Budapest

Budapest is a vibrant city, but it seems as though they still can't believe they are not under the thumb of the Soviets, and can't get completely jump started. Many neighborhoods have renovated buildings interspersed with hovels and condemned structures. The neighborhood of our apartment at 14 Paulay is in the center of the city, newly energized out of the formerJewish ghetto. Surrounding streets have trendy design stores and restaurants frequented by the young and hip, all too often cigarette smoking. But there are frequent reminders of former Jewish apartment buildings now inhabited by squatters and abandoned synagogues, the state nor the Jewish community can resurrect. Some of the synagogues in this district are in use, mostly by the orthodox. The Dohany Synagogue, the largest in Europe at the time it was built in 1869, has space for 8,000 . It was a departure from the previous Jewish congregations, as the Rabbi gave his sermons in Hungarian, stood at a bema that was a stage at the front, and an organ played musical accompaniment to the prayers. Standing in the back and looking at the bema, it feels very cathedral-like.  

Friday night we attended services at the Frankel Synagogue on the Buda side. It is conservative but men and women sit separately. The building set back from the street is in a courtyard surrounded by apartments . There is a guard who questioned us, and asked Jim not to wear his head covering on the street. When he called a taxi for us he had us wait down the block for the pick up.

Our expert guide, Sophia , through Context Tours, is a professor of Middle East studies at the university. She didn't know she was Jewish until her father died. Because of the communist state, neither the mother nor the grandmother, who had been in a concentration camp with tattoo, revealed this fact. She explained how complicated the Jewish identity is in Hungary. After a half a million Jews died in the war, a more safe, pragmatic political entity was communism, at first. Within a few years, the true nature of the Stalinist regime showed itself, and the Jews were ensnared again. When the iron curtain was lifted in 1990, a Jewish renaissance occurred, and people who knew their parents were Jewish, and many who were surprised to find out, joined Jewish organizations to rediscover and reclaim their past.

A must after a Jewish tour is the Jewish Bistro on Kazinczy St. This kosher style restaurant has killer matzah ball soup. Huge, meat flecked balls in a beef broth are a complete meal. The most exciting find so far is FLODNI, a Jewish dessert; three dreamy layers of poppyseeds, apple, and walnuts separated by flaky cake. Dynamite combination.

We did a very touristy thing for an overview of the city; the hop on hop off bus. It was actually helpful, because the territory is spread out and we could not possibly cover it all. A related river cruise was enjoyed by all. Next to the river on a bank near the parliament is a heartbreaking memorial to the many Jews who were marched to the river, asked to remove their shoes, shot and thrown into the Danube. People put stones and flowers in the shoes.

A  Budapest must is a visit to one of the many bath/spas. We tried the large (yellow!) 

Szecheryi complex just north of Hero Square built 100 years ago. Outdoor pools, indoor thermal pools, moving waterways and sunbathing areas offer visitors a range of options in the company of the ornate columns and classical figures. I didn't bring a suit so I enjoyed a reflexology massage in the spa area, an highly decorated mosaic domed palace of treatment rooms. 

Also on Hero Square is the art museum. We didn't have time to see the permanent collection, but noted the special exhibition of Egon Schiele. Another must is the market. It is a block square indoor vending area for meat, fresh fruits and vegetables. Paprika in all varieties, dried peppers or ground is the queen. The second floor mezzanine in the expansive iron structure are the handicrafts. Nancy and I each selected our sample of Hungarian handiwork , of course not until we perused everything.

Our nights were as full as the days. One night we lucked out with late request tickets to the opera. Falstaff by Verdi was what was playing, so that is what we saw. The sets and costumes boasted the 1950's , including a clever kitchen of 50's appliances. Unfortunately, the libretto super scripts were in Hungarian, which has no relation to any other language except Finnish. We enjoyed it anyway.

Another night we attended a Folk Dance Ensamble performance. One early evening we went to the university at the invitation of Sofia to hear an official from NATO discuss Afganistan.

Restaurants.  Near our apt is an alley off Kiraly St. very popular at night. We found ourselves there two nights. One memorable restaurant is Yiddshe Mama Mia, the chef an Italian Israeli. The atmosphere and dishes got high marks. My favorite Vak Varju  (Blind Crow) on Paulay St has traditional Hungarian dishes, but the added bonus of live piano music every night.  It was an especially pleasant evening to spend the time with Broadway melodies, Cole Porter and embellished familiar tunes filling in the spaces.

The last night we took a tram to a section of town we had not been to, meeting Suzanne Fritz, the JCC director at Duna Park. We had visited her earlier at the JCC near the opera where we got a tour and an in depth explanation of the programs. Maintaining programming for a disjointed community is a challenge, but there is a positive attitude and great hope for the newer generations of Jews not shaped by the holocaust or communism.

We all enjoyed the Kishon Kafe,on Paulay St a block away from our apt in the space with the Israel Cultural office. The friendly Israeli kids felt like family after a few days.

Budapest, especially for the Jewish remnant is complex. It's challenges for all its citizens lie at the feet of the inflexible government. Yet, there is a hopeful spirit for some.

Krakow Day 5

Mop up day for Krakow we called it. Back to the Jewish quarter. It is irresistible. The first stop was the Old Synagogue for the Jewish Museum there. They have many artifacts, but most impressive are two large paper cuts by a Polish Jewish artist, extremely ornate and intricate.  The Galicia Museum, a block further is one of the most impressive presentations I have seen in educating about a lost civilization, Galician Jewish communities. The idea, by a British photojournalist and journalist, was to capture places around Galicia (mostly southern Poland and to the east)  as they are today, and in the wall text describe what they had been. They pose thoughtful questions as well. Another Bravo. 

Knowing it was our last day, we couldn't resist the pull of the potato pancakes and liver at what we now describe as "our place." No disappointment.

One of the photos at the Galicia Museum was of our artist, Maurcy Gottlieb! Learning that he was buried in the new Jewish cemetery, not far from the main square, we took a short walk and found the cemetery, thinking it would be easy to spot his distinctive gravestone.  We were overwhelmed at the size of the graveyard. Thousands of graves, most overgrown, most from before WWII, stretched out for perhaps a half mile. We could not find it, but were fascinated by the eerie sense that our people were here. Many names familiar, and not, reminded us that Jews lived and thrived here for centuries, until the terrible time they did not. On the way out, we saw the caretaker, slipped him some zlotys and he led us on a long trail to Gottlieb's stone.

We spent some more time walking in the Old Town, Nancy and I on our own to find some hats. We enjoyed dinner at an Italian restaurant towards the student area before ending the evening early because we have a 4:30 am pick up.

Krakow Day 4

 Nancy and Jim decided to take a day trip to the famous salt mines. We were still emotionally exhausted from the concentration camps, so decided to have an art museum day. There are a number of small museums clustered just west of the town square. The most interesting is one featuring "Mloda Polska" (Young Poland) modernist artists from around the early 1900's, part of the Museum of Krakow. The painters correlated with the more famous well known europeans. One special exhibit was of a Polish female poet, Szymborska, who won the Nobel prize. In a film about her, Woody Allen is shown accepting a collage she made and he told her it meant more than that golden statue given out in Hollywood. Part of our walk took us into the student area of the university. We enjoyed jostling with the swarms of students, who looked like any at a US college. At an outdoor kiosk I picked up a tam to wear on a warmer day.

Returning to the Old Town Square , the largest medieval European square, we caught the famous trumpeter who blasts out a call from the high tower of the dominating church, St. Mary's Basilica. This is a ceremonial reference to a legend from the 1200s when a young boy warned the town of danger of invaders with a trumpet. in fact there is a Newbery award winning young adult book titled The Trumpeter of Krakow, which I enjoyed many years ago. Today tourists gather on the hour around the tower to listen to the trumpeter, then cheer and wave as he waves back from the small windows. The spires on top are reminiscent of some ornamental Havdalah spice boxes, or perhaps an inspiration?

The Cloth Hall, an imposing rectangular market building bisecting the square has a Gallery of 19th Century Polish Art. We were on the hunt for any painting by  Maurcy Gottlieb. Gottlieb was a Jewish painter who achieved master status before age 23, when he died. We studied a painting he had done which now resides in a museum in Tel Aviv.  They only had a self portrait, but we took photos so we could share the adventure with our fellow classmates in the Jewish Artist's Lab once home.

We explored another spoke street radiating from the square heading towards the train station, on the prowl for an electrical converter plug. Not that we didn't bring an impressive collection of cords, adapters, chargers and what-if devices, still, we missed one for my hair dryer. I do remember travel without phones and IPads, but why would we ever want to go back? We found what we needed in an electronics store in a modern American type mall. In an old world city that has managed to retain its old world charm, seeing KFC, McD's and H &M tarnishes the illusion.

We met up with Nancy and Jim at the end of the day and spent some more time in the Jewish quarter, finishing our day at Klezmer Hois for dinner. More old world charm and matzah balls to go with it.

Krakow Day 3

How does one get prepared to visit a concentration camp?

Our guide, Agnes and her driver/husband Peter picked us up at 7am. It is an hour drive, and because by 10 it is very crowded, this was a reasonable plan to give us some elbow room. We all had reservations about going, but after seeing the first group of teens in their matching jackets with Israeli flags on the back, thought differently. There were probably 75-100 . Each small group had large Israeli flags which they carried throughout the grounds. I had a tear in my eye thinking about how their schools are educating these young adults so they understand their history from the inside. Later in the day we saw some other israelis, these being army, in casual uniforms, again carrying the flags. Agnes told us that this is part of their military training. 

We first walked through the rows of brick blocks, which was the original camp for political prisoners, Auchwitz. I did not understand that the infamous place of separation upon arrival and the gas chambers is the second camp nearby, Birkenau. The conditions in Auschwitz 1 were in solid buildings  but the lives of the prisoners were full of deprivation and terror, and most did not live long because if they weren't tortured, they were hung, gassed or starved to death. In various buildings  there are exhibits, the most poignant, collections of what the Soviets found there when liberating the camp, piles of glasses, shoes and hair. The saddest were the cases of baby clothes so lovingly made in crochet and applique. 

The facilities in Birkenau were primitive, inhumane and frankly beyond belief. The scope is incomprehensible. As far as the eye can see there are remains of the wooden barracks with just the partial chimneys standing. The lengthy walk  to the far end where the factory of gas chamber and crematorium stood cannot  prepare you for the spectacle of the realization of the caved in ruin of evil. At one time 60,000 human beings were murdered there daily. The Nazis did accomplish their goal of dark deeds for the most part, so it did bring tears of joy to our eyes to see large groups of young Israeli soldiers carrying their flags back the long pathway from this death factory.

Dinner at Hawelka in the Old Town Square.  In the midst of discussing and decompressing from the day of intense sorrow, an amusing situation unfolded at the staid, traditional European restaurant.  The tables had been cleared from the large dining room and a group of Polish folk dancers appeared with a small band of musicians.  They began to play and dance some jaunty dances in full costume obviously hired for a Japanese tour group on the far side of the room. There were no smiles or even appreciative looks from the group, as hard as the actors tried. Then they started pulling in individuals to follow them in the dances, and suddenly there was an explosion of giggles and frivolity.  We enjoyed the entire scene.

Krakow Day 2

Today was reserved for Schlinder's Factory. As they only give out a limited number of tickets, and Mondays are free, we needed to be there before they opened at 10. We barely made it and joined the swarms of high school groups already inside. Expecting to see a large, empty factory floor we were quite surprised to enter a series of highly engaging exhibits employing various multimedia components that chronologically took you through the war years. It wasnt just about the factory, but focused on the events in Krakow that led to destruction of the Jewish community. The path of the tour was narrow and clearly marked so the transitions between sections were easily followed. I found most interesting the number of stations where there were video testimonies of former employees describing how the factory worked and their interaction with Schlinder. Three and a half hours later this museum received an A+ from all four of us for not only content but presentation. Bravo. 

Note the beautiful gate at Shindler's factory.

A short walk took us to the where the Jews were gathered for transport. It is now a memorial with sculptures of empty chairs randomly scattered over approximately a half acre. It reminded me of the memorial in Oklahoma City. There is a famous apothecary on this square where the druggist secretly helped Jews. We arrived too late to enter that museum, but will try again.

Taking Ewa's advice, we went to her favorite cafe in Kazimierz, Kuchnia Domowa. It is right next to and owned by the same man from the restaurant of last night. I ordered potato pancakes with a goulash topping. Grandma Feigel, sorry, you have a rival. Every bite was a piece of heaven. Rich's chicken livers and onions were perfection. The food we have had here is what we think of as traditional Jewish food, but of course, it is really traditionally European. It is what Max wanted to have in Israel but did not exist there anymore.

These restaurants are directly across the street from the JCC. The building was initiated by Prince Charles! He had been in Krakow, and was so moved by a group of survivors, that he asked them what he could do to help. They told him they had no place to gather. He donated and put the plan into motion. Nancy had been in contact with the director Jonathan (a New Yorker) for a possible tour or meeting. He was out of town, so he arranged for us to see Anna, his assistant. She welcomed us warmly and explained enthusiastically the programming, outreach and future looking plans they had. It is a very beautiful, 5 years new, upbeat place. They have several hundred members, many of whom have rediscovered their Jewish roots after decades of communism. She introduced us to Justin Kades, a bright and engaging American here for a year to help with outreach. He spent time with us, showing us rooms and answering questions about the community. Before leaving we joined as overseas members.

With some time to spare before our Klezmer concert, we went to The Cheder Cafe, which is in part sponsored by a Jewish organization. It is a large, cozy coffee bar and library. We each found a book to delve into for a pleasant hour. The Izaaka Synagogue was right around the corner, so being early for the concert, we had time to look around the sanctuary. The walls had the prayers painted on them. This is the place where Chabad is trying to create a community. So far, there are not many members and occasionally the rabbi has to go to one of the other synagogues to have a minyon. There is no school for his children, so his wife teaches them. The mashgiah's family stays in Vienna to go to school and he commutes. The klezmer musicians played an accordion , base, violin and percussion, but no clarinet. The music was sweet, mournful, energetic and frenzied at times. A recommended activity, although at most of the restaurants on the square, there is nightly klezmer entertainment.

Krakow Day 1 September 30

The flight to Krakow from Berlin is only 50 minutes, but parts of the city are centuries away. Our flight was delayed, so by the time we arrived at our apts on Lubelska  St, our guide Ewa was waiting . She drove us to Kazimierz, the Jewish section of town. She is a 30 year old non-jewish phD professor here, in a university Jewish studies department of 200  students. Imagine. 

What we learned:

Although there were Jews in Krakow proper from before 1400, but they were removed to Kazimierz, an area just a 15 minute walk southeast. The Old Synagogue is,as the name says,  the oldest synagogue in Poland, but there are 7? total in town all with their own stories. The Main Street , Szeroka, is an elongated square full of "Jewish" restaurants and shops which would make one think there are Jews thriving here. Surprisingly, they are all run by non-Jews, because the majority of Jewish families who lived here before 1939 were either murdered by Nazis, or if they survived, they left in one of 3 waves after the war. Krakow 's Jewish population was approximately one forth of the total. They count 65,000 as having perished in WWII. This district which had fallen into poverty and disrepair had a gradual revitalization beginning with Steven Spielberg in 1992. He arrived here with his crew and actors to make Shindler's List and the interest and renewal began. The guide pointed out his favorite restaurant , Ariel, which  had to learn Jewish style cooking as did the dozen others. Next door is one named Helena Rubenstein, who yes, did live here, and made her way in the world as a cosmetics queen. This Soho of Krakow is now a huge Jewish tourism draw, especially for those making the pilgrimage to Auschwitz, an hour away. Amusing are the little golf cart mini busses that swarm the area taking visitors around the district.

Another old synagogue Rema , dating from the 1500s has the old Jewish cemetery surrounding it. The Nazis dismantled the tombstones and used them to pave roads, then made the cemetery a garbage dump. After the war the tombstones were excavated and replaced. There was no way to know which were the correct places, so they were respectfully put back anywhere. The stones that were in fragments and could not be pieced together became a patchwork-like wall , almost a wailing wall. It is beautiful in a haunting way.

Ewa drove us to see the remaining wall of the ghetto the Nazis created in the war before shipping everyone to Aushwitz. Cruelly, the top of the wall is rounded and shaped like gravestones. Not far away was a concentration camp for hard labor where many perished. A dramatic sculpture now stands in memorial. The home of the  sadistic Nazi commander Gott, portrayed in Shindler's list still stands on this field.

One very curious occurance in Krakow is the very popular yearly klezmer festival.  It is organized, of course, by non-Jews and brings people from all over the world which has spurred further building and vitality here.

There is a monument on one end of the square in memory of the Jews who perished from Krakow. I brought stones from Jerusalem the purpose of marking graves. Nancy and I placed them on the top. A kind of Justice, I think.

Our dinner at Sasiedzi was a memorable one. Across the street from the JCC ( more about this tomorrow) we were taken into a cozy, charming, cradle lit, brick cavern of white table table cloths and carefully prepared European dishes. Our duck with apples was incomprable. The owner was a character who served us with panache. A taxi ride home, we headed for a well deserved rest.

Berlin day 5. September 28,

Last touring day and so much more to see. We took the suggestion of the Youngerman's friend Beth, who is living here for the year, and walked to the wall memorial on  Bergstrasse at the Mauer Park. I would put this as a top must see place to visit, even if you only have one day . It is the longest section of the wall still standing, which runs for a number of blocks. In the death strip is a large green space parallel to the wall with information kiosks, photos , maps, and ground markers delineating former structures. They explain the timeline and building sequence, the history of escapes, and the upheaval of the cemetery and church on this section. This wide open space with the guard tower presiding  is one of the most lonely and sad places I have experienced.

Up for another walk, we walked to near the Hackescher market again to a recommended lunch place, Alta Europe.  I would say this area is the Soho of Berlin, so is populated by many coffee shops, unique restaurants and upscale shops. Lucky for us it was a market day. There was a small food and vegetable area, and a larger area, maybe 20 stands of crafts. Some were higher end, mainly for apparel. The cafes were populated by the weekend crowds, and buskers entertained. 

We were determined to get some museum viewing in, so walked across the bridge to museum island.  We only had 3 hours , enough time for one museum in the complex, so the Pergemon it was. Excellent choice. The reconstructed temple excavated from Turkey is spectacular. Not to be outdone by the gates of Ishtar and the facade of a market.  With time running out we wanted to see what Alexanderplatz was about so walked there. The needle seems to be the attraction, but the park and concert did not interest us. We walked home exhausted only to snag a coveted last minute reservation

At the restaurant Katz Orange.  It had been written up in the NYT recently and was well deserving of the positive review. In a set back courtyard in a building that could well have been a convent or school, a very comfortable yet simple and elegant dining room was a welcome place to relax and enjoy good food and good company. Our last night in Berlin and so much more to see.