About this experience
The Jewish quarter of Budapest has a difficult fate, but now you can find not only echoes of difficult times here - the poetry of ruins and desolation, traces of the bombings of 1956, the crumbling plaster of a hundred years ago, and other melancholy. Today a different, contrasting atmosphere prevails here: the district has been handed over to the young. This means that behind the heavy doors of old houses at night, ruin pubs come to life - clubs with music, beer, and avant-garde interiors, and with the arrival of day, another street art blooms on the walls and vintage shops and cozy cafes open their doors to guests. On this walk, I will immerse you in the contrasts of the Jewish district, telling you about its past and present.
What to expect
So, in the morning - Budapest is stately bourgeois, with the Parliament and confectioneries, and in the evening - in the area between Small and Big Boulevard, behind the Synagogue on Dohany Street, and further, further…
There is plenty to see, talk about, and think about here. Different epochs have left their marks on the same street. I will tell you about:
- the time when thanks to the Jewish community, bourgeois Pest was growing and prospering;
- about the short but terrible ghetto period;
- about the shocks of the autumn of 1956;
- about the 2000s, marked by an unexpected surge of creative energy that found its place right here, making the Jewish Quarter not the most righteous, but the most changeable and lively.
You will see the synagogue on Dohany Street, the largest in Europe, and if desired, three more on neighboring streets, the monument to Swiss diplomat Carl Lutz, who saved more than 60,000 Jews, and several intriguing wall paintings (each with its own story). You will also visit an antique shop and a genuine Pest ruin pub.
Thus, you will not only touch the rich and complicated history of Hungarian Jews and enjoy the atmosphere of the original ancient district but also immerse yourself in the spirit of the new life that modern Pest youth has breathed into the old streets and houses of the district. Such contrasts, as a symbol of life's power, which triumphs over disasters of any scale, often inspire people to personal victories.
Organizational details
Additional expenses: entrance to the synagogue - almost 10 euros, but it is worth it.
