The Jewish communities of Lithuania, Belarus, and Ukraine

9 days/ 8 nights

Day 1/ Vilnius
Arrival at Vilnius. After check-in at the hotel, walking tour of medieval Jewish Vilnius, Jewish ghetto, former site of Vilna Gaon, the Great Synagogue of Vilnius, and the Strashun Library. A visit to the Vilnius Gaon Jewish State Museum.

Day 2/ Trakai - Kaunas - Vilijampole
A visit to Trakai, Lithuanian resort area and the place of residence of Karaite Jewish community of Lithuania. We will visit the Karaite synagogue (Kenesa) and museum. Enjoy wonderful view of the 14th century Trakai Castle. A visit to old Jewish quarter in Kaunas, the house of R. Yisrael Salanter (d. 1883), synagogues, and the Japanese consulate in Kaunas where Chiune Sugihara saved about 8,000 Jewish lives. A visit to the site of Vilijampole yeshiva; graves of R. Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor (d. 1896) and R. Avraham Dov Ber Kahana Shapiro (d. 1943) in Aleksotas. The tour is continued at the Ninth Fort, where R. Elchanan Wasserman was martyred in 1941, together with approximately 70,000 Jews. Return to Vilnius.

Day 3/ Panevezys - Siauliai - Telsiai - Kelme
A visit to Panevezys, where the yeshiva established in 1919 by R. Yosef Kahanamen (d. 1969) still stands. Passing Siauliai, once a great Torah centre, where R. Yosef Zechariah Stern (d. 1903) served as Chief Rabbi, on the way to Telsiai. A visit to Telsiai, where R. Eliezer Gordon (d. 1910) served as Chief Rabbi and Rosh Yeshiva of Telsiai yeshiva. Telsiai yeshiva building and grave of R. Yosef Leib Bloch (d. 1930), son-in-law and successor of R. Eliezer Gordon, are visited.  The tour is continued in Kelme, where the "Kelmer Maggid" R. Moshe Yitzchok Darshan (d. 1899) served as Maggid and where R. Simchah Zissel Ziev (d. 1898) established the famous Musar yeshiva. Return to Vilnius.

Day 4/ Snipiskes - Uzupis - Paneriai
A visit to Snipiskes, cite of the old Jewish cemetery of Vilnius (1487-1830), where R. Moshe Rivkes (d. 1672), R. Shlomo Zalman (d. 1788), brother of R. Hayyim of Valozhyn and R. Avaraham Danzig (d. 1820) were buried. The tour is continued at Uzupis Jewish cemetery (1830-1940), where R. Shmuel Strashun (the "Reshash"; d. 1872), R. Matisyahu Strashun (d. 1885) and R. Baruch Ber Leibowitz (d. 1939) were buried. Then the tour leads to the present cemetery, where the graves of the Vilna Gaon (d. 1797), R. Itzel Ponoviezer (d. 1919) and R. Hayyim Ozer Grodzenski (d. 1940) are visited. A visit to Paneriai Memorial and Museum. The tour is continued at Paneriai, forest and resort area just outside Vilnius, where most of 80,000 Jews of Vilnius were executed by the Nazis during the Holocaust. Karaite synagogue of Vilnius, then the Romm Publishing Company, where the Vilna Shas was published, are visited. Services at Vilnius Choral Synagogue or the Chabad House.

Day 5/ Vilnius
All services at Vilnius Choral Synagogue or Chabad House. Afternoon walk to visit the grave of R. Yisrael Salanter (d. 1883) in Uzupis and of R. Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz (d. 1953) in Paplauja.

Day 5/ Vilnius - Hrodna - Radun - Valozhyn - Minsk
Leaving for Belarus. At Hrodna the Great Synagogue and the graves of R. Alexander Susskind (d. 1793) and R. Shimon Shkop (d. 1940) are visited. The tour is continued at Radun, where the yeshiva building is visited as well as the grave of R. Yisrael Meir Ha-Kohen (d. 1933). A visit to Valozhyn, where yeshiva building, antique houses and cemetery are still standing. A visit to the grave of R. Hayyim of Valozhyn (d. 1821). Leaving for Minsk.

Day 6/ Minsk - Mir - Kletsk - Baranovitch - Slonim
A visit to the yeshiva building and the grave of the R. Yeruchem Levovitz (d. 1936) at Mir. The tour is continued at Kletsk, where the site related to R. Aharon Kotler (d. 1962) is visited. At Baranovitch the site related to R. Elchanan Wasserman (d. 1941) is visited. Then the tour leads to Slonim, where the remains of the Great Synagogue of Slonim are visited. Return to Minsk.

Day 7/ Kiev - Haditch
After hotel check-in, leaving Kiev by coach for Haditch, where R. Shneur Zalman (d. 1813), disciple of R. Dov Baer the Maggid of Mezhiretch, and founder of Chabad, is buried.  Optional tour of non-Jewish Kiev for those who prefer to spend the day in Kiev.

Day 8/ Uman - Mezibush - Berdychiv - Kiev
A visit to Uman, where R. Nachman of Breslov (d. 1810), great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, lived and taught. The tour is continued at Mezibush, where R. Israel Baal Shem (1700-1760), founder of the Hasidic movement, is buried. Next to him rest his grandsons, R. Barukh (known as R. Borukhel; d. 1811) and R. Moshe Hayyim Ephraim (d. 1800). R. Abraham Joshua Heschel (d. 1825) of Opatov also rest near. The tour is continued at Berdychiv, where R. Levi Yitzchak (d. 1810) is buried. A visit to the main synagogue and cemetery. Return to Kiev.

Day 9/ Kiev
A visit to Babi Yar, where over 100,000 persons, the vast majority of them Jews, were liquidated by the Nazis. The authorities of the Soviet Union suppressed the fact that Jews were martyred at Babi Yar. In 1961, however, Yevgeny Yevtushenko, a non-Jewish Russian poet, courageously published his poem titled "Babi Yar", in which he openly memorialized the Jewish martyrdom at Babi Yar, denouncing Russian anti-Semitism.
Leaving Kiev.