Rome, Florence, and Southern Italy

Take a walk past Rome's most beautiful and unusual Baroque fountains. At the foot of the Spanish Steps, elegant cafes surround the central fountain. The water pressure here was so low that the artist had to sink the fountain into the ground to get any water going through it, so he went ahead and designed the fountain to look like a sinking ship. There's no shortage of water pressure at the nearby Trevi Fountain, a Baroque extravagance designed by master sculptor Bernini.

View the Trevi Fountain, where it is traditional to toss a coin into the fountain to ensure a safe return to the Eternal City.

We will spend some time in the Piazza Navona area. Built on the foundations of Domitian's Circus, this magnificent square was designed by Borromini in 17th century. It is full of life and is highlighted by one of Rome's most spectacular fountains, the Four Rivers designed by Bernini. The square is often filled with local artists. The surrounding neighborhood is also one of the best places in Rome to get a tasty tartufo or gelato ice cream

The ultimate symbol of ancient Rome, the Colosseum still dominates the modern city. Tour the amphitheater with your local licensed guide. Built by the emperor Vespasian in A.D. 72, the structure held almost 50,000 spectators but was so well organized that the entire place could be emptied within 15 minutes. Inside, the spectacles varied from gladiator battles to immense naval contests that required the flooding of the amphitheater to wild beast shows, in which thousands of exotic animals like giraffes and ostriches were popped into the stadium through trap doors and left to fight Roman hunters. See the system beneath the floor that operated the trap doors and housed the animals, then continue on to the relative calm of the Forum. Rome’s commercial, religious, and political center, the Forum held markets, temples, and the Senate House. Near the Rostra, or speaker’s platform, you can still see game boards scratched into the marble by bored politicians -- anyone up for a game of tic tac toe?

Tour the ruins and excavations of the Roman Forum, which features the remains of magnificent temples, basilicas, and triumphal arches that once formed the heart of the Empire.

Enjoy a self-guided tour of the Capitoline Museum. Perched atop the most sacred of Rome’s 7 hills, the Capitoline Museum holds an impressive array of Roman artifacts. Built in the 17th century, this museum complex gives visitors an impressive look back into Roman past.

One of the world’s greatest collections of painting, the Uffizi started out as Florence’s administrative offices -- uffizi literally means “offices,” testifying to a supremely uncreative naming effort on the part of Florentine city officials. The artwork itself, however, is stupendous, from Gothic altarpieces encrusted in gold leaf to the brooding Baroque masterpieces of Caravaggio. The highlight may be the room devoted to Botticelli, which The Birth of Venus and Primavera dominate, but da Vinci’s sketches and Michelangelo’s Doni Tondo (or Holy Family) run a close second.

Visit St. Peter’s Basilica where from the outside, the church has four rows of columns that radiate out like welcoming arms; inside, the church seems enormous enough to embrace the entire world. The dome, partially designed by Michelangelo, rises 452 feet above the ground. Michelangelo’s mark is everywhere here, from the costumes worn by the Swiss Guards to his exquisite “Pietà” sculpture (the only sculpture he ever signed) to the amazing frescoes of the Sistine Chapel. Because he considered himself a sculptor and not a painter, Michelangelo hated working on these paintings, now considered masterpieces.

Sitting in the shadow of Mt. Vesuvius, the ancient town of Herculaneum was destroyed when the deadly volcano erupted in 79 AD. Hidden under an airtight crust for over 1,700 years, buildings and skeletons were kept intact and have now been discovered and excavated. Explore the ruins and learn about that dreadful day in 79 AD when the fates of the town and its people were sealed.

Visit the National Archaeological Museum, one of the finest antiquities museums in the world. With its Roman and Greek sculpture, this museum contains one of Europe's most valuable archaeological collections, highlighted by the select Farnese acquisitions, and the mosaics and sculpture excavated at Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Stop to see the city where time stood still, literally. Once an important Roman city with 20,000 residents, Pompeii was frozen in time nearly 2000 years ago, when Mount Vesuvius erupted and buried the city under 30 feet of mud and volcanic ash. Forgotten for centuries after the eruption, Pompeii was discovered in the 1600s and is now completely excavated. On your tour you will learn how Romans of all classes lived their lives--not only from large public structures, but from details like political graffiti, bars, and street signs.

Visit this impressive art gallery in Rome that was first opened back in the 1600’s by Pope Paul V’s nephew. Full of priceless works of art, some dating back to the 1st century AD, and housed in a former mansion, this museum is definitely worth a visit.