admin July 7th, 2012

What does Art History Alive have to do with the economic crunch in the E.U.? A couple of things:

1. Because the exchange rate is the lowest it has been since 1997, we have chosen to pass that savings on to our clients?you! We have three AHA trips going to Italy this summer and fall, and the prices for these trips have come down significantly.

2.? The E.U. is teetering, tourism is down, and this reminded me of something. After the events of September 11, 2001, I clearly remember Mayor Giuliani on television asking folks to come to New York, and not to give way to fear by staying away.?Well, we listened, and one month after that terrible day, we packed up and headed to NYC for the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, wondering if the streets would be a bit empty. Quite the opposite! It was one of the largest crowds on record. Santa Claus is always the huge climax to the parade, riding the last float, but I had to cover my ears when the float that preceded Santa passed by. On that float were Mayor Giuliani, the Fire Commissioner, the Police Commissioner, some fire fighters and police officers, and the flag that flew at the World Trade Center site. We were so glad that we had gone to NYC and supported the city in that terrible time.

I feel a bit the same about the E.U. right now. AHA has so many friends in Italy and France who are suffering as their financial systems struggle. I think that it is safe to say that the E. U. needs our travel dollars more than anytime since post WWII, another terrible time for Europe.

In hopes of stimulating more of you to travel, I am lowering the prices on the upcoming AHA trips and designing personal itineraries for the friends and clients who cannot go with us, but will go on their own and want it to be the AHA style. We will create for you, a dream trip based on your desires and our experience. Infused in each itinerary is my enthusiasm and passion, which I cannot help.

Below are our AHA trips with reduced prices. Each one has been created with every detail considered, every lunch and dinner, every warm evening and cobblestoned alley. And now, we can use these to help our friends out of a very tough time, and see wondrous things at the same time.

MUSICA IN TUSCANY – CLOSED
A Castle Courtyard Concert, Hill Towns, and Rome
JULY 12 ? 18, 2012
Was $3,300. Now $2,900. Savings $400.00

ROME AND TUSCANY
A Colosseum and a Castle
SEPTEMBER 30 ? OCTOBER 8, 2012
Was $3,900. Now $3,400. Savings $500.00

GERMANY, ALONG THE ROMANTIC ROAD
Cathedrals, Castles, and a Concentration Camp
This itinerary is available for purchase. Call for pricing and your copy for travel at your convenience.

ROMA AMOR: ROME IS LOVE SPELLED BACKWARD
Judith Testa brings her book to life as she shares with us her Rome.
OCTOBER 10 ? 17, 2012
Was $4,100. Now $3,600. Savings $500.00

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admin September 1st, 2011

I Am Passionate About What I Do

Here are the deeply cultural, and beautiful tours that AHA will guide in 2012.? Lot’s of choices and gorgeous destinations.? This year we have deeper discounts for returning guests, early applications, and for bringing a friend.? Check out the Discounts page.? And don’t forget, a group of 4-6 friends or family that apply as a group, for any of the trips below, receive a private tour.

AHA is all about cultural immersion travel, and we love it when our guests return home enriched.? So, which culture would you like to take a dip into?

1. GOLD RUSH WINES AND YOSEMITE? April 19-26, 2012

2.? SARDEGNA: ANCIENT, WILD, SPECTACULAR, May 22-28, 2012

3.? PARIS 201: BEYOND THE EIFFEL TOWER, May 30 – June 5, 2012

4.? MUSICA IN TUSCANY: A CASTLE COURTYARD CONCERT, HILL TOWNS AND ROME, July 2012

5.? GERMANY: CASTLES, CATHEDRALS and a CONCENTRATION CAMP, October 1-8, 2012

6.? ROME AND TUSCANY: A COLOSSEUM AND A CASTLE, September 30 – October 8, 2012

7.? ROMA AMOR -? ROME IS LOVE SPELLED BACKWARD JUDITH TESTA BRINGS HER BOOK TO LIFE, October 10-17, 2012

A WORD ON WHAT’S NEW FOR 2012:

SARDEGNA – May 22-28, 2012

Hauntingly Beautiful Tuscany

This large island off the west coast of Italy has been a vacation favorite with Italians for eons.? The colorful grottoes, beautiful beaches, and unique history, a result of being located along the high traffic seaway of conquering civilizations through the centuries, makes Sardegna a culture in which you want to immerse yourself.

MUSICA IN TUSCANY - July 2012

AHA’s first summer tour!? Not only will we attend a music festival held in the courtyard of an 11th-century Italian castle, we will stay there as well.? This itinerary will also include meandering through some of the nearby hill towns of Tuscany, enjoying the cuisine and wines that this area is famous for, and it will end with two days in Rome.? Here is a perfect trip for the educators, administrators, and summer vacationers that have asked for a summer trip.? I was listening and look forward to sharing Tuscany and Rome with you.

GERMANY: CASTLES, CATHEDRALS and a CONCENTRATION CAMP, October 1-8, 2012

This trip will begin in the wine country of Bavaria and end in the mountains outside of Munich, Germany.? We will travel the gorgeous “Romantic Road” watching the hilltop castles go by, stopping along the way to explore and “get into” Germany.? But, by way of balance, we will also include, an important piece of history. We will visit Dachau, the infamous concentration camp museum, and Nurnberg.? This is an outstanding art history itinerary, with both treasures and tragedy.

ROMA AMOR: ROME IS LOVE SPELLED BACKWARD – October 10-17, 2012

This tour, focusing on Rome and Rome alone, will be based on my favorite book on the Eternal City, Rome is Love Spelled Backward. And amazingly, for the fortunate guests that sign on, the author, Judith Testa, will guide this tour!? I will be there, too, listening and learning from AHA’s own art history consultant and professor, as she deftly paints, for us, a picture of ancient Rome.? How fortunate are we!

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admin August 30th, 2011

Our Castle, Castello di Proceno

July 12 – 18, 2012 ~ 7 Days ~ Group Size: 6

Price was: $3,300.00? New price: $2,900.00 Save $400.00

A Castle Courtyard Concert, Hill Towns, and Rome.

In July of 2012, AHA will offer its first summer tour.? How could we pass up the opportunity to share with our guests The Annual Convivio in Musica, held in the courtyard of the castle that we have been sharing with you for fifteen years?? Well, we couldn’t!? So, in July, a very small group of six will travel with me to Tuscany and? Castello di Proceno, where we will check in a few days before the festival and get acclimated to our beautiful castle and surroundings.? We will stay for four days which happily, is long enough to unpack.

On the day of the festival, people from as far away as Florence, to the North, and Rome, to the South, will arrive, well dressed and anticipating the music about to be enjoyed.? The acoustics of the courtyard are perfect, as it is surrounded by tall stone walls, which double as a screen for the beautiful art that is projected upon them during the concert.? Immersed in the music and art of Italy, for an afternoon we will be transported to another time and place.

Following the concert, all of the guests gather to enjoy a buffet of Tuscan delights.? Beginning with

A Tuscan Salami Buffet

champagne, we will dine on country salami, sausage of boar, a variety of freshly prepared crostini, local cheeses and so much more.? Cecilia, owner of the castle, whose recipes we will enjoy is quite famous in the area for her cooking classes.? I have taken a few and the food was glorious.

During the balance of our four day stay at the castle, we will explore some hill towns, prepare a meal together and all around relax.? Our last two days we will be spent in gorgeous Rome, where during that time we will take a stroll that will lead you from The Spanish Steps, to the Trevi Fountain, in front of? The Pantheon, and into romantic Piazza Navona, with its gorgeous Fountain of The Four Rivers.? This is a stroll you will never forget.

Should any of you like to extend an extra day, it can be arranged.? With an additional day in Rome, we could include The Coliseum, The Forum, and St. Peter’s Basilica, and of course, several more great lingering meals.

Gelato in Rome: Grapefruit, Cantalope and Green Apple

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admin April 16th, 2010

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Cobblestoned Tuscany

Facebook me!

I am thrilled to be able to bring down the price of our Tuscany and the Amalfi Coast itinerary, September 14 – 21, 2010.? Original price $5,000.00, new price $4,400.00. Nice!

Because of the strength of the dollar to the Euro I have been able to re-calculate the price of this awesome trip!

The strength of the dollar seems to be a positive indicator that the economy is coming back bit by bit. Coupled with the great price of airline tickets, and the fact that guests are signing up for AHA travel in 2010 and 2011, after a very quiet 2009, are further signs.? Let’s hope the trend continues.

What is “AHA Style”?? AHA is true to its name, Art History Alive, and each itinerary focuses on it, wherever we are.? Lightly educational in nature and full of cultural detail, from music to cuisine, from architecture to the greatest artwork ever, this is AHA Style.? Add to that micro-group size for fun and flexibility and you truly do have a “travel style”.? Ah Ha!

Our September 2010, Tuscany and The Amalfi Coast trip, the first time we have offered this particular combination, the cobblestoned hilltowns of Tuscany, and the seaside of Italy.? You’ve got to admit that this is a wonderful contrast.? If? you are unfamiliar with these areas, take my word for it, it is a killer combo and then, sign up!? Hearty Tuscan food, complimented by mouth watering country wines, juxtaposed against the fresh, light sea food of the seaside, while dining al fresco (outside) enjoying crispy white local wines.? Paleeeeeeze!? All the while surrounded by? the incredible Etruscan civilization of Tuscany, surprisingly in sync with American ideals, and the very same ideals that the early Romans stole for their own, plus harrowing tales of the marauding Pirate history of the Southern Coast.? Brain fed, tummy fed.? Hm m m m, can it get any better?? Not for me.

Stretch your brain, and tantalize your taste buds.? With this price reduction, the savings just about cover the price of your round trip ticket to Italy!

The Top of Capri

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admin September 4th, 2009

Taking a break

AHA is developing a wonderful new itinerary for 2011, Lake Como and Northern Tuscany.? The design is a good one, blending lakeside lounging with a Swiss Alp backdrop, and cobblestone hilltowns, art, history, and culture.? Nice combo.

Art History Alive, that would be my husband Jim and myself, will spend three weeks in Italy, this fall, on what we like to call a research and development trip.? We love this part of the job!

Research and development are really key to AHA.? We never take guests to a place that we are not completely familiar with.? To accomplish this, about one year in advance, we design a new itinerary, do tons of research, and then take it on the road.? (Oh well, somebodys’ gotta do it.)? Because the area is often new to us, we are in new and different hotels, trying as many restaurants as possible, driving the roads, and wandering the alleyways.? We search out and visit the artwork we’ve researched, logging miles and shortcuts, and finding the smoothest routes from A to B, B to C, etc., all the while taking copious notes.? Those notes, our leg work and taste buds eventually develop into a new itinerary for our guests.

Two of the hotels, in which we have chosen to stay this time, are Hotel Imperiale, on the lake, and La Bandita, in Tuscany.? However, we have others that we will be visiting, while in both areas.? All of this so that we can offer a new Italian itinerary that will take guests to a gorgeous part of Italy, where they will sleep in a place that has its own historical significance, and where they can trust they will enjoy the most delicious food the area has to offer.?In an effort to leave nothing to chance, we will have tried them all, well, . . . not all.

By the time we return home to California, we will have a new trip developed, and have, after all, spent three weeks together in some of our favorite places.

• Cremona – Home to several original Stradivari violins
• Florence – To see Cimabue’s Crucifix
• Proceno – To visit our lovely friends and their castle
• Roma – Our favorite city and more wonderful friends
• Sorrento – Because we can
• Herculaneum – A seaside town and buried treasure, that did not survive the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD

I will look forward to posting on our travel discoveries when I return.? Until then, I am off to buy some elastic waisted slacks.

Chow, oops, I mean Ciao.

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