CSUDH: Italy – Psychology – Stress (2023)

Depart the United States on overnight flight to Rome

Arrive Rome mid to late afternoon

Check into hotel

Enjoy some of Rome’s site and then enjoy a Welcome Dinner at a traditional Italian trattoria.

Put on your walking shoes! Today we will explore many of Rome’s most famous places. We will depart in the morning and head to the Colosseum. Afterward, we head to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Taking a break for lunch then on to the Spanish Steps/Piazza di Spagna, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Colonna, and the Pantheon.

Dinner this evening will be in the lively Roman neighborhood of Trastevere.

We will depart early this morning to have the chance to be some of the first people to explore the Vatican Museum today and an opportunity to see the famous, Sistine Chapel.

In the afternoon/evening we will go on a Street Food Tour of Rome – experiencing Italian classics and real Roman street food.

We will wake early to depart on our excursion to Florence. Today we will view the legendary Florence Cathedral, known as the Duomo; pass Giotto’s Campanile, a masterpiece of Gothic architecture; see the medieval Ponte Vecchio and Piazza della Signoria, the center of Florentine life; and step inside the Basilica of Santa Croce, burial site of Michelangelo, Machiavelli, and Galile.

Overnight in Florence

This morning we will enjoy additional time exploring Florence before heading back to Rome.

This afternoon, we will enjoy an Italian cooking class and learn more about the secrets of the Mediterranean diet.

This morning we depart on a day trip to discover Roman history in Calcata and Bomarzo Terme Dei Papi (thermal baths). Our first stope will be Calcata, where you have the opportunity explore this small, medieval village. We will traverse the narrow alleyways between ancient, medieval homes and learn more about history and legends from this area. Next, we will move on to the park of monsters in Bomarzo, an example of a garden of the Italian Mannerist artistic period. Visiting this enchanted garden will catapult you into a world of fairy tales, myths, and legends. Before returning to Rome, we will immerse ourselves in the thermal waters of the Terme Dei Papi and learn more about the beneficial warm waters (40 ° -58 ° C) of this ancient swimming pool.

This morning, we will depart for the Amalfi Coast. We will walk the Path of the Gods along the spectacular Sentiero degli Dei, one of the most scenic trails in the world.

Overnight Amalfi Coast

Today we will leave early to take the 2.5-hour drive to Pompeii In the afternoon, you will explore Pompeii, Italy’s most famous archaeological site, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site like no other. Pompeii, a lively city, got indeed buried in ash and pumice by Mount Vesuvius’ eruption in 79 AD. You can see a perfectly preserved fossil record of ancient Roman life, visiting the most fascinating sites of the city, from plaster death casts to streets cut out by carriage wheels 2,000 years ago. After our visit in Pompeii, we will head to Naples, where have a chance to wander around the city and pop into the shops. You will also have a chance to see many of Naples’ historic buildings including, San Carlo Opera House, Europe’s oldest working theater.

This afternoon, we explore Vesuvius. Take a walk around the very rim of Vesuvius’ crater, with sulphuric gases and steam still emerging from the gravel. A scenic drive will then take us to the Agerola high plain.

We will return to Rome this late this evening.

This morning we awake for our last day in Rome. After breakfast we will explore the Campo de’ Fiori, a bustling food market selling everything from meats to cheeses, pasta, drinks, flowers and more.

Afterward, we visit the famous Rome Catacombs and Capuchin Crypt, where you will have an opportunity to learn more about their fascinating history and how this is connected to current times.

Enjoy one last glimpse of this amazing country as you enjoy breakfast then it is off to home with memories that will last a lifetime.