Jewish tour in Vilnius and Kaunas

We start our Vilnius tour from Cathedral square where one can observe the beautiful Neo-Classical Cathedral of Saints Stanislaus and Ladislaus. Then we whisk out through the narrow streets to observe the Presidential Palace and the Old Vilnius University, founded in 1579. We’ll stroll along the streets of the medieval Jewish Quarter of Vilnius, called by many Lithuanian Jerusalem. Will speak about a Yiddish theatre, rabbinical council and the place where Theodor Herzl stayed during his visit to Vilnius.

We’ll learn of the Benedictine convent and the story of saving 12 Jewish souls by Lithuanian Righteous Among the Nations. In Vilnius Ghetto streets, we’ll see Vilna Gaon‘s house and the spot where the Great Synagogue once stood.

The Large Ghetto and the sad story of suffering, resistance, and struggle. The Judenrat office and the drama of “choiceless choices”. Former Ghetto theatre – the center of the spiritual resistance. Our Vilnius Tour continues with a visit to Vilnius Synagogue, built in 1903 in the Moorish Romanesque style.

Visit the Jewish State Museum, a.k.a. the Tolerance Centre, to learn the history of Lithuanian Jewry. We will also visit an art gallery of the Jewish American artist Samuel Bak. We will reach the southern border of our once-walled city, and admire the Russian monastery of Holy Spirit, the Greek Catholic church of Holy Trinity and the Zenith of Christian Vilnius – the “Gate of Dawn”.  The Chapel over the gate guards a famous icon of The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Mercy, believed to have miraculous powers

En rout stop at Zezmariai (Zhezhmer in Yiddish) – former Jewish shtetl with its rural life and old houses. One can see here a building of a wooden Synagogue built in 1920 and remained in its original form till nowadays. Meet Liudvikas – a man who keeps the key and has an amazing family story – he helped his mother and ant to save Jews during WWII. Visit the forest in which local Jews were killed.
Visit the former shtetl of Zasliai. Here we can see the well-preserved atmosphere of the small town life concentrated around the market square. There are a lot of typical wooden houses that remained from the pre-WWII period. Among them, there is a synagogue building. We will also visit the old Jewish cemetery.
Drive to Kaunas, the second large city in the country. Visit the Old Town of Kaunas with its Catholic churches and beautiful town hall square. We will walk through Vilnius street towards A. Mapu and L. Zamenhof streets which testify about a Jewish presence in Kaunas. Will see, or even enter, if possible, Ohel Yaakov Synagogue.
Will stop at the garden of the former Presidential palace. Continue walking along the main pedestrian street, Laisves aleja, with its 2-3 floor buildings just as they looked before the war.

Optional: The Art Gallery of M. K. Ciurlionis, the outstanding Lithuanian painter and composer.

Drive through Slobodka – Jewish neighborhood since 1500′. The building of the famous Slobodka Yeshiva. The gate to the Ghetto and its story. Butcher street and other places of Jewish history. The History Museum and the Memorial in the Ninth Fort – the place where Nazis and their collaborators killed over 50 thousand people, most of them were Jews.

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