So, here I am sitting in one of the oldest churches in Eastern Europe waiting for midnight mass to begin. Of course, because I am Jewish and from New York, I began my evening with dinner at the Four Season’s Hotel and got to the church early to insure a good seat (we are in the third row). It is 11:10 and the place is mobbed. The city we are in still shows signs of abuse and neglect from years of war. The elder people living here show emotions of tragedy and despair. The younger people here, unaware of what life was like for prior generations, wear American sneakers and have MP3 players. (There are not too many Ipods. Although there is a huge Apple store on the main shopping street, the price is 50% higher than in the States.) The city although dreary in atmosphere, has an air of elegance and great glimmers of modernization. I am sad being here in a place were my ancestors were destroyed. I am in awe of this place because it has been destroyed and rebuilt so many times in this century.
I walk through palaces that are now museums and peak into temples that are now apartments. I watch teenage boys skate board around squares that were erected centuries ago.

     I am in a mix of old and new here. Still I feel the new will never be able to shake the old here. It is a place of old beauty that has been crumbled and a place trying desperately to become westernized Tomorrow, I spend the day with an American friend who has lived here for the past 16 years. He has promised to take me on a tour of the latest developments and rehabbed neighborhoods. Apparently, there is a lot of Canadian money invested in the developments here. I will report back in a few days For now, I wish you the happiest of holidays.