Letters from some tourists who traveled with us in 2003
Dear Alla,
Malke and I are forwarding you this e-mail note which you may use as a
recommendation for any purpose. We have been in 11 countries as tourists and
this was by far the best organized and most interesting trip we have taken.
Therefore use the letter below as a reference as you wish.
We have been home one month from our trip that you and your colleagues at Zekher
Avoteinu organized for us in Russia and Ukraine. (It was from the 9th of July
until the 24th). We are talking to many people about our tour, and some of them
will contact you to organize a similar trip. Your organizing was wonderful in
all aspects. The guides were very knowledgeable and the itinerary went smoothly,
even according to the number of hours you predicted it would take. We know that
this job as director or coordinator of the trip from your city (Brooklyn) is
important not only to you, but to many people who love history as well as those
who trace their roots. Without your help we would never have seen Malke's
grandparent's home in the town of Duneavitz, and I would not have passed through
Zhitomer, my maternal grandmother and grandfather's town, nor would our
excellent guide Julia shown us all the historical sites in Ukraine which mean so
much to our people. Of course we also were in the Hermitage and I did get to the
Finland Station, the Cruiser Aurora and all the other sites, which interested me
as an Historian. The travel arrangements also went smoothly and all the hotels
you arranged for us provided the comforts we needed. Galina in Moscow also was a
big help as our driver and took care of any health problems, which we had.
Basically we could never, at our older age, had such a wonderful tour without
you organizing the trip (Your e-mailing me often and calling me also kept me
alert in my planning and kept my anxiety under control as well and helped Malke
fulfill her dreams of seeking her roots)). Thank you again for all your hard
work; and I know over the next 10 months, more and more of our friends will be
calling you to get a chance to visit the Russian and Ukrainian areas with your
expertise and your guides and drivers to lead them once they arrive there.
Please stay in touch as needed. (412-422-8044)
Ivan C. Frank, Ph.D. and Myra (Malke) Frank
Pittsburg, PA, USA
Dear Alla,
I am just writing to say thank you very much indeed, from me and my wife Debbie,
for organising a brilliant and extremely interesting and educational trip around
the sites of Jewish interest in both Moscow and St Petersburg. Your guides were
very helpful, friendly and professional and it was greatly appreciated that we
were able to add a Jewish perspective to our trip to Russia in this way.
Thank you also for organising everything so smoothly and at such short notice
(my apologies again!). All I can add is to repeat what I said to you over the
phone which is that we will have no hesitation in recommending your company.
Some of our friends have already shown an interest in doing the Russia trip and
I have given them your details.
Thanks again.
With our best wishes.
Regards
Brian Addlestone
UK
Dear Alla,
We have so much praise for you and your associates in Russia and we want other
people who contact you about making their plans for travel with you to know how
grateful we are.
We, of course, had the pleasure of meeting you in person. Even before we met, we
felt the personal interest you take in each person. You personalize the tours
and that is what so many actually want. The combination of your guidance and
incorporating our own ideas and desires makes for the most rewarding of
experiences.
We took your basic ideas which we found on the internet and added some of our
own wishes.
For the time when we were communicating and planning you were very responsive to
our questions. You made personal calls to people in Russia to answer our
questions. You assured us that we would feel comfortable and safe. You helped us
with timing and scheduling so that we knew when it was important to make
definite plans so as not to miss out on events we wanted and hotels we preferred
with your suggestions.
You gave us the names of our tour guides ahead of time with information on how
to contact them. However, the minute we arrived in each place the guides
contacted us if we were at a hotel or were there to greet us.
From the moment we arrived in Moscow, we felt we were in good hands. Our first
driver was so friendly and helpful. Each driver had a different personality,
all. interesting and safe drivers. Each guide was intelligent, responsible,
resourceful, delightful company and was there for us whatever our needs; be they
assisting with tickets for performances, recommending restaurants, suggesting
schedules, just being friendly and getting to know us and our likes. I like the
idea that we could have a guide and driver for a whole day if we chose or half a
day if we wanted. It was so much more beneficial to have a guide and driver for
most of the day that that is what we did most of the times. The guides spoke
English excellently.
Each person knew so much about history and sites which we saw.
So many people are afraid of going to Russia. We felt so safe, especially with
your guides. We would love to return. We travel a fair amount and certainly this
trip was one of our best over all. At times we travel on our own and some times
with tour groups. We had thought this would be too extravagant to have a private
guide and driver and it turned out to be a much greater value for our time and
money and we got to do what we wanted most.
If anyone wants to talk with us or contact us we would be very happy to
communicate.
If I make this too long someone may not have the patience to read it.
So, we thank you and everyone affiliated with you and your organization for a
most exciting, emotional, efficient, fascinating memorable experience.
Shalom,
Marcia and Richard Schaefer
Delmar, New York
Alla,
My husband and I had a wonderful experience in St. Petersburg, all due to your
wonderful guide. She took us to all the things we were interested in, never
wasted our time and was very knowledgeable, besides being very pleasant to be
with. It certainly was the highlight of our whole trip!
The Cohens, Chicago
Cruise Silver Whisper
Fragments from letters of some of our tourists, summer 2002
My husband and I just returned from a trip to St. Petersburg and Moscow. We both
agreed that St. Petersburg was one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It
is filled with treasures, and it has exciting cultural attractions. Thanks to
Alla Markova who planned our trip with her group in St. Petersburg, everything
we did was absolutely perfect for us, and we had the most amazing guide and
driver. The visits to the Hermitage and Gold Room, the palaces of tsars Peter
and Catherine were simply unforgettable. The lunch with the Rabbi Pewzner's
family was a unique opportunity to learn more about the revival of Jewish life
in Russia. This as a dream vacation come true!
Rochelle and Robert Rush, NJ
We wanted to let you and your team in St. Petersburg know how much we enjoyed
our trip to the city. The pre-planning suggestions you made for us and the
implementation of the tour in St. Petersburg were excellent. My husband, Alan
and I, as well as the other two couples in our group, all agreed that we could
not have asked for a more informed planner here in the US beforehand, nor a more
knowledgeable guide for the city, its many historic sites and the Hermitage,
than our guide, Vadim. Having the advantage of your group's intimate knowledge
of the Jewish community; the opportunity to meet the director of the Jewish Art
and Crafts program, see the creative work done by participants and hear about
the history of the Jewish community during the Second World War and after was a
special experience. Of course, seeing the Choral Synagogue and speaking with one
of the congregation members was also an exceptional opportunity. Vadim certainly
was skillful in making sure that our full day at the Hermitage gave us the best
view of the most important art. The special tour of the "Gold Room" was an added
bonus! I would be remiss if I did not also say how much we enjoyed attending the
Symphony performance with Vladimir Ashkinazi conducting and then, the
opportunity to attend the ballet at the Mariinsky Theatre! As we sat in our
seats at the ballet, Alan and I agreed that in our wildest dreams we would not
have thought we would ever be sitting in this theatre watching the Kirov perform
Swan Lake - it was wonderful. Many thanks for all that was done to make this
trip a most memorable experience.
Cynthia Epstein, NJ
Your organization was highly commended by friends and we are certainly grateful
we listened to their advice.
Our trip to St. Petersburg was truly wonderful thanks to Larissa, our guide. She
could not have been better. She knew the territory and the history behind every
sight. My wife and I had been to St. Petersburg ten years ago and thought we saw
it all. But, we saw more on this trip with Larissa and learned more about what
we saw.
Larissa was very punctual, professional, and pleasant. She spoke very good
English as well as six other languages. She could interpret where necessary.
Larissa was not Jewish, but she knew the history of Jews and Jewish sights in
St. Petersburg and presented the facts in a very interesting manner.
There were six people in our group and the van was very comfortable, clean, and
easy to access. Our driver was also very nice and responsive to our decisions to
change directions at the last minute. He, too, was punctual... always right
where we needed him, when we needed him.
We will certainly recommend your services to any of our friends planning future
to Russia. Thanks.
Alan and Jeneane Pearlman, TX