For the discerning Jewish tourist

	The sea promenade in Trieste

The autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia is one of Italy's most diverse regions and a paradise for the discerning tourist. Located in the far northwest corner of the country in an area smaller than Israel, it combines three different cultures and ethnic groups, as well as three different climatic regions.

Trieste, its capital, is one of the most cosmopolitan urban centers in Europe and an important tourist attraction in its own right. Up to the end of the First World War, it was the richest city in Europe second only to London, forming the gateway to Hapsburg Mitteleuropa.

Contemporary Trieste is still an important seaport with excellent routes to Central and Eastern Europe. It is a beautiful city with its legacy of lovely and imposing monuments, left from its days as Central Europe's largest port. For tourists interested in Jewish heritage, there is a lot to see, as Trieste was an important center of Jewish life for centuries.

Geographically, the region nestles between the snowy white Western Alps and Dolomite Mountain Ranges, and the blue warm Adriatic Sea,. The Western Dolomites and the Carnian and Western Julian Alps make up nearly half the territory of the region. It is here that the larger national parks of the region are situated; it is also here that the regional government founded four ski resorts that have become world famous and provided the venue for World Cup competitions.

The local government is determined to promote the economic well-being of the region. By promoting industry and tourism it hopes to take maximum advantage of the region's strategic position as the sea gateway to East and Central Europe. In addition, the local government has targeted Israel as a partner in the economic development of the region, making Israel one the few countries in which Friuli-Venezia Giulia maintains a permanent representation office. Lello Dell`Ariccia heads the two-year old office.

	The regional Minister of Tourism Sergio Dressi

The main objective of the development office is the promotion of tourism, and regional Minister of Tourism Sergio Dressi is especially keen to promote Jewish tourism. In an interview with the Jerusalem Post, Dressi stressed that "The autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia has had a continuous Jewish presence since antiquity, with the first documented evidence of Jewish settlement dating from the 12th century. There is currently a Jewish community in the region.We have arranged itineraries of special interest to the Jewish tourist, including sites, points of historical interest, art, architecture and much more."

In its effort to attract tourism from Israel, a special book on the Jewish presence in the region was commissioned. The resulting volume is very interesting to armchair travelers and to visitors alike.

Before describing the places of interest in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, I must point out that the city of Venice and its sister city of Mestre are not part of the district which in part bears the name of Venice.

Friuli was part of the mainland territories of the Serenissima, the popular name of the Venetian Republic. After the war of 1866 between allies Prussia and Italy against the Austrian Empire, the victors divided up the seceded Austrian province of Venetia into two Italian provinces: Veneto in the west, with Venice as its capital, and Friuli-Venezia in the east.

An important center of tourism, the region saw over 2 million visitors, nearly half of whom were foreigners who visited and stayed in its hotels. The largest urban centers are the capital Trieste, port city Udine, Gorizia and Pordenone.

Cosmopolitan Trieste, with its broad avenues, gives the impression more of Central Europe than the Mediterranean, for this border town bears the unmistakable stamp of the Hapsburg Empire. The architecture has more in common with Vienna and Budapest than with Rome. And although the vast majority of its population is Italian and Latin there are distinct signs of Germanic thoroughness.

Even in Hapsburg days, the city was primarily Italian, with nationalistic feelings running high. Today, however, the descendants of those same Italians realize the vast potential of the old imperial heritage with its road and rail links to Vienna, and from there to all parts of Europe. With its revival, Trieste is attempting to recapture the trade that was hers before the Great War, when Trieste was the chief southeastern European port and one of the richest cities in Europe.

Trieste is without doubt a commercial town oriented to the sea, but in its long history it has created monuments of great beauty and charm, which made the town one of the major tourist attractions of Italy. One of the major sites is the Piazza Unita, seat of power of the region and of the municipality. The buildings are unmistakably in the central European style, with grand, Viennese proportions. Monumental buildings on three sides flank this Piazza but the fourth is open to the sea, a reminder that the wealth of Trieste comes from the sea.

Other places of interest are the Verdi Theater, The Citadel of San Giusto on a hill dominating the town, the Byzantine-style cathedral and the Main Synagogue, one of the largest and most impressive in the world. Also worth visiting is the spectacular Miramare Palace, built on a cliff overlooking the Adriatic. It was the home of the Archduke Maximilian, younger brother of Emperor Franz Josef, and his wife Carlotta. Maximilian was Commander in Chief of the Austrian Navy and later the Emperor of Mexico. This last appointment cost him his life, as he was put before a firing squad of Mexican revolutionaries.

Gorizia is a divided border town, with the largest part in Italy and the much smaller Nove Gorizia in Slovenia. Unlike a divided city such as Berlin before the Wall came down, or Nicosia today, Gorizia is an open city, with the frontier post between Italy and Slovenia merely a formality.

There was a flourishing Jewish community in Gorizia, and the magnificent Synagogue on the Via Ascoli are vivid testament of a glorious past. Gorizia also has other places of interest, such as the Borgo Castle, and a very well-preserved old city, where old palatial buildings have been converted into museums, offices and other types of uses.

Udine is on the crossroads of east and west. To the north is the road to Austria and the Germanic lands, and to the East Slovenia and the Slavonic. Udine is of interest as an industrial center of small factories. In contrast to the Germanic Trieste, Udine is very much a part of the Venetian mainland. Its public buildings, churches and palazzi show a distinct Venetian influence.

The city revolves around the Piazza della Liberta, which sits under the 16th century castle, with Venetian style buildings all around, such as the Palazzo del Comune, the Logge del Lionello , the Logge de San Giovanni and the Torre dell Orologio. There are only a few sites of Jewish interest in Udine. There is an Ashkenazi synagogue which is somewhat of a rarity in Italy. Most of the Jewish population was of either Italian origin going back over two thousand years, or of Spanish origin since Italy including the Papal states received many post 1492 immigrants Spanish-Jewish refugees. There is also a Jewish cemetery, forming part of the town cemetery.

Pordenone another of the large towns of the region, literally means "The port of None," a river port on what is now called the Noncello but 500 years ago was called Naone. Like most cities in Friuli, it has a wealth of old buildings in the Gothic and Venetian style, although unlike many Italian towns in Pordenone, the Cathedral is not its most imposing building.

The most impressive buildings are the Palazzo of the old aristocracy. In Pordenone this was a commercial aristocracy, wealthier than their landowning peers. Among the historic houses in the town are the residences of the Simoni, Odozzili, Varaschini-Veroi, Bassani families. Other places of interest are the 14th century Duomo Building, and the Gothic Town Hall.