Toledo, Spain

Contributed by Shira Rosenbaum and Aaron Roller | Last Travel Date: Aug 2006

Kosher Info: Alas, to what was formerly a thriving Jewish town, there is no kosher food available. We were able to find a few fruit stalls around town, but we mostly brought food from Madrid (which is only about a 1-2 hour train ride away.

Tourist Info: Toledo was Shira’s favorite place in Spain. The old city/ touristy area is on the top of a hill with an encircling wall and a moat at the base. It is very reminiscent of Yerushalaim (which is interesting when you consider it’s Jewish history). The hike up the hills is probably pretty arduous. We took a taxi, but there are outdoor, covered escalators that can also take you up to the gates of the city. The town is very old and very beautiful with little houses and cobble stone paths. I don’t recall going to very many non-Jewish tourist sites, but the town was just so fun to walk around in and take in the shops. Toledo is famous for metal works so there are a ton of knife and armour shops. There is also a tourist train (think the tram at Disney) you can take which is a little cheezy but a LOT of fun.

Jewish Info: There are a few old (around 14th century) synagogues to see in Toledo, including the El Transito Synagogue which houses a nice Sefardic Museum. Don’t be confused by your guidebook: Spanish Synagogues often have Catholic names since many were used as Churches during and after the inquisition like the Synagogue de Santa Maria Blanco.

Tags: jewish history, jewish travel, kosher travel, Spain, toledo

Madrid, Spain

Contributed by: Shira Rosenbaum and Aaron Roller | Last Date of Travel: Aug 2006

Kosher Info: We traveled to Spain in the summer of 2006. We flew into Madrid, took the train to Toledo, Cordoba and Granada before returning to Madrid. Before our trip we had been warned that the only Kosher food in any of those cities was in Madrid (where we would be for 1 day that was not Shabbat at the start of our trip) and that food included a grocery shop and a restaurant called Naomi Grill. Being that we were only in Spain for 6 days on our way home from Israel, we brought food for the 6 days with us in our packs planning three meals a day for each day except Shabbat.

Unlike many other 1st world countries we were also told we could not even drink the milk in Spain making a simple breakfast of cereal a challenge (and of course no coffee!!). We ended up buying little 1/2 liter containers of “chalav amid” or shelf milk (ex. Parmalat) which is just enough for two people to have enough cereal for the morning which we ate in reusable plastic bowls and spoons purchased at a shuk in Israel, often in whatever town square we were in that day. For lunch we brought pitas and spread them with peanut butter (protein!) and jam and bought some fresh fruit off the street if we saw any. Dinner was either a salami sandwich or a version of Manna Chamah or Cup of Noodles made with water we purchased (asking for hot water for tea but without the teabag in it). We did eat in the Naomi Grill restaurant on our last day as we were leaving Spain. It was quite delicious, but highly suspect of being the cause of some major illness on the way to the airport.

There is a Ben and Jerry’s in Plaza Mayor, but we weren’t sure of their kashrut status outside the U.S. We were hoping to eat there and to see the packaging ourselves, but it was closed by the time we arrived. We also noticed some Starbucks shops along the avenues, but didn’t visit them due to the whole milk issue.

For shabbat we had gotten in touch with the Chabad rabbi of Madrid who had been living there for many years with his family and were invited to his home for both Friday night and Shabbat day but I think it is possible to arrange for take out packaged meals from the local restaurants. You can find a list of them at KosherDelight.

Tourist Info: Madrid has a whole slew of awesome tourists sights including fabulous art museums. We found out that the Reina Sofia Museum (which houses Picasso’s Guernica) has free admission on Saturdays (double check that this is still true before you go!!) so we walked across town to see it. Madrid is actually not such a large city and we were able to see a few public sites on our way to the museum (mainly the Arch and the Parque del Retiro); all in all it was probably about a 45 minute walk from our hotel which, was about a ten minute walk north of Puerta del Sol. Aaron’s highlight of Madrid: the Prado Museum, Shira’s was the Royal Palace.

Jewish Info: Madrid’s Jewish attractions include its synagogue which is still in use, but a savvy Jewish traveler who does not carry a passport on Shabbat would be wise to plan to go before Shabbat to inform them you are coming (this synagogue along with many others in Europe have tight security. Usually no passport= no entry which is not so great if you walked across town to be there for minyan. Sometimes you can arrange to have your passport checked by their security before Shabbat). Plaza Mayor, like many other places in Spain has a sad Jewish past: it was a main plaza where traitors of the inquisition were burned at the stake… though today it is home to many interesting bars and a BEN AND JERRY’S!!

 

Tags: Jewish, jewish travel, kosher travel, madrid, Spain

Florence, Italy

Contributed by: Maurice T. Appelbaum| Last Date of Travel: August 2006

Kosher Info: Kosher restaurant and a kosher store right by the shul. The restaurant was really good, especially the desserts. The store was sparsely stocked. The woman in the restaurant speaks English and was helpful with food questions. Look at the Milan post for all of the links and information provided there.

Tourist Info: Florence is a really nice place to visit because it is small and easily walkable, but is filled with a lot of great atractions. We didn’t go into any churches so we only spent about two days there. Even though we didn’t go in, it was still worth it to see the outside of the Duomo which is the huge church in the center of town (you can’t avoid it). In the courtyard there is a smaller building with gold doors – it was fun to try and figure out the biblical scenes etched in the doors.

For some interesting shopping  – combined with a local flavor, go to the bridge called Ponte Vecchio (expensive), Mercato Nuovo, and San Lorenzo (the best one). We bought many gifts in San Lorenzo – its basically one long shuk with lots of scarves, leather goods, mixed in with touristy stuff. You can easily bargain here.

There are two important museums in Florence – the Uffizi and the Galleria de Acadameia. Uffizi had a huge line and we couldn’t get in. You should go early in the morning and reserve tickets for the next day. The Academia has the “David” and not much else. There was a long line to get in to the Academeia but we did a “FastPass” for more money and got at a designated time later that day. The David was worth it, but that’s all that is in there. People try to sell things outside of both museums, so at least the line will be entertaining.

We also went to the Bobeli Gardens, crossing over the Ponte Vecchio. There was a fashion museum at the time and the Gardens were nice, but we’ve seen nicer. There is more than one train station in Florence – be aware when making transfers – the stations are not close to one another!

Jewish Info: The shul on Via Farini is big and beautiful. There is a Chabad house Via dei Banchi 6. The hospitality center is on Via dei Pilastri 9R. We didn’t find any minyanim, but we think there is on Shabbos or during the school year. Call in advance.

Tags: florence, Italy, jewish travel, kosher travel

Venice, Italy

Contributed by: Maurice T. Appelbaum | Last Date of Travel: August 2006

Kosher Info: Check Milan for useful websites for supermarket food and general info. GamGam is a restaurant run by Chabad and that gives free meals on Shabbos. In the summer it can be really crowded in Venice so be sure to go – it is fun to see 300 tourists in one restaurant. There is a kosher bakery and pizza shop right down the block from Gam Gam and in the Jewish Ghetto. There is also a kosher cafe in the shul museum in the heart of the Ghetto. There is indeed a kosher gelato place but Chabad won’t tell you because they only drink milk that is chalav yisrael (milked by Jews). Ask the locals or at the pizza store where it is. There is one or two flavors that aren’t kosher, but the store will tell you which ones.

Tourist Info: We only went for Shabbos because we heard that you don’t need so much time in Venice. We did a lot of walking, bought great souvenirs and Venitian glass (clearly not on Shabbos). The gandala rides are really expensive so we skipped it. San Marco is a cool, huge open square. On the walk to San Marco at night, you pass through interesting night life.

Jewish Info: The Jewish Ghetto is in an area called Cannaregio, so try to say nearby. There are five shuls, all within the Jewish Ghetto. They offer a tour, we liked it. Davening is in one of the two Spanish shuls, they switch off between the winter and summer. There is davening at Chabad, but it is interesting getting the native feel. There is an eruv. We heard that there are motels/hostels where the key turns on the electricity making it impossible to take the key with you if you want to leave the bathroom light on, for Shabbos.

Tags: Italy, jewish travel, kosher travel, venice