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The Golden Age of the Ocean Liner hasn't ended
CUNARD continues the Romance

Visit The First Ghetto
In Venice, Italy

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Queen Elizabeth 2 is registered in Great Britain

Three Free nights in Paris for Grill-Class passengers aboard the QE2 Cherbourg to
New York five-day transatlantic crossing. Air France Concorde flight between
New York and Paris...three nights at the George IV...first class rail Paris to

LEWIS ERIC LACHTER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

I

t's just a 10-minute walk from
the Venice train station, but a
visit to the 16th-century Jew-
ish ghetto in Italy will trans-
port you back to a time and place
replete with cultural and reli-
gious history as well as breath-
taking beauty.
You will find the ghetto on
most street maps of Venice, and
there are street signs but it is still
not the easiest place in the world
to find.

Today, the buildings have a
great deal of charm. Especially
at sunset when they go from a
pale gray to earthy brick-red
stone that is so prevalent in
Venice.
Sunset also is an excellent time
to view the fascinating towers of
the five synagogues that still
stand in the ghetto. The five
houses of worship represent dif-
ferent Jewish groups that in-
habited the ghetto during its

PHOTO BY LOU LACHTER

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Cherbourg...complimentary amenities and upgrades
Departures June 23, August 27 and September 29, 1996.

Gondolas wait for tourists in one of Venice's many canals.

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"The All New"

649-0202

1835 Maplelawn
TROY MOTOR MALL

Open Mon. & Thurs. 9-9: Tues., Wed., Fri. 9-6; Sat 10-3

30 mo., 12,000 miles per year. 1st payment, sec. dep., acquisition fee & plate fees due at inception. Plus tax.

Next tine you feed your face, think about your heart.

Go easy on your heart and start cutting back on foods that are high in saturated
fat and cholesterol. The change'II do you good.

American Heart Association

WE'RE FIGHTING FOR YOUR LIFE

Even with my map, I had to
ask for directions twice before I
discovered the "portico" or en-
trance. The only clue from the
outside of theghetto is a small
wall plaque. But once you are in-
side, it's easy to find your way
around.
The ghetto is made up of two
major areas. The first one you
come to is the Ghetto Vecchio
(old ghetto), and further on is the
Ghetto Nuovo, the site of the
larger "new" ghetto (16th centu-
ry).
You feel surrounded by histo-
ry as you walk around the area
that covers about a city block. A
lot of people were crowded into
the ghetto starting in the 16th
century. The limited area is the
reason you will see unusually tall
buildings, some as high as eight
stories.
The guidebooks call these
structures "skyscrapers." This is
somewhat overstated, but most
buildings in modern Venice are
only three or four stories high.
The good news was that these
"skyscrapers" could house a lot of
people. The bad news was that
there was a constant danger in the
congested buildings of collapse,
fire and the spread of illness.

history. The roots of the groups
were Italian, German, Ponentine,
Levantine (also called Oriental)
and Canton.
Only two of the synagogues are
now in use. They are the German
and the Canton. They were the
highlight of my visit to the ghet-
to.
The only way to see the inside
of the two synagogues is to take
a low-cost tour.
What do you see? Let's start
with the German synagogue.
Built about 1528, the structure
is today a magnificent house of
worship where services are con-
ducted every Friday night and
Saturday morning. The congre-
gation also celebrates all of the
Jewish holidays.
The floor of the main room of
the shul is decorated with white
and gray tiles, which are
arranged geometrically to form
guadrangular figures. The ceil-
ing is covered with handsome re-
liefs in wood and stucco; and
there is a large, impressive lamp
in the center. There are monu-
mental, black-streaked marble
columns in the room, carefully
carved wooden decorations and
huge windows. The room is an
awesome sight to behold.