Evgenia Kempinski, a private and online tour guide based in Barcelona, is a ubiquitous presence while roaming Spain’s capital city. Evgenia, who also goes by Jane, seems to be everywhere all at once, both as a highly-charged historian and a learned docent on the streets. Born in St Petersburg, Evgenia never misses an opportunity to hone her uniquely honed abilities in synthesizing the depths of Jewish history.
“As well as many other cities, Jews came [to Spain] a long, long time ago,” Kempinski tells me. “They came to Europe together with the Romans. We see it in the Jewish neighborhoods, the Jewish quarters, and we see Jews occupy top positions. Jews had villas and fancy lands. They were royal bailiffs, ambassadors, [and] doctors. They operated not only in business – as we tend to think [of them as doing] – but also occupied an important place in the intellectual life,” she adds.
Kempinski says she is “shaped by Israel,” yet calls Barcelona her “home and inspiration. I’ve guided Jewish heritage and general tours throughout Eastern Europe, and for the past six years, I’ve been giving online lectures on Jewish history in the diaspora,” she writes on her website, www.jewish-barcelona.com. “My interests range from medieval Jewish manuscripts to classical and modern art, from Sephardic journeys to Ashkenazi traditions.” She has made a concerted effort to, “uncover the links between history, culture, and the personal stories we carry.”
Unlike most guides who view their job as merely a vocation, Kempinski heavily invests her time in research, which, in turn, translates into an enriched sense of imparting meaningful stories. “I don’t just give facts, but I show the meaning behind them. You’ll see how each place fits into the Jewish story of Barcelona and why it still matters today,” she says.
When speaking to Evgenia on the phone, one hears her profound sense of passion and knowledge.
“Catalonia contributed a lot to the success of the Jews in the state,“ Kempinski reminds me. “We then come to the decline that began in 1391. In the mid-14th century, the Black Death in Europe killed, some say, fifty percent of the European population. Yes, it was awful for the Jews as it was then that the pogroms started in the south of Spain. It began in Seville and [continued] all around the Peninsula.
“In August 1391, the King was not in Barcelona, and the choice was very simple: [the Jews were forced to] either die or convert. Very few Jews managed to run, and they either converted or were murdered. Even for those Jews who were forced to convert, they were not allowed to stay in their homes. They had to sell their houses for a very small price,” she adds.
By the start of the 20th century, “the Jews from North Africa and from some Eastern European countries” returned to Spain.
“At the beginning of the 20th century, Barcelona went through an incredible commercial success,” adds Kempinski. “It was very successful. There were many grand enterprises commercially and on the cultural scene. This coincided with the return of the Jews. Yes, first we see poor Jews from North Africa and Eastern Europe, and then we also see Jews actively participating in cultural life. We see Jewish conductors, musicians, singers, and [those involved in] theater. We see Jews involved with sponsoring the ‘New Barcelona.’”
Unfortunately, the ‘New Barcelona’ of recent years has not been so pleasant for Zionist Spaniards. Leftist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is at the helm, and he has made a concerted effort to denigrate the State of Israel. Javier Bardem, the Oscar-winning actor, for instance, has also led a shameful campaign against Israel, often wearing a keffiyeh at movie award shows.
“Spain’s current government under Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has pursued policies that not only damage its international standing but also contribute to a rising wave of postmodern antisemitism in Europe,” wrote Angel Manuel Garcia Carmona, an Associate Professor at Universidad CEU San Pablo (Madrid), in March.
“Spanish public universities have severed ties with Israeli academic institutions—cutting research in high-tech fields—while remaining silent on China. Professors push pro-Hamas biases, leading to intimidation, harassment, and assaults against Jewish students, including spitting and calls for expulsion. This echoes historical Judenfrei zones in Nazi Germany (Berlin, Vienna), where Jewish businesses were marked and boycotted,” added Prof. Carmona.
Kempinski had previously spent six years living in Israel, telling me that her favorite places include, “of course, Jerusalem, Caesarea, Haifa, and Mount Carmel.” She credits “several amazing teachers at school, including my teacher of the Jewish History program back in St. Petersburg, Vladimir Levin,” as a main impetus with catapulting her career. Today a professor at Hebrew University, Levin taught her to, “love history and to tell it in a way it becomes alive.”
Photo of Evgenia Kempinski provided by the Kempinski family.
Disillusioned with the confines of working as a lawyer after finishing law school, Kempinski took a year-long tour guide class in St. Petersburg.
“On the first day I worked as a guide, I realized it was my calling,” underscores Kempinski.
The isolation during the COVID-era months also proved to be a boon for Kempinski.
“Giving online lectures allowed for a new world to open for me [as] I wasn’t bound to a specific place. I could choose any subject I wanted to speak about,” she says.
“Within the last six years, I’ve learned more than in all my life before that. The more I’ve learned, the more I want to [impart my wisdom to the world]. I consider myself a Zionist and part of my job is to speak about Jewish history with pride. I like to be independent.”
This autonomy remains key to her business success.
“I absolutely love learning things and putting them into a bigger picture,” she concludes. “To me, Jewish history is everywhere, and I would like to help people understand how much impact Jews had in each European country, and how they developed relations with their neighbors.”
My experience is writing, reporting, and documenting personal narrative pieces through articles and the creative arts. I continue to interview dissidents, filmmakers, ambassadors, poets, and self-censored journalists, oft-times in regimented societies.