FREE EVENT

Jewish Tour of the Baltic States

Tuesday, October 29

USA 1:00 pm PT / 4:00 pm ET

Please note that the times in the USA are different from our usual schedule!

UK 8:00 pm / France 9:00 pm / Israel 10:00 pm

The talk will last approximately 90 minutes

About this talk

Join this brief excursion into the history of the Jewish communities of the Baltic States: success, tragedy, and revival. In the first half of this talk, we will explore key historical moments. Vilnius, Lithuania's capital, became a major center for the Litvak Jewish community, with the Vilna Gaon at its heart, while at one point, Kaunas (Kovno) had a Jewish population making up 60% of the city. Latvia became home to a vibrant Jewish community known for its prominent rabbis, Haskalah followers, politicians, and scientists. Estonia, the smallest Baltic country, briefly enjoyed a period of 'Jewish Cultural Autonomy' in the 1920s and 1930s before facing Stalinist repression, followed by the devastation of the Holocaust.

After this, we invite you to join us for the second part of the presentation, where we will focus on the Jewish History Tour: Baltics 2025 (June 5-15, 2025), organized by Learn-in-Trips in partnership with Qesher and Jerulita Travel. We will go over the daily program with Daniel Gurevich from Jerulita, who will walk us through the planned visits to Vilnius, Trakai, Žiežmariai, Kaunas, Neringa, Klaipėda, the Hill of Crosses, Šiauliai, Riga, Rumbula, Sigulda, Pärnu, and Tallinn. We will also discuss the itinerary, hotels, and food. Daniel and Patricia Mizrahi from Learn-in-Trips will be available to answer any logistical questions, and if you are interested in the tour, you can reserve a spot now!

About Daniel

Daniel Gurevich was born in Vilnius in 1979 and made Aliya to Israel in 1997 before returning to Lithuania and becoming an expert in the travel industry. Today he is the General Manager of his own family business, the Jerulita Travel. His tours focus on Jewish heritage, religion, history and culture in the Baltic States.

About Patricia

Patricia Mizrahi is the International Tours Manager at Nora Kaplan Learn-in-TripsLearn-in-Trips is a family-run business founded in Spain in 2009 by Nora Kaplan, her husband Victor Mizrahi, and their children, Patricia and Sebastian (co-founder of Qesher). Their "Jewish History Tours" offer immersive, educational experiences that explore Jewish history and culture in Europe.