A Sunday in Siena

Greenery races by
And joyful surprises appear
Of yellow and red houses.
Rain soothes my heart,
My mind is at peace.
Hills of Tuscany surround
The road is a smooth ride.
A beautiful Sunday morning,
Driving along the west of Italy.
Storm clouds are passing
A sunny day awaits,
In wonderful Siena.

Synagogue

The synagogue in Florence was truly amazing. We first stood outside listening to some history. Across the street, there stood the great synagogue, like it was just waiting for us. With its huge turquoise dome and long cobblestone path surrounded by grass and trees, the synagogue was really able to stand out. Inside, it was decorated so intricately I can't even begin to explain how awesome it looked. I did not feel as though I was in a church, as some people felt. Instead, I felt like I truly belonged. The grandness of the building helped show how the Jews of Florence really appreciated being Jews and how they had a love for their religion. They wanted to show it off by building such a magnificent synagogue, and they were not embarrassed about being Jewish. It showed how they were excited to serve G-d and wanted to do so through something beautiful.

shabbos

Shabbos was truly an amazing experience! Friday night we ate with a French group that was also visiting Florence. The Friday night table was full of different costomes. It was amazing to see all the different types of Jews coming together for the common Mitzvah of Shabbos. Everyone was so welcoming to all the differnet types of costomes that the table was beautiful with every differnt type of ritual.

Nostalgia in Simoné's Workshop

Two days ago we visited a leather shop run by a craftsman named Simonè (I cant make an apostrophe on the Italian keyboard, but I can put an accent on the "e"). He is third generation craftsman. His shop runs almost like a 16th century guild. It has the familiar smell of my hometown shoe repair shop on West Broadway in Cedarhurst. Simoné uses the same tools as his grandfather and father before him. He learned the trade as an apprentice and he makes beautiful leather boxes, wastepaper baskets, bookends, and masks. I was a little saddened/nostalgic when he said that the shop will likely not last to the next generation. It reminded me of the furniture store started by my great great grandfather on the Lower East Side in the first decade of the the 20th century (c. 1906), which will likely not last to the next generation either.

Welcome to “Art and Experience in Medici Florence,” a ten-day course at Stern College for Women, Yeshiva University, on the art and social context of Florence during the Renaissance period. Through pictures and postings, you can follow our students as we visit and study some of the city’s key monuments, public spaces, works of art, and its Jewish culture and history. Florence (and Siena for a day) will be our home and classroom for the next ten days.