Hi there. I am a licensed tour guide specializing in Hasidic Brooklyn. As of this writing in 2020, I have been giving tours for seven years, and writing about Hasidic life for many more.
I take my tour visitors in Brooklyn to Lee and Bedford and Thirteenth Avenue. I teach, learn, discuss, nosh. I meet people from all over the world. Together we get sunburned and freeze-bitten and soaked through to the bone. We eat too much babka and make great memories.
What makes my perspective unique is that I know the Hasidic community intimately. I come from the insular Satmar sect. I was raised, married and became a mother in the village of Kiryas Joel. I left Hasidism with my son but part of my heart remains there. (You can hear about my experience here.)
I return to the neighborhood to visit family, celebrate holidays and scout new toys, fashion trends and be a bit of an amateur anthropologist. I try to always be thoughtful, empathetic and fair. I believe other cultures can expand the mind. I challenge my visitors and myself to always think a little broader.
Besides giving tours I run the blog here, where I post resources, analysis, commentary, fiction and even sometimes doodles. I also occasionally publish in real publications, and will have an illustrated story in the upcoming book Off the Derech. I also enjoy to consult on various creative and academic projects. Please sign up to follow my blog to keep up with whatever trouble I am up to!
