Fraenkelufer Synagogue in Berlin

9 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Berlin Reading Time:  11 minutes

© Jörg Zägel/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Jörg Zägel/cc-by-sa-3.0

The synagogue on Fraenkelufer (German: Fraenkelufer Synagoge) in Berlin‘s Kreuzberg district was built as an Orthodox Synagogue between 1913 and 1916 according to plans and under the direction of the master builder of the Jewish Community of Berlin, Alexander Beer. The structure was located on Kottbusser Ufer 48–50, today’s Fraenkelufer 10-16. On Kristallnacht, the evening of November 9-10th, 1938, the main building of the synagogue was badly damaged. Further destruction in the following years led to the structures ultimate demolition in 1958/1959 after the end of World War II. Today the surviving outbuilding, previously used for the youth service, has been renovated and is home to a Conservative Synagogue. A complete reconstruction of the main synagogue that was destroyed by the Nazis is being planned for its original location.   read more…

Hôtel Beauharnais in Paris

9 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France Reading Time:  8 minutes

Inauguration of the German embassy residence, 1968 © Bundesarchiv - B 145 Bild - F026336-0020/Gathmann, Jens/cc-by-sa-3.0-de

Inauguration of the German embassy residence, 1968
© Bundesarchiv – B 145 Bild – F026336-0020/Gathmann, Jens/cc-by-sa-3.0-de

The Hôtel Beauharnais is a historic hôtel particulier, a type of large French townhouse, in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. It was designed by architect Germain Boffrand. Its construction was completed in 1714. By 1803, the structure was purchased by Eugène de Beauharnais, who had it rebuilt in an Empire style. It has been listed as an official historical monument since July 25, 1951. Today it serves as the official residence of the German Ambassador to France.   read more…

Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City

9 November 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Museums, Exhibitions Reading Time:  9 minutes

Entrance © flickr.com - Shaggy Paul/cc-by-2.0

Entrance © flickr.com – Shaggy Paul/cc-by-2.0

The Museum of Jewish Heritage, located in Battery Park City in Manhattan, New York City, is a living memorial to those murdered in the Holocaust. The museum has received more than 2 million visitors since opening in 1997. The mission statement of the museum is “to educate people of all ages and backgrounds about the broad tapestry of Jewish life in the 20th and 21st centuries — before, during, and after the Holocaust.” The museum’s building includes two wings: a six-sided building with a pyramid-shaped roof designed to evoke the memory of the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust, and the Robert M. Morgenthau Wing. The six-sided building, opened in 1997, contains the museum’s core exhibition galleries. The Morgenthau Wing, opened in 2003, contains the museum’s offices, theater, and classrooms, as well as the Irving Schneider and Family exhibition gallery. Both wings were designed by designed by Roche-Dinkeloo. The museum’s collection contains more than 30,000 objects relating to Jewish history and the Holocaust. These objects are used in a variety of exhibitions and installations.   read more…

Reconstruction of the Bornplatz synagogue in Hamburg

9 November 2022 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Hamburg Reading Time:  15 minutes

Bornplatz synagogue in 1906, right after the opening © Knackstedt & Näther - Stiftung Historische Museen

Bornplatz synagogue in 1906, right after the opening © Knackstedt & Näther – Stiftung Historische Museen

The synagogue on Bornplatz in Hamburg‘s Grindelviertel was inaugurated in 1906 and was one of the largest synagogues in Germany. It served as the main synagogue for the German-Israelite Community (DIG). In the immediate vicinity, the building of the Talmud Torah School was erected in 1911. The synagogue was devastated during the Kristallnacht pogrom on 9 November 1938, set on fire shortly afterwards and the ruins were demolished in 1939 by the local Nazi regime at the expense of the Jewish community. Fifty years after the destruction, the former location was redesigned, and since then a floor mosaic has indicated the location of the synagogue. Since 2019, the Jewish community, the Central Council of Jews in Germany and several organizations have been working to rebuild the synagogue. In February 2020, an application for a feasibility study was unanimously accepted by the Hamburg Parliament. In November 2020, the budget committee of the Bundestag released 65 million euros for the restoration of the synagogue.   read more…

Ordensburg Vogelsang in the Eifel National Park

9 November 2021 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Guido Radig/cc-by-3.0

© Guido Radig/cc-by-3.0

Ordensburg Vogelsang is a former Nazi estate placed at the former military training area in Eifel National Park in North Rhine-Westphalia. The landmarked and completely preserved estate was used by the National Socialists between 1936 and 1939 as an educational centre for future leaders. Since 1 January 2006 the area has been open to visitors. It is one of the largest architectural relics of National Socialism. The gross area of the landmarked buildings is 50,000 m².   read more…

Konstanz New Synagogue

9 November 2020 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

New Synagogue © Waithamai/cc-by-sa-4.0

New Synagogue © Waithamai/cc-by-sa-4.0

The synagogue in Konstanz, the district town of the district of Konstanz in Baden-Württemberg, was built in 1882/1883 and destroyed during the November pogroms in 1938. This first synagogue was on Sigismundstrasse. A new building was inaugurated in 2019. The Jewish community of Konstanz tried to build a synagogue from 1872. The property at Sigismundstrasse 19 was purchased from the Konstanz Hospital Foundation and, thanks to numerous donations and a loan, the financing was secured. The synagogue was built according to the plans of the architect and city builder Holzmann from Constance. The inauguration, attended by numerous representatives of the state and municipal authorities and the Christian churches, took place on September 28, 1883.   read more…

New Synagogue Berlin – Centrum Judaicum

9 November 2019 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Berlin, Museums, Exhibitions Reading Time:  13 minutes

© Holz85/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Holz85/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Neue Synagoge (“New Synagogue”) was built 1859–1866 as the main synagogue of the Berlin Jewish community, on Oranienburger Straße. Because of its eastern Moorish style and resemblance to the Alhambra, it is an important architectural monument of the second half of the 19th century in Berlin. Jewish services are now held again in the New Synagogue; the congregation is the Berlin community’s sole Masorti synagogue. Most of the building, however, houses offices and a museum. The dome may also be visited.   read more…

The United States: Bon appétit!

9 November 2017 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Editorial, Greater Los Angeles Area, Bon appétit, Miami / South Florida, New York City, San Francisco Bay Area Reading Time:  53 minutes

© Lipton sale/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Lipton sale/cc-by-sa-3.0

The cuisine of the United States reflects its history. The European colonization of the Americas yielded the introduction of a number of ingredients and cooking styles to the latter. The various styles continued expanding well into the 19th and 20th centuries, proportional to the influx of immigrants from many different nations; such influx developed a rich diversity in food preparation throughout the country. Early Native Americans utilized a number of cooking methods in early American Cuisine that have been blended with early European cooking methods to form the basis of American Cuisine. When the colonists came to the colonies, they farmed animals for clothing and meat in a similar fashion to what they had done in Europe. They had cuisine similar to their previous British cuisine. The American colonial diet varied depending on the settled region in which someone lived. Commonly hunted game included deer, bear, buffalo, and wild turkey. A number of fats and oils made from animals served to cook much of the colonial foods. Prior to the American Revolution, New Englanders consumed large quantities of rum and beer, as maritime trade provided them relatively easy access to the goods needed to produce these items: rum was the distilled spirit of choice, as the main ingredient, molasses, was readily available from trade with the West Indies. In comparison to the northern colonies, the southern colonies were quite diverse in their agricultural diet and did not have a central region of culture. During the Progressive Era (1890s–1920s) food production and presentation became more industrialized. Major railroads featured upscale cuisine in their dining cars. Restaurant chains emerged with standardized decor and menus, most famously the Fred Harvey restaurants along the route of the Santa Fe Railroad in the Southwest. At the universities, nutritionists and home economists taught a new scientific approach to food. During World War I the Progressives’ moral advice about food conservation was emphasized in large-scale state and federal programs designed to educate housewives. Large-scale foreign aid during and after the war brought American standards to Europe. Newspapers and magazines ran recipe columns, aided by research from corporate kitchens, which were major food manufacturers like General Mills, Campbell’s, and Kraft Foods. One characteristic of American cooking is the fusion of multiple ethnic or regional approaches into completely new cooking styles. For example, spaghetti is Italian, while hot dogs are German; a popular meal, especially among young children, is spaghetti containing slices of hot dogs. Since the 1960s Asian cooking has played a particularly large role in American fusion cuisine. Even if the entire series of articles is titled “Bon appétit!”, the right termin is “enjoy your meal” instead in the USA.   read more…

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