May 2019 archive

Old fashion apple pie

For as long as I can remeber, apple pie has been the go-to dessert after anymeal, including breakfast. Because let’s be real here, who doesn’t eat apple pie for breakfast? A slice of warm apples sitting in its gooey goodness of sugar and cinnamon and nutmeg, embrassed in a hug of a flaky buttery crust, …

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Student Learning

Lucky me!

Around 2010 I wanted to add Holocaust courses to the curriculum at Old Dominion University. I started by participating in a number of programs at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and in 2013 I launched a Holocaust Study Abroad. It’s amazing to me how once you start going to a place, …

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Jewish Food: The flavors of life

Tonight we ate dinner at “Dawno Temu Na Kazimierzu” or “Once upon a time in Kazimierz.” The restaurant tries to recreate the ambiance of a late 19th- or early 20th-century Jewish home. It’s small and intimate. Now admittedly we are in Kazimierz which is to Jewish culture what Colonial Williamsburg is to colonial times—made up, …

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On Top of Kraków

The thing I love about study abroad is getting to know the students. Of course I love being in the classroom, but on study abroad, the world is the classroom. It’s fantastic. We have such a great group of students…and no one complained that it rained all day. I have seen many a Kraków skyline, …

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Packing for Poland

In preparing to leave for Poland, remember to pack two important items: 1) Peter Hayes, Why?  Explaining the Holocaust 2) Patrick Desbois, The Holocaust by Bullets  

The Thrill of Travel

I’ve always loved travel. In fact, when I was a kid, I use to pack up a nap sack and sit on my bed pretending it was an airplane taking me somewhere. I don’t even really mind airplanes…they get me places. I do look forward to traveling with Tom and the students on this trip. …

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A Pre-Trip Reflection

One of the things I look forward to most on this trip is spending the day with the faculty from Yahad-in Unum to visit previously unknown killing sites. I am aware that the scope and the scale of the Holocaust goes well beyond established killing sites, so this will be a rare opportunity to expand my …

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Yom HaShoah

On Yom HaShoah please remember the life of Esther Ferstenfeld.  Esther died at Birkenau in the fall of 1942.   She was only 16 years old.  May her life be bound for eternity with the bonds of life she created in her own time and in our time as we remember her.  May her memory always …

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