Day Six: April 25

Noa S.: Shabbat 

On Saturday, we were able to experience what Shabbat is like for Jewish people in Italy. We started off with services in a small synagogue next to a church, and soon after we went to lunch at Ba’Ghettos in the Jewish ghetto. Ba’Ghetto’s has prepaid Shabbat meals for Jewish visitors who observe Shabbat. After lunch, we had time to hang out in the hotel room and get ready for Shabbat dinner which was also at Ba’Ghettos. Overall, we had an amazing time experiencing Shabbat.

Eli G.: The Park on Shabbat

Shabbat in Italy was both restful and fun. We took a nice walk that included going up a massive staircase to get to the park where we played sports like football and frisbee. It was cool to be able to experience Shabbat in another country.

Day Seven: April 26

Shayna R.: Jewish Museum

Today we were able to see ancient Jewish artifacts through holocaust times. The museum had a large collection of ancient quilts that were hand sown with real gold and silver thread that the Torah was meant to be dressed in. Inside the museum we were able to visit an old small Sephardic synagogue that had air conditioning. A few interesting things we noticed and got to see were that the Bima and Aron Hakodesh were across from each other, and a giant menorah that the Great Synagogue of Rome lights every night of Hanukkah.

Noah C. & Rafi T.: Great Synagogue of Rome

Today we saw a cool synagogue called The Great Synagogue. It was very big and had a lot of drawings, an upper deck, stars and a night sky painted on the ceiling and many very cool paintings. The Aron Hakodesh was very big and had lots of Hebrew writing on it and there were lots of symbols that showed more about Jewish culture. We also had the opportunity to visit a Sephardic synagogue that was located just under the great synagogue.

Lilah R.: Culinary Tour

We went on a culinary tour in a Jewish ghetto in Rome after visiting the synagogue. Our first stop was Yotvata Restaurant where we had amazing double fried food. We started off with fried mozzarella balls that had great cheese pulls! Next we were given fried artichokes that tasted very similar to potato chips. Lastly, we had fried whitefish. After that, we went to Bona for margaretta, mozzarella, and potato pizzas and then went to Kosher Cakes for some baked goods. There we tried yotvata, meaning honey pizza that was made with raisins, nuts, and sweet bread with a sweet coating. Next came the maritozzo, a sweet bread with a cream filling and then to top it all off we tried “Jewish pizza”, a cluster of sweet ingredients in bread. This bread originated from when the Jews were segregated to the ghettos with few resources. We topped our amazing culinary tour off with gelato from Marlene’s. This delicious Italian food made us feel so much closer to both Italy and each other.

Reid P.: Pantheon

Today we went to the Pantheon in central Rome. The Pantheon was a Roman temple that was used to worship all of the gods and built in the 2nd century. Later in 609 AD, Pope Boniface IV turned the temple into a church. In addition many historical figures are buried there including the Renaissance artist Raphael. The temple has a 142 foot diameter dome which is the world's largest dome without iron and an open oculus at the top, which is the temple's main light source. In the Pantheon there are many sculptures of gods and many paintings. Since it is also a church there are many Christian sculptures and paintings depicting Christian faith. Walking into the Pantheon is so breathtaking and just amazing. To be in the Pantheon was a surreal experience because of all the history and the art and the beauty of the building.

Liv S. & Ella B.: Trevi Fountain & Spanish Stairs & Dinner

Today we visited the Trevi Fountain where we were able to see the beautiful scenery along with the crazy amount of people who wanted to see it. We then went to the Spanish Stairs which were covered in pink and white flowers native to Italy - it was gorgeous! We took photos, hung out as a grade, and admired the pretty atmosphere. For dinner, we had a choice of a sit down meal, or a faster option of pizza, pasta (Of course!), or Kosher hamburgers. Dinner was amazing and followed by some shopping and a bus ride back to our hotel.