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Day 1: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Depart the US for Italy. (In-flight meals)
Day 2: Sunday, May 25, 2008
Arrive in Italy and independently transfer to Siena. We rendezvous as a group
in Siena for a short walking tour of this gem of Italian cities. Radda in Chianti.
Wonder at the stunning Cathedral and the Pinturicchio frescoes in the famous
Libreria Piccolomini, visit the Town Hall and we take a cappuccino in the breathtaking
Piazza del Campo. We drive to our hotel, in the midst of the beautiful Chianti
countryside, for an Introductory Talk and Welcome. Hotel Palazzo San Niccolo
(In-flight meals, D)
Day 3, Monday, May 26, 2008
Our walk today centers on the Strada Chiantigiana as it meanders to and fro through
classic Tuscan countryside and we cross the vineyards that make the Chianti region
renowned for its wine. As we approach Monteriggioni, we admire the 13th century
walls complete with fourteen towers, and we lunch here in this romantic medieval
village, once a Sienese fortress. Return to our hotel along country tracks, through
ancient farmsteads, always in the shade of the famous cypress and pine trees
that are such a feature of a Tuscan landscape. Palazzo San Niccolo (B, L, D)
Day 4, Tuesday May 27, 2008
After a short transfer, we walk to famed Badia a Coltibuono, through a forest
Cortona whose first trees were planted by the Benedictines in the eleventh century.
Enjoy a private visit of the house, cellars and gardens and a tasting of the
olive oils and honey produced here. We lunch in the village of Gaiole and walk
on, along ancient hunting tracks in glorious countryside of vineyards and castles,
to meet the van for the transfer to Cortona in time for dinner. Palazzo San Niccolo
(B, L, D)
Day 5, Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Walk around the medieval ramparts of this ancient Etruscan city clinging to the
hillside; a town already old when its lands were wasted by Hannibal. We wander
the steep, narrow streets paved with flagstones and come across surprising arcaded
squares, alleyways, churches and gardens; we visit the Cathedral and the Piazza
Garibaldi with its breathtaking views to Lake Trasimeno and Montepulciano. Time,
too, for shopping. After lunch, our walk takes us to the monastery where St Francis
made his will -and continue to picturesque Spello. Palazzo San Niccolo (B, L,
D)
Day 6, Thursday, May 29, 2008
An early start to the pastures and pine forests of Monte Subasio, a plateau Spello
with views to Spoleto Vale -then a slow descent along a spur of the mountain
before reaching the terraced slopes of Assisi. Elegant squares and the Basilica
of St. Francis are the pivot of this exceptional town and its architectural splendours.
Our walk ends at the Basilica before returning to Spello. Entirely built in pink
stone, the town was known as Hispellum and still retains its original Roman walls.
Palazzo San Niccolo (B, L, D)
Day 7, Friday, May 30, 2008
From Montefalco, we set out across the plains, along rustic byways and through
the olive groves and vineyards of the renowned Sagrantino and rosso di Montefalco
to reach Bevagna, an ancient town redolent with Romanesque churches and the remains
of Roman architecture. After a medieval lunch, we continue to gorgeous Spoleto,
entering by the famous Bridge of Towers, built in the 14th century over a Roman
aqueduct, and navigating our way through the maze of alleyways to find our hotel.
Hotel Italia (B, L, D)
Day 8, Saturday, May 31, 2008
Don’t miss the morning market with its bright and colourful array of vegetables,
fruit and flowers before we leave for Orvieto. Here we have time to explore this
stunning Etruscan city and its famous Cathedral; last-minute shopping, too, before
we say “arrivederci” at the Orvieto rail-station. Continue on with
independent travel or depart for United States. (B, In-flight meals)
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