Your host and guide is Mike Ross, travel professional since 1982.
Maximum of 6 travelers.
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: 3 of 5; ability to walk one mile within a half hour; stairs; cobblestones; uneven surfaces; handling of own luggage/personal items.
SPECIFICS: On the Reservation Form: Add details of mobility issues, dietary or health issues, anything of a personal nature which may impact your trip.
Includes superior class hotels with private bath, breakfast daily, train travel as noted in the itinerary, airport transfers in Europe, ETCS Travel Documents, Travel Preparation Guide, and myself as Host, Guide and Translator. Featuring the wonders of VENICE, TUSCANY, the villages of VOLTERRA, San Gimignano & Siena and the splendors of FLORENCE.
ITINERARY: all October dates
15 Detroit to Venice. Board a transatlantic airliner for the beginning of our journey.
16 We arrive in Venice and take a speedboat across the lagoon into ‘the city of islands’. Today we’ll explore the Piazza San Marco, see the world famous Saint Mark’s Cathedral from the 10th century, and walk across the the Rialto Bridge, first bridge across the Grand Canal. Overnight Venice.
17 Venice We begin the day with a visit inside Saint Mark’s Cathedral with it’s famous gold ceilings, countless domes, undulating mosaic floor and Byzantine-appearance. Later, we’ll visit the Doges Palace. This is where the ruler of the Venetian Empire lived when the empire was the wealthiest in the world and controlled most of Europe’s trade routes. It is opulent and grand but has dungeons in the depths where the enemies were kept. Overnight Venice.
18 Early today we’ll board a high speed train to Florence, pick up a rental van and drive to the heart of TUSCANY, the hilltop village of VOLTERRA. This afternoon we’ll see what may be the first major arch ever created, a very important design that changed architecture forever. We’ll explore the lovely streets of Gramsci and September 20th. Later you may want to enjoy a coffee on the 13th century town square, the Piazza dei Priori. Overnight Volterra
19 This morning we’ll see the 2000 year old Roman Forum with its theater, senate and covered walk ways. This afternoon we’ll visit the Etruscan Museum. This museum shows the genesis of the genius of the later Romans and is considered the finest collection of those artifacts in the world. Overnight Volterra.
20 Across the fields to the Tuscan town of SIENA. This town vied with Florence for dominance of Tuscany in the medieval era. It was wealthy and powerful and the buildings and cathedral show how successful it was. But in the 15th century, a bout of bubonic plague impoverished the town. Without money to modernize, the city is a living breathing museum of the Medieval Era. We’ll stop by a sight that has impacted world history to this today and involves a young maiden, see the Cathedral and have time to explore the twisting and turning back lanes. Overnight Volterra.
21 From Volterra we drive to SAN GIMIGNANO, another well known Tuscan town. This one is famous for the once-upon-a-time 60 high towers, of which only a handful are left. The wealthy of the town would war against one another for dominance and power and use these towers from which to shoot arrows and fire rockets. The townspeople, going about their business below, were often killed by these antics. What they did to solve the problem is a lesson for modern times. Overnight Volterra.
22 We drive back to Florence this morning. From our hotel, it is a short walk to the Piazza dei Signorie, the central plaza of the town. Some famous statues are under a portico and a fake DAVID stands near the town hall. 2 millennia of history has taken place on this plaza and includes the likes of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci. We’ll discuss why this plaza is so important and see the statues of the famous people of the town all along the exterior of the Uffizi Museum. You’ll know immediately why the Renaissance began in Florence in the 14th century. From there we’ll walk to the river and see the Ponte Vecchio, the ‘old bridge’, known from literature and history and the only bridge over this river not blown up in WWII. Overnight Florence.
23 A visit to the inside of the Florence Cathedral begins the day. This massive structure was made famous by its spectacular mosaic interior as well as its enormous dome by Brunelleschi. The dome was the largest in the world until Michelangelo’s dome on St Peters in Rome. Later we’ll explore more of the back lanes and walk across the Ponte Vecchio. Overnight Florence.
24 Florence. Perhaps the most famous statue, and some say the most perfect, in the world, is ‘on our agenda today. We’ll walk over to the Accademia to see Michelangelo’s DAVID. Over 15 feet tall and on a tall plinth, it is under a glass dome that sheds the perfect amount of light for great photos. We’ll see a few of the other works of Michelangelo, the Prisoners” as they are often called, a a few other pieces from the 12th and 13th centuries. Later we’ll explore the famous Florentine markets and the leather shops.
25 An early transfer to the airport for our flight to Amsterdam and on to the US.
