Culture, Heritage

Jewish Face of Budapest

About this project

Mazsike's latest project aims to introduce Budapest's Jewish values in a historically authentic yet entertaining way to both foreign and domestic tourists as well as the locals. The project is based on the book Budapest Zsidó Arca ('Jewish Face of Budapest') by Péter Rózsa, which is unfolded through a series of online discussions. The book chapters have their own walk in the city and will be aided by two apps: one to discover cemeteries (CemWalk) and the other a city guide (JeWalk). The project targets all ages, Jews, non-Jews, domestic and international tourists, the locals of Budapest, and people from the countryside; in other words, everybody connecting by their interest in Jewish culture and their love of the capital.

Why is it important?

There are tourist publications, and at the same time, there are programs for a narrow inner circle. Jewish Face of Budapest aims to be both: to show domestic and foreign visitors what defines us and what we love about this beautiful city. To provide an opportunity for the locals who know the Jewish culture well to improve their knowledge and have fun as they share a good story. This tourist publication, unlike most, does not focus on buildings and historical facts, but it sets out to introduce its readers the spirit that conceived the thinking of Europe as a whole.

Why is it special?

Budapest's Jewish face is not static; it is constantly changing, becoming richer and more colorful. Therefore, we have combined elements in the medium distant from each other, as they are actually supportive and complementary to one another. The mobile applications were developed along with the book and are extensible, similar to the story of the city as it is never completed; thus we could also track the changes ourselves. Thematically, Jewish Face of Budapest is diverse: apart from architecture, you can find literature, cinema, theater, gastronomy, sport, and even natural science-related tidbits.