Just some ranting: This year’s program was a bit different. Firstly, it was bigger than the ones I attended before. It was also much more diverse. People came, of course, from the States and England as they always come, but this year there was a relatively large group of youngsters from France, one lady from…
Tag: history
35
“Love is when the other person’s happiness is more important than your own.” H. Jackson Brown, Jr. This is the Parshah that among other things, is speaking about the observance of Shabbat: ב דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם, מוֹעֲדֵי יְהוָה, אֲשֶׁר-תִּקְרְאוּ אֹתָם מִקְרָאֵי קֹדֶשׁ–אֵלֶּה הֵם, מוֹעֲדָי. 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto…
Am I still entangled with Mother-Russia?
I wonder if it is coincidental that I have read this book over Shabbat just prior to the 2018 Russian presidential election. I got this book from my favorite book-junkie event of the year – the Jewish Book Council “Raid the Shelves“. Luckily, I work right next door, so I don’t schlep all of them at once,…
Getting Back to Basics in the Kitchen
Hi, everyone! This morning, for all of us, crazy for cooking, I’ve decided to share this article from the online Tablet magazine. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
How this 650-year-old French synagogue withstood centuries of anti-Semitism
I decided to re-blog this article about a historical shul. Pretty Amazing! CARPENTRAS, France (JTA) — The synagogue in this Provence town is Western Europe’s oldest functioning Jewish house of worship — and one of the prettiest on the continent. The Synagogue of Carpentras, which this year is celebrating its 650th anniversary, has a Baroque-style interior…
My Cookbook Collection
I always say that I am crazy about cookbooks, especially Jewish ones that double as the Jewish food history books. I almost never use the exact recipes though, even for baking, let alone for cooking. I love to experiment with ingredients, always adding and subtracting stuff depending on what I have in my pantry or fridge,…
Jewish Places of the (Not-So-Distant) Past
כח אַל-תַּסֵּג, גְּבוּל עוֹלָם– אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ אֲבוֹתֶיךָ. 28 Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set. Proverbs – מִשְׁלֵי I love to go to museums. Art, history, architecture, objets d’art, furniture, you name it. Certainly, I look at many things through the prism of the relations to Jews and Judaism. What’s better than to…
Chanukah in my Life
Tonight is the first night of Chanukah. First lights are lit in every house on my street The smiling faces you can see at every corner The songs of joy and laughing sounds grace the air My house has a light, but it is dark without you The souls of people lost forever Around…
A Private Beit Midrash?
Right in the middle of ימים נוראים – Yomim Noraim I find myself thinking about a dilemma: on the one hand, I am totally excited to organize a beit midrash at my house and give the people an opportunity to learn in a non-threatening environment. On the other hand – this is something I am not able to share…
The Ghetto and Beyond
I decided to spend my Sunday and Monday at the Center for Jewish History attending a conference about the Jewish ghetto. The distinguished panel of presenters came from the top universities in the United States, Israel and Italy. A new Medici archives project was presenting materials ranging from general community related papers to personal stories of the individual…
For the Love of Books
I love books! I love to read them, love to own them, and no matter how many new gadget-reading devices will pop up on our ever-changing technology market, I will not back up. Leave the books alone! They are eternal! That’s my motto. Maybe it’s because I don’t see well, or maybe because a good book is…
Ancient Food
Just one more article today – this time totally food related. Archaeological team prepares 4,000-year-old Hittite meals I love the idea of making foods that our ancestors ate long ago. Here’s a salad that opens your palate to beautiful flavors, very easy to make and comes to us from ancient times. This is one of…
Noshing Across the Nation 