Our specials today on the supervised menu
THE WORLD really has become (forgive me) the oyster of the observant traveller. It seems there is no corner of the globe where supervised kosher catering has not been laid on — and that includes the planet’s most famous waterways. Take the Mekong, that spectacular river linking Vietnam and Cambodia. This year’s expedition by Americabased Kosher River Cruises has sold out but registration is already open for a similar trip in June next year.
Voyagers will enjoy glatt kosher cuisine and the heady experience of visiting Buddhist temples, before returning to an on-board synagogue, where a daily minyan is guaranteed.
The trip down the Mekong delta includes excursions to the spire- decked Angkor Wat temple complex, the largest religious monument in the world.
The elegant Jayavarman, kitted out in Art Deco style, is inspired by the Normandie cruise liner but, unlike that transatlantic beast, it carries only 50 passengers in 25 sumptuous cabins, each with panoramic windows and private balconies. Post-cruise extensions to Seim Reap and Hanoi are available.
In conjunction with the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, Kosher River Cruises is also offering a trip down the Normandy section of the Seine in October to honour the heroism of Jewish soldiers in two world wars. Special guests will include Rabbi Marvin Hier from the centre and there will be visits from Jewish Second World War veterans.
Kosherica, another America-based operator with a firm grip on kosher cruising, has its own exciting destinations this year. They include the fjords of Alaska, the Baltic ports of St Petersburg and Scandinavia and the Caribbean, where it is arranging a Jewish music festival next January, aboard Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas.
For those who prefer sea and sun to adventure travel, yet another American tour operator, Kislev, is offering kosher holidays at two five-star resorts in the Algarve, with food supervised by the Beth Din of Paris.
Families are particularly well catered for at the Pine Cliff Ocean Suites in Albufeira, where there is a kids’ club and another specificially for babies, alongside golf, tennis and beach activities. There is butler service, too and direct access to beautiful Falesia beach.
The other hotel in this Portugese programme is the Hilton Golf & Spa