Giovanni Caselli

There are more Etruscan place-names in the Casentino than in the whole of the rest of Tuscany. This means that the Casentino is the heartland of Etruria.

There are more ruined castles in the Casentino than there are in the rest of Tuscany. This means that the heart of Medieval Tuscany is here.

This is the view from the balcony of my palazzo in the hill-town of Bibbiena, the birthplace of Italian theatre and stage design.

I can accommodate you in very nice hotels or "agriturismo", I can take you around to see historical sites and natural wonders, and feed you with the best foods and wines Italy can afford.

I can even find a holiday house or flat for you to buy and then assist you through the whole bureaucratic process of purchasing and restoring the place to your own specifications.

PROGRAMME FOR ONE WEEK STAY FOR PARTIES FROM 8 TO 15 PEOPLE IN THE CASENTINO

Day 1 � SUNDAY - Arrival at Bibbiena � Giovanni�s welcome and transfer to lodgings in local hotel� Dinner with typical local products at local restaurant in Bibbiena.

Day 2 � MONDAY - Introductory lecture in the Dovizi Theatre � Light luncheon � Afternoon visit to ham and sausage manufacturer in Pagliericcio � Cooking with our chef and dinner in Bibbiena.

Day 3 � TUESDAY - Introductory lecture at the Opera Museum in Bibbiena � Visit to the farm Villa Rossi in Soci � Food & wine tasting luncheon at Villa Rossi� Photography and life drawing session on the farm � Cooking with our chef and dinner in Bibbiena.

Day 4 � WEDNESDAY - Visit to the Monks Grange of �Villa Mausolea�- Wine and food tasting on the estate � Visit to the Camaldoli Monastery and 16^th C. Chemistry of Camaldoli with local liqueur tasting, with photography and life drawing.

Day 5 � THURSDAY - Visit to the Talla Cheese Factory with wine and cheese tasting � Visit to the working Talla Water Mill, with photography and life drawing. Dinner at the mill including chestnut recipes with special wines in the splendid ancient kitchen (Winter).

Day 6 � FRIDAY - Illustrated lecture in the Opera Museum of Bibbiena � Wine and food tasting in Poppi Castle with photography and life drawing in the castle and in town. Transfer to Stia and dinner with local specialties and wines in a Stia restaurant.

Day 7 � SATURDAY � Summing up lecture in the Dovizi Theatre with wine and food tasting - Afternoon return to Florence.

However, I can speak for both of us in writing to you that we have thoroughly enjoyed our trip and cherish everything we learned in such a brief and condensed period. Giovanni must have been thoroughly exhausted though! We have great admiration for our hosts in having both given us a different perspective on Italy, and a deeper understanding of its history and current political environment. To be taken on a "walk in the woods" and experience history in such an alive way, to travel on a path older than we can imagine, but still in use, or to lift some shards out of a farmer's field and hold evidence of a highly developed civilization roughly 2500 years ago, was a thrill beyond words. I will never forget how Giovanni casually lifted a chunk of flint out of the dirt and commented: "Here you have it, they carried these things around to trade, so here's some Stone Age currency." It was wonderful to have such a knowledgeable guide who could make history out of a rock! Because the archeological layers are exposed one right beside the other, history was not experienced in the habitual chronological manner, but rather we were catapulted through thousands of years at a time, sometimes several times an hour, and had to create an understanding of it all presented like that - an exhilarating experience!

Dear Giovanni, many thanks to you for making yourself available to us humble time travelers and to you Adriano for turning what could have been a boring trip to the airport into an interesting sight-seeing tour. We highly recommend this experience to all who want to make the best out of a very short time in one of Italy's most beautiful Tuscan valleys, the Casentino valley.