Yom Kippur in London

On Friday night my friends and went to a beautiful Kol Nidre service at the New London Synagogue. The men prayed on the main level of the sanctuary and the women sat in the balcony, many of them whispering (probably gossiping :) ) to one another. The synagogue has a choir that sings along with the cantor and it really was so lovely to listen to. Kol Nidre is my favorite service so I’m glad we found such a nice place to go for it.

We went back there on Saturday morning. The synagogue was packed with people, none of whom I knew which, honestly, made me miss the congregation I belong to back home. The people at the synagogue here are very friendly, though, and it’s always fun to meet some new people. The rabbi’s sermon was quite good and thought-provoking, and the Yizkor service done by the choir was so beautiful. 

Saturday night was a whole other experience. The staff on our trip got an email from an orthodox congregation that was planning a community break fast that the students from our program were more than welcome to come to, so we thought that since it was supposedly a lot closer to our dorm we’d try it out. We thought we’d go there for the Neilah service, the conclusion of Yom Kippur, and then stay for the break fast and see what the congregation was like. It was at a Chabad house, and even though we had the address we couldn’t find it anywhere. We tried asking for directions at a hotel we passed, but that didn’t work out well because when we asked where the South Kinseington Chabad house is, or where the closest synagogue is, the receptionist looked at us blankly and replied, “is that a pub?” We were roaming the streets of South Kensington for an hour before we came to what we were almost positive was the Chabad house. We were debating ringing the doorbell or just walking in and then a couple, probably in their fifties, came out the door. We asked them if this was the Chabad and they clearly had absolutely no idea what we were talking about. “Is this the Jewish synagogue?” We really thought it was the right address. The woman was clearly pretty shocked at our question and replied, “No, this isn’t the place you are looking for....this is actually the Palestinian House, so...” and then she and her husband left and we stood there, starving and totally lost. Although we completely missed the service, we did eventually find the Chabad house...except it wasn’t a Chabad house or a congregation, it was sort of like a Jewish Student Union organization in a study abroad center and it was overall kind of a let down. We left the break fast early and decided to really break fast at a gorgeous little bakery we found.

Anyways, despite the nice services and various adventures of the weekend, there's nothing like spending the high holidays at home with friends and family. So once again, Shanah Tovah to all my friends and family back in Boston, can't wait to see you all in December!