GUEST COMMENTS FROM MARTY L. : FIRST HALF TOUR

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Hi, This is Marty L Here are some observations of our tour so far.
8/3/08 Prague is on the Valtava River, from the point of view of the Czech citizenry. Those in the west know of it by its German name, the Moldau. The melody of Hatikva is from folk music of this region; the melody was also used by Bedric Smetna in his music “The Modau” and many people think that the Israeli national anthem came from there instead.
The significant part of our experience yesterday was spent exploring the Prague Jewish community and its special history. Much of it is preserved because the Jewish Museum is a cultural collection. By some fluke which noone understands, the fact that there was an extensive collection of Jewish artifacts which started at the beginning of the twentieth century seems to have allowed the Nazi authorities to decide to preserve rather than to destroy them. Thus we started at the town hall, notable because under the large regular clock on the tower is another with Hebrew lettering which reads and runs from right to left with the second hand looking like it is going backwards. The population was known for its assimilation to the Prague community, so that at the beginning of the twentieth century the miles of little homes were taken down and the large apartment buildings which surrounded us in the square were put up, featuring markings that included both the Mogen David and the yellow hats that Jews had to wear at one time or another . At the top of one of the buildings was a large green tower which was used by the KGB to keep an eye on the populace during the Soviet era. But because of the general assimilation most of the people did not practice their religion, certainly not openly, so there was not much for them to report. The community center sort of functioned as a JCC.
Prague was the center of Jewish learning in Europe during the 16th century. It was at that time that the six pointed star became the self-identifying symbol of the Jewish community.
The Jewish Museum includes a number of synagogues, some used, some kept as reminders of the holocaust. The Pincas synagogue has thousands of names of the murdered Jews from Prague; I found Frantisek Lazar. During the war the synagogues were used for storage, and the many Torahs that were saved were later sent around the world. The Spanish synagogue, so named because of the architectural style, is currently being used, and shows the changes that were made over time, such as the introduction of the organ.
After the war Czechoslovakia was one of the first nations to recognize Israel when independence was declared. The Soviets figured that a socialist nation would naturally turn to their sphere. When that didn’t happen, Czech support was reconsidered, with the adoption of an anti-zionist stand.
We were lucky to have Marty Kasdan with us, as we went through the Chevra Kaddisha building, and he explained much of the details there. It is only in the US and Canada that there are Jewish funeral homes; in the rest of the world they still use these Chevra Kaddishas. The one we saw had a balcony for the Kohens to vew the cemetery.
In the afternoon we went north from Prague towards Dresden, on the way to Terezin. Many of us were surprised that it was originally built as a military post 200 years ago by the Hapsburgs, at the confluence of the Valtava and Elbe rivers, the Czech connection to the North Sea.
The people at Terezin wore normal clothing, and lived in the barracks. The children lived on their own. Living was extreme, even when preparing the half year for the visit of the Swiss Red Cross. Of the 10,000 children interred here, 200 survived. At the crematorium we said “Kaddish” in a moving ceremony.
Plans for the “final solution” was to exterminate 10 million Jews. They succeeded with 6 million.
As a change of pace, Wendy and I had the opportunity in the evening to go to the Municipal Building, both for dinner and for a concert of the Prague Symphony Orchestra. The concert hall was notable for its art deco atmosphere, and superb acousitics. The latter we could hear the first note that was played. There actually were 8 soloists from different orchestras in Prague, who played Mozart and the “Four Seasons”.
8/4/08 - The Hungarians have always managed to be on the losing side in every one of their wars. Before the Nazi occupation, 80% of industry was in Jewish hands. The Russians liberated Hungary from he Nazis but then occupied it.
The kestner train had 1,685 people saved. They were generally wealthy people that bought their way into the group. Because of realities, they went to Bergen Belson, but were kept in a special area.
70% of the buildings in Budapest were destroyed. Many have been restored in their original condition.
Of the two cities. Buda has the hills (and the nightlife), Pest is flat and more what sounds like suburban.
In Hungary, the “left” stands for “free market”;the “left” more nationalistic.)
The Joint Distribution Committee has been instrumental in supporting the Jewish Community throughout the 20th century.

8/5/08- Angelo Rotta was the Papal Nuncio, who forced the Pope to read abot what was happening to the Jews in the war.
George Perlasca was the man who made believe he was the Spanish Ambassador, and was able to save many Jews along with Raul Wallenburg.
In the afternoon we went with Marty Kasdan to the 19th century market hall and then the Holocaust Museum. Both were excellent. Lunch at the market for us was high class food stand-up Hungarian fare but with linen tablecloths. Then we walked to the museum, which ranks with the larger ones in the states that we have seen, and which we would recommend to anyone coming to Budapest. It was notable for the presentation, for the extensive collection of photos and documents, many of them newly discovered, and which really got to all three of us. Wendy could not forget the picture of people who had just been shot, lying one on top of each other, and one arm stuck high in the air from beneath the pile with the hand in a fist.
On the way back to the hotel, we rode the Metro without any problems.
In the evening we ate at the Dunacorso Restaurant on the Danube. w hich again we would recommend. Dining outdoors in a gentle breeze, watching the moon come up over the Royal Palace, listening to Hungarian folk music of superbly skilled musicians, dining on grilled meat Transylvania style and stuffed cabbage: what could be better while in this city?

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