When in Rome...

I am a big fan of museums because they often offer the chance to learn about something that you wouldn't usually learn.  In the case of Rome, I learned that the entire city was a sort of museum.  On display, among other things, the local Italians.  The reason for this was mainly my short stay.  I think that I managed, in 7 or 8 hours, to see the largest possible number of Roman sites, including the Vatican museums (including the Sistine Chapel), the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, among others.

Overall, the city was great and the Vatican was very impressive.  It was nice to see that G-d, or at the very least a very insistent Pope, could inspire such great works of art.  One surprise was the synagogue of the former Jewish Ghetto.  It is often easy to forget that the Rome, home to the center of the Catholic church, is also home to a Jewish community that dates back to before the birth of Jesus.  One of the oldest communities in the world, these Jews have had their share of persecution over the years, including being relegated to a ghetto in a specific part of the city in the 300 years previous to the unification of Italy in 1870 (although they were allowed to leave this part of the city to work during the day).  Another interesting fact is that the pope, in spite of encouraging the inquisition in Spain, actually encouraged fleeing Jews to move to Rome, where he hoped they would help the local economy (which they did).

A great day and also an interesting introduction to modern day Italy through a city that is home to everything from ancient history to living history.