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This morning we will leave Budapest, cross into Austria, and arrive at Eisenstadt. Today, Eisenstadt is known largely as the home of Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), who lived there for 29 years under the sponsorship and support of the Esterhazy family.
But Jews lived in Eisenstadt as early as 1373, and in 1626 the Jewish community came under the protection of the same Esterhazy family. During the 19th century, Eisenstadt was so well known as a center of Jewish residence, learning and culture that it was referred to as “Little Jerusalem.” After World War I, Eisenstadt remained the only Jewish community in Europe to have the status of a political community (until 1938).
We will walk through the former Jewish ghetto, visit the Jewish Museum and the synagogue which survived Kristallnacht. The Museum covers Jewish history in Austria from Roman times to the Third Reich.
We will also visit the Esterhazy Palace and its concert hall. After lunch (not included), we will continue to Vienna, arriving in the late afternoon.
Dinner this evening is at our hotel.
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Vienna is a must for anyone seeking the Old Europe. This elegant city along the Danube, for centuries a center of music, art and culture, remains one of the richest treasures of Europe. This morning enjoy a tour of Vienna. Drive along the broad, tree-lined Ringstrasse, one of the most beautiful streets in Europe. See the University, the magnificent architecture of the Rathaus (City Hall), the Russian War Memorial, and of course the Opera House, perhaps the most famous opera house in Europe. See the Hofburg, the vast imperial palace of the Hapsburg rulers, and St. Stephen’s Cathedral, a Vienna landmark for more than 1,000 years.
JEWISH VIENNA I
Few cities in Europe have a history so closely related to Jewish history as Vienna. Jews have been in Vienna since the late 12th century. By the 14th century, the Jewish community of Vienna was the leading community of German-speaking Jewry.
Beginning this afternoon, we will have five separate tours of Jewish history and culture.
This afternoon we will walk in Vienna’s medieval Jewish quarter (Vienna did not have a ghetto.) We will visit the City Temple Synagogue (built 1824-26), the only surviving synagogue from before World War II.
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House of Prayer in the Judenstrasse (Jewish Street), Vienna, 1933
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We’ll see the Holocaust Memorial at Judenplatz and visit the Jewish Museum containing the foundation ruins of the synagogue destroyed in 1421. We’ll visit the Documentation Centre of the Austrian Resistance Movement focusing on the rise of Nazism in Austria, the 1938 Anschluss, exile, and the persecution and murder of Austrian Jews.
Dinner this evening is at the Café Central, Vienna’s most famous coffee house restaurant.
The coffee house has been a Viennese institution for three centuries. According to legend, the first coffee house opened with Turkish coffee beans, part of the spoils from the Siege of Vienna in 1683.
Café Central opened in 1860, and in the late 19th century it became a popular meeting place of Vienna intellectuals. Among its regulars were Theodor Herzl, Sigmund Freud, Josip Broz Tito, Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky
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“Tradition is the verification of the fire,
not the worship of the ashes.”
Gustav Mahler,
(1860-1911) |
After our lecture this morning, we will follow the path of Gustav Mahler and visit the Vienna State Opera House, among the most famous opera houses in the world. We will have a guided tour of the opera house to learn about the performances and savor the beauty of this magnificent building. Mahler was Music Director for ten years, 1897 to 1907.
“If Music be the Food of Love, play on.”
Shakespeare
Next, we will visit the House of Music. How is sound formed? What color is it? What exactly is music? Why did so many composers live in Vienna?
The House of Music, located in a former Hapsburg palace, offers a wealth of information about music and the great composers. The Vienna Philharmonic was founded at the palace in 1842. Learn about the history of this world class orchestra from its infancy to the present. As a highlight of our visit, you can “conduct” (virtually) the Vienna Philharmonic.
JEWISH VIENNA III
“Memory is the key word which combines past and present,
past and future. Remembering means that we must renew
our belief in humanity, as a challenge to humanity, and
thus to give meaning to our weak endeavours.”
Elie Wiesel
This afternoon we will visit the Jewish Museum in the Dorortheergasse. Tradition and remembrance are keys to Jewish culture; these themes are reflected in the two buildings of Vienna’s Jewish Museum.
At the Albertina Platz we will see the Memorials Against War and Fascism — a monument dedicated to all victims of World War II and Nazi terror.
The Habsburgs ruled over Austria and much of Europe for more than six centuries, 1278 to 1918. Life for the Jews in the Habsburg territories, whether under a regime of permissiveness or persecution, depended on the attitude of the ruler at any given time.
We will visit Imperial Vienna, the Hofburg, seat of government of the Habsburg emperors. We will focus on the unsettled relationship over the centuries between the Hapsburg rulers and their Jewish subjects.
This evening is at leisure to sample one of Vienna’s restaurants on your own.
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| Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) |
After our lecture this morning, we will visit the Sigmund Freud Museum where Freud lived and practiced psychoanalysis, from 1891 to 1938, bringing a new understanding of the human psyche. Psychoanalytic terms such as Freudian slip, Oedipus complex, and ego have become part of our everyday language. We will have a guided tour of this iconic site of humanistic discovery.
For lunch (not included), you may wish to sample another of Vienna’s coffee house restaurants. Café Mozart, behind the Opera House, is frequented by artists, writers, and musicians.
“Do you suppose that some
day a marble tablet will
be placed on the house,
inscribed with these words:
“In this house on July 24th,
1895, the Secret of Dreams
was revealed to Dr. Sigmund
Freud.”
Sigmund Freud to Wilhelm Fliess, June 12, 1900
JEWISH VIENNA V
This afternoon we will have a walking tour of Leopoldstadt in Vienna’s 2nd District. Leopoldstadt, from the mid-19th century until 1938, was the center of Jewish life in Vienna. Some of Vienna’s leading synagogues were in the district. Among Leopoldstadt residents were Freud, Herzl, Mahler, Arnold Schoenberg, and Arthur Schnitzler. Part of our walk follows the “Path of Remembrance” commemorating the Jewish victims of Nazi terror.
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Theodor Herzl (1860-1904) |
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The idea I have developed is an ancient one: It is the restoration of the Jewish State...The decisive factor is our propelling force. And what is that force? The plight of the Jews...
We are a people — one people.
We have sincerely tried everywhere to merge with the national communities in which we live, seeking only to preserve the faith of our fathers. It is not permitted us. In vain are we loyal patriots, sometimes superloyal; in vain do we make the same sacrifices of life and property as our fellow citizens; in vain do we strive to enhance the fame of our native lands in the arts and sciences, or her wealth by trade and commerce. In our native lands where we have lived for centuries, we are still decried as aliens, often by men whose ancestors had not yet come at a time when Jewish sighs had long been heard in the country...
Oppression and persecution cannot exterminate us. No nation on earth has endured such struggles and sufferings as we have. Wherever we remain politically secure for
any length of time, we assimilate. I think this is not praiseworthy...
Palestine is our unforgettable historic homeland...
Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State), 1896
Dinner is included this evening at the Piaristenkeller
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Full day at leisure in Vienna.
Some suggestions
1. Visit the Collection of Ancient Musical Instruments at the Hofburg, one of the finest displays of renaissance music instruments in the world. Pianos belonging to Haydn, Beethoven, and Schubert are included in the collection.
2. Visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum and its magnificent collection of paintings and sculpture. Among its treasures are the Velazquez portraits of the Habsburgs, and Brueghel’s lively studies of peasant life. Go next door to the Museum of Natural History to see the 20,000-year old figurine, the “Venus of Willendorf”.
3. Take a closer look at the Hofburg, a city within a city containing over 2600 rooms, many of which are now used for the Austrian President’s office. The jewel of the Hofburg is the Imperial Treasury, the greatest collection of gems, paintings, robes, vestments and other valuables
in the world. Visit the Imperial apartments and the chapel. Another building houses the famous Spanish Riding School.
4. Visit the Mozart House in the Domgasse, where Mozart lived for three years and where he composed “The Marriage of Figaro.”
Our last evening in Vienna will be light-hearted. We’ll enjoy dinner, followed by music from Mozart and Johann Strauss, at the Kursalon. Overlooking the City Park, the Kursalon was built in 1867 and became one of Vienna’s most popular concert halls. Johann Strauss conducted many times in the Kursalon; the famous statue of Strauss in the park is only one hundred yards from the Kursalon.
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| The Kursalon, Vienna. We will have dinner here, followed by a concert of music from Mozart and Johann Strauss. |
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This morning we will depart Vienna and enter the Czech Republic. Enroute to Prague, we’ll stop in Trebic. The former Jewish ghetto in Trebic is among the best preserved Jewish quarters in Europe. We will see the assemblage of the original 123 houses, the Jewish Town Hall, Rabbinate, School, Hospital, Poor House, and the old Jewish Cemetery with about 3000 tombstones.
Trebic is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
We will arrive in Prague in the late afternoon.
Goethe called Prague “the most precious stone in the crown of the world”. Prague escaped damage during World War II and is the best preserved capital of Eastern Europe.
Dinner this evening is at the Pilsen Restaurant of the Prague Municipal House. Built in 1911, the Municipal House is the major art nouveau building in Prague.
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Prague and its bridges over the Moldau.
The Moldau and Israel
The River Moldau was immortalized in the symphonic poem of Czech composer Bedrich Smetana. The melody of the Israel national anthem Hatikvah, written by Samuel Cohen, an immigrant from the Czech
lands
in 1888, can be traced to Smetana’s Die Moldau, composed in 1874. Die Moldau can be heard as background music at the Smetana Museum in Prague, overlooking the Moldau
near our hotel. |
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This morning we’ll have a brief panorama tour of Prague. Prague was once five individual towns consisting of the Old Town, Castle Town, Little Town and Jewish Town - which together compose one of the outstanding architectural experiences in Europe.
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Clock with Hebrew dial atop the Jewish Town Hall in Prague
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The five hills comprising the city as it is today are connected by 11 bridges spanning the Moldau River. The famous Charles Bridge dates back to 1357 and is decorated with 30 statues. We will see Wenceslas Square and the medieval tower hall with its famous astronomical clock.
Jews have lived in Prague since 970 A.D. Until 1939, Prague was for many centuries one of the most important Jewish centers in Europe. In the early 18th century more Jews lived in Prague than anywhere else in the world.
We will visit the Old New Synagogue, the oldest synagogue in Europe. Built in the late 13th century, it was originally called the New Synagogue. When other synagogues were built in the 16th century, the 13th century synagogue became known as the Old New Synagogue.
This afternoon we will visit the old Jewish ghetto and former Nazi concentration camp at Theresienstadt.
This evening is at leisure to sample one of Prague’s restaurants on your own.
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This morning we will visit the Jewish Museum. The Museum exhibits are located in six historic sites.
MAISEL SYNAGOGUE: Originally built in 1590-92, the Maisel exhibit traces the history of Jews in Bohemia and Moravia from the 10th to 18th centuries, together with silver religious antiques, manuscripts and prints.
SPANISH SYNAGOGUE: Built in 1868, the Synagogue takes its name from the Moorish stucco decoration of its interior imitating the style widely used in Spain. The exhibit continues the narrative of the Maisel, covering Jewish history in the Czech lands from the 18th to the 20th century.
KLAUSEN SYNAGOGUE: Completed in 1694, the Klausen was the largest synagogue in the ghetto. The exhibit features Jewish Customs and Traditions - birth, circumcision, bar mitzvah, wedding , divorce, and the Jewish household.
PINKAS SYNAGOGUE: Founded in 1535, the Pinkas was rebuilt in the 17th century. Today it serves as a memorial to the 77,297 Czech and Slovak Jewish victims of the Holocaust. The names of the victims and their communities are inscribed on the synagogue walls.
OLD JEWISH CEMETERY AND CEREMONIAL HALL: Established around 1440, the Old Jewish Cemetery is among the best preserved Jewish cemeteries in Europe. Burials took place here until 1781. The Ceremonial Hall, built in 1911-12, contains the sequel to the Jewish Customs and traditions exhibit at the Klausen Synagogue.
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“Every revolution evaporates and
leaves behind
only the slime of a new
bureaucracy.”
Franz Kafka (1883-1924). |
This afternoon we will visit Prague Castle, the largest castle complex in the world. The Castle is the symbol of Czech statehood and has been home to the royal throne since 990 A.D.
Next, we will visit the Kafka Museum near the Charles Bridge. Franz Kafka was among the most important writers of the 20th century. His family was among the German speaking, upwardly mobile Jewish elite of the Habsburg Empire. Indeed, he was named after the Emperor Franz Joseph. Unlike Mahler, Kafka remained a Jew his entire life. As with Freud, Kafka’s influence has been so pervasive that the word Kafkaesque has entered our language to denote the subjugation of the individual by the impersonal bureaucracy of an amoral government or large corporation. The feelings of angst, alienation and loneliness, expressed frequently in 20th century philosophy, have their roots in the writings of Kafka.
Our farewell evening in Europe includes dinner and music. We’ll reflect on the triumphs as well as the tragedies of yesterday, while savoring the successes of today and anticipating the joys of tomorrow.
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This morning we will be transferred to Prague Airport to board our return flight to the U.S. Arrive back in the U.S. in the afternoon.
Ashkenazi Defined
Ashkenazi Jews are those Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities of the Rhineland in the west of Germany. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for the region which in modern times encompasses Germany and the German speaking borderland area. Thus, Ashkenazi (Ashkenazim, Hebrew plural) or Ashkenazi Jews are literally “German Jews.”
Many Ashkenazi Jews migrated, largely eastward, forming communities in non-German speaking areas, including Poland, Lithuania, Russia, and Eastern Europe between the 10th and 19th centuries. They took with them and diversified Yiddish, a Germanic Jewish language among Ashkenazi Jews.
Although in the 11th century Ashkenazi Jews comprised only about three percent of the world’s Jewish population, by 1931 they accounted for (at their peak) about 92% of world Jewry. Today, Ashkenazi Jews make up about 80% of Jews world wide. Most Jewish communities with extended histories in Europe are Ashkenazim, except those in the Mediterranean region.
The majority of the Jews who migrated from Europe to other continents in the past two centuries are Askenazim, particularly Eastern Ashkenazim. This is especially true in the United States, where six million of the seven million American Jews – the largest Jewish population in the world – are Ashkenazi. They represent the largest single concentration of Ashkenazim in the world.
In an ethnic context the definition of an Ashkenazi Jew broadened; such a Jew became one whose ancestry can be traced to the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe.
Historians' Brief Biographical Sketches
Budapest—Vienna
Brigitte Timmermann, Ph.D. – Brigitte is a Viennese historian, lecturer, and professional guide with a Ph.D. in History, MA in English, and MEdu in English and History from the University of Vienna. Her specialty is Jewish history in Europe. Brigitte has over 35 years of teaching experience, and has worked for more than
20 years as a guide and director of a European study tours company. She has that special enthusiasm for sharing with others her knowledge and love of Vienna.
Prague
Sylvie Wittmannova – Sylvie is a graduate of the Theology Faculty at the Charles University of Prague and has studied Jewish history at the University of Indiana and University of California, Berkeley.
Sylvie is the founder of a Jewish oriented cultural and educational guide service in Prague; she also founded Beit Simcha, the first liberal Jewish community in the Czech Republic after the fall of the Communist regime. She has served as an officer and board member of the Foundation of Czech Jewish Communities.
Sylvie has lectured at the San Francisco Chapter of Hadassah, and at Synagogues in the United States and Israel.
Other historians may also participate.
Organizations are welcome to bring their own historian.
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| Prices Per Person, Double Occupancy |
| From the East |
Boston, New York, Newark |
$6495 |
| From the Mid-Atlantic |
Washington, Philadelphia |
$6595 |
| From Chicago and the Mid-West |
Chicago, Detroit |
$6645 |
| From the Carolinas |
Charlotte |
$6645 |
| From Atlanta |
Atlanta |
$6795 |
| From Florida |
Miami, Orlando |
$6795 |
| From Texas |
Houston, Dallas/Ft. Worth |
$6795 |
| From the West |
Denver, Phoenix |
$6845 |
| From the Pacific Coast |
Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle/Portland |
$6895 |
Inquire about prices from cities not listed above.
Land Only Price: $5295 per person, double occupancy.
Single Room Supplement $995. Triple Room Reduction $20 per person.
Add $292 U.S. and foreign airport and security taxes
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| Budapest |
Intercontinental
Danube View rooms |
| Vienna |
De France
on the Ring |
| Prague |
InterContinental
Deluxe higher rooms |
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| Depart USA |
Return |
| October 13 |
October 24 |
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Left to right: Vonnie Block,
Kathy McCary, Ken Block, JoAnn West |
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Your holiday is operated by Matterhorn Travel.
Established in 1966, Matterhorn Travel has carried over 50,000 passengers to Europe. Matterhorn officers have a combined experience of 104 years with the company.
Please note the all-inclusive nature of our trips. There are no hidden optional costs. We include all features for a complete holiday – breakfasts, dinners eight evenings, and full sightseeing. |
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Terms and Conditions Back to Top
Deposits and Final Payments
An initial deposit of $400 per person must be sent with the reservation(s). Final payment is due two months before departure.
Responsibility
These tours are under the operation and management of Matterhorn Travel Service, Inc., 3419 Hidden River View, Annapolis, Maryland 21403. The Tour Operator shall be responsible for supplying the services and accommodations as outlined in this brochure, except to the extent that such services and accommodations cannot be supplied due to delays or other causes beyond its control, in which case the operator will use its best efforts to supply comparable services and accommodations. The Tour Operator reserves the right at its discretion to change the sequence or alter any part of the itinerary or hotel accommodations, without prior notice for any reason; but in the event of substantial reduction in the services rendered, a proportionate refund will be made to tour participants upon written request to the Tour Operator. If there is a major change in the itinerary, participants will be notified before departure and offered an opportunity to cancel with full refund.
In the absence of negligence by the Tour Operator, the Tour Operator accepts no responsibility for losses or additional expenses due to delays or changes in air or other services, sickness, weather strikes, or other causes. All such losses or expenses will be borne by the passenger. The tour member waives any claim against the Tour Operator for any damage to or loss of property or injury or death of persons due to any act of negligence of any hotels, or any other persons rendering any of the services or accommodations included in the ground portion of the itinerary. The Tour Operator shall not be responsible for any delays, substitution of equipment or any act of omission whatsoever by the carrier, its agents, servants and employees, and tour member hereby waives any claim arising therefrom. Tour participants agree that the Tour Operator has no responsibility or liability of any nature whatsoever for loss, damage or injury to property or person resulting from air transportation. The air carrier provides insurance for the protection of passengers and performance within the provisions of its tariffs. The Tour Operator reserves the right to decline, accept or remove any tour member as a participant of these tours at any time. If any tour member is removed from the tour, a proportionate refund for unused services will be made.
Cancellations/Refunds
Refunds cannot be made to any passenger who does not complete the tour. In the event of cancellation by the Tour Operator, Tour Operator’s liability shall be limited to a refund of all payments made by the tour participants to Tour Operator.
All cancellations and requests for refunds must be submitted in writing to the Tour Operator. If cancellation in writing is received by the Tour Operator more than two months before tour departure, an administration charge of $90 per person will be retained. For cancellations received within two months of departure, the following cancellation charges apply:
Two months to one month before departure: 30% of the tour price
One month to one week before departure: 60% of the tour price
Less than one week before departure: No refund
Insurance
Trip accident, health and baggage insurance is recommended. Cancellation insurance is also available and is particularly recommended. Details will be furnished upon request.
Baggage
One suitcase per person (50 pounds) may be taken on the trip. The liability of the carrier for loss or damage to personal baggage shall be limited to the actual value of such baggage but not more than approximately $9.07 per pound in the case of checked baggage and approximately $400 per person in the case of unchecked baggage or other property. (Domestic- actual value not to exceed $500.)
Airport Transfers
Airport transfers are provided only for passengers arriving and departing Europe via flights reserved by the Tour Operator. Passengers using different flights are responsible for their own airport transfers.
Special Note
Prices quoted are based on air fares, taxes, European supplier costs, and rates of foreign currency as of September 15, 2011. Prices are subject to change prior to departure. Participants will be notified in writing at least two months before departure if there is any increase in tour price required by such cost increases. There is no credit for unused services. Forwarding of participants’ deposit(s) indicates acceptance of these terms and conditions.
Airlines
The airlines participating on this tour are not responsible for any act, omission, or event during the time the passengers are not on board their airplanes or conveyances. The issuance of the passage contract by the airline concerned shall constitute the sole contract between the airline and the purchaser of this tour and/or the passengers. In addition to the participating airlines, the services of any IATA and ARC carrier may be used in connection with these tours.
This program is valid from May 1 to October 31, 2012.
To obtain a printer friendly (pdf) version of this itinerary, please click here.
Matterhorn
Travel
3419 Hidden River View
Annapolis, MD 21403
Phone: 800-638-9150
Fax: 410-266-3868
holidays@matterhorntravel.com
