Rosh Hashana with family in Thessaloniki

We were so happy our Danish family came down to Greece for the Jewish New Year. We stayed at a delightful Airbnb, went swimming in the Agean, visited the city of Thessoloniki, and rested together.

Before World War II, Salonika (as the town is also called) had the largest Jewish community in Greece. At the time of the German occupation, the Jewish population was about 50,000. During the war, 96% of the Jewish community here, were deported and exterminated in Auschwitz-Birkenau. It was sad and a little bit sweet to be celebrating Rosh Hashana with this history behind us.

Before Jeffrey, Britt, Frida and Esther arrived, my family celebrated a bit of Rosh Hashana with the local Jewish community. On the night the holiday started, we joined the Thessolaniki Chabad for quick and uninspiring services and delicious dinner with about a hundred people, many of them travellers. Sadly, the next morning we were too late to attend the other local synagogue. By the time they had confirmed our identities after our mid-morning arrival, services were basically over! It was disappointing.

So, we made our own new year reflections together with our two families around the dinner table.

Our Airbnb hosts Martha and George were incredibly generous! Greek hospitality is beautiful. First, they served us dinner the night we arrived. Then, they invited us campervan folks to stay an extra day, which we greatly appreciated. When they arrived to say goodbye to us, they came with pastries! Then, when they learned the boys loved the pomegranates growing on their property, they took us next door to the neighbour's pomegranate farm and gifted us a whole large bag of the fruits! When we were saying goodbye they gave us bottles of their home-cured olives to bring home to share with Britt and Jeff. It was humbling and so so very sweet.Read more