The Jewish Quarter

The Jews had it bad... real bad. I mean why does everyone always pick on the Jews? They're not an agressive or hostile group. Throughout the history of Prague the Jewish people have had many ups and downs. Yesterday we toured the old Jewish Quarter of Prague, which is now mostly old synagogues turned into museums. If It wasn't for Hitler and his reign of terror their would still be a large Jewish population in Prague to use these places of worship. Now they sit empty as reminders of what evil humans can accomplish.

Going through the synagogues was quite an experience. The men had to cover their heads out of respect, so we were given a little hat called a "kippot". I was really excited because I have always been interested in Jewish culture. We learned about the history behind the synagogues and the struggles of the Jewish peoples. We also went to the old Jewish cemetary which has over 12,000 graves in a very small area. They would bury people until their was no more room and then put more dirt on top to layer more dead. This was the only place the Jewish people were allowed to bury their dead. The tragic thing about the Jewish quarter was that it has now been turned into a tourist attraction. There are so few Jews left in Prague that the synogogues are not used any more.

Even though the Jewish people went through alot in their history they have remained headstrong. The old Jewish quarter serves as a reminder to all that history is around us, and we can learn from the past if we just look.