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Jewish Heritage Tour

including meeting the Bnei Menashe,
one of the lost tribes.

Escorted by Stephen Epstein

November 3-16, 2005

Click Here for a Detailed Initerary

Manipur

With 4,000 years of historical development, the Jewish community in India has maintained an unbroken line of ethnic and religious tradition and displayed a remarkable adaptability to the changing times.
There are two main Jewish communities in India: the Malayalam speaking Jews of Cochin and the Marathi speaking Ben Israeli Jews of Mumbai.
There is also a small sub-group in Mumbai called Baghdadi or Sephardi Jews.
The Cochin Jews are further divided into Black (believing themselves to be the original settlers arriving during the first century) and White (of European or Middle Eastern origin) Jews.
In addition, tucked away in the isolated northeastern corner of India is the Bnei Menashe community, considered to be one of the lost tribes.
The Ben Israeli Jews are thought to have left Yemen in the 2nd century BC, and claim to be descended from families shipwrecked off the coast of Nagaon, just south of Mumbai. They initially made their homes in Alibag, Kihim and Roha, and integrated with the Marharashtrian community to such a degree that they follow certain Muslim and Hindu beliefs and retained little of their faith except observance of the Sabbath and eating Kosher food. They migrated to Mumbai in the late 18th century, a few decades before Baghdadi Jews began arriving to escape persecution in Iraq, Iran and Syria.
The arrival of the cosmopolitan Baghdadi Jews caused a renaissance of Jewish consciousness among MumbaiÕs Ben Israeli community and support networks began to bond the two groups together.
Jewish Heritage of India Tour gives the traveler a deeper insight into how the Jews of India have assimilated foreign elements into their own socio-religious system.
In Bombay, we visit the Gate of Mercy Synagogue or Juni Masjid established 1796. The Synagogue celebrated its centenary in the year 1896 and on that occasion it was renamed Shaar-Ha-Rahamim. We also visit the Knesseth Eliahod Synagogue, established in 1884 and popularly known as the Fort Synagogue, which is used by both the Bagdadi and Ben Israeli communities; and the largest synagogue in Asia and the most magnificent architecturally--Magen David Synagogue, built in 1861 by David Sassoon, of a renown Bagdadi family. In Calcutta, we visit Magen David; in Cochin the Paradesi Synagogue, which is the first Synagogue that came into existence in the Commonwealth and is also one of the oldest in the world.
The itinerary is designed to avoid traveling on Shabbat. For those who are not strict observers, there are optional sightseeing activities offered. .
Important Hindu temples and cultural highlights of north and south India are also experienced throughout the tour including Taj Mahal and a classical Indian Kathakali dance performance.
Five star luxury hotels and resorts, except on Sabath when we stay in best available hotels (usually 4 star) within walking distance of synagogues.
The documentary video The Quest for the Lost Tribes is available on the A & E site. Highly recommended whether you choose to join us or not!
Our Escort:
Stephen (Stevy) Epstein graduated from the Ontario College of Art in 1979 specializing in photography. In 1980, with a passion for travel, Judaism and photography, he set out to document the remnants of the Jewish world behind the iron curtain in Poland. A number of photos were shown at the Yeshiva University Museum and published in the Jerusalem Post.
Since then, Stephen has taken on diverse assignments combining Judaism and photography Ð covering everything from the spiritual community at Findhorn in northern Scotland to the Jewish Joint Distribution CommitteeÕs Êaid operation in the refugee camps of Goma, Zaire, after the Rwandan civil war.
After seeing so much suffering around the world, Stephen helped found a Jewish humanitarian NGO and traveled to Duzce, Turkey, after the 1999 earthquake to distribute pharmaceuticals and clothing to the residents living in tents.
In 1997 Stephen was part of the crew shooting the documentary "Quest for the Lost Tribes." During that trip, Stephen and the crew went to Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tunisia, Israel and India. In India, he met the members of the Bnei Menashe community of Manipur & Mizoram. He also spent time photographing Bnei Israel communities and landmarks. Upon his return to Canada, Stephen become an advocate for the Bnei Menashe in their quest to make aliyah to Israel and return to their Jewish roots. Working with the organization Kulanu, Stephen is lobbying on their behalf, sending the Bnei Menashe much-needed Judaic materials and texts, manages their website and is arranging the sale of products they handcraft such as Kippot and Talitot.
Most recently, Stephen returned to Poland as a photographer and on-location website designer for the 2000 March of the Living.
Our Special Guides
Mr Benjamin Issac, Director of the ORT Schools, will guide us in Bombay and offer special presentations as well as a personal tour of the schools. ORT-India, established in 1960, is the primary support organization nourishing Jewish life in Bombay. Ort provides a kosher bakery; makes kosher wine, halla and chicken; oversees the mikve at the Kneset Eliyahoo Synagogue; and maintains a pre-school program at three schools.
Mr. Lemuel Henkhogin Haokip, General Secretary of the Benei Menashe Council (India), will guide us while in Aizwal and Imphal. Mr. Haokip will offer us an insiders visit and opportunities for genuine interaction with the Bnei Menashe community.

Price: $3835 per person, dble occ (based on min 10 people)
Single room supplement: $1125
Plus air supplement: $798 (subject to change)
Bombay/Cochin/Chennai/Calcutta/Aizwal,/Calcutta

Package Includes:

Accommodations (dble occupancy)
Daily breakfast + lunch or dinner as specified in itinerary
All land transportation by ac van
Special Escort: Stephen Epstein
Special Guides: Mr. Benjamin Issac and Mr. Lemuel Henkhogin Haokip
Professional Local Guides
Entrance Fees to monuments

.Package Does Not Include

International Air
Insurance
Departure Tax
Tips
Personal expenses such as phone, laundry

International Air: We offer discounted group prices for the international flight.

Click Here for a Detailed Initerary
Jews of India a comprehensive web site on communities, synagogues and histories of the Jewish Heritage of India

(888) 367-6147 - Intl (415) 381-5861
P.O. Box 446 Mill Valley, CA 94941