Lower Manhattan, Jewish history, and old-fashioned haggling!

     Monday was a very busy day!  Our trip to Coney Island on Sunday was fun, and we were ready to continue the week.
     We all experienced a meaningful, thoughtful Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day).  We began our day by visiting the World Trade Center site.  It was somber, and the students reflected on the place of the towers in the otherwise bustling Financial District of Lower Manhattan.
     We made our way over the Museum of Jewish Heritage, a Living Memorial to the Holocaust, where we spoke face-to-face with many survivors of the Holocaust who were in attendance for a day of special programming.  The museum itself was filled with artifacts and videos that effectively communicated the ways in which Jewish communities coped with and responded to the Holocaust.  It was not traumatic; rather, the stories of survivors were touching and effectively told.
     After a morning of stories and history, we enjoyed a tasty lunch in Chinatown.  From there, we walked to the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side, where our students impressed the other attendees and our docent with their knowledge of the work with which immigrant Jewish communities were involved in the early twentieth century.  It was such a pleasure to hear the students speak so eloquently on the subject, not only with knowledge but with conviction.
     The late afternoon was filled with wandering through the Lower East Side, Chinatown, and Little Italy.  We shopped, noshed, and walked our legs off.  A few more students than I had expected even tried their hands at some old-fashioned haggling on the street.  The vendors were great sports about it!  We took the subway up to Bryant Park and the greater Times Square area for sightseeing before dinner.  Even though we stopped by to see the lights and crowds in Times Square on Sunday night, we were able to spend time in a few stores today.  The students particularly loved the indoor ferris wheel that Toys-R-Us offered.  We were also thrilled by all the fun at the M&M store, among others.
     The students enjoyed overstuffed sandwiches and amazing service at a kosher deli on Broadway, only blocks from our hotel.  We made our way back, more than ready to rest up for a day at the museums on the Upper East Side.  It really has been a lot of fun.  Everyone seems happy albeit exhausted by the end of the day.  We look forward to more updates and even more photos!