Szonja is an historian, teacher, and experienced tour guide with a deep interest in cultural, social, and urban history. A native of Budapest, she has studied and lived extensively in Oxford, Jerusalem, and New York. She holds a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Oxford, and MA degrees from Oxford and Budapest. Her main field of research and interest is Hungarian Jewish history and cultural history, and she is especially intrigued by issues related to changes in national identity and language choice.

Szonja has lectured and published extensively in her field in English, Hungarian, Hebrew, and Yiddish. As an educator, her passion is to tell the story behind the facts, and, as a tour guide, to show the stories behind various layers of a city or region - historical, social, and architectural, alike.