Last Day in Rome

Last Day in Rome

This has been a wonderful and tiring journey. Last night we gathered one last time as an entire group to share highlights of the trip. It was heartening to see how many people commented on the connections with each other and how this trip enriched our community. Of course there were comments on the different experiences. A few said the Jewish core of the trip was what stood out. 

The morning started with a visit with the head of the Jewish community of Rome, a woman named Ruth. She described the communal structure not based on synagogue affiliation but still under the influence of the chief Orthodox rabbi. The community has existed for over 2000 years. The school they have starts with 75% of their children and then by high school they still retain 50%. People freely affiliate by contributing to the community. There are 18 synagogues in Rome under their umbrella. The small Reform congregation is not included in the organizational structure. She said at times they do work together but one gets the sense that they are really not integral to their thinking. Her final comment about keeping an eye on the future  and if necessary knowing they’d be welcome by our community. 

Our next stop was at One Day Chef for our cooking experience. Matteo the chef and his staff were quite welcoming in their small storefront facility. Everyone had a great time making Titamisu, Ravioli with a spinach cheese filling and spaghetti he mixed with a pecorino cheese sauce. Since I’m not into cooking I watched from the side. People received their certificate but were disappointed when they had to return the aprons and chef hats.

The remainder of the afternoon was free time for shopping, packing, or resting. We met to walk over to the Taverna Barberini for our closing dinner. The restaurant was supposed to have a separate room but that was not the case. We were split into 3 tables and the place was quite noisy. There was a guitar playing singer whose music was nice enough but he only took one short break.

We returned to the hotel for the final wrap up.