THE JEWISH HERITAGE RICHNESS IN ITALY

Tour 9 Nights – 10 Days

Have you ever thought about Italy as a country rich in Jewish history? For centuries, this marvellous land has preserved an incredible artistic and cultural Jewish heritage that is unique in the world.

With this tour you will discover many fascinating places that you may have never heard about and you will be surprised by their peculiar beauty and hidden treasures.

 

 

The tour will start in Parma, the city of the famous cheese “Parmigiano Reggiano” (that you will taste), is also the custodian of an extraordinary collection of Jewish printed material and manuscripts held in “Biblioteca Palatina”.

In Carpi you will see the deportation camp of Fossoli, used by the Nazis for the deportees being sent to the extermination camps, including Primo Levi.  Nearby is the Monument to the Deportee, which preserves the painful memory of the atrocities of the Nazi period.

In Modena a ghetto was established in 1638 and it became a lively centre of Cabalistic studies. The literary tradition of the city was maintained even in later times; since the 18th century a rich collection of illuminated manuscripts has been preserved in the “Biblioteca Estense”.

Bologna has many points of interests in the ex-ghetto area and in the new Jewish quarter, where you can discover traces of the Jewish presence among documents, monuments, and hidden inscriptions.

In Ferrara you will pass through centuries of history, as Jews lived there from the Middle Ages.  You can still feel the memory of their past walking along the streets of the ghetto, which have preserved their original appearance.

Padua, famous for its University where Galileo Galilei taught, was the only University in Europe to accept Jewish students in the department of medicine in the 15th century. The attractive buildings in the city centre will surprise you, where the ghetto was situated, in particular by its tower houses - as the ghetto had strictly defined borders, the only way to expand the living quarters was to build up.

The tour will end in Trieste, the “gateway to Zion”, the city that helped thousands of Jews from Central and Eastern Europe on their emigration to Israel. The monumental synagogue symbolises the importance of the Jewish community in the past centuries, while the “Risiera di San Sabba” reminds us of the terrible period of the extermination camps.

 

DAY 1 – Arrival at Milano Airport and transfer to the city centre. Check-in in hotel. Dinner and Overnight in Milano.

 

DAY 2– MILAN -SORAGNA – PARMA

Breakfast. Transfer to Parma, a town with Etruscan origin, where the Jewish Community returned in 1866 after a two-century absence. Before arriving in Parma, our itinerary stops in the small centre of Soragna for a visit of the Jewish Museum “Fausto Levi” and the Synagogue. Arrival in Parma and visit to the Biblioteca Palatina, home of the largest collection of Hebrew manuscripts in Italy, and the second largest in the world after the Bodleian library in Oxford. At the end transfer to a “Parmigiano Reggiano” cheese producer, for a tasting. Overnight in Parma.

 

DAY 3 – CARPI – MODENA - BOLOGNA

Breakfast. Transfer to Carpi, where a guided tour will be organised to visit the town, the Fossoli deportation camp, and the interesting Monument to the Deportee. Transfer to Modena, where you will have lunch. In the afternoon guided tour of Modena with the Jewish Ghetto and the renowned Estense Library, which features a collection of illuminated Jewish manuscripts. Transfer to Nonantola and the famous Villa Emma, where over 100 young Jewish boys where hidden and saved during WWII. Drive to Bologna, dinner and Overnight in Bologna.

 

DAY 4- BOLOGNA

Breakfast. Meeting with your tourist guide for the visit of the Jewish ghetto and Museum. Afternoon- classical tour of the town, which include The Archiginnasio and the Anatomy Theatre. Overnight in Bologna.

 

DAY 5- FERRARA

In the morning, transfer to Ferrara. Guided tour of the city: you will see the Jewish quarter with its peculiar streets and buildings. Afternoon transfer to Abano Terme. Free afternoon in Abano Terme. Overnight in Abano Terme.

 

DAY 6 –  PADUA

Breakfast at hotel. Transfer to Padua, famous as a centre for Talmudic studies and has had a continuous Jewish presence since the 11th century. Padua was the only University City in Europe to accept Jewish students in the school of medicine way back in the 15th century. Lunch in Padua. The visit to city centre will focus on the Jewish sites and the famous Scrovegni Chapel, with the cycle of frescoes produced by Giotto. Transfer to Trieste Free evening in Trieste. Overnight in Trieste.

 

DAY 7 – TRIESTE

Breakfast. Visit to the Jewish sites of Trieste, including the monumental synagogue. Lunch in a traditional restaurant of the city centre. In the afternoon visit to the Jewish cemetery and to “Risiera di San Sabba”, the only Nazi extermination camp in Italy. Followed by free time in Trieste. Overnight in Trieste.

 

DAY 8 - VENICE

Breakfast and transfer by train to Venice.

Check-in in hotel then meeting with local guide to explore this unique city, built on 120 island, and connected over 240 bridges. During the visits you will admire Venice masterpieces of Italian Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture: Ca d’Oro (the Golden House), St. Marks’ Square, Palazzo Ducale, Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs), the San Marco Byzantine Basilica and Ponte del Rialto.  Lunch and dinner on own. Overnight.

 

DAY 9 - VENICE

Breakfast and the visit to the dreamy Venice will continue with the discover of the Jewish Heritage: the city were the word “ghetto” was used for the first time (it comes from the Venetian word “geto” indicating the foundry where the ghetto was situated). You will see the peculiar synagogues built into private houses as well as the artistic heritage that this city on the water has preserved for many centuries. Afternoon time at your leisure. Overnight.

 

DAY 10 - DEPARTURE

Breakfast and transfer to the airport of Venice by private boat.