Author :
Publisher : Kalman Dubov
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4./5 ( download)
Book Synopsis Seabourn Quest by :
Download or read book Seabourn Quest written by and published by Kalman Dubov. This book was released on 2021-12-20 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book describes my 15-day cruise aboard the ultra-luxury ship, the Seabourn Quest. We voyaged from Fort Lauderdale Florida, to Barcelona Spain, with a first stop in Portugal’s Madeira islands in Funchal. The ports of call then continued to Tangier and Tetouan, Morocco, then to Malaga, finally ending in Barcelona Spain. Each of these ports of call has much history associated with it. The Madeira islands were only discovered by Portugal in 1419, although the islands are only 2,168 miles from Europe’s coastline. For many years, the city of Tangier had the reputation as a cosmopolitan city, attracting the jet-setters and adventurers. It is also close the Europe, creating a north Africa and southern Europe confluence. Similarly, the name of the city of Malaga derives from ‘melach,’ a Phoenician (and Arabic and Jewish) name for salt, in reference to these Mediterranean traders arriving to this city to obtain its salted fish. And Barcelona has its own unique history, being at the center point for Catalonian independence. It stunning beauty makes it an attractive city to visit. Following disembarkation, I stayed in the city to explore its people and history, learning of its ancient Jewish heritage and the flashpoints of history. I review these and offer insight into the great disputation between the Chief Rabbi of Girona, Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman, and a representative of the Catholic church. The disputation was done in the presence of the king, but within 30 days of the disputation, the Rabbi was forced to leave his home and community, settling in Jerusalem. I was also able to meet leading figures in the efforts at Catalonian independence. At the time, there was much energy and speculation in Catalonia breaking away from Spain. But that did not happen and its efforts remain amongst its people. This was a brief but enjoyable voyage.