has contacts with the Jewish communities and
synagogues in the many countries and cities and
is willing to share her
experience and knowledge with you. Carole is an easy person to talk to and
if you are in
the beginning stages of thinking about visiting your roots,
you couldn't do better than calling Carole.
Phone: 818 784 6641; Toll Free -
1 877 784 6641; Cell: 1 818 667 2368 or via email:
cktravelservices@roadrunner.comand mention our nameShirley
andTed Margulis
to Carole www.cktravelservices.com
I want to assure you that I do not have any personal connection to any source links below -- I am merely
bringing these links to your attention. If they fail you, you will have to deal with the source directly, and if
they are of great advantage in making and performing your ultimate travel plans, I would like to know so that I
can share your experiences with others who intend to follow in your footsteps. You can always send me an
e-mail to Jwebindex@gmail.comor use the Feedback Form
Books
Most books, CDs relating to travel and researching one's Jewish roots can be ordered through my link to amazon.com by clicking here > Jewish Genealogy
"A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe" - authored by Ben G. Frank and published by Pelican
"A Travel Guide to Jewish Russia and Ukraine" - authored by Ben G. Frank and published by Pelican
"A Travel Guide to Jewish Caribbean and South America" - authored by Ben G. Frank and published by
Pelican
"The Great Jewish Cities of Central and Eastern Europe: A Travel Guide and Resource Book to Prague,
Warsaw, Cracow and Budapest" - authored by Eli Valley
Buy
from Amazon.com
OAG -
This is the website of the Official Aviation Guide, which has
been published since 1929 and used
frequently by travel agents.
If you click
on 'Guides' and then on 'Flight Tools' you'll be
able to seek out information such as which airlines fly on
particular routes, how long it takes to get from one destination
to the other, and other information such as the
time the last
plane leaves a certain airport.
http://www.oag.com
Google offers this site
program to help put together a travel itinerary for you.
All you need do is enter your
destination city! Along with
your itinerary, you'll get maps showing you where to go.
It's like have a personal
tour guide. There are some
limitations, but most of the work has been done for you.
http://citytours.googlelabs.com/
Allows travelers to create and print a currency converter table for their next trip to most countries and
available at http://www.oanda.com/convert/cheatsheet
A wonderful, detailed commercial travel site that offers much information about the history and current
traveling conditions in many European countries, along with city map information http://www.inyourpocket.com
Kosher Trips and Food
Choices
A tour company, Lotus Tours, offers trips to various countries, including
Japan, China, Hong Kong, Kenya,
Australia, New Zealand, Europe, East-Central Europe and more. For information call the tour agency at
800 267 5415 or write: 2 Mott St., New York, NY 10013
Special Gourmets The following site
lets you map hotels, restaurants and other destinations that
accommodate several different diets: gluten-free, dairy-free,
nut/peanut-free, shellfish-free, egg-free, and
soy-free.
Just use the
checkboxes to indicate what dietary needs you’re looking for.
There’s another set of checkboxes
that allows you to specify by
service: whether you’re looking for places to eat or stay or buy
food, and whether you want to include large chains. The site
gives you a map of the area you’re searching as well as a list
of the
restaurants.
http://www.specialgourmets.com/
This
site offers information about 74 airlines, and over 3000
airports in regard to their luggage limits for both
hand luggage
and check-in, so you can cross reference between airlines and
airports to know what your
luggage limits are, dimensions of
bags, special restrictions etc.
http://www.luggagelimits.com
This company is based in the
UK and sells either a phone with a Sim card that is good around the world or you
can buy the Sim card by itself. Once you buy it, you are assigned a number that is good world wide and you
are only charged for the calls you make - No monthly charge and it is billed directly to your credit card. http://www.mobalrental.com/gsm/handsets.asp
With this LingvoSoft smart dictionary software on your computer, you can easily switch
between English and Yiddish, (or about 42 other languages) for prompt translations of 400,000 words both
ways! Download Free Trial now
Travel Tips - Got questions? Get answers from this site, but don't get scared because BUG stands for
Backpackers' Ultimate Guide. Plenty of great information. http://www.burgeurope.co
Triporati.com
- this is a site loaded with travel and trip recommendations from expert
ravel writers willing
to share the best of their favorite sites. www.triporati.com
U.S. Embassies and Consulates to any
location in the world
Scholar Led
walks of the world's greatest cities - Paris, Rome, Florence, Naples,
Venice, New York, London,
Istanbul
http://www.contexttravel.com/home/
This is a guide to official tourist information sources. The Directory lists only official government tourism
offices, convention and visitors bureaus, chambers of commerce, and similar agencies which provide free,
accurate, and unbiased travel information to the public. No travel agents, no tour operators, no hotels. There
are over 1405 entries. http://www.towd.com/
Won't you share with my readers, your personal traveling experiences - especially those of you who have
traveled to their ancestral shtetls? Submit your story with as much description of your personal experiences to Jwebindex@gmail.com
Argentina
American Jewish Congress offers a 14 day tour of Jewish sites in
Rio de Janeiro (Grand Synagogue), Salvador, Iguassu Falls, Bariloche, and Buenos Aires - and the world's third largest Jewish city where you will
visit the Hasidic quarter. www.ajcongresstravel.com
In what was the old Jewish ghetto, construction workers discovered the remains of a 13th century synagogue
while digging for a new parking garage www.travelchannel.com
Radisson SAS Palais - located in Vienna near the Innere Stadt and the Stadttempel http://radissonsas.com
Alef Alef is the city's leading kosher restaurant and is at Seitenstettengasse 2; Phone: 43 1 535 2530
Cafe Landtman - across from the Burgtheatere was the choice for Freud and looks unchanged from the 1930s.
Cafe Central at Herrengasse 14 was a favorite of Theodore Herzl, Leon Trotsky and Arthur Schnitzler
Belarus
Galina Swartz and her husband, Frank run the East European Jewish Heritage Program and can be reached at eejhp@voluntas.org Their snail mail address is POB 97, Minsk 22074, Belarus. Frank is a Canadian
(a native English speaker) and Galina is a Minsk native who is fluent in
English. According to David Gordon dgordon@interaccess.com 'she was an exceptional guide and I could not recommend her too highly."
According to Rabbi Yehuda Fried of Nesivos Yeshiva Tours to
Lithuania and Polandfried@sefer.org
Yulik Gurvitch - offers his experience as a guide for touring Lithuania and neighboring countries. Yulik
speaks Hebrew, Yiddish and English fluently. Contact Yulik at yulik@delfi.lt
Brugge -
may not have much in the way of Jewish genealogy information, but it is one
of our most favorite
towns and if you want to get an idea of what life and
living was all about in the medieval period ... this is the
place!
Enjoy. http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/index.htm
American Jewish Congress offers a 14 day tour of Jewish sites in Lima, La Paz, Puno, Cuzco, Machu
Pcchu. www.ajcongresstravel.com
Brazil
American Jewish Congress offers a 14 day tour of Jewish sites in
Rio de Janeiro (Grand Synagogue), Salvador, Iguassu Falls, Bariloche, and Buenos Aires - and the world's third largest Jewish city where you will
visit the Hasidic quarter www.ajcongresstravel.com
The
Jews of Toronto, along with their accompanying
synagogues, shops and businesses, are today primarily
found
along the central artery Bathurst Street, which runs more than
10 miles.
Jewish food is available at the Oasis Cafe and Oasis Kosher Deli
located at 130 King Street West. A listing of
other kosher
restaurants, stores, sights and upcoming events is available at www.jewishinto.com
American Jewish Congress offers an 18 day tour of
Jewish China which includes Beijing, Xian, Wuhan,
cruising Mt. Lushan, Nanjing, Shanghai and Hong Kong www.ajcongresstravel.com
There are about 1,400 Jews still living in
Havana, Cienfuegos and Santa
Clara .
American Jewish Congress offers an 8 day tour of
Cuba. The U.S. Treasury Department granted the
Congress permission to take small groups to Cuba on people-to-people encounters with the Cuban-Jewish community. Phone: 212 879 4588 or 1 800 221 4694 Website: www.ajcongresstravel.com
To schedule a visit to the Jewish community in Cuba, contact the Patronato de la Casa de la Communidad
Hebrea
Synagogue: Calle 1, #261, Esquina 13 Vedado, La Habana, Cuba 10400 - Phone: ++53-7-32-8953
Fax: ++53-7-33-3778
Carol Kracer, also has the US Treasury Department license for travel to Cuba
and can be of value should you
wish to visit the island. She can take a
minimum of 10 participants with her license and no more than 25-30
per
group. Email
cktravelservices@roadrunner.comor by phone: 1 877 784 6641
Havana Hotels Meliä Cohiba (on Avenida Paseo)
TheHotel Nacional (on Calle O off Kampa)
Hotel Habaña Libre (on Calle I, between 23rd and 24th Streets) Hotel Raquel - caters specifically to Jewish tourists (located at San Ignacio and Amargura Streets)
Czech Republic - tons of information is available at this site relating to touring the country and Prague City http://Jewish.tourstoprague.com
Kosher Food - hard to find beyond Prague
Prague
The
Czech Republic, home of the "Velvet Revolution" of
November 1989, is a city of diversity and contrast in
architecture, music, literature, and drama. Here you will
find tradition and charm often missing from the usual tourist
stops of Western Europe. It's one of the most beautiful
cities we have ever toured.
Prague Jewish Cemetery - used from the 15th century to 1787as the final resting place for all Jews living in
Prague. The confined space forced graves to be piled one on top of the other. Tilted at crazy angles, the
12,000 visible tombstones are but a fraction of countless thousands more buried below. The oldest marked
grave belongs to the poet Avigdor Kara, who died in 1439. www.jewishmuseum.cz
PragueSynagogue - the legend is that the synagogue was built on the site of an ancient Jewish temple www.travelchannel.com
Terezin
WW II Memorial Concentration Camp Tour - The minimum length of a tour is 5 hours, but the tour
company can handle longer tour times to accommodate the tourist http://private-tours.net/
The tour includes 'Terezin town that was used as a Ghetto); The small fortress that became the Gestapo's
prison in 1940; the Bohusovice crematorium; The Jewish and the National Cemeteries; the Memorial by the
river Ofire. The Camp is about 1 hour northwest of Prague.
Tova Gilead - offers Jewish Heritage and Family tours to Budapest, Prague and Vienna for small groups Tel:1 800 242 8682 http://www.tovagilead.com
There is nothing like seeing for yourself, so Shirley and I traveled to Prague and Budapest in August 2006. We boarded a river cruise, after spending four days in Budapest to end up in Prague for another four days. We are not selling anything, but if you want to know more about our Itinerary, send me an e-mail.Jwebindex@gmail.com
Eastern Europe
American Jewish Congress offers a comprehensive 18 day tour which includes
Warsaw, Lublin, Krakow,
Vilna, Kovno, Prague, Terezin, and Budapest www.ajcongresstravel.com
Egypt
"From An Antique Land" - if
you can't visit Cairo in person, read this book. It is a
hybrid of history,
cultural investigation and travelogue ...
enchanting, and so it is.
Estonia - here you will find links to Estonian Association of Travel Agencies, Estonian Ecotourism Association,
Estonian Rural Tourism, South Estonian Tourism, Tallinn in Your Pocket, Turismiweb, Tallinn Airport, Port of
Tallinn, Estonian Railways and more http://www.einst.ee/links.html?id=45
Trains
don't reach across Estonian borders. There is no train
connection to other Baltic states or EU states.
Only
international passenger route on railways goes to Moscow,
and is operated by GoRail:
http://www.gorail.ee/?lang=en
Another site that includes information on transportation and accommodations http://www.1182.ee/eng/
Yulik Gurvitch- offers his experience as a guide for touring
Estonia and neighboring countries. Yulik
speaks Hebrew, Yiddish and English fluently. Contact Yulik at yulik@delfi.lt
"Traveler's Guide to Jewish Germany" - authored by Billie Ann Lopez and Peter Hirsch and published by
Pelican in 1998. A guide to Jewish sites in 186 towns and cities in Germany. Provides for each entry its
geographic location, significant cultural or historical sites, and an overview of its history Includes practical
travel tips, a chronology of German Jewish history, a glossary, an introduction to Hebrew letters and numbers,
regional maps, color photographs and an index.
Hadassah offers information and a travel service and can be reached at
http://www.hadassah.org
Continental Airlines offers connections to
Frankfurt, while Lufthansa has non-stop Munich service. Trains
service main cities, but the smaller and quainter towns are best reached either by automobile or busses.
General Romantic Road information is available from Tourism Work Groups, Dinkelsbuehl. Inns are the usual accommodations.
The department
store Galleria Kaufhof located at Monckebergstrasse 3 offers some kosher
food. To arrange for kosher meals brought to a hotel, contact Catering
Zach - phone: 49 178 519 3384.
An excellent article, written by Esther Hecht, appeared in Hadassah magazine's April 2003 issue. See also my Greek page for additional information
Dolly Asher is the only Jewish guide in Athens and is knowledgeable about the Jewish Community and its sites, as well as sights of general interest. Telephone 934-6739; Fax: 937 3264; Cell Phone: 087 258 6416; e-mail: asser_dolly@hotmail.com She can also arrange and lead Jewish heritage tours throughout
Greece.
Kol Hakehila - a quarterly publication about the Jewish communities in
Greece as well as Jewish heritage tours including the Island of
Rhodes http://www.yvelia.com
Meron Ten Brink - a former guide in
Israel, specializes in Amsterdam's Jewish Quarter and the Portuguese Synagogue.
(You may need to copy the URL Address line to your web browser
http://www.easyrider-excursions.nl/
Hungary Austria Czech Republic
American Jewish Congress offers an 12 day tour of some of Europe's most fascinating Jewish sites in Central Europe which includes
Budapest, Vienna, Prague, and Terezin. www.ajcongresstravel.com
Photo Courtesy of Andras Koltai
"On the oldest stones the inscriptions are in Hebrew. Then came the
German writings and Hungarian inscriptions are mainly to be found on the tombs of the late 19th and on those of 20th century."
Andras Koltaiis offering his research services. Hungarian Jewish Roots provides all kinds of researches that are helpful when trying to find anything about your ancestors and other relatives. If you only want them to take a picture of a building that once belonged to your great-grandparents or research your family tree, he offers his many services. www.jewishroots.hu
Galut -genealogical research in the territory of historical Hungary. Research concentrates on documents stored in the archives of the target area, libraries and cemeteries. Primary source of information is a variety of records
There is nothing like seeing for yourself, so Shirley and I traveled to Prague and Budapest in August 2006. We boarded a river cruise, after spending four days in Budapest and ended up in Prague for another four days. If you want to know more about our Itinerary, send me an e-mail.Jwebindex@gmail.com
Ireland
See also myIreland
pagefor additional sightseeing information
American Jewish Congress offers an 11 day tour of Jewish Ireland which includes visits to Killarney, Cork, Dublin, Galway, Connemara, and Cong. e-mail: www.ajcongresstravel.com
Belfast
Belfast Welcome Centre 47 Donegall Place Telephone: 44-2890-246-609
Belfast Synagogue Hall serves meals Sunday evenings form 6:30 to 9:30; reservations required. Telephone: 44-2890-779-491
Bretzel Bakery
- 1A Lennox Street which opened in 1870 and although no longer Jewish owned,
still offers many kosher products. www.bretzel.ie/
American Jewish Congress offers a 15 day tour which includes
Jerusalem, Golan, Tiberius, Safed, Akko, Haifa, Caesarea, and Tel Aviv
e-mail: www.ajcongresstravel.com
Phone 972 4 617 4444. I would highly recommend the
"Caesarea" article in the May 2008 of Hadassah Magazine for further detailed
information. www.caesarea.org.il
From
October through April, the weather is warm, but not hot.
It is about four hours drive from Tel Aviv's airport to
Eilat. There are 50 hotels and their restaurants are
kosher, but many other restaurants are not. It is an
excellent choice to make a day trip to Petra in Jordan.
See for yourself some of the known archaeological treasures online www.cityofdavid.org.il
"Jerusalem Step By Step" - a tour guide with a twist. A binder with separate booklets inside. Each booklet presents, in detail, a guided walking tour complete with a map, recommendations for food stops and even referrals to hidden restrooms. 011 972 4 8337 448 or Email: wizeguide@gmail.com
Tel Aviv
Kosher Food in Tel Aviv -
an article by Adeena Sussman offers much information about
eating out in the city in the June/July 2009 issue of Hadassah
Magazine
http://hadassahmagazine.com
American Jewish Congress offers a 15 day tour of Italy where Jews have lived for more than 20 centuries.
Visit Rome, Florence, Venice, Milan, Stresa. They also offer an 11 day tour covering
Rapallo, Cinque Terre/
Pisa, Livorno, Florence, San Gimignano, Colle Di Val D'Elsa, and
Siena. Website: www.ajcongresstravel.com
An interesting article entitled "In Search
of Jewish Rome" by Amy E. Robertson appeared in the July/August 2009
issue of National Geographic Traveler. It offers a "walking tour"
starting at Teatro di Marcello.
Included is a map of the Jewish area.
Hilton Garden Inn at the Fiumicino airport -
there is a moving sidewalk connecting the hotel to the airport.
http://tinyurl.com/c6tg3s
Cafe Lechaim - - entrance on Dzirnauv Street - located in the basement of the Jewish Community Center. Telephone 371 728 0235 Shalom -A. Briana 10 Telephone: 371 736 4911 offers non-kosher Jewish dishes
Radi un Draugi (Friends and Relatives) - a comfortable and reasonably priced hotel in Riga - located a block away from the Peitav Shul. Telephone: 371-722-0372 E-Mail: radi@draugi.lv
Reval Hotel Latvija - is one of Riga's largest and
pushiest hotels and not far from the Jewish Community Center. Telephone 371-7772222 E-Mail: latvija.sales@revalhotels.com
Baltic Tours - we used this
company in 1994 and were very satisfied with their service.
They have an office in the US at 77 Oak St. Suite 4, Newton, MA.
02164 - Phone: 617 965 8080 and an office at Tumo-Vaizganlio
9/1, Vilnius; Phone: 22 79 79
Yulik Gurvitch - offers his experience as a guide for touring
Lithuaniaand neighboring countries. Yulik speaks Hebrew, Yiddish and English fluently. Contact Yulik at yulik@delfi.lt
Roza Bieliauskiene - 617-917 (She is also the curator at the Vilna Gaon Jewish Museum
Regina Kopelevich - 869 905 456
Ilya Lempertas - 370-871-3285 - Jewish historian
According to Rabbi Yehuda Fried of Nesivos Yeshiva Tours to
Lithuania and Polandfried@sefer.org
Lithuanian Travels - an article was published in "The Chicago Jewish News" http://chijewishnews.com/ On the left, click on Archives and you will find, among many stories, an article by N. Sue Weiler describing her trip to Lithuania in 2000.
Maxima Market - Mindaugo Street 6 has a kosher food section and the Chabad House sells kosher food and provides a kosher dinner to travelers after Friday night services.
Travel and
Research in Lithuania - authored by Howard Margol http://jgsr.hq.net/
"Alastair
Sawday's Special Places to Stay" is highly recommended as it has
pictures, and a lot of hotels which are considered the best of Morocco.
http://www.sawdays.co.uk/accommodation/morocco/
Norway
Koshershop located at Waldemar Thranesgate 55; Phone 47 22 353 910, stocks kosher items. The community will arrange kosher dining for groups and advise hotels on rules of kashrut'
"Resistance Trail" - a trail leading to neutral Sweden during WW II and information on Oslo www.visitoslo.com/
Orient
American Jewish Congress offers a 16 day tour of Jewish Orient (includes one of the
three synagogues in Bangkok and the Margen Avoth Synagogue in
Singapore along with
meeting the Rabbi at Ohel Leah Synagogue in Hong Kong which includes visits to
Bangkok, Singapore, Bali, and Hong Kong. www.ajcongresstravel.com
Panama
There are several kosher restaurants, two shochtim (kosher slaughters) two cheese-making businesses and two kosher supermarkets. One of the supermarkets is the second largest
kosher supermarkets in the world next to one in Israel.
Peru
American Jewish Congress offers a 14 day tour of Jewish sites in
Lima, La Paz, Puno, Cuzco,
Machu Pucchu. www.ajcongresstravel.com
This
is the architectural capital of Poland, having escaped
the destruction of WW II and is
the home of one of the oldest
universities in Europe. Krakow is also known for
its cultural
life.
STAY POLAND-OTA - a travel agency that offers a great amount of information about traveling through Poland plus maps of all kinds. Nowy Swiat 29/3 00-029 Warszawa/Warsaw, Poland
Photographs - should you want to see some typical photographs of the area you may want to visit, or should you want a professional photographer to shoot people or locations, this site provides a good link, in my opinion. http://www.megaloman.com/vertep/
Traveling Russia (and Eastern
Europe) in general is not a relaxing "vacation" experience.
It
is more for the educational and international experience that
Russia is the number one
selection. Service and
accommodations are rated as first-class, but some experienced
American travelers find facilities something less. The
better facilities are limited. We have
traveled most of the
Eastern European countries and have found this to be true, but
if you
are relatively young, and in good health, go for it!
Even the name "Soviet Union"
is history --- and people there quickly correct you.
Now it's
Russia, Ukraine, the independent Baltic nations -- Estonia,
Lithuania and Latvia -- and about a dozen other
autonomous - autnomous entities. However, typically, there
is no new name for the
entire region. Go with the right mental attitude.
The Soviet Union challenges you
psychologically more than physically. Being there is to
experience history in the making. Go prepared to endure
the disarray and discomforts that generally accompany profound
social
change: shortages, delays, and confusion -- even worse than in
the bad old days under
Communism.
http://www.nwhealth.edu/healthyU/findBalance/travel.html
American Jewish Congress offers a comprehensive 11 day tour which includes
Moscow and it's surrounds, and St. Petersburg. e-mail: www.ajcongresstravel.com
Russian Cities on the Web - Traveling to
Russia or within Russia? Get information on your destination from the many links shown on the site. http://www.city.ru/
A
major city on the Trans-Siberian railway and nearby Lake
Baikal shows you some of the fantastic variety of Siberia.
Lake Baikal, the world's oldest lake, is over one mile deep and
contains one-sixth of all the fresh water on earth.
http://www.myazcomputerguy.com/everbrite/Page6c.html
Kiev
This
city is the historical, economic and cultural capital of Ukraine
and is situated on seven hills straddling the Dnieper River.
The city, which is over 1,000 years old, has many interesting
sites, but be prepared for the hotels are not up to Western
standards - yet.
This is the cultural and political
capital of Russia and the home of the Kremlin and Red
Square, Gorky Park and Arbat Street.
Hotels
Arbat Hotel - formerly known as Oktyabrskaya II
Aerostar Hotel - located beyond the ring on Leningradskiy
Prospect. Grand Hotel -located near the site of Novodevich
monastery.
Hotel Mezhdunarodnaya - located a quarter mile from the
While House Olympic Penta Hotel, located just outside the Garden
Ring, near the Olympic Stadium. TheSlavyanskaya Radisson Hotel - located near the
Kiev train station, almost directly across the river from the
White House.
Jewish Journeys - caters to Jewish travelers to
Moscow and St. Petersburg E-mail :jewishjourneys@yahoo.com
St. Petersburg (Leningrad)
A sophisticated and cosmopolitan
former capital of the Russian Empire, it has been called the
Venice of the North for its many canals. Beyond the main
boulevard, you will see the "real" city.
Nevsky Inn - located off
Nevsky Prospect. Staff speak fluent English and the
kitchen is always open for tea and coffee. Serves an
excellent breakfast and offers free internet connection. http://www.nevskyinn.ru
Hotel Saint-Petersburg - a huge abundance of beautiful views: palaces, churches, squares,
memorials, bridges, and riverside sights. This site offers many services for the traveler
Shalom Restaurant -
St. Petersburg's only kosher restaurant - 8 K. Tomchaka, near the
Moscow
gate on Moskovsky Prospekt; Telephone: 327 5475 www.shalomkosher.spb.ru
Should you want to see some typical photographs of the area you may want to visit, or should you want a professional photographer to shoot people or locations, this site provides a good link, in my opinion. http://www.megaloman.com/vertep/
Slovenia
Hotels
Best Hotel in Ljubljana is the Grand Hotel Union located on Miklosceva Street.
American Jewish Congress offers a 15 day tour of Spain. Visit Madrid, Toledo, Almagro, Granada, Cordoba, Seville, Marbella and Barcelona. From Barcelona, you can go on your own for a day in medieval Gerona Website: www.ajcongresstravel.com
Red de Juderias in Spain
There
are several regional Jewish heritage routes existing, at least
as concepts or suggested itineraries. One is the Red de
Juderias which has recommended stops in Avila, Barcelona, Tudela
and 12 additional towns. www.redjuderias.org
Barcelona
Jewish Cemetery on Avenir Street in the old Montjuic (Jewish Mountain) area can still be viewed. On
La Rambla, with its market stalls and street performers is the city's information center. Off
La Rambla, find the narrow Marlat Street where at number five is the oldest synagogue in Europe.
There are no
kosher restaurants in Barcelona, but arrangements can be made in advance by contacting the Jewish Center info@cibonline.org
There is an interesting and informative web site that will be of interest to Jews interested in the history of Jews of Spain offered by Kosher Delight, a Jewish Online Magazine http://www.Kosherdelight.com/SpainSynagoguesBarcelona.htm
Sigvard Rubinowitz, a professor of organizational psychology at the University of Gothenburg offers lectures on the city's and country's Jewish history and relevant sightseeing programs. He can be reached at 46 31 302 13059. The programs are only offered in Swedish
Switzerland
Hotel Ascot in Zurich, is Jewish owned and located opposite the Enge train station. It is within walking distance of synagogues and has a non-electric entrance for Shabbat. 9 Tessinerplatz Zurich, Switzerland 41 1 363 208 1414 www.ascot.ch
Peter Ern is a guide with knowledge of Jewish sites Telephone: 41 1 363 6439 E-mail peterjern@bluewin.ch
Schalom Restaurant offers kosher menu and delivers to hotels. 33 Lavaterstrasse in the ICZ Building 41 1 283 2233 E-mail: catering.schalom@bluewin.ch
Fein & Schein - a dairy and fish restaurant 14 Schoentalstrasse, Corner Hallwyltrasse Telephone: 41 1 241 3040
Hiltl - claims to be the oldest vegetarian restaurant in Europe 28 Sihlstrasse Telephone: 41 1 227 7000
Syria
Turkish Airlines - direct flights from
Istanbul to Damascus www.thy.com
It is best to travel with "hidden" US dollars as credit cards, with the exception of Visa Debit Cards, are not acceptable. It is also difficult to convert
Syrian pounds back into dollars
Tour operators count on about $100 a day per person for driver, guide, acceptable hotels with breakfast and entry fees. When possible, request accommodations in restored historic houses.
Umayyad Palace Restaurant in
Damascus is highly recommended for lunch or dinner buffet of
Syrian foods and nightly entertainment. Phone 222 0826
Tunisia
The
country telephone code is 216 and the city code for Jerba is 75.
Independent travel is safe and rewarding, but for ease, facility
and English-speaking guides, it may be better to go through a
tour operator.
Turkeyis easy to travel on your own. You don't need to waste
money on a tour group, and the bus service is first class. Each town,
no matter how small, has an "otegar" (bus station) on the outskirts of town
and for a dollar, you can ride the "dolmus" into the city center.
American Jewish Congress offers a 15 day tour which includes
Ankara, Cappadocia, Konya, Antalya, Pamukkale, Sardis, Izmir, Istanbul. Website: www.ajcongresstravel.com
Eyewitness Travel Pocket Map and Guide of Istanbul - an
invaluable as the map was to scale and geographically correct.
Hotel Sapphire inSirkeci -one
of the many hotels in that area of the city. Sirkeci is an
excellent area to be based in, especially if you enjoy exploring on foot.
It is an older area, full of narrow roads, and is quiet at night as there
were few cars in the area.
Poshier hotels like the Hilton are
mainly clustered in the Beyoglu area.
A visa is required to enter Ukraine. Visas can be obtained from any Ukrainian consulate upon submission of an invitation. Copies of the official invitation can be obtained from the consulate or through a travel agent. Three Ukrainian consulates are located in the US: Washington DC, New York City and Chicago. http://www.whatson-kiev.com/about/
Crimea and the Black Sea - a good travel information site in English www.blacksea-crimea.com
"Hippocrene Language and Travel Guide to Ukraine" - authored by Linda Hodges and George Chumak
Jewish Heritage Grand Tour - includes the cities of Odessa, Kiev, Berdichev, Zhitomir, Polonnoye, Shepetovk, Khmelnytsky, Medzhibozh, Chernovitsy, Kamenets Podolsky, Shargorod, Zhmerinka, Vinnitsa, Uman and Kiev. Other tours offered by Gold Line are available at their web site including quite reasonable pricing. http://www.jewishroute.kiev.ua/
Bais Aron
V'Yisroel - the only operating synagogue in L'viv and is operated by
Chabad. 4 Brothers Miknovski Street; 380 322 383 804
Hotels -
The Opera Hotel at 45 Prospect Svobody; 380 322 259 000; Web site is in
Ukrainian but has photos of hotel at site. A newer establishment with clean
and comfortable rooms and within walking distance of most Jewish
attractions. www.hotel-opera.lviv.ua
Restaurants:
There are no kosher restaurants, although Seven Piglets at 9 Bandera
Street; 380 322 975 507 is a good choice for authentic Ukrainian food and
offers several vegetarian options.
Tour Guide:
Alexander Denisenko, owner of Travel Ukraine Agency; 380 506 710 725.
Alexander studied at Yad Vashem, The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes'
Remembrance Authority in Israel, and is an expert on the Holocaust and
Jewish sights in the region according to Hadassah Magazine April 2008.
He offers help with genealogy research at the local branch of the Ukrainian
Central Historical Archive (3 Soborna Street) the largest repository of
genealogical information about Jews in Galicia www.is.lviv.ua/~tuag
Photographs - should you want to see some typical photographs of the area you may want to visit, or should you want a professional photographer to shoot people or locations, this site provides a good link, in my opinion. http://www.megaloman.com/vertep/
Slavik Tsarynnyk and his wife operate a service to assist travelers find their Jewish roots. They work out of L'viv and can provide references. http://www.geocities.com/lvivecotour/
UkraineFactbook, Guide to Kiev, Kiev Photo Gallery and 'Things You Should Know When Arriving in Ukraine http://www.uazone.net/Caption.html
UkrainianWeb.com - this commercial site offers translation services; travel information, Genealogy Search, Money Transfers and much more http://ukrainianweb.com/ukrainian_links.htm
Yulik Gurvitch - offers his experience as a guide for touring Ukraine and neighboring countries. Yulik speaks Hebrew, Yiddish and English fluently. Contact Yulik at yulik@delfi.lt
United Kingdom
Portal guide to
England with introduction to the country and market, business, culture, touring, and cuisine. Discover and explore
England and Europe.
AllofEngland.com presents Englandin all her glory, splendor and style. Tour the market place, visit businesses, plan travel and experience the cuisine as we bring international businesses, culture, travel and e-commerce together in an uncommon virtual experience for villagers and voyagers http://www.allofEngland.com
London
Dot-to-Dot. Door to door
airport shuttle.
http://www.dot2.com/
Jewish Museum - the audio visual Gallery follows London Jewish life from cradle to grave www.travelchannel.com
Mike's a realBrit and wants to share his knowledge with you.You'lllearn a lot from his with titles such as:
Totally London; Visit Scotland; Southwest; Liverpool, Wales
and more http://www.beabritdifferent.com/
National Theatre - this
site offers the history of the house, and you can peruse the
list of plays performed there. http://www.nt-online.org
Poor Jews Temporary Shelter - The Temporary Shelter,
as it is now known, still functions and provides a service for refugees and other disadvantaged people. To increase funds, they are happy to provide good quality accommodations forLondon visitorsin a Kosher environment. If interested contact Saul Issroff,saul@wico.demon.co.uk
The following web site can
supply kosher meals to hotels. Also Kosher products can be
found in various supermarkets, including Safeway, Star Market,
Foodland and Times. www.oahukosher.com
New York City's Lower East Side Tour - there is a free cell-phone walking tour of "the Lower East Side: Birthplace of Dreams" at 1 800 644 3545. To get started, go on-line to www.talkingstreet.com/les.php
and print out the list of 13 stops. Next, program the tour's telephone number into your cell phone; you will call in at each site. You will probably recognize the voice you hear as comedian Jerry Stiller.
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