Havra Sokagi (Synagogue Street)
- January 25, 2004
- Rated 4 of 5 by
linet from Eindhoven, Netherlands
Street no 927 is named ‘Havra sokagi’, or the “street of synagogues.” When there were no supermarkets in Izmir, we would buy our cheese, olives, meat products, pickles, and many other food and beverages right in this street. There is still a devoted local population that prefers to shop here. Just on this street alone, there are five synagogues (my grandmother used to tell me that there were seven, but I could only count five):
Senyora (no. 7), Shalom (no. 38-C; open only on Saturday mornings), Algazi (no. 8) Nevrano (no. 23), and Kadosh Mizrahi (no. 73; open only on Saturday mornings). Ask the local shop owners. Due to the fact that there are fewer Jewish families living in Izmir compared to a hundred years ago, most of the synagogues are not being used. Most Jews in Izmir still speak old version of Spanish, Sefardin.
From journal Unknown places of Izmir