About this talk

When someone thinks of Jerusalem, they usually imagine the Holy City: the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, or the Al-Aqsa Mosque. If they were fortunate enough to visit Jerusalem, they might add to the list the Jaffa Gate or the Damascus Gate, the bustling Machane Yehuda market, and perhaps the quaint houses of Nachlaot. Yet, Jerusalem is also a secular, modern city, with all its challenges and beauties—and, being Jerusalem, it embodies all of this and more.

We invite you on a virtual walk starting in the mid-19th century, when the first residents of the Old City left its medieval alleys to settle outside the walls, and newcomers, such as the German Templars, arrived and introduced a modern way of life. This process of modernization, spanning diverse political landscapes and an ever-changing human mosaic of religions, ethnic identities, and languages, has continued ever since.

We will dive into two iconic neighborhoods to explore some characteristics of this process in greater depth, sharing stories and personal impressions—including those of Eszter, a proud resident of Baka for the past eight years.

About Eszter

Eszter Koranyi was born in Budapest, Hungary. After completing her MA in International Relations and working in an NGO, she decided to explore alternative approaches to human cooperation. This led her to Kibbutz Neot Semadar, located in the Negev Desert, Israel.

After three years, she sought to deepen her understanding of the country's complexity and moved to Jerusalem. She has lived there for the past eight years and works for Combatants for Peace, an NGO fostering cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians to promote peace and justice. She is also a co-founder of Freedom School, a study program focused on peace activism for young Israelis and Palestinians. She is about to complete her training as a certified tour guide.