Thessaloniki is the second largest city in Greece with population exceeding 1,000,000 in the metropolitan area. Many Jews migrated to Thessaloniki following their expulsion from Spain in 1494. They thrived in Ottoman Greece. Jewish population reached 72,000 in the 20th century. 54,000 were sent to extermination camps where they were killed. Currently 1,200 Jews live […]

Istanbul, one of the world’s great cities, is in both Asia and Europe. Having been here several times, we only revisited a couple places this time. The Istanbul Grand Bazaar is one of the oldest shopping malls in the world. The Ottomans took it over in 1453 and covered the several adjacent markets. It has […]

  Founded in 408 BC, Rhodes is the oldest inhabited medieval city in Europe, Walled fortifications surrounded the old town.   Narrow streets are hundreds of years old. Note the arch. Rhodes suffers from earthquakes and the arches help support the walls. Here is the Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes.The […]

Malta is an independent country in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. It has few natural resources, but its location makes it particularly strategic. It has been populated for 7,000 years with wars and fighting for 5,000 of those years. Malta has been independent since 1964, and is an EU member. Since we were here […]

Cadiz is the oldest western European city still standing. The age of the city combined with its vibrance and setting adds to its collective beauty. We took a delightful private walking tour (10,000 steps). The Town hall met us as we disembarked. Interesting old, narrow streets are all over the city. Goblin Street is the […]

We have visited Lisbon three times now. Each time was different yet fabulous sightseeing. (2014 Lisbon Portugal blog and 2011 Jewish Lisbon blog) What a spectacular, pretty and vibrant city. Last night we connected with daughter Jessica, who flew in to join us on the cruise for two weeks. We started with cocktails at Java, […]

What a great day! Here in Tangier we are at the exact dividing line between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The Caves of Hercules was a fun stop. The sea opening is known as The Map of Africa because it is the shape of Africa when looked at from the sea. The Tangier American […]

Tenerife is the largest and most populated island in the Canary Islands. Incidentally the Canary Island name come from the Latin island of the dog. Notwithstanding that they are off the west coast of Africa, The Canaries have been part of Spain since the 1400s and look, feel and act as European as other Spanish […]

Recife was captured by the Dutch 1631 and became one of the most important strongholds of the Dutch in Brazil. Many Jews came to Brazil to escape the inquisition over 400 years ago. The liberal policy of the Dutch induced many Jews to move here from other parts of Brazil and soon had a large […]

From 1549 to 1763 Salvador de Bahia was the first capital of Brazil. Starting in 1558, it was the very first port of entry to the Americas for West African slaves (at the preserved yellow building) to work on the sugar plantations. Approximately 80% of Salvador’s residents today can trace their heritage back to West […]