IN THE GHETTO

Take a peek at the real Venice, slightly off the beaten track, which is missed by so many ordinary visitors. Here you might not find the usual souvenir shops but you’ll gain a feel for the genuine rhythms of daily life in this vibrant residential quarter, once the home of Marco Polo and of the Venetian painters Tiziano and Tintoretto. The Cannaregio district is also the site of the world’s oldest Jewish ghetto, a settlement which took root five hundred years ago. Echoes and stories of the past reverberate here and as you amble through the streets you will pick up a sense of its history as well as a glimpse of today’s thriving hub and centre of Jewish life.

In 1516 Venice’s council proclaimed that Jews who wished to stay in the city must settle in the Ghetto Nuova. Did you know that the term ghetto derives from the Venetian word gèto, meaning metal casting, because the island was the site of a disused foundry? Compelled to live outside the main city, within the confines of this restricted area, Jewish ghetto-dwellers built taller and taller structures to accommodate their growing numbers. As you wander around, you will notice that the buildings here are often several storeys high. During the ghetto’s 300-year existence, up until 1797 when Napoleon had the barriers that isolated the area removed, the inhabitants were oppressed by restrictive laws and regulations such as high taxation, the wearing of yellow caps and distinctive bands on their clothes and a ban on the printing of Hebrew books. Only four bridges, closed by gates at night, connected the neighbourhood to the rest of the city, preventing Jews from leaving the area between dusk and dawn. As a result the community clung to its ancient traditions and managed to flourish against all odds. Indeed, despite a long history of humiliation and segregation, the ghetto became a lively hub of social, commercial and multicultural exchange. Today you can still find five synagogues, a Jewish museum, a library, a kosher bakery and restaurants, evidence that Jewish heritage is deeply entrenched and customs still very much alive here.

Meet your private guide at your hotel and together reach the Cannaregio district by water taxi. Upon arrival your official Jewish ghetto guide will greet you and give you a 60-minute private tour of three synagogues. The ghetto owes its lifeblood to these temples which began to germinate within the walls of pre-existing buildings, hidden from the world outside. Although they are difficult to spot, once inside they can soon be recognised as cultural and religious treasures. All three of them date to the 16th century and are located on the top floors of the buildings, since, according to local belief, no earthly fabrication should interpose between the temple and the heavens above. Your Jewish ghetto guide will retrace the history of these synagogues and of the different communities who built them, point out the most interesting features of their exuberantly decorated interiors and explain the significance of these places of worship and social aggregation in the daily lives of Jewish men and women.

Later, accompanied by your private guide, you will further your knowledge of the traditions, rituals and artistic achievements of the local population on a visit to the Jewish Museum. The collection showcases precious fabrics and silver artefacts dating from the 16th to the 18th centuries as well as ancient books, manuscripts and objects relating to Jewish festivities and liturgy. Guests will retrace the most important stages in the history of the Jews in Venice, from the first persecutions to the tragic days of the Shoah, and gain a deeper awareness of the cultural fervour experienced in the ghetto, rooted in a response to the prejudice and deprivation suffered by the community.

Next, head for Rialto and enjoy a stroll through Venice’s bustling fresh food market, once Europe’s medieval “Wall Street”. A visit to this lively quarter, for almost 1,000 years the financial and commercial heart of the Serenissima, will let you feel the pulse of daily life in Venice, both past and present. Indeed from here it only takes a small leap of the imagination to glimpse the sights and scents of exotic wares and oriental spices that merchants of old would have traded on this very spot. While you follow your guide through this enchanting city you’ll be treated to true tales and entertaining snippets about the local characters – artists, nobles, rulers and more – who used to haunt these very streets, canals and buildings. Among the captivating details and hidden wonders that will be revealed along your trail are Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo with its splendid spiral staircase and the marvellous views from the panoramic rooftop terrace of the Fontego dei Tedeschi.

After an absorbing morning of discovery make your way through the city’s exquisite tracery of waterways and fairy-tale bridges back to your accommodation.