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amother


 

Post Mon, Mar 15 2010, 8:59 pm
[quote="ValleyMom"]I had presented at a conference in washington DC and it was lonely for the whole week without community. I was grateful to go to Baltimore for Shabbos. Alas my hostess was not feeling well so I went to shul alone. I believe it was the "white shul"?! At any rate I smiled and said good shabbos to everyone and not a single person asked me who I was where I was staying... welcomed me.

NOTHING.

It was a very lonely experience.

I even approached people at the kiddush to make some polite conversation and I believe they thought I WAS ODD--I speak in front of 100's of people with NO problem...


I spent the rest of Shabbos napping and reading and was glad to leave to the airport.
And I am a VERY friendly outgoing person.[/quote

what is the white shul?? I never heard of it!
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mommalah




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Mar 15 2010, 9:05 pm
DefyGravity wrote:
Amother, we live right near each other Smile


me too! Very Happy
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ValleyMom




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Mar 15 2010, 9:17 pm
I have NO idea what the shul was called but I thought it was claled the white shul. Could it be a Young Israel?!
At any rate...

This thread has completely gone down hill rapidly. I am sure Baltimore has some very nice communities with charming people.

Every frum neighborhood has it's down side. I would absolutely plan on spending shabbos in a few of the different areas to see which one feels most complimentary to your life style. GOOD LUCK!!
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amother


 

Post Mon, Mar 15 2010, 10:28 pm
I have live in baltimore for most of my life and never heard of the white shul. There is a white shul in far rockaway.
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DefyGravity




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Mar 16 2010, 8:46 am
I've been to shuls throughout the country and the only places I've had people come up to me is at small Chabads. There are many reasons that people don't go up to newcomers, and it's not necessarily out of rudeness.
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amother


 

Post Tue, Mar 16 2010, 11:51 am
she probably means Rabbi Weiss's shul (referred to without the "Rabbi" in front)
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November




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 01 2010, 11:25 pm
Hi, I've been reading up on Baltimore. My husband is currently looking for work and we've been considering a move to Israel. We went on a pilot trip, and unfortunately, I was not happy with the schools and rules and things like that (Ramat Beit Shemesh). I'm from out of town and am somewhere between MO and Yeshiva-ish. That is hard to find in Israel. Now we are beginning to consider checking out Baltimore. My husband is trying to get a job either with a firm or with the government. We have 3 kids in elementary school, and I'd love to hear from anyone who can tell me about the Baltimore community, about shuls and about the schools. We are considering a trip to look at BY and TA, but if you have other suggestions, please let me know!
Thanks!
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amother


 

Post Fri, Apr 02 2010, 6:57 am
amother wrote:
she probably means Rabbi Weiss's shul (referred to without the "Rabbi" in front)


I was also sure it was Rabbi Weiss's shul. We went there for a year and no one ever talked to us except for Rabbi Weiss himself. But other Baltimore shuls were not like that, really.

Just sometimes with such a big community, hard to know if someone is a visitor at shul or just another Baltimorean you've never met before.

November, both TA and BY (I assume you mean Bais Yaakov, and not Bnos Yisroel) are wonderful. So is Bnos, for that matter. Baltimore is a great place. Housing is expensive, but other life expenses, like food and tuition are cheaper compared to other areas. There are lots of amenities, lots of shuls to find your niche in.

I wish you good luck.
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amother


 

Post Fri, Apr 02 2010, 6:57 am
amother wrote:
she probably means Rabbi Weiss's shul (referred to without the "Rabbi" in front)


I was also sure it was Rabbi Weiss's shul. We went there for a year and no one ever talked to us except for Rabbi Weiss himself. But other Baltimore shuls were not like that, really.

Just sometimes with such a big community, hard to know if someone is a visitor at shul or just another Baltimorean you've never met before.

November, both TA and BY (I assume you mean Bais Yaakov, and not Bnos Yisroel) are wonderful. So is Bnos, for that matter. Baltimore is a great place. Housing is expensive, but other life expenses, like food and tuition are cheaper compared to other areas. There are lots of amenities, lots of shuls to find your niche in.

I wish you good luck.
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Tova




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Apr 02 2010, 3:24 pm
amother wrote:
Housing is expensive


Truthfully, it depends where and what you are ready to give up on. You can buy a 3 bedroom semi-detached home in Park Heights for $160-180.
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PinkFridge




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Apr 02 2010, 4:23 pm
November wrote:
Hi, I've been reading up on Baltimore. My husband is currently looking for work and we've been considering a move to Israel. We went on a pilot trip, and unfortunately, I was not happy with the schools and rules and things like that (Ramat Beit Shemesh). I'm from out of town and am somewhere between MO and Yeshiva-ish. That is hard to find in Israel. Now we are beginning to consider checking out Baltimore. My husband is trying to get a job either with a firm or with the government. We have 3 kids in elementary school, and I'd love to hear from anyone who can tell me about the Baltimore community, about shuls and about the schools. We are considering a trip to look at BY and TA, but if you have other suggestions, please let me know!
Thanks!


Is Silver Spring a doable commute?
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amother


 

Post Sat, Apr 03 2010, 11:13 pm
Without traffic it's at least 45 minutes each way. With traffic, more. And the traffic seems to be getting worse. Not an ideal situation.
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DefyGravity




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Apr 07 2010, 12:29 pm
Baltimore to Silver Spring/DC is a grueling commute. DH had to do it twice a week for several months and he was so happy when it came to an end. It took AT LEAST 1 1/2 hours each way - when DH would leave super-early in the morning and leave work before 4.
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613




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 08 2010, 12:31 pm
Baltimore to DC is a BAD commute. Can take the MARC train, which a lot of people are doing these days.
But DC/Silver Spring to Baltimore commute isn't bad at all (ie. living in SS, working in Balto).
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anuta




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 08 2010, 1:15 pm
ValleyMom, why in the world would you go to Baltimore for Shabbat from a conference in DC, when there is a wonderful community in DC itself? (Georgetown Synagogue, or Kesher Israel)? They are very friendly, would arrange meals for you with people, etc.
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amother


 

Post Sun, Apr 11 2010, 12:03 am
I am a NYer who moved to Baltimore about 7 yrs ago. I absolutely love it here. Yes, I dress up and wear stockings and make-up most of the time, and sometimes when I'm feeling blah on a rainy day I just do errands in a snood. Or tichel. And no matter what I'm wearing, I feel just fine about it. No one laughs at anyone here for wearing sheitels or looking very put-together, that's ridiculous.

I don't have teenage kids, so I can't tell you much about the drug situation, but I have had kids in BY and Bnos and TI, and all are wonderful schools with many pros and few cons. BY can get a little too proactive sometimes, but that's better than being less on top of potential psychological problems. The only annoying thing is carpool, it takes up your whole gosh darn life.

We rented in Pickwick. The service was excellent, the apartments were clean and spacious, free parking, carpets, washer dryer, garbage pickup, eat in kitchen, 3 BR was 1000 about 4 yrs ago. 3 BR ranchers go for about 1500, and that's with kosher kitchen, playroom, private driveway.

R Weiss' shul is unique because so many transients daven there from the apt complex, couples who are only there for a year or two. I guess they are not really looking to invest in friendships, and don't present a cohesive kehillah. I don't think anyone would notice if someone new came because so many new ppl from the apts daven there every shabbos. It is changing for the better though, a lot of people from Pickwick houses have started davening there.

To the OP--I have no idea what's in your bank account, but Beazer homes right near Ranchleigh are going for 600's and they are very, very nice. A lot of NYers moving in. There's another huge house for sale on Falstaff, also 600's, definitely a fancy neighborhood. If lots of neighbors and little kids for your kids to play with are important, buy in the Pickwick neighborhood or Ranchleigh.
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Ruchel




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Sep 16 2014, 10:17 am
amother wrote:


As for the school - I hear a lot of negative feedback from both BY and Bnos. TA has a history of s-xual abuse and TI even worse. You can look up theawarnesscenter.com and look up TI (Torah Institute) Sad I would strongly recommend Rambam.



Wow can someone tell me more about the abuse thing??

I heard of problems with many OTD teens in Baltimore too and now I'm scared !
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PinkFridge




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Sep 16 2014, 10:19 am
[quote="Ruchel"]/quote]

Old thread, you might want to start a new one or pm a Baltimore member.
And Rambam doesn't exist anymore.
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Ruchel




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Sep 16 2014, 10:28 am
LOL! I'll make a new one unless people answer here.
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amother


 

Post Tue, Sep 16 2014, 11:58 am
Have you worked out the visa issue yet? If not, all of these posts and threads about various Jewish communities in the US are really a waste of time because, as people advised you in your original thread about leaving France, it's not so easy to get permission to move here, and if you haven't dealt with that yet, I'd advise you to focus your energy in that direction instead of researching a dozen different places in the US that you won't be allowed to travel to.
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