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Discover Jewish Paris Oh-la-la, it's Jewish Paree!La Tour Eiffel, les Champs Élysées, la vie en rose – mere mention of the French capital conjures images of beauty andromance, magic and love. Hear Paris, and think Enlightenment, Cubism, Nouvelle Vague. Think Sartre, Renoir, Louvre. Think dashing Frenchmen sipping espressos at charming street-side cafes, think chic Parisian ladies drinking red wine at fabulous restaurants. No other city on earth captures the imagination quite like Paris.  Paris is a million different things to a million different people. It is a seductive glow that has lit the western world for centuries; it is a breeding ground for art and poetry, film and political philosophy, architecture and fiction; it is a multicultural metropolis where diverse global influences mix and merge; it is Haute Couture and fine dining; it is underground hip-hop and young design. Home to some of the world’s best museums, restaurants, and boutiques, Paris has been seducing visitors for ages with its copious offerings and beguiling ambiance. Not for nothing is “the city of light” the most popular tourist destination on the planet. A big part of the appeal is the city’s rich history – cultural, political, intellectual, and otherwise. Jews have played an integral role in this history for over 2,000 years and, as Europe’s largest Jewish community, continue to shape the city today. In the Middle Ages, France was a center of Jewish learning, home to such religious luminaries as Rashi, Rashbam, and Rabbenu Tam, 11th century rabbis whose seminal commentaries have appeared in every edition of the Talmud since its first printing in the 1520s. In the later Middle Ages, the French Jews faced increasing persecution, repression, and expulsion, but in the 18th century, they became the first in Europe to achieve full emancipation. Despite legal equality and increasing tolerance, anti-Semitism remained a pervasive undercurrent in  But then came World War II, German occupation, and Holocaust. Parisian Jews suffered terribly under Vichy: persecuted, rounded up, and deported to concentration camps, they were murdered by the Nazis in the tens of thousands. By war’s end, the community and its institutions were in shambles. Incredibly, those left behind began to piece their world back together, soon joined by a growing number of immigrants from Eastern Europe and North Africa. Today, there are more than half a million Jews living in France, 375,000 of them in the capital.  Bienvenue à Paris!
Tour Options 3 hour walking tour of Jewish Paris The tour begins at the Ile de la ‘Cité in the centre of Paris, where the medieval city, as well as the Jewish community, was founded. We will explore the Palace of Justice and the monumental Notre-Dame Cathedral on which the famous Ecclesia and Sinagoga are represented, telling the prevalent view of Christianity and Judaism in the middle ages.4 hour walking tour of Jewish Paris Add one hour to the 3-hour tour above and you will visit the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire du Judaïsme, the splendid Jewish museum in the Marais District, located in a 17th century aristocratic mansion. 7 hour walking and driving tour of Paris, Jewish and General In a combined walking and driving day tour you can get the whole picture; in addition to the sites listed above, we will be able to explore all the main sites worth seeing; La Bastille square, Le Marais district, the Concorde Square, The Invalides, the Military School, The Eiffel Tower, The Champs Elysées, Arch of Triumph. The Louvre Museum (from the outside).Please see the "Discover Europe" section of our website for further tour options in Paris. |
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