At the yeshiva high school where I studied when I was young, the curriculum included study of the book "Seder HaVikuach", in which Nachmanides (Ramban),  a renowned medieval Rabbinic authority describes a religious debate he conducted in Barcelona in 1263. This disputation was a coerced debate forced upon him by the King James of Aragon regarding whether or not Jesus was the Messiah, with the Christian view represented by Dominican Friar Pablo Christiani, a convert from Judaism.  This theological debate continued for three days, after which the Ramban returned to his home in Girona. Today, the trip from Barcelona to Girona takes 38 minutes on an express train, but in those days, the trip took two days by foot. When the Ramban finally arrived home, he found that the local bishop issued a false statement, stating that he had lost the debate, and therefore all Jews of the town must convert to Christianity

In order to refute this assertion, Ramban recorded a protocol of the debate, the "Seder HaVikuach". The reconstruction of the arguments and counterarguments of the debate made the position of the bishop untenable. In his anger, he wanted to kill the Ramban and as a result, the Ramban fled from Girona to Israel at age 73.

Ramban mentions his town of Girona only once in his writings, referring only to the town’s Jewish cemetery in the "Mount of the Jews" (Montjuic). Before he left, his followers and friends told him "You are not young, how can we know when should to recite Kaddish on you?" He replied: "Go to my mother's grave in Montjuic. When you'll notice that the Menorah on the gravestone had cracked or broke in the middle, you will know that I too am gone forever. "         i

The Jewish legacy

In the Middle Ages, Girona was known, in the Hebrew idiom, as "a city and mother in Israel". In the old city of Girona there is still a Jewish Quarter, which is known in Catalan as "El Call". The name is derived the Hebrew word "Kahal" (Audience).  In it, there were synagogues, Jewish schools, ritual baths, butcheries, bakeries, and all that was needed to lead a Jewish life.

The Jewish Quarter is adjacent to the picturesque river Onyar, with many bridges via which we can enter the Old City. The “Stone Bridge” takes us to the southern end of the Call. From there we turn left into an alley that will lead us to the heart of the Call, through La Praca Alley

Girona's Call Tour is like a journey through a time tunnel to the Middle Ages, during the Golden Age of Sephardic Jewry. Some of the houses are 800-900 years old. The narrow alleys in the quarter are reminiscent of the Old City of Jerusalem, or Old Acre (but cleaner).                i

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Here lived some of the most important Rabbis in history – "the Rishonim" (“the early ones”), many of whose works are printed in the back of of contemporary Talmudic texts (Shas). These famed Rabbis were often referred to by their initials. In addition to the Ramban (Rabbi Moshe Ben Nachman) and his cousin (and later also his son-in-law), Rabbi Yonah Girondi, author of "Sha'arei Teshuva", the Rashba (Rabbi Shlomo Ben Aderet), the Ran (Rabbi Nissim Girundi) and the Raviah (Rabbi Aharon ben Yosef HaLevi), are included in addition to many other scholars of Talmud and Kabbalah. They lived in Girona in the 1100’s through the 1400’s, and their influence on Jewish scholarship and culture worldwide continues to this day. They were born in the Call, grew up here, played as children in the alleys where we are walking, and their eyes saw the same sights we see today . Here they went to school, to the synagogue and the study hall. Here they wrote their books, which are today studied by tens of thousands of Yeshiva students

The Jewish quarter of Girona is a delightful place to stroll and to concentrate on the sights and smells. In the small gardens of the houses there is green vegetation that climbs the walls and tree trunks. We stand in the Jewish quarter, close our eyes, breathe deeply and detect the gentle smell of damp soil: exactly as experienced by our ancestors. Walking in these alleyways is like reading between the lines of Talmudic texts books. Most exciting!               i

The Museum of Jewish History

The Museum of Jewish History is located at La Praca 8. It is housed in a building built on the ruins of the Girona main synagogue. On the floor of the museum's threshold there is a small copper stone inscribed with the word "Sepharad". Through the "Sepharad" project, Jewish heritage sites have been renewed in about 20 villages and towns throughout Spain. This museum is also part of this great project. The museum has 11 galleries dedicated to various Jewish topics. There are tools and objects found during renovations of houses that belonged to Jews prior to the Jewish expulsion from Spain in 1492, alongside ancient Torah scrolls. One of the halls is dedicated to the display of ancient tombstones with Hebrew inscriptions

         

The exhibition reveals that among the Jews of Girona in the Middle Ages were scientists, philosophers, writers and poets known worldwide. Many of the astronomers of the time were Jews from Girona. They made maps, calendars and astronomical charts that were distributed throughout Europe. The construction of compasses and navigation devices for ships was considered a specific 'Jewish expertise'. In one of the halls of the museum, the "Atlas of Catalonia" which has been drawn by two Jews, takes up an entire wall. It is considered to be the most detailed and updated map of the world in the Middle Ages. The Jews were also prominent in the fields of pharmaceuticals, medicine and law. The doctor of the royal family was the Ramban. Rabbi Nachum Flora was the personal physician of Queen Savile Fortier. The Ran was a judge in the Medical Court

Many Jews engaged in banking. The wealthiest of them worked only in banking, but the majority were also merchants and shopkeepers, who also lent money one the side. The municipal archive contains documents detailing huge loans granted by Jews between 1311 and 1361. Among the lenders were also Jewish women. The most active one was Bonifilah, daughter of Astrc Rabia

All the spiritual and material wealth of Girona and Catalonia ended abruptl ywith the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492. The Jews took with them some of their material possessions, their spiritual heritage and collective memories

In 2000, the Museum of Jewish History was inaugurated in Girona, managed by Mrs. Silvia Planas. Although she is not Jewish, she surprised me by the extent of her knowledge of Judaism and Halakha and the books written by the Ramban

The Museum offers explanations in four languages: Catalan, Spanish, French and English, but not in Hebrew! When I complained to the manager, she said that since most visitors come from Spain and France, the museum is organized accordingly. However, an audio guided tour is available in Hebrew as well

The museum is very popular worldwide, especially among tourists and students and researchers. Every year, a group of students from Yeshiva University in New York arrive for a two-month "work camp", where they help decipher medieval documents in the city archives, and try to glean information about Jewish life from that time

Continue the Call Tour

The synagogue had a Mikveh, that has been exposed and restored

One of the interesting things to note about the synagogue are its various entrances. There was one separate entrance through the "Men's Street" that still exists today. Another entrance was about 50 meters away and was called "Women's Street". Today the Women's Street is blocked, part of the garden of the Jewish museum. The separation of the sexes reflects the adherence to the rules of modesty in that time. Incidentally, several scenes in the television series "Games of Thrones" were filmed in the "Men's Street", where the look of the Middle Ages is authentically preserved

      

The Men's street           and      The Women's Street

At the head of Men's Street there is a private residence called "The Last Rabbi's House". In its garden there is a well, built of stones containing Mezuzah slots. Archaeologists suggest that the last rabbi wanted to preserve Judaism before he left,  building this well with hope that Jews would return to Girona, or at least that others would discover the special stones and understand what was once here. According to another version of this story, this well was built by someone who invaded a Jewish home after the expulsion of Jews from Spain, dismantled the building stones and used them to build the well, without understanding the significance of the Mezuzah slots. The entrance to the house is locked by an iron gate, and it is impossible to enter and to see the well. If we are lucky, perhaps the owner will be there when we arrive, and will agree to open the gate for us

Mrs. Sylvia Planas says that sometimes she hears tour guides misleading their listeners when they point out specific buildings in the Call as the Ramban’s house or his yeshiva. Based on her research, it is impossible to know where individual families lived, because when the Jews were expelled, gentiles took over their homes, with no record of prior ownership of properties

Chabad House

At the end of Praca Street is the northern entrance to the Call. One building before the last one on the left is Beit Chabad, located in a building that once belonged to the Abuhav family. One of its sons, Rabbi Yitzchak Abuhav, is the author of the book "Menorat HaMaor". On the day I visited there, Jewish visitors recited the well-known “prayer of the Shlah", because the holy rabbi known as the Shlah (named after his book, the Shnei Luchot Habrit) wrote in the 15th century that Rabbi Yitzchak Abuhav was one of his forefathers. (And I might add: one of my forefathers too, because my family tree reaches back to the holy Shlah. So I am also a descendant of the inhabitants of Girona). Therefore, I was very excited to pray "the prayer of the Shlah" in his own family home

Before my trip to Catalonia, Israeli researchers of Spanish Jews told me that nowadays there are no Jews left in Girona. In contrast, the Chabad Shaliah (emissary) in Girona, Rabbi Avraham Rosenberg, says that some 150 Jews live in Girona and its suburbs. Most of them are senior citizens, who were not born in Girona, but emigrated from Russia, with some from the United States, France, and Argentina. "Almost every week someone stops me in the street and says, "I'm a Jew too!". There is no organized Jewish community in Girona, and the Jews do not know each other. A few of them add "The only mezuzah in Girona is in my house". Each one thinks he is the last Jew in Girona

Rabbi Rosenberg arrived in Girona three years ago, and since then he has been trying to establish a Jewish community. He invites the local Jews to the house of Chabad, for prayers and parties during Jewish holidays. Most of them put on Tefillin for the first time in their lives in the Chabad House. "Since I opened the Chabad House, we have made about 70 Bar Mitzvah ceremonies for Jews between the ages of 30 and 80, who did not have the privilege of celebrating their Bar Mitzvah at the right time". Rabbi Rosenberg explains that there is something spiritual in the atmosphere of the Call, which stimulates a "Jewish Spark" in every Jewish person

There is a synagogue in Girona, but no minyan even on Shabbat, except when religious tourist groups from Israel and America visit. But this does not discourage the devoted shaliah. He invites us to visit him during the tour in the Jewish Quarter, enjoy refreshments, and especially to put on Tefillin

The Trip Continues

When we leave the Chabad house one should notice the stone doorways on the building on our left. We see there a slot of a Mezuzah, proof that it was a Jewish home until 1492. Many such doorways can be found in the alleyways of the Call

Around the corner of that house there's a wall paint of an inner Jewish room. We can see the Menorah on the table inside

        

The house across on our right was built on a plot on which the Aljama building stood. Aljama was the Jewish community council. The heads of the Aljama conducted Jewish life in accordance with Halakhah The Rabbinical Court was also located there

We leave the Jewish quarter, and find ourselves in the square of the Girona Cathedral. If it seems familiar to us, it is because many scenes of the "Games of Thrones" series were filmed on the steps leading up to the cathedral

      

We continue down the street, behind the big church, when we arrive at an "Arab Baths". This bathhouse was used by the Gentile and Jewish inhabitants of Girona from the 11th century onwards. In the main room we see an octagonal pool with tall columns that create a kind of stone canopy. These columns are typical of Girona during the Middle Ages

This place is actually specifically mentioned in the book "Responsa of the Rashba". From a question that appears in the book, we understand that in 1285 the French invaded Catalonia, and they destroyed the synagogue and the Mikveh. The Jewish community rented one room in this bathhouse as a temporary replacement for their original Mikveh. Roof tiles broke and collapsed into the water of the Mikveh, and the gentile maintenance man entered the mikvehj to remove them. The leaders of the Jewish community asked the Rashba whether the gentile’s entry had disqualified the mikveh. The Rashba answers that the Mikveh was kosher nonetheless.

The municipality of Girona should be positively noted having decided in 1987 to establish the "Council of Call" to restore the Jewish Quarter. In 1997, the Nahmanides Institute opened there for the Study of the Ramban. In 2000 the Museum of Jewish History was inaugurated

Aside from the Jewish sites, there are plenty of beautiful general tourist sites and museums in Girona: museums for films, Girona history, art, , The Basilica of St. Feliu, the city walls, Cul de la Lleona, L'Anagel Garden, and much more

About 172,000 Israelis arrived in Barcelona last year, according to data from the Catalan Ministry of Tourism. The head of the Israeli department at the Tourism Ministry in Catalonia, Mrs. Martha Teixidor, says that the numbers are much higher, since many Israelis with dual citizenship enter Barcelona, showing only their foreign passports at the airport. Many American Jews come to visit Catalonia as well. Mrs. Milena Oliveras Schwartz ("My grandfather was Jewish"), the tourism director at the Girona municipality, says that in 2017, 85,000 tourists visited Girona, of whom only about 5,000 were Israelis and American Jews. How do we understand these relatively low numbers? While on one hand, it is much more popular than other Jewish sites in Catalonia, the numbers are far fewer that the million tourists come every year to Salvador Dali's house in Portlligat and his museum in Figueres. From our point of view, Nahmanides is more important to us than Dali, but unfortunately, too many Israelis do not know where Nahmanides lived. The Girona municipality therefore decided to pay special attention to the Jewish history of the city in order to attract more Jewish travelers

Jewish tourists who come to Barcelona, must definitely visit Girona if only for one day

A personal recommendation: When one travels to Girona with family and children, one should first print the "Iggeret HaRamban" (Ramban's Letter to his son), and keep it in his pocket. (it can be downloaded at this link) . The Ramban wrote the letter here in Girona, where he explains to respect others, be modest, conquer anger, speak leisurely, etc. When we'll reach the Jewish quarter, it is time to stop. And then to read it loudly, and to explain and interpret to our children according to their level. This can be an empowering experience and one of the highlights of our quality time with our children. Afterword we can hum or sing the song "Shema Beni" by Avraham Ben David or by Benny Elbaz