Summary of Your Daily Activites

Day 1 Depart USA to Milan, Italy

Day 2 Arrive Milan
You will be met by our representative; visit the Teatro alla Scala on the way to your hotel.  The theatre, built in 1778,  accommodates 3,000.  Enjoy a time of relaxation, dinner and overnight in Milan.

Day 3 Milan and Venice
Sightseeing, Milan.  Visit the Duomo (Cathedral), the third largest church in the world, and the largest Gothic building in Italy. The Cathedral was begun in 1386, consecrated in 1577, and not completed until 1897.  Enjoy the picturesque Street and Square of the Merchants, including the Palace of Jurisconsults, built in 1564 and the statue of St. Ambrose teaching. Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper" will be seen in the Church of St. Mary of Thanks refrectory.  View the Basilica of St. Ambrose, founded at the end of the 4th century.  Travel to Venice for dinner, a relaxed evening and overnight.

Day 4 Venice and Florence
A fascinating city, Venice is designed  for waterways and boats instead of cars. You will be in the Piazza San Marco, bordered on three sides by beautiful arcades in two tiers and faced on its fourth side by the Basilica of St. Mark, a masterpiece of architecture. Visit the Basilica, with its treasure of marble and gold-background mosaics. From the Piazza, you can see the famous Bell Tower and the Clock Tower, as well as the beauty of the pink and white Doges' Palace.  The Bridge of Sighs can also be seen.  Visit the Church of St. Mary of Salvation. Free time will be given to explore the city, stroll along the bridges and canals, or, take time for a boat ride on the canals. Travel to Florence for dinner, a relaxed evening and overnight.

Day 5 Florence, Perugia (next to Assisi)

Nestled between a line of hills and the banks of the Arno River,  Florence includes streets, Squares and winding alleys containing Romanesque,  Gothic, and Renaissance architecture. Among the wealth of masterpieces of  architecture you will see are the Piazza della Signoria, with its Neptune  Fountain, and Vecchio Palace. Visit the Baptistry (Housing Ghiberti's ("Gates of Paradise").  Visit the Academy of Fine Arts (housing additional works by Michelangelo, including his creation "David". View Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral, and Medici Chapel. Travel to Perugia for dinner, a relaxed evening  and overnight.

Day 6 Assisi, Rome

Our journey towards Rome takes us to the medieval town of Assisi, home of St. Francis (1182-1226). A lover of the beauties of nature, he preached kindness to animals, and praised the gift of Joy in the service of God. Just two years after his death, the large Basilica was begun in his memory - on  land which was once an execution ground for condemned criminals. Visit the Upper and Lower sections of the Basilica. The Lower  Basilica is dark, low, and austere, and includes a series of frescoes. The  Upper Basilica has a graceful Nave, bathed in light. On the walls of the  Nave, Giotto depicts the life of St. Francis. Visit the Cathedral of St. Rufino; view the Church of St. Clara and the Via Francesco. Travel to Rome  for dinner, a relaxed evening and overnight.

Day 7 Rome

History is woven through the streets and neighborhoods of Rome in unique and  impressive ways!  Today you will explore and experience Ancient Rome,  its historical perspective. Visit the Coliseum, (opened by the Emperor Vespasian in A.D. 80). With a circumference of 580 yards and height of 157 feet, the Coliseum would hold 50,000 persons. Visit the Mamertime  Prison, and the Pantheon (founded by Agrippa in 27 B.C.; rebuilt by Hadrian in 110-125 A.D). View the Forum, Circus Maximus, Arch of Titus, and Arch of  Constantine. Dinner and overnight in Rome.

Day 8 Rome

Our day includes a Papal Audience, St. Peter's Square (created in the 17th century by Bernini), Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel (built in 1473  under the direction of Pope  Sixtus IV), and St. Peter's Basilica (on the site of Nero's circus, over St. Peter's tomb). Dinner and  overnight in Rome.

Day 9 Rome

Today, experience Christian Rome, visiting the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano (the oldest church in the city; presented to the Pope by the Emperor Constantine, and almost entirely rebuilt in the 17th and 18th  centuries). View the Gate of St. Sebastiano. Visit St. Paul Outside the Walls (built in the 4th century, destroyed by fire in 1823, and   rebuilt on the original plan), St. Peter in Chains (founded in the 5th  century; rebuilt in the 15th century, including a large statue of Moses by  Michelangelo), Catacombs of Callisto (largest of the catacombs in Rome), and  the Basilica of St. Maria Maggiore (built in the 5th century, rebuilt in the  13th century, with additions in the 17th and 18th centuries). Dinner and overnight in Rome.

Day 10 Rome / USA

Return to the USA with your faith enriched and new insights into  Italy's contribution to history and world culture.

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