Floating Tram in Wuppertal, Germany and Visit Engels House Museum, Communist Manifesto Creation

 The floating tram is in Wuppertal, Germany, on the north coast of the country.

The name Wuppertal comes from the river Wupper. Tal means dale.

Let's start with where is it. North Germany.

The city has steep streets, green parks including a sculpture park, and several architecturally interesting modern buildings.

Steep Streets

Green Parks - Sculpture

A memorable landmark in the colourful figure of eight, flat roof, junior university building. 

The orange tower.

The Lawrence Church

Church, Germany.

The swimming pool

Swimming pool, Germany.

Ilisenturm

Elisenturm, Wuppertal, Germany.

Engel's House

Photo and caption from Manos in Wikipedia.

A museum you can visit. Very opulent, capitalist looking house. 

Family home, of Friedrich Engels, who jointly with Marx wrote the Communist manifesto in the swan restaurant in Brussels, Belgium.

Another modern building, the New Burgische Synagogue.

The city is twinned with the Shonan monoril in Japan.

Shonan monorail, Japan. 

You can find monorails worldwide, in Singapore, and East London in England. But the suspended monorails look more challenging for the builders - and nervous  passengers!

Pina Bauch Dance Theatre

Pina Bausch was famous for her dance groups which improvised and did unusual theatre. One well-known performance had the dancers with blindfolds. Dancers served tea from trays to the front row of the audience. 

Her groups performed worldwide, including ain the cultural Olympics fbefore the Olypic games. Other danced in a forest of leaves falling about them, or on soil underfoot. After she died, the group continued.

More information from

Useful Websties

Suspended railway in Wuppertal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuppertal_Schwebebahn?

Visit Engels House in Wuppertal, Germany

https://www.mi-wuppertal.de/en/news/guided-tour-engels-garden#:~:text=After%20the%20guided%20tour%2C%20you,is%20included%20in%20the%20price.

Wikipedia Wuppertal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuppertal

Monorail in Japan

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Shonan_Monorail

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Surprising Secret Art Nouveau City in Serbia

 I had reached the letter S for Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia, languages sharing the Slavic languages written in Cyrrilic, like Russian. I, was delighted with my discovery of the Nicholas Tesla Museum in Serbia's capital, Belgrade. My search for landmakrs for my slides led me to the Western and Eastern gates , next on to Serbian tourism and architecture. Then I hit gold - art nouveau buildings in the less well known city of Subotica.

Art mouveau synagogue in the Serbian city of Subotica. 

The city is full of art nouveau. 

From Wiki exterior with sunny day colours. Author in Serbian Cyrrillic below. 

Ванилица

Subotica is north of Serbia's caital city, Belgrade, towards the border with Hungary.. 

Menwhile,  back on the web

check out

Interfaith Worship Spaces - where are they?

USA

When my family lived in the USA we were invited to meetings in a buidling which was a symagogue on Saturday and a church on Sunday. As the congregation left after a service, the the last person to leave was the minister bringing up the rear. He surreptitiously turned the signboard. The signboard was rotated to show the name of the other congregation.

What were the advantages? Nothing to do with co-operation. Sheer economics. It halved the cost of the meeting place for both communities. It halved the cost of building. Repairs. Cleaning. Cutting the grass. Paying the local taxes. 

It halved the cost of any caretaker or security device. It reduced the chance of vandalism by switching the identity. Also it ensured the building was kept in use. People coming and going. Not left empty. 

Both groups had cupboards to store books and artifacts. Curtains could be drawn, adorned with suitable symbols. The board outside announced the name of your congregation or the venue for your event. 

Until you saw the signboard turn, you had no idea. It was surreal. Like something out of a Kafka dream. Or a TV comedy.

The congregations could meet jointly for events. They, the priest and rabbi, and committees, could meet administratively to discuss practical matters such as repairs and decoration and maintenance.

ABU DHABI 

In 2023 in Abu Dhabi another type of project was produced. Three buildings, a mosque, a church, and a synagogue, form a unified complex. 

SPAIN

Cathedral–Mosque of Córdoba, Initially a pagan worship place, then converted into church and then, the Umayyad Moors built a mosque on the site, which is now reconverted into a Christian cathedral.

Useful Websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interfaith_worship_spaces

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abrahamic_Family_House

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosque%E2%80%93Cathedral_of_C%C3%B3rdoba

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Conversion_of_non-Christian_religious_buildings_and_structures_into_churches

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianized_sites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synagogue_of_El_Tr%C3%A1nsito

Please share links to this post and your other favourite posts on my blogs.

Notice The Hanukiah outside the synagogue, Waterloo Street, Singapore

 

Hanukiah outside the Synagogue, Waterloo Street, Singapore. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

The lights on the nine branch candelabra are not lit. Not because it is early in the evening. You can see the lights behind the stained glasss windows. But because I took this photo in November 2022. I was on my way to the meeting of Braddell Heights Advanced toastmasters International speakers' club, which meets in the offices above the food court in Waterloo street.

The synagogue is conveniently next to the MRT train station, Bras Basah.

Useful Websites

Angela's other posts

Wikipedia hanukah

MRT

Synagogue

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maghain_Aboth_Synagogue

Ukraine's Christian and Jewish Landmarks. Sophia Cathedral, Caves Cathedral, Egg Museum, Menorah Synagogue, Museum and Hotel complex

 

Ironically, now that there is a war in Ukraine and tourists cannot visit it, we are all curious about the geography of the country and the landmarks we can no longer see except on websites. Meanwhile, to satisfy your curiosity, here are some of the tourist sites.

Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, is recognizable from its green and gold cupola rooftops. They are also known as onion domes.

The cathedral has been featured on a postage stamp.

Cave Monastery, Kiev

This has caves and monks. Kiev monastery of the caves is a complex containing a cathedral was well as a church.

Cathedral within the monastery of the caves.
 Eastern Orthodox. A UNESCO World Heritage site.

The Wikipedia page lists the other cathedrals in Ukraine, including two more in Kiev, two in Lviv, one in Odessa and more.

Easter Egg Museum

You may think of Easter eggs as an Easter item, or as secular, pagan or cultural items, whichever, they are beautiful easter eggs at the Easter egg decoration museum, which has a novelty egg construction.

Dnipro has one of the world's largest Jewish complexes, housing two hotels, a four star hotel, a basic hotel, a kosher restaurant, a museum and a synagogue. The complex can house conferences and weddings.

The seven oblong towers represent the seven branches of the menorah, a candlestick with seven branches representing the seven days of the week.

This is clearer when you look at the model.

Useful Websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Sophia_Cathedral,_Kyiv

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyiv_Pechersk_Lavra

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg_Museum

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menorah_center,_Dnipro

The New Jewish Museum of Singapore opened December 2021

Maghain Aboth Synagogue, Singapore. The name means shield of our fathers.  Notice the six point star at the top of the building and the Hebrew writing which you read from right to left. The Russian and almost identical Bulgarian Cyrillic alphabets were designed by the two Greek orthodox priests who were brothers, one called Cyril. Their Cyrillic alphabets turned the letters around so you could write from left to write. Now you know why some Russian and Cyrillic letters seem to be back to front. That was how writing the alphabet started. 

The museum is in Waterloo Street, near two MRT stations. The nearest is Bras Basah CC2. 

One block away is Ben Coolen MRT railway station on the Downtown line, DT21. Print the street map, or at the ticket office before leaving the station, ask for the Singapore Art Museum.

 Entry to the Jewish Museum is free, but you must book. On the booking form you have to give your name and NRIC (national identity card) number.

The Museum is in the Jacob Ballas building, next door to the Maghain Aboth synagogue, completed 1878, and diagonally opposite the Singapore Art Museum.

The centre also has a kosher food shop. Check the opening hours.

Famous Jewish Singaporeans include 

1 Jacob Ballas, who was the donor for the building. first chairman of the Malayan Stock exchange, later the Malaysia and Singapore stock exchange.

2 Lawyer Harry Elias - set up the criminal legal aid system

3 Surgeon Yahya Cohen

Sir Manasseh Meyer

4 Sir Manasseh Meyer who built the second synagogue Chesed-el, next to his house. It opened in 1905. It has white marble floors, has a white interior, and white exterior, contrasting with green trees.

The synagogue on Waterloo street contains a Mikveh, Jewish ritual bath for women, used complete submersion after the end of menstruation before resuming marital relations with the husband. I saw this on a guided tour organized by either Friends of the Museum or the Women's Association of the British club or the American club or the Australian club. I was active in all of these, and writers groups and British Council meetings, in my early days in Singapore, before joining Toastmasters International.

Wiki reveals:

Together with three other wealthy Jews, Meyer bought a large piece of land in Moulmein Road for $5,407.12 for the Jewish Cemetery. Meyer also bought the adjoining piece of land for $8,681.40 and, after reserving a plot for himself and his second wife, Rebecca, presented it to the community. His wife Rebecca died in 1915.

the lawyer

5 David Marshall, first chief minister of Singapore.

David Marshall born 1908, studied law in the UK.

Fascinating book about the David Marshall trials. He saved a little girl from being hanged.

I met his widow at a lunch. I asked her if it was true that he had won every case. Not exactly, she told me. 'Some he won, but lost on appeal. Some he lost, but won on appeal.'

Whilst visiting the Jewish Museum, see the Singapore Art Museum.

Jewish Museum

24 Waterloo Street,

Singapore 187968

Opening times

Open Sunday to 

Thursday 10-6

Friday morning 12-1

Closed on Saturday and Jewish festivals.

Email

jewsofsingapore@jwb.org.sg

Chesed-El synagogue, Oxley Rise, Singapore

Useful Websites

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/first-jewish-museum-in-singapore-opens-in-waterloo-street

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/singapore-jewish-community-has-deep-roots-stretching-back-to-1819

https://singaporejews.com/museum/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Singaporean_Jews

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maghain_Aboth_Synagogue

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/singapore-virtual-jewish-history-tour

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manasseh_Meyer

Inter Religious Organization, founded 1949

https://iro.sg/judaism/

ART MUSEUM

https://www.facebook.com/singaporeartmuseum

https://www.singaporeartmuseum.sg/art-events/exhibitions/the-explorer-project

Singapore Art Museum

Jan 14 2022 a new branch will open in the Tanjong Pagar Distripark.

Getting there

Bencoolen on the downtown Line. 

SBS Transit - 1800 287 2727.

About the Author of this blog, Author Angela Lansbury

BIOGRAPHY

Angela Lansbury B A Hons ACG ALB PM5 EH5 DL5 VC5 
The Author of several books, including: Etiquette For Every Occasion. Wedding Speeches & Toasts. How to be the Best Man. Quick Quotations. Who Said What When.

Blogs travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters Speakers Club Vice President Public Relations (VPPR), Previous President

Join BHA 1st Wednesday 7pm and 3rd Saturday 2 pm Singapore time 

Vice President Public Relations (VP PR) of Tampines Changkat Advanced;

Secretary of weekly online Singapore International Dynamic Toastmasters Speakers’ Club;

Member and past president of Harrovians toastmasters club, UK; Past member of HOD Toastmasters, London. Past member in Singapore of: Toastmasters Club of Singapore (TCS); Tiarel; and Senja Cashew.

More details from Toastmasters International find a club.

Regular attendee at annual Swanwick Writers’ School, England.

Regular attendee at annual Writers’ Holiday, Wales.

Contributor to poetry readings, and after tea courses on: Speaking On Radio To Promote Books; and Plots And Character.

Winner of many club and area speaking contests in the UK and Singapore.

Language advisor to Empire Toastmasters club in Indonesia.

Language and speech workshops in Singapore.

Speaker on radio and TV in England, Scotland, the USA, and Australia.

Compiler of a school course on public speaking for teachers to prepare pupils for school open days with attending ceremonies before government ministers, Singapore.

Former member of Harrow Writers’ Circle, London, and two writing groups in Singapore.

Angela is on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter. She would be delighted to link up with new friends.

I  also have a blog on comic poems.

 Please share links to your favourite posts. 

Secrets of the synagogue in Synagogue Street in Singapore

Magain Aboth synagogue. For details of photo go to Wikipedia.

The top site for colourful photos of the synagogue in Singapore is the Long and Winding Road website, promoting the Secrets of Singapore book.

The Mikvah

 I have visited the synagogue several times, once on a tour organized by Friends of The Museum, which included a side trip to the mikvah. (A mikvah is a ritual sunken bath with running water for women).

 I also visited with the family on a Saturday morning where I witnessed a bar mitzvah when ladies threw wrapped boiled sweets from the ladies' gallery. (Later, throwing items was banned on health and safety grounds.)

 I visited again for a Friday night service and dinner (after paying in advance so as not to exchange money on the sabbath). I wanted to try out some recipes and compare the Sephardi (Spanish and Southern and Asian style cuisine, which features more rice) compared to Ahskenazi cuisine (German and northern European and western European, Russian and Ukrainian style, more popular in London, England, featuring potatoes such as latkes and  dumplings.) So I went back yet again to see the kosher food shop. 

Jacob Ballas And Blue Stained Glass

What I missed on my previous tours and visits was the wonderful blue stained glass in the reading room of the Jacob Ballas centre, named after the stockbroker who built it. He also donated  a swing for children in the Jacob Ballas Children's Garden in the Botanical Gardens, one of the national parks of Singapore - which is free to visit.

When I look up synagogue street on the internet I get Synagogue street in Norwich England. That's news to me. But what I am searching for is Synagogue street in Singapore. 

Useful websites

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1791756220849507&type=3

https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/jacob-ballas-childrens-garden

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/singapore-virtual-jewish-history-tour

What to see in Gibraltar

Gibraltar,  the rock is easily identified in profile, sheer on one side, more gently sloping on the other side.


Flag of Spain

When we had a flat in Spain a popular side trip was to Gibraltar. Gibraltar has long been of strategic importance, guarding the entrance to the Mediterranean.




UK flag

 Gibraltar is popular with British visitors. But also has sites of interest to all.
Flag of Gibraltar.

The flag is white in the upper half which does not show up against a white background. You can copy it into a photo edit programme and put a border around it. Or look for a flag flying against a blue sky or other coloured background.

Gibraltar

What to see
The 'monkeys'. Actually Barbary macaques.

Signs in Singapore forbid you to feed monkeys because the wild animals later grab bags from other tourists and families visiting the area and the monkeys get irate when they find bags contain no food.

You can also do a dolphin safari.


General tour including the citadel.

Religious Buildings
You have a church, a synagogue and a mosque. Take your pick. Visit one or all.
See the outside, the inside if you know when it is open and who is permitted to enter.
Gibraltar has four synagogues, all orthodox, and you can see the interiors in Wikipedia.


Gibraltar Hindu temple, interior


.
Gibraltar mosque. Exterior.



The Great Synagogue, one of four synagogues.

Hotels
Must see the Rock Hotel.



The Rock Hotel, Gibraltar



The Rock Hotel, Gibraltar

I remember ordering coffee in the lounge. I asked for brown sugar. They brought the brown sugar. The next day, without being asked, the waiter brought me the brown sugar.

We visited for coffee and a meal on one occasion.

Later we stayed there one New Year's Eve. You could watch the fireworks out in the sea.

My family in the UK this month included a couple went to their relative's flat in southern Spain. A cheap holiday. They also have family members from Morocco. You can take trips from Gibraltar over to Morocco.

Spain is very popular with the Brits. Not just the multi millionaires with yachts. All kinds of people with all kinds of budgets. My window cleaner bought a property in Spain.

Side trips around Spain could include Seville. The city of Seville is capital of Andalucia in Southern Spain. Attractions include the landmark Giralda tower.

Entertainment includes flamenco dancing. Yes, you can dance at a distance for an audience.

Useful Websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibraltar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Gibraltar
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibraltar
https://wikitravel.org/en/Gibraltar
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Gibraltar
https://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/SmartDeals-g187510-Gibraltar-Hotel-Deals.html
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/spain/entry-requirements
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/gibraltar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synagogues_of_Gibraltar

OK, so you can go. Which airlines will take you?
https://www.skyscanner.com.sg/flights-to/es/airlines-that-fly-to-spain.html

About the author, Angela Lansbury

I and my family have lived in the UK, Spain, the USA and Singapore. I am a travel writer and photographer and teacher of English A level and English as a foreign language.

Please come to a Toastmasters International Club where the English clubs have a language evaluator or grammarian.  We also have French, German, Mandarin Chinese, Tamil and other language clubs based in Singapore and many more online around the world which because of Covid-19 are now meeting online.

I am President of Braddell Heights Advanced, meeting the first Wednesday of the month, Usually on Zoom. But the other Wednesdays have workshops on app learncool.sg

Incoming president Faith from Wed July 15th 2020 change dates and platforms so please contact the club.

Latest is only two meetings each month.

For meetings learncool it is quicker to type and easier to remember: 

 tinyurl.com/BHACOOL

Useful Websites On Speaking and Languages

https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
translate.google.com
duolingo.com

https://www.duolingo.com/enroll/vi/en/Learn-Vietnamese

https://www.facebook.com/groups/polygotcommunity/

Other Useful Posts By Angela Lansbury Author

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogs

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2020/07/where-you-see-six-point-star-of-david.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/04/how-to-say-thank-you-in-several.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/05/introducing-yourself-in-english-spanish.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2020/01/second-set-of-portuguese-words.html 

Please share links to your favourite posts

Hunukiah and Menorah at Synagogue in Singapore

I was walking down Waterloo Street with a friend to act as visiting Toastmaster of the Evening at a Catholic Club. Only a few feet from Bras Basah station I saw this Hanukiah.

What - surely Hanukah is over? I had previously see a magnificent large Hanukiah on Orchard Road which I wrote about in a previous post. yes, Hanukkah is over, so no lights lit.


Singapore. Hanukiah.

I counted carefully. Yes, the Hanukiah was indeed a hanukiah. It had supports for nine candles.

I was also lucky to see the superb stained glass windows, lit from the lights inside. On the stained glass on the right I spotted another candelabra. I counted carefully. That was the seven branch menorah, lit on the sabbath, seven for the seven days of the week.

About the author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer. Author and speaker.
See my earlier post about the hanukiah in Orchard road and the number of candles, 44, to light one.

Jewish History And Landmarks In Singapore

Magain Aboth synagogue on Waterloo Street.
Photo by Gaurav from Flickr, on Wikipedia.

When I first came to Singapore I joined the Friends of The Museum and with them took a tour of the local synagogues. We saw the synagogue on Waterloo Street, the mikvah (ritual bath) and the shop selling kosher food.




Later I joined a book group which studied all the minority groups and I did a presentation on the Jews of Singapore.

At a public dinner for a woman's association attached to one of the expat clubs I found myself sitting next to the widow of the late David Marshall, Singapore's first Chief Minister. I read a book about him and how we won nearly all his court cases defending people accused of murder. A friend of mine in Singapore who was a lawyer told me that David Marshall had won all his law cases for murder. I asked Mrs Marshall if it was true. She said yes, and no. Some cases he won were lost on appeal. other he lost were won on appeal.

Wikipedia said he won 99 out of 100 cases. And that because of this, the esteemed Lee Kwan Yew, who was in favour of the death penalty, and abolished the jury service in 1969.

The David Marshall trial story I remember is that of a little girl who 'hid' the baby she was babysitting in a well. As I remember or mis-remember this vivid story, he showed in court that she did not understand the concept of death being permanent, unlike sleep. She was hoping that when the baby was found safe and sound she would be rewarded for finding the baby, rewarded with an egg. She had seen the family eating eggs regularly, (every day?) but never had a chance to eat an egg.

I have followed his story with interest. Since the only picture Wikipedia can provide shows
David with a pipe in his mouth, I am not surprised to learn that he died of lung cancer.

This bust of David Marshall in in SMU, Singapore Management University.

Singapore Landmarks

Note that the six point star, known to Jews as the star of David, is also used as the Seal of Solomon by Muslims. The six point star is referred to in Hebrew as Magan/Magain David, star of David or Shield of David.

🔯

Some stories say it is based on or similar to a contemporary or older star which was supposed to catch the devil or misdeeds within the points of the star. We could argue about what it represents 'until the cows come home'.

David Elias Building with stars. Photo by Liadmalone in wikipedia.

Finally, the most well known landmarks in Singapore are Marina Bay Sands 


Marina Bay Sands


and the giant multi-storey waterfall in the centre of Jewell shopping mall in Changi airport. both by architect Safdie.


Waterfall at Jewell, Changi Airport, Singapore.

• The David Marshall trials by Alex Josey( Book )
• David Marshall's political interlude by Alex Josey( Book )

https://www.amazon.com/David-Marshall-Trials-Alex-Jossey/dp/9812616217

A sensation of independence : a political biography of David Marshall by Heng Chee Chan( Book )

Marshall of Singapore : a biography by Kevin Tan( )

Letters from Mao's China by David Marshall( Book )

• Letters from Mao’s China. (1996). (By David Marshall) Singapore: Singapore Heritage Society.(Call no.: RSING 951.05 MAR)
• Singapore’s struggle for nationhood 1945–59. (1971). Singapore: University Education Press. (Call no.: RSEA 959. 57024 MAR-[HIS])
• Edwards, N., & Keys, P. (1988). 
• Singapore: A guide to buildings, streets, places. Singapore: Times Books International, p. 261. (Call no.: RSING 915.957 EDW-[TRA])2. Bieder, J. (2007). 
• The Jews of Singapore. Singapore: Suntree Media, p. 53. (Call no.: RSING 959.57004924 BIE-[HIS])
• Eze Nathan’s The History of Jews in Singapore 1830-1945

Articles

Wikipedia David Marshall
infopedia.nl.sg
remembersingaporewordpress.com
singaporejews.com
http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_283_2005-01-13.html
https://expatliving.sg/touring-singapores-jewish-cultural-and-historical-contribution/

About the Author

Angela Lansbury