Springtime in Florence and Assisi
May 11, - May 23, 2010
The transition in Western Europe from the medieval to the Renaissance world both contributed to and was shaped by new modes of expression in art, literature, philosophy, and spirituality. Through a close examination of some of these intellectual and artistic expressions (particularly those of Dante, Michelangelo, and Shakespeare), this study tour will seek first to define the medieval view of the world and then to trace its transformation to that of the Renaissance. This tour provides participants with a first-hand experience of Florence today, a city still small enough to walk through in thirty minutes but still one of the centers for contemporary Italian intellectual and artistic innovation.
The Uffizi
Tour Directors
The tour will be directed by two longtime friends of the Villa: Michael J. Collins, Ph.D., Professor of English; and Penn Szittya, Ph.D., Professor of English and Medieval Studies.
Liberal Studies Credit
The tour may be taken for credit through Georgetown University's Liberal Studies Program with prior approval from the student's dean. For a copy of course syllabus, click here.
The cost of the tour includes tuition, accommodations at the Villa in Fiesole, most meals, ground transportation, entrance fees, and tours as indicated in the itinerary and subject to the specified conditions.
Since accommodations at the Villa are limited, places on the tour will be reserved in the order in which deposits are received, and preference will be given to Georgetown alumni, students, and parents of students and alumni. Places may be reserved by completing the reservation form and returning it with a deposit of one thousand dollars per person.
Assisi
Participants shall reside at Georgetown's Villa Le Balze in Fiesole, a lovely hill town overlooking the city of Florence, and visit the relevant historic, artistic, and architectural treasures of Florence and its environs. Ordinarily, we shall visit the city in the morning by private bus and return to the Villa for pranzo, the midday main meal; there will be a series of afternoon excursions focusing at times on today's city and its activities. There will as well be time free for individual explorations. On some evenings, after cena, the lighter supper meal, there will be presentations and discussions to allow participants to broaden and share their appreciation of what they are seeing and experiencing. The first weekend of the tour will be spent in Assisi where we shall encounter the legacy of St. Francis in the town where he is buried. Some time has been provided during the second weekend for individual activities and travel.
The Duomo in Florence
