Old places, new faces

Even though we weren't planning on going to the Altneuschul (Old-New Synagogue) for services last night, we ended up going anyway. It was packed there! I'm sure I'll learn more tomorrow, as we're going on a tour of Jewish Prague in the morning, but from what I understand, the Altneuschul was built around 1270 and is the oldest active synagogue in Europe. Inside, there's a vaulted ceiling and two stone pillars supporting a central Bimah (Torah reading stand). The men sit around all the walls of the main room and around the Bimah, and the women sit in a separate room with windows facing into the main hall--in medieval times, when the synagogue was built, it was customary for women to sit in a separate room, as opposed to on a separate side or on a balcony, as is now customary in Orthodox synagogues. Anyway, the synagogue was filled with people visiting from all around the world, as well as people who live in the community. After synagogue we went to the Dinitz restaurant for dinner, and were joined by many others who also attended services...including a husband and wife whose last name was also Silberman! We compared notes about family origins and it turns out that we're not closely related (or related at all), but it was funny to meet another family with the same last name.

This morning we went back to the same synagogue for morning services, and between there and lunch at the same restaurant, met some more people who were visiting and who live in the community, including a professor from Georgetown and his wife, and the U.S. ambassador to the Czech Republic. The ambassador is Jewish and religious, and it turns out that his parents were both Holocaust survivors from Prague! The ambassador's residence, where he lives, was originally built by a wealthy Jewish family, and then was used as the Nazi headquarters in Prague during the war, and then converted into the ambassador's residence, which now houses a Kosher kitchen for the ambassador and his family. It's amazing how his family story and the house's story have both come full-circle.

Later we had a walking tour of the Old Town district of Prague, and we were able to get an idea of where we're staying in relation to everything else. We walked along the river, the Charles Bridge, and through the main square and Old Town streets. The architecture here is of the most impressive I've seen on this trip, and it's amazing how so many buildings here date back to the middle ages! The guide that led us around today will be our guide for the next two days when we tour Jewish Prague and the castle and then when I tour Terezin on Monday. I'm excited--she's very funny! She gave us a good way to remember some of the characteristics of certain architectural styles: she described me as Gothic (tall and narrow) and herself as Baroque (more..."well-fed" I'll say) or nearing on late-Baroque or Rococo. Now that's one to remember!