Travel
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Swans On An Early Spring Day In The Ukraine
On our trip to the Ukraine this past Passover we visited the The Mezhyhirya Residence, an estate near Kyiv, in the Ukraine, where Viktor Yanukovych lived (and spent tons of money on himself) when he was Prime Minister and then President of Ukraine. The Estate is now a park open to the public, and while…
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Vernacular Ukrainian Architecture In The Western Ukraine Countryside
I love vernacular architecture and so I especially enjoyed viewing all the charming cottages in the Western Ukrainian countryside on our recent trip to the Ukraine. Most of the houses I saw were viewed either from the car or on days when I did not have a camera with me, though on our visit to…
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The Gravesite Of The Baal Shem Tov, Medzhybizh, Ukraine
The father of the Jewish Hassidic movement was a very special and holy man by the name of Rebbi Yisrael Ben Eliezer, The Baal Shem Tov. For those who view Kabbalah as Jewish mysticism that is trendy, well I have news for you! Hassidic Judiasm is actually a way of Jewish Torah observance that includes…
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The Historic Baal Shem Tov Shul In Medzhybizh, Ukraine
On our recent trip to the Ukraine for the Passover holiday, we made sure to save a day to travel to Medzhybizh to visit the grave site of the very holy Baal Shem Tov, who lived in Medzhybizh from 1742 until his passing in 1760, and was buried there in the old Jewish cemetary. Because the…
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Reb Nosson’s Gravesite In Breslov, Ukraine
During our Passover trip to the Ukraine, we had the opportunity to the gravesite of the very great Reb Nosson, the student of Rebbi Nachman of Breslev. This was my second trip to this special location, and while this time winter still had its grasp on the area, the beauty and peaceful countryside location…
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The Old Jewish Cemetary In Bratslav, Ukraine
On our recent Passover trip to the Ukraine we had the great privilege of visiting some very special gravesites of spiritual leaders who made great contributions to Judaism two hundred years ago plus or minus. Interestingly enough I had the same very distinctive "coming home" feeling I had 18 years ago (on my last visit)…
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The Old Soliterman Family Mill In Bratslav, Ukraine
Last week I had the wonderful opportunity to revisit the town of Bratslav (Breslev) Ukraine, and while my last visit a good 18 or so years ago was during the summer, this time we arrived as winter was just departing so the trees were bare and the landscape brown and I thoroughly enjoyed this…
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Mass Holocaust Gravesites In Bratslav, Ukraine
Today is Holocaust Memorial Day, Yom HaShoah, so I thought I'd mention some of the tragedies of the Holocaust that occurred in one of my very favorite spots, Bratslav, Ukraine. Our family was very fortunate to have the opportunity to spend the Passover holidays in Uman, Ukraine this year (my first time ever not at…
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Babi Yar Holocaust Memorial In Kiev, Ukraine
Today is Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yom HaShoah. Every year I try to post something relevant to this very sad day, and this year I am sharing photos that I took just two days ago on my first visit to the Babi Yar Holocaust Memorial site in Kiev, Ukraine. As always, there are no words to…
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A Visit To LaChine On The Saint Laurence, Montreal
One thing you'll discover if you visit Montreal is that there is water everywhere, which in my book is a wonderful thing. The city of Montreal is actually on an island, which means water all around, and when the weather warms up the city folk make the most of it by enjoying lovely parks on…
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Graffiti And Birdcages In Trendy Mile End, Montreal
If you are planning a trip to Montreal and love to visit the happening spots around any town, Mile End is the neighborhood you won't want to miss. We were staying in the Outremont neighborhood, just a short walk from Mile End, so on one sunny afternoon the kids and I took a little walk,…
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A Fabulous Succulent Globe In Montreal At The BioSphere
Despite great hopes for continuing my crafting spree this week, that just isn't possible on account of a bunch of graphic design and brand development work that floated by and got stuck in my radar, so this week I'm going to continue sharing with you more photos from our adventures this past August in Canada…