Synagogue in Botosani, Romania
Jewish heritage travel has special meaning for on-site adventurers and armchair travelers alike, often unveiling astonishing traces of a civilization almost totally annihilated. In an illustrated program, journalist and author Ruth Ellen Gruber redraws the map of extraordinary Jewish places in the heartland of Central and Eastern Europe and reveals the remarkable vestiges of the rich and dynamic culture that flourished for centuries in the region.
Gruber covers locations ranging from the elaborate art-nouveau synagogue in Subotica, Serbia to the wooden synagogues found in small villages scattered around Lithuania, along with Ukraine’s Sataniv synagogue and elaborately carved tombstones. She examines beautifully painted synagogues in Romania, the baroque synagogue and Jewish cemetery in Mad, Hungary, and other places where old Jewish quarters are still standing and medieval shtetls are still home.
Gruber is the coordinator of the website Jewish Heritage Europe.