Jewish Identity Travel for Global Russian Jewry

  Denver, Colorado, United States
Friday, August 8, 2008

Dear Readers,
In one week,  I head to Spain, not revolutionary news coming from someone with a gold card on United Airlines.  But this trip is unlike all others I have done.  I will be the historian-in-residence for the first ever trip of Davai, a new experiment in global Jewish identity travel.

Six months ago, I got a call from Nadya Strizhevskaya, program officer of the Jewish Funders Network and Genesis Philanthropy Group, inviting me to become the designer of a travel program for 20-something Russian Jews from the U.S. and Russia. 

I have spent my life researching and writing about Russian Jewish history, on the one hand, and contemporary Jewish identity and culture, on the other hand.  I have written critically about Jewish identity travel, and here I was being given the opportunity to design my own, to think about what Jewish identity for Russian-speaking Jews might look like, to combine experiential learning with rigorous text study, and to bring my various areas of research interest together.

I will be writing regularly from Spain to talk about both the history and culture that we are studying  and about the questions of contemporary Jewish identity that come up during our long bus rides or in late night song sessions (if I, the old man on the trip, can stay up).  I have incorporated hevruta text studies in cafes located in places where the texts were produced, a brilliant idea I learned from my colleague Robby Peckerar, with whom I did a Yiddish culture travel course to Ukraine.  We will be studying Maimonides notion of the self just meters away from his statue in Cordoba, reciting Shmuel Hanagid's poetry in the shade of trees on the Alhambra in Granada.

I have done my share of travel writing, most recently from Jerusalem during the 2006 Lebanon War and about Jewish life in Buenos Aires. I'm always looking for interesting leads, so please feel free to write back, give ideas for places to go on our itinerary, which is posted, and think about what your fantasy travel/study program might look like.

We are hoping to start up travel programs in my new job as director of Jewish Studies at University of Colorado, so your ideas today may be next year's summer travel courses.

Here is Our Itinerary (taken from the Jade Expeditions website):
Spain Itinerary
 
Day 1-2:  Northern Spain - Madrid / Toledo
Madrid:
Hemingway called Madrid "the most Spanish of all cities, the best place
to live in, the finest people..."   Madrid symbolizes the New Spain -
busy and active.  With a triad of truly great art museums that includes
the Museo del Prado, and buildings like the Palacio Real that span the
centuries, plus lively plazas, mighty boulevards and neighborhoods brimming with character, Madrid has plenty of sights to keep the eyes, ears and mind occupied. 
Toledo
Like Florence in Italy, the city is a preserved museum. A medieval city
of narrow winding streets perched on a small hill above the Río Tajo.
The city is crammed with fascinating museums, galleries, synagogues,
churches and castles. Toledo is one of the few towns in Spain where
remnants of Jewish edifices have been preserved.  We explore Toledo's
ancient synagogues and Jewish quarters.
Day 3-7: Southern Spain - Granada / Seville / Cordoba / Gibraltar:
Granada:
During the period of Muslim domination of Spain, Granada was the finest
city on the peninsula. Today it is still home to the greatest Muslim
legacy in Europe, and one of the most inspiring attractions on the
Continent - the Alhambra.  Rich in a prosperous Jewish past it was once
called "Gharnata al-Yahud", Granada of the Jews." Here we explore the
city including the Alhambra and Generalife.
  
Seville & Western Andalusia: 
The Capital of Andalusia is a city of poetry, romance and art. All who
visit are captivated by its exuberant atmosphere - stylish, confident,
ancient, proud, intimate and fun-loving.  In keeping with the slow-burn
nature of the city's charms, two great monuments - the Muslim Alcázar
and the Christian cathedral. These, along with many other buildings and
areas around Seville are part of the World Heritage Sites.  Explore the
wonders of this city including its fascination Jewish history as we
tour the Jewish Santa Cruz Quarter.
Cordoba:
Cordoba is a Moorish city with narrow winding streets, gardens, olive
and orange groves.  Famous for its libraries and bookshops, Cordoba was
the high-water mark of Arab civilization in Europe.  The past and its
rich cultural mix can be seen in the La Mezquita building.  The cities
old Jewish
quarter evokes memories of a brilliant Jewish intellectual center in
the Golden Age of Spain.  Three ancient synagogues still stand, gaze at
the statue of Maimonides in Tiberias Square, walk the narrow alleys of
the famous Juderia, or explore the shops and cafes in the Plaza de Juda
Levi. 
Gibraltar:
Where else would you find a town that is also a country? Gibraltar is
only 5.8 sq. km (2 1/4 sq. miles) in size, but it has its own airport,
currency, postage stamps, naval and military garrisons, two cathedrals,
four synagogues, its own newspapers, radio, and TV -- and a casino.
"The Rock" enjoys a pleasant climate and has a recorded history dating
from A.D. 711 and traces of cave occupation 40,000 years ago.
Jews
have lived in Gibraltar at least since the 14th century. Historical
records reveal that the community issued an appeal for help (1356) in
ransoming a group of Jews taken captive by pirates. Another extant
document indicates that a number of secret Jews, fleeing persecution in
Andalusia, sought permission to settle on Gibraltar in 1473. Today, the
Jewish community of Gibraltar numbers 650, which constitutes about 2%
of the total population. Almost all are Sephardim, Jews of Spanish
descent, who originally came from the settlers of Tetouan on the
northern coast of Morocco. The sense of Jewish identity in the
community remains strong to this day. Parents invest heavily in their
children's Jewish education. There is a Talmud Torah, which educates
children through eighth grade, and boys' high school and a girls' high
school, as well as a small kolel (post-high school yeshiva). Shabbat,
too, is observed in the city center, with all Jewish-owned shops closed
to patrons. After Friday night services in one of the four synagogues,
Main Street becomes a sort of promenade where friends and relatives can
greet each other before heading off to a meal. A strong support for
Israel also remains evident in the community.
Day 8: North Africa - Morocco / Tangiers
At the crossroads of
Africa and Europe, the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, Tangier is
one of the oldest cities in Morocco. The Phoenicians
and Carthaginians established trading posts here. The Romans made it a
capital city. It was occupied by the Arabs and invaded by Vandals and
Visigoths. Before the Spanish, the Portuguese controlled the town. In
the early part of the 20th century, Tangier was an international city
whose tax-free status and cosmopolitan image attracted European and
American artists and writers. Jewish presence in the city dates back to
the Carthaginian era immediately after the destruction of the First
Temple.  A crossroads of many civilizations and cultures a day in
Tangier is truly a unique experience.  Explore the old town with visit
the kasbah (fortified area).  Descend through the labyrinthine roads of
the medina through the spice markets, the Berber markets and amongst
the craftsmen.  Visit the Grand Socco and the old & new synagogues,
quietly nestled off the busy market square.