The Founders square and the Great Synagogue building. Construction of the synagogue began in 1885. Zvi Levontin, uncle of Zalman Levontin, the one who contributed about half the amount for the purchase of land Rishon LeZion, allocated most of the funds for the construction of the synagogue too. David Papermaster, an engineer and architect who build a magnificent house of the city council in Jaffa, created a project of this building. Fast enough the officers of Baron Rothschild interfered in the construction process. Instead of becoming a Hasidic synagogue as the settlers intended, it was built in the generally accepted Ashkenazi style. Construction lasted 4 years and was completed in 1889 by the arrival of Baron Rothschild. The facade was a little changed subsequently. They added an elevation with an establishment year on the Jewish calendar written in Hebrew letters. Agricultural tools were kept in the cellars of the synagogue. This was since initially this building was presented to the Turkish authorities as a barn for agricultural machinery, since the Turks didn't allow to build a synagogue. Over time, the basement was allotted for a kindergarten. It was the first kindergarten with education carried put completely in Hebrew.
This is a special tour and a unique route. Its difference from the usual city tour is that your mobile phone is the guide. As in every excursion, it takes time to get used to the tour guide, his style, rhythm and pathways. The only difference is that in this case, you are the storyteller, you are walking yourself and set the pace for yourself - all according to your style. Just give yourself time to get used to it and you will come to life with a story full of the vicissitudes of the lives of real people, a story about their joys and sorrows, a story in which urban legends rise from the past, instill hope and simply sums up: here it all began.
