Tuscany Expedition, Sustainable Farming, Ancient History & Art
Experience a deeper side of Italy. This program is designed open your eyes to the realities of climate change while also learning about and exploring the proactive and life-affirming ways that we can overcome our current and future environmental challenges. “This program is an excellent way to experience Europe in a diverse way, in a manner that would have been impossible for me to do on my own.” -Student
Watch this 3-minute video to get a sense of how a Global Routes experience may change your life.
This 3-week summer program is ideal for students in high school, who are looking for a meaningful international experience with a balance of service, experiential learning, cultural immersion, and adventure.
Dive deep into Firenze (Florence), working with an urban garden project, visiting local NGOs and exploring this city that is considered the “birthplace of the Renaissance.”
Hike a portion of the Via Francigena, one of the ancient pilgrimage routes that leads to Rome. We’ll explore a section through Tuscany, stopping along the way to learn about local history, culture and farming. This is Italy at it’s core!
Visit a community permaculture project and spend some time in nature building community. Learn about organic gardening and farming and support community projects such as reclaiming ancient forest tracks.
Immerse yourself in the Italian countryside as we build our own group culture, take language classes and try our hands at dynamite Italian cooking. We’ll spend our first few days together building our group culture and getting to know one other. We’ll dive into Italian lessons and learn the ins and outs of this fascinating European culture. Get a feel for Italian cuisine and customs, while learning to make some of the most classic Italian dishes. Tour the city/fortress of Siena, the centre of which is a UNESCO world heritage site. Drink in the Italian high fashion, sip on an espresso (if you choose to imbibe) and eat more than plenty of Gelato!
Walk the ancient footpaths of Via Francigena, stepping back in time as we traverse this gorgeous landscape in alignment with centuries-old traditions, exploring one of the most traveled pilgrimages’ (from Cantabury to Rome in olden times!) through the lush rolling hills of Tuscany. See vineyards (so many vineyards), ancient architecture, and experience life in the small towns in one of Italy’s most picturesque regions. Examples activities may include traditional bread making (of course with tons of olive oil), making golden compasses and weather predictors, meeting with a local expert forager, and visiting a reenacted medieval village, where archaeologists have constructed a model of what life used to be so many years ago! Hop from Abbey to Abbey ( small guest houses) as you traverse your way through San Gimignano “the Medieval Manhattan” a stunning fortress built atop a hill overlooking the land, and end in the beautiful town of Gambassi Terme. What an amazing experience to deepen bonds with your group and practice your new Italian skills.
Drop in with our community partner in Tuscany, working on hands-on farming and permaculture projects, learning about both traditional and modern practices of sustainability, caring for animals and and cooking up a storm. Afternoons will be a glorious mix of hiking, exploring, swimming, and Italian classes.
We’ll wrap up our experience in one of the most charming and historically rich cities on earth, reflecting upon what we’ve learned and setting intentions for the future! Enjoy the mix of nice cars and cobblestone streets as you make your way through one of the most visited cities in all of Europe. Known as being the “birthplace of the renaissance” you’ll tour a local community garden and learn about different sustainable ways of living in the city. Make pesto, hot sauce, and natural tea with herbs from the garden! Explore museums, admire stunning works of art, put your hard-earned Italian to the test, and order some last full course meals (antipasto, primo and secondo!) as we prepare ourselves for the journey back home (or head onwards to Greece for students continuing onto the Greece program.)
Over two decades of experience has demonstrated to us that providing financial aid awards increases the diversity of our student body and thus the depth and quality of our programs. Global Routes strives to make our programs accessible to students who otherwise, due to financial reasons, would not have the opportunity to contribute their energy and special gifts to our projects.
We offer aid packages of between 10% and 50% off tuition, which is exclusive of airfare.
Whether Global Routes is the best fit for you or not, we’re here to help.
