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Daniel says the tour group will find striking differences between Roman Jews and American Jews. Most Jews in Rome work as small-business merchants, a contrast to the many big-city professional Jews here in the United States, according to Daniel.

Students will study beginner Modern Hebrew in the ancient setting of Rome — the Eternal City — where a flourishing Jewish community has lived since the time of the Maccabees in the second century BCE.

In the mornings, the students will participate in an intensive language program, the equivalent of two introductory semesters of Modern Hebrew, which carries six credit hours.

After class, the group will take guided tours to historic Jewish ghetto areas, Jewish museums and the Great Synagogue. They will experience Roman Shabbats, dine on Judeo-Italian cuisine and take overnight journeys to Florence and Venice to explore other Jewish sites of interest.

Although the trip is still months away, Daniel can hardly contain her excitement. "They're going to have an experience beyond their wildest expectations," she said.

All students must be in Rome on July 1, 2001, class begins July 2, and the final exam is July 27. The application deadline is Feb. 1.

For more information, call Paolo Giordano, chair, department of modern languages and literatures, at (773) 508-2850, or e-mail him at [email protected]. You may also log on at www.luc.edu/depts/modern_lang/hebrewrome.html.

— JUF News, Chicago