Transcription
Michalis: Which holiday would you say you celebrated most often?
Rachil: Definitely Passover first and Hanukkah.
Michalis: In which house did you celebrate it?
Rachil: Here, always here. And in my own home too, that is, I also had a menorah which I took care of.
Michalis: And who were the regular guests?
Rachil: Here in Athens, who did we have closest to us? Of course, there was always very religious the husband of his sister Kami, Nahmia, Moysis Nahmia. So when my father was away, because many times, almost always, at Easter he went to Israel. We celebrated Passover with them, who lived on Aristotelous Street, it was very close. And he would read the Haggadah.
Michalis: Since you mentioned the Haggadah, we have a Haggadah here, from a Thessalonian. Can you tell us a few words about this book, what is the Haggadah?
Rachil: It's the story of the Jews, who left Egypt and went to Israel, that is, to Palestine then, Israel didn't exist. And we tell the whole story, how they left and how they were chased and how they... And it's a beautiful story, so the children liked it too and they would read it, certain parts. In Greek of course, in Greek, because they didn't know Hebrew. None of us learned Hebrew, not even me.
Michalis: Could you hear, when you celebrated the Seder, someone reading parts in Hebrew?
Rachil: Yes, Moysis, Nahmias, yes, my husband didn't know, he had no idea. He only knew Ladino.
Michalis: Was Ladino heard at the Seder?
Rachil: Yes, yes.
Michalis: Who said these things?
Rachil: Together, both of them, because both were from there, and all the songs they said, they said in Ladino.
Michalis: So they sang.
Rachil: Yes, yes, yes.
Michalis: Do you remember at least one song?
Rachil: Kavretiko.
Michalis: Kavretiko.
Rachil: Yes.
Michalis: So your husband sang Kavretiko?
Rachil: Yes, yes, yes.
Michalis: And how did you use the book at the Seder dinner?
Rachil: We read the Seder first and then we started eating, that is, so the children would read and the children got a little hungry and they tried to show some to read everything.
Michalis: And did everyone at the table read?
Rachil: Everyone, yes, yes.
Michalis: So you passed the book around?
Rachil: And the children gradually. No, no, we had many books.
Michalis: Ah.
Rachil: Each one had their own.
Michalis: Ah.
Rachil: Depending on what point they were at, because here it's both in Hebrew and in Greek and this Dayenu, I remember it well, this Dayenu.
Michalis: Can you tell us what Dayenu was?
Rachil: It would have been enough for us. I'm reading it here now and I remembered it. How much we owe God. If He hadn't done this for us, it would have been enough. If He hadn't done the other thing, it would have been enough. It's a whole page. This.
Michalis: Did you read it or sing it?
Rachil: We sang Dayenu, but what we would have, what we owe to God, we read it either in Greek or Hebrew or Ladino.
Michalis: And did you prepare a special table?
Rachil: Yes, we had a plate in which we had matzah, a piece of lamb, many things we had in there. I remember exactly many things. It was full. I remember the matzah, we put it on it when we were at home, I would take it because I was younger. Then my daughter who was the youngest would take it. The youngest one, they say, should take it, the one who is the youngest now, I don't know why.
Michalis: And who cooked these foods?
Rachil: My mother, then me and all of us made something and my sister-in-law cooked. That is, all of us contributed something, but the soup with matzah had to be made in the house where the seder was taking place.
Michalis: What did you call this plate?
Rachil: It was a large plate and it also had a cover that my mother had brought from Israel. That is, underneath it was nylon and on top it was covered. And we had it for this purpose. It must still exist somewhere.
Michalis: Do you remember some other names that were on the plate?
Rachil: No, everything was in Hebrew. Seder, it said, Passover, definitely.
Michalis: No, not on the cover, the foods you had.
Rachil: Yes, we also put charoset.
Michalis: What is charoset?
Rachil: Charoset is what reminds us, to remind us of earth. Which is, we put dates in it and it had to be a bit brown. To remind us of the earth they found in Sinai, I don't know. To remind us of earth.
Michalis: And how did you make this?
Rachil: We made it beforehand, we mixed it. Dates for sure, walnuts. And dried fruits, generally. To resemble earth. To have the appearance of earth. And we ate it inside the matzah. We made little bites.
Michalis: Do you remember anything else it had on it?
Rachil: The soup which was made again with matzah from chicken. Boiled chicken and matzah. And surely afterward we had lamb. And which didn't have potatoes next to it. It was usually with vegetables, with something that would go alongside. I don't remember what we made alongside the lamb. And then definitely at the end we had, at least we made ravani. That was it.
Rachil: But usually in Thessaloniki we made bumuelos.
Michalis: Bumuelos.
Rachil: Yes, which are made with matzah. Matzah, it's with matzah, but like, what are they called, loukoumades. They made them, that is, like that, then they fried them and put honey on top. And it was for Passover. For Passover. It was more special, but this had to be made at the last minute and usually we preferred ravani for convenience.
Michalis: And you also mentioned Hanukkah.
Rachil: Yes.
Michalis: What did you do for Hanukkah?
Rachil: We lit the menorah.
Michalis: Where was it, where did you put it?
Rachil: We put it on the buffet, we lit it there and of course we isolated it because it was, it could catch fire, that is, because it was candles and we lit one candle each day and at the end we lit the whole menorah.
Michalis: What did you celebrate at Hanukkah?
Rachil: What do we celebrate at Hanukkah, I don't remember.
Michalis: Did you say any song or prayer at Hanukkah?
Rachil: Something that has to do with the synagogue, something that remained lit, something remained lit and that's why we celebrate. I remember that well.
Michalis: And did the children participate in this?
Rachil: Yes, of course.
Summary - Jewish Holidays and Traditions
Rachil describes how her family celebrated Passover and Hanukkah in Athens. At the Passover Seder, they gathered with the Nahmia family, reading the Haggadah and singing in Ladino, while the table included traditional foods like matzah, charoset, chicken soup, and lamb. For Hanukkah, they lit the menorah each evening. Although the children didn't know Hebrew, they actively participated in the ceremonies, maintaining their connection to their Jewish heritage.
Rachil describes how her family celebrated Passover and Hanukkah in Athens. On Passover, they would gather with the Nahmia family, reading the Haggadah and singing in Ladino, while the table was set with traditional foods such as matzah, charoset, chicken soup, and lamb. For Hanukkah, they lit the menorah every night. Although the children did not know Hebrew, they actively participated in the rituals, maintaining their connection to their Jewish heritage.
Rachel Alkalai (Botton)
Transcription
Michalis: Which holiday would you say you celebrated most often?
Rachil: Definitely Passover first and Hanukkah.
Michalis: In which house did you celebrate it?
Rachil: Here, always here. And in my own home too, that is, I also had a menorah which I took care of.
Michalis: And who were the regular guests?
Rachil: Here in Athens, who did we have closest to us? Of course, there was always very religious the husband of his sister Kami, Nahmia, Moysis Nahmia. So when my father was away, because many times, almost always, at Easter he went to Israel. We celebrated Passover with them, who lived on Aristotelous Street, it was very close. And he would read the Haggadah.
Michalis: Since you mentioned the Haggadah, we have a Haggadah here, from a Thessalonian. Can you tell us a few words about this book, what is the Haggadah?
Rachil: It's the story of the Jews, who left Egypt and went to Israel, that is, to Palestine then, Israel didn't exist. And we tell the whole story, how they left and how they were chased and how they... And it's a beautiful story, so the children liked it too and they would read it, certain parts. In Greek of course, in Greek, because they didn't know Hebrew. None of us learned Hebrew, not even me.
Michalis: Could you hear, when you celebrated the Seder, someone reading parts in Hebrew?
Rachil: Yes, Moysis, Nahmias, yes, my husband didn't know, he had no idea. He only knew Ladino.
Michalis: Was Ladino heard at the Seder?
Rachil: Yes, yes.
Michalis: Who said these things?
Rachil: Together, both of them, because both were from there, and all the songs they said, they said in Ladino.
Michalis: So they sang.
Rachil: Yes, yes, yes.
Michalis: Do you remember at least one song?
Rachil: Kavretiko.
Michalis: Kavretiko.
Rachil: Yes.
Michalis: So your husband sang Kavretiko?
Rachil: Yes, yes, yes.
Michalis: And how did you use the book at the Seder dinner?
Rachil: We read the Seder first and then we started eating, that is, so the children would read and the children got a little hungry and they tried to show some to read everything.
Michalis: And did everyone at the table read?
Rachil: Everyone, yes, yes.
Michalis: So you passed the book around?
Rachil: And the children gradually. No, no, we had many books.
Michalis: Ah.
Rachil: Each one had their own.
Michalis: Ah.
Rachil: Depending on what point they were at, because here it's both in Hebrew and in Greek and this Dayenu, I remember it well, this Dayenu.
Michalis: Can you tell us what Dayenu was?
Rachil: It would have been enough for us. I'm reading it here now and I remembered it. How much we owe God. If He hadn't done this for us, it would have been enough. If He hadn't done the other thing, it would have been enough. It's a whole page. This.
Michalis: Did you read it or sing it?
Rachil: We sang Dayenu, but what we would have, what we owe to God, we read it either in Greek or Hebrew or Ladino.
Michalis: And did you prepare a special table?
Rachil: Yes, we had a plate in which we had matzah, a piece of lamb, many things we had in there. I remember exactly many things. It was full. I remember the matzah, we put it on it when we were at home, I would take it because I was younger. Then my daughter who was the youngest would take it. The youngest one, they say, should take it, the one who is the youngest now, I don't know why.
Michalis: And who cooked these foods?
Rachil: My mother, then me and all of us made something and my sister-in-law cooked. That is, all of us contributed something, but the soup with matzah had to be made in the house where the seder was taking place.
Michalis: What did you call this plate?
Rachil: It was a large plate and it also had a cover that my mother had brought from Israel. That is, underneath it was nylon and on top it was covered. And we had it for this purpose. It must still exist somewhere.
Michalis: Do you remember some other names that were on the plate?
Rachil: No, everything was in Hebrew. Seder, it said, Passover, definitely.
Michalis: No, not on the cover, the foods you had.
Rachil: Yes, we also put charoset.
Michalis: What is charoset?
Rachil: Charoset is what reminds us, to remind us of earth. Which is, we put dates in it and it had to be a bit brown. To remind us of the earth they found in Sinai, I don't know. To remind us of earth.
Michalis: And how did you make this?
Rachil: We made it beforehand, we mixed it. Dates for sure, walnuts. And dried fruits, generally. To resemble earth. To have the appearance of earth. And we ate it inside the matzah. We made little bites.
Michalis: Do you remember anything else it had on it?
Rachil: The soup which was made again with matzah from chicken. Boiled chicken and matzah. And surely afterward we had lamb. And which didn't have potatoes next to it. It was usually with vegetables, with something that would go alongside. I don't remember what we made alongside the lamb. And then definitely at the end we had, at least we made ravani. That was it.
Rachil: But usually in Thessaloniki we made bumuelos.
Michalis: Bumuelos.
Rachil: Yes, which are made with matzah. Matzah, it's with matzah, but like, what are they called, loukoumades. They made them, that is, like that, then they fried them and put honey on top. And it was for Passover. For Passover. It was more special, but this had to be made at the last minute and usually we preferred ravani for convenience.
Michalis: And you also mentioned Hanukkah.
Rachil: Yes.
Michalis: What did you do for Hanukkah?
Rachil: We lit the menorah.
Michalis: Where was it, where did you put it?
Rachil: We put it on the buffet, we lit it there and of course we isolated it because it was, it could catch fire, that is, because it was candles and we lit one candle each day and at the end we lit the whole menorah.
Michalis: What did you celebrate at Hanukkah?
Rachil: What do we celebrate at Hanukkah, I don't remember.
Michalis: Did you say any song or prayer at Hanukkah?
Rachil: Something that has to do with the synagogue, something that remained lit, something remained lit and that's why we celebrate. I remember that well.
Michalis: And did the children participate in this?
Rachil: Yes, of course.
Summary - Jewish Holidays and Traditions
Rachil describes how her family celebrated Passover and Hanukkah in Athens. At the Passover Seder, they gathered with the Nahmia family, reading the Haggadah and singing in Ladino, while the table included traditional foods like matzah, charoset, chicken soup, and lamb. For Hanukkah, they lit the menorah each evening. Although the children didn't know Hebrew, they actively participated in the ceremonies, maintaining their connection to their Jewish heritage.