Our program:

• 4 nights Bologna
• 5 nights Agriturismo cooking school close to Florence

This is a 'hands-on' program and therefore limited to 8 participants.

Of course we start in Italy's enogastronomic capital Bologna (in the Emilia-Romagna region) where we settle in for 4 nights in a lovely hotel right on the Piazza Maggiore.

Surrounded by hills and still bound by 14th century walls and 12 beautiful gates Bologna with a population of only 600,000, is a city built on a human scale, in which people still live and work in the well-preserved historic heart. It still looks much as it was during the Renaissance with dusky red coloured buildings, wide piazzas, 16th century fountains and a stunning network of marble-floored arcades (covered walkways 24 miles of them!) with ancient shops along side beautiful piazzas, churches and museums in this thriving university town.

One of Bologna's favourite ways to keep in touch with its past is through Food - the style, the quality, the tradition, the indulgent enjoyment of it. Bologna is the motherland of home made pasta where tagliatelle, lasagna and tortellini are the favourites. The preparation is second nature and truly an art form.

Along with enjoying the city and its social atmosphere by shopping the markets and visiting some amazing 'food boutiques' we will attend 'La Vecchia Scuola Bolognese' with a 'hands on' program just for our little group. La Veccia Scuola Bolognese prides its curriculum to fuse old traditions passed down from generations with modern ingredients and techniques still respecting the cultural traditions of the region.

After our stay in Bologna we will move to Florence in Tuscany. We have arranged to stay in a delightful 'agriturismo' cooking school just outside the city for 5 nights allowing three hands on cooking sessions plus plenty of time in Florence and visits to some of our other favourite Tuscan highlights - San Gimignano, experience an 'oil tasting' and visit a Chianti Classico winery.

The food style is very different in Tuscany. From its founding in 1115, Florence flourished for over 500 years as a center of art, architecture, finance, and culture. By the year 1200 the character of the Florentine 'cucina' was already dominated by bread, in the form of panunto or fettunta (garlic-rubbed bread dipped in olive oil), early versions of bread-based soups, and schiacciata alla fiorentina and pan di ramerino, two dessert breads.

Renaissance feasts for kings, popes, and the Medici family became food marathons. Nowadays Tuscans, and we will focus on the Tuscan style of the “contadini” - the farmers or peasants - simple, austere cooking that reflects the Tuscan emphasis on bread, beans, and olive oil. Soups, especially the trio of pappa, ribollita, and panzanella.

COST AND INCLUDED FEATURES:

Cost: $2759.00 CDN ( $2300.00 USD) per person based on sharing twin room
(Single supplement - $380.00 CDN ($320.00)

Included Features:

• 4 nights in Bologna - 4star Hotel Orologio
• 5 nights at charming Agriturismo just outside Florence
• Breakfast daily
• Full day course at La Vecchia Scuola Bolognese preparing Lunch and Dinner
• All transportation as mentioned in the program
• 3 cooking classes with a local Tuscan chef
• 2 additional dinners
  • Welcome dinner
  • Dinner in Florence
• Fully escorted by Rose Tomassini
• Deposit required to hold reservation - $500.00 per person
• Balance due by February 02, 2006

The Slow Food Movement
The Slow Food Movement recognizes that eh enjoyment of wholesome food is essential to the pursuit of happiness and is dedicated to the stewardship of the land and ecologically sound food production, to the revival of the kitchen and the table as centres of pleasure, culture and community, to the invigoration and proliferation of regional, seasonal, culinary traditions; and to living a slower and more harmonious rhythm of life.