OUR TRIP TO ITALY WITH RICK STEVES
On Day 8 in the afternoon, we were free to explore on our own. We opted for the Jewish Quarter of Rome, where a synagogue had been turned into a fascinating museum of Jewish history in the Eternal City, the Museo Ebraico di Roma.
The Jewish community has been living continuously in Rome for 2,200 years, making it one of the oldest communities outside of Israel. The exhibits on display in the museum date back principally to the ghetto period (1555-1870).
Walking across the different rooms we saw a reconstruction of Jewish life in Rome since the earliest settlement in the second century BC. Here we viewed paintings, stained glass windows, panels describing the history of Jews in Rome, and even a chair upon which the bris (ritual circumcision) by a mohel took place.