Make Aliyah and See the World

Hi it is me, the husband of Ruth, making a special guest appearance here on our family blog.

Little did I know that when we made aliyah my new job would afford me the opportunity to visit so many places outside of Israel that I never imagined I would ever travel to. In my job in Canada, I did have the opportunity to visit many towns in rural Ontario within a few hours drive of Toronto but it was only after making aliyah that I had the chance to visit Philadelphia, China, South Africa and Poland in the space of one year. Fortunately, the trips have all been less than a week so I was able to be home for Shabbat with the family each time, except for my trip to North America where I was able to visit the alta heim for Shabbat. Although I have stories to tell about all my trips, I want to write down my impressions from my visit to Poland while they are relatively fresh in my mind.

The thought of visiting Poland was unsettling to me for obvious reasons. I arrived late Sunday evening in Cracow and went straight to bed after arriving at the hotel. The hotel was situated in the heart of the former Jewish district of Kazimierz where 60,000 Jews lived, or about 1/4 of the population of Cracow. Although the Jewish population of Cracow is obviously very tiny, I set out early in the morning to see if somehow I could find a minyan in the area where more than half a dozen shuls still remain standing, although there are only services at one of them on Shabbat.

I set out early at 6:30am. As I walked down the still dark narrow cobble-stoned streets of Kazimierz with my tallis and teffilin in hand, I felt almost transported back in time as I could easily imagine the thousands of Jews who would have been accompanying me along these streets not so many years ago. My best chance to find a minyan was at the Rema shul, a 5 minute walk from my hotel. Tears fell on my cheeks at the thought of the fate of the Jews who lived here in 1939 and how the vibrancy of their lives and their community was turned to dust and all that remained was this shell - these beautiful shuls sitting empty of life and maintained as museums for tourists. I did not know how I would feel during a visit to Auschwitz but here where the shul buildings stand but where no real Jewish life exists anymore, I felt a deep feeling of sadness. The gates of the Rema shul were locked of course but there was a Polish man sweeping the courtyard beyond the gates. We babbled at each other for a bit and then he turned around and continued with his task. I just stood there for awhile off to the side and after a few minutes he opened the gate to take something into the street. I thought, perhaps 20 zloty could buy me access to the shul for 30 minutes to daven by myself. He let me in to the courtyard but he didn't have the keys to open up the Shul. I went back outside and looked at a small street map posted on a sign. I decided to walk through the streets of Kazimierz and pass by other shuls - perhaps one would be open. Again I thought as I stood in front of each shul I thought how, at this hour of the day, each one would already have been open for awhile packed with people davening, learning and saying tehillim. It is hard to imagine a similar scene even today with perhaps with the exception of some places in Israel like the Old City of Jerusalem where so many Jews lived the traditional Jewish life packed so closely together. Here lived over 60,000 Jews but a heartbeat in time ago. Each one of these shuls were not small shteibels but rather large magnificent edifices. The Nazis and the Poles turned a beautiful community in to a memory, a museum, now crowded with pubs and hotels catering to tourists. For most who visit here, it is a place of historical interest and not painful as it was for me. From the Rema shul built in the 16th century I passed the Popper shul built in 1620, now used as a cultural centre. I left Szeroka street by Jozefa passed by the High Synagogue built in 1560. Just before the High synagogue I note a Hebrew inscription and 2 stars of David on the facade of a former Beit Midrash. Then turn right on Jakuba, walked 1 block to Izaaka St where I find the 17th century Izaaka shul. the shul was restored in the 1990s but it too was locked with a big sign in front reading Memory of the Jews in Poland. An exhibition that includes life-sized cut -out figures of pre-war Jews. Here now they only have cut-out figures of Jews and a few real live Jews and maybe some other Jews who dont know they are Jewish or hide the fact from everyone. As i stood outside the Izaak shul a light rain started to fall, tears from heaven. So i walked back to my hotel and said to the oblivious clerk at the desk, All the synagogues are closed. she muttered something with a shrug of her shoulders. i went and davened in my room
R