Isabelle and Jean Roch's award winning olive oil is produced at Moulin Barbentane. The mill is an historic structure, complete with its own windmill for power.

Isabelle was born and raised in Avignon. Jean Roch is a product of Provence as well, but cut his teeth in Paris where he got his start as a chef in the mid 80’s. So it’s no surprise that their love of all things Provencal would eventually lead them to restore an old olive mill, and carefully blend their historic setting with the best modern and ancient techniques for creating their award-winning oil.

As Isabelle says, “So many people only know France by Paris. But this is not Paris and we have our own culture in Provence that I love to share with our guests!”

She goes on to rave about the olives from Provence, “Olive oil has become even more highly respected among Provencal people than wine. So producing olive oil makes me even more proud of Provence.”

At Classic Journeys, we see this as the perfect marriage of guide and region. Isabelle has been an award winning guide for 23 years, and takes that passion into every trip she guides for us, and every guest she introduces to her beloved region. And she stays close to the land and its people by helping Jean Roch at the olive mill whenever she’s not guiding.

Jean Roch was convinced that he could take what he learned as a chef and share those flavors through their oils. They have a small number of trees now and so select the best olives from their neighbors’ production. This allows them to hand pick only the best olives from a number of olive growers.

The results have been impressive. In 2011, they earned silver medals at Paris and Marseille for their “fruity green” pressings, and in 2012, the same fruity greens earned gold in Paris. Isabelle explains that they make four types of oil. Two fruity greens are pressed immediately after picking early in the harvest season. These have Provencal flavors like artichoke and tomato. They also press an ancient style that is made from more mature darker olives that are picked late in the season in December. The oldest villagers around them love this oil Isabelle says, because, “…they tell us it reminds them of when they were children.” And they round out their production with an oil blended with lemons found only in Corsica.

An olive oil tasting is just one memorable experience with Classic Journeys in Provence that includes visiting an abbey set in fields of lavender, viewing stunning remains of Roman architecture, following in van Gogh and Cezanne’s footsteps, shopping colorful markets, and  savoring private wine tastings and a cooking instruction.

Of course, Provence is not the only region where you can taste award winning olive oil with Classic Journeys. Other tasty spots include Tuscany and the Cinque Terre, Coastal Tuscany and Pisa, the Italian Lakes, Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast,  Istrian Peninsula, and Crete on our Greek Isles tour. But as Isabelle says, “For the perfect combination of the beauty of the light, the food and the people, it’s hard to find it better than Provence!” Who are we to disagree?

All of our Provence trips visit Isabelle and Jean Roch’s lovely mill. For more information about our cultural walking adventures, culinary tours and multisport trips in Provence, drop us a line at blog@classicjourneys.com or phone us at 800-200-3887.

Bhuddist monks walk each morning to receive gifts of rice that will be their daily nourishment.

LUANG PRABANG – The monks are the draw. This UNESCO-protected city features the spectacular wats – or temples – where they live, along with wonderful local and colonial architecture, markets, and restaurants that sit high above the rivers, but the connection a visitor will most likely make to Luang Prubang will come in the early morning while the sun is near the horizon.

Every morning, Buddhist Monks clad in orange robes with their begging bowls slung over their shoulders walk in groups to receive gifts of rice – the nourishment for their day – from the townspeople who wait for them. To watch the daily ritual with your Classic Journeys’ guide who himself is a former monk and think of the humility and devotion involved in both the giving and receiving is to create a bit of peace for yourself, no matter what your faith.

Classic Journey's guests visit the temples and see how monks live.

While the temptation when the procession is over is to head to the market or back under the covers for an hour or two, this is a good time to walk among the temples, quiet and calm, and watch how the monks live, from their rudimentary quarters, kitchens and dining areas, to the ornate prayer spaces. Doing so, the temples change from a museum space to one that functions and inspires reflection.

One of my favorite discoveries in town turns out to be the monks’ end-of-day prayer services. While most visitors’ natural inclination while the sun is setting is to have a drink and watch the world go by, on most evenings, I found myself tucked quietly into the back corner of a temple, alone while a group of monks chanted in a group before me. My mind found its own good, quiet place, with the rest of the world very far away.

A monk walks within the UNESCO-protected city of Luang Prabang.

Note: Your Classic Journeys’ Laos guide will walk you to a quiet spot to observe the procession from a respectful distance. If you wish to participate, they’ll be happy to provide a mat, a basket of rice and a sash to cover your shoulder and, importantly, explain how to offer alms respectfully. Classic Journeys immerses our guests into this memorable and personal side of Laotian life on every one of our Laos, Vietnam and Angkor Wat walking tours and family multi sport trips. Visit Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia now before it’s too late is another blog I wrote after a recent exploration in Indochina.

Acclaimed travel writer Joe Ray is the 2009 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year from the Society of American Travel Writers. We first posted on Joe’s work in the Wall Street Journal last year in a story entitled, “In Search of the Perfect Gelato.” He’s also written another posting about exploring with Classic Journeys in Laos entitled “In Laos, a skeptic turns into an elephant man”.

Classic Journeys’ guests celebrate the reopening of the Cinque Terre, April 2012

CINQUE TERRE, ITALY – Nine Classic Journeys’ guests on our April 8 Tuscany & the Cinque Terre cultural walking adventure were among the first visitors to walk the reopened trails linking the famed Cinque Terre villages along the Ligurian Sea. And we’re thrilled to pass along a photo and update on the trails from guest Debbie Arbogast, who is with us right now in Italy.

“Hi there, Greetings from the group on the Cinque Terre!  The Cinque Terre is back!  We are seen here starting out on the Via dell’ Amore from Rio Maggiore to Manarola and part way on the trail with the town in the background. Our hearty group then took the train from Manarola to Vernazza, where five tackled the walk from there to Monterosso. They arrived exhausted but exhilarated in the last of the five towns. The rain even cooperated and we had a wonderful day! Tomorrow, on to Portofino . . .We’re all having a great time! Debbie Arbogast”

Forbes Magazine called the Classic Journeys’ Tuscany and the Cinque Terre trip a “Luxury Walking Favorite”. If you’d like to read guests’ comments about the trip, feel free to click over to another blog post where four guests recap their travels with us in Tuscany and the Cinque Terre on TripAdvisor. And if you’d like to speak with one of our Guest Services Coordinators about it, or any of our other trips in Italy or worldwide, give us a ring at 800-200-3887 or drop us a note at blog@classicjourneys.com.

A mahout or elephant trainer leads his charge and the writer into the Nam Khan River for a bath on a Classic Journeys Laos tour.

LUANG PRABANG, Laos — I am not an elephant man. Don’t get me wrong – I have nothing against them, but I like to imagine them roaming free, stripping great branches with their trunks and enjoying hearty mouthfuls of leaves. A visit to an elephant sanctuary near this UNESCO-certified city sounds potentially suspect.

Yet my idea of elephants roaming in the wild is rather naïve, as my local Classic Journeys’ guide helped me realize.

The sign at the entrance to the elephant camp dedicated to their protection and rehabilitation in Laos politely explains that humans’ effect on nature is ‘inappropriate for the livelihood of elephants’ and that these great pachyderms will be extinct within the next 50 years.

‘Inappropriate?’ A third of the estimated 1,600 elephants in Laos help log the forests where other elephants live in the wild.

On Classic Journeys’ Laos tours travelers visit an elephant sanctuary outside Luang Prabang.

Plus, as recently as April 7, the Vietnam News reported the suspicious deaths of three elephants in that country’s Central Highlands district – a problem not unique to Vietnam. When the elephants used for logging in Laos are past their prime, they are usually killed or abandoned due to the high cost of keeping them and the difficulty of releasing a trained elephant back into the wild.

The elephant sanctuary, where you can ride elephants (children will go bonkers for this – many adults do, too), eat a meal, learn to be a mahout and ride a boat upstream on the Nam Khan River, might not be as ideal as releasing them back into the wild. But it employs locals, including the inhabitants of nearby village of Xieng Lom, raises awareness, and gives the elephants both a safe environment with medical care and far more room to roam than any zoo could.

Perfect? No. But rather noble, and a way for tourist dollars to do some local good. And that I won’t forget.

Acclaimed travel writer Joe Ray is the 2009 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year from the Society of American Travel Writers. I first read Joe’s work in the Wall Street Journal last year in a story entitled, “In Search of the Perfect Gelato.”

As part of our outreach to help the sustainability of local cultures and endangered species, Classic Journeys visits the elephant sanctuary on every one of our Laos, Vietnam and Angkor Wat walking tours and family multi sport trips. Visit Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia now before it’s too late is another blog I wrote after a recent exploration in Indochina.

Her timing was perfect, as Sunday, March 25, marked a major milestone for the residents and visitors of these five seaside villages along the Italian Riviera. After months of work to repair damage caused by mud slides in late October, the locals paused for a celebratory walk along the Via del Amore (“Lover’s Path”) and to officially commemorate the opening to the season.

If you’re considering traveling to the Cinque Terre, Tanya’s article offers a great recap of what took place on October 25, and what’s been going on since to rebuild, restore and preserve these magical UNESCO World Heritage sites. To read the whole story, just click here.

To provide Tanya with the most up-to-date information of what’s happening right now in the Cinque Terre, I called in a Classic Journeys’ all-star team, consisting of two of our most experienced and popular local guides: Luciano and Francesco, as well as our friends Gino and Jolando who own a restaurant in Monterosso called Al Pozzo (“At the Well”). (As I’ve often said, “It’s not what I know, it’s who I know!”). And having exceptional local guides in each of our 70 regions in 33 countries on 5 continents has been key to providing our guests timely knowledge on each of our trips.

A 5 sentence history of the Cinque Terre

At Classic Journeys, we’ve been exploring the Cinque Terre since Easter 1996, when we first walked the footpaths that connect the villages of Rio Maggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso with our local Tuscan guides who told us the only place they loved more than Tuscany was the Cinque Terre.

Of course, we weren’t the first to discover the Cinque Terre! The Romans used the area as a shelter for sheep. And in the 8^th century, people sought protection there from the invading Barbarians coming from the north. These original Ligurians (so named because they live along the Ligurian Sea portion of the Mediterranean) quickly realized they would need to carve out a life tucked between the sea and the mountains. And so they did; terracing the land to provide space for olive groves, grapes and vegetables. They quickly found that their orientation to the south made for great growing conditions, and their grapes made for a wine—Scicchetra—that traveled well and brought enough wealth to the region so that they could build their beautiful villages.

How the Cinque Terre villagers are responding

From my own travels there, I’ve found the Ligurians to have a sunny outlook that goes well with their hard-working approach to life along the sea. I love some of the examples Luciano, Francesco and Jolanda shared with me last week from this winter’s restorations. If you’re like me, you might see the testament to the human spirit in the industriousness of the villagers:

- While work was being completed on the most popular seaside trail, an old footpath that had not been used for nearly 100 years was immediately cleared of brush and opened between Levento, Monterosso and Vernazza to add to the walking options along the northern part of the Cinque Terre.

- Jolanda and Gino’s family and friends worked from sun up to sun down from the end of October till March 2 in order to reopen their restaurant in time for Easter (opening a month early!).

- The mayor of Vernazza brought in acclaimed international architect Lord Richard Rogers to help in their reconstruction to preserve the unique character and authenticity for inhabitants and tourists.

Travel to the Cinque Terre now…

What does it all mean now for those of us wanting to get back to the Cinque Terre or see it for the first time? Easter marks the traditional opening of the tourist season in the Cinque Terre. The little coastal boats that connect the villages begin their summer schedules. The train that connects the villages continues to provide an additional backup for anyone wanting to skip some or all of the walking. And very good estimates are that 90% of the restaurants in Vernazza will be open.

When I asked Luciano, Francesco and Jolanda what travelers to the Cinque Terre can expect now, Luciano may have said it best, “Edward, since none of us were around from the 8^th to 18^th centuries when the villages were being built, this is a very unique opportunity to see the locals rebuilding, restoring and preserving their villages.”

I agree, Luciano. And in a world where we are often traveling a million miles an hour through our daily lives, walking 2-3 miles an hour along the Cinque Terre footpaths offers us a wonderful sense of authenticity in our travels; where we can stop and talk to the grandmas hanging laundry out of their windows, the shopkeepers selling gelato, and the farmer tending his little plot of shimmering green olive groves.

Forbes Magazine called our Tuscany and the Cinque Terre trip a “Luxury Walking Favorite”. And if you’d like to read our guests’ comments about the trip, feel free to click over to another blog post where four guests recap their travels with us in Tuscany and the Cinque Terre on TripAdvisor. If you’d like to speak with one of our Guest Services Coordinators about it, or any of our other trips in Italy or worldwide, give us a ring at 800-200-3887 or drop us a note at blog@classicjourneys.com.

First, daughter Brittain, how is Peru?

The trip has been amazing! [That’s her exclamation point.]

And your favorite activities were?

All of them! [For any of you who’ve endeavored to entertain teen-agers on a vacation, ‘nuff said.]

Mom, how’s everybody dealing with the altitude?

On our first night at the Hotel Monasterio, we had extra oxygen pumped into the room to be on the safe side. Lots of people do it, no big deal. We were all feeling fine the next day!

And Franklin? How—

Franklin! Our guide! He’s fabulous. I can’t say enough good things about him. As it happens, it’s only our family of five on this tour. So we have Franklin all to ourselves. What a luxury.

What’s been the most fun?

Well, river rafting today on the Urubamba River was very cool. Actually, the water was more than cool. But you had wetsuits for us. My son is really excited to visit the local Quechua school tomorrow and hang out with the kids. We also had a great time in the artist’s market yesterday. Brittain had a blast working in the pottery workshop with Pablo, who we learned is a world famous ceramicist.

I know your family has only taken independent trips in the past – no organized group tours. How’s that working for you?

Well, we were wondering how this would compare. And I can tell you right now that we already decided Classic Journeys is the only way to go. We haven’t even gone to Machu Picchu yet, and we’re already thinking maybe we go to the Swiss Alps in the near future. And having Franklin all to ourselves makes us think we want to do a private trip so it’s only us and we get the guide all to ourselves next time, too.

What could we be doing better?

Honestly, everything is wonderful. The food has been excellent. Machu Picchu, here we come! Can you tell we’re all having a fantastic time?

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And that was that. As much time as all of us spend on our cellphones here at home, it’s kind of a treat to ring up somebody who’s having too much fun to talk. As far as we’re concerned, nothing says more about how well a family vacation is going – no matter where you go!

In addition to a variety of adventures you’ll experience, Classic Journeys’ programs in Peru have always provided travellers an opportunity to experience the best in Peruvian cuisine. Read about it here and don’t miss the excellent recipe for sea bass ceviche.

About Classic Journeys:
Classic Journeys offers adventure vacations in North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and the South Pacific. Guests enjoy luxury accommodations and gourmet meals that reflect the best of each region, coupled with easy-going walks, daily interactions with locals, and native guides who make countries and cultures come alive. Tours are six to 12 days long. Land-only tour prices range from $2595 to $8895 per person (with discounts for small groups and children traveling with parents). Average tour size is 10, limited to a maximum of 18 guests per departure. Full details and links to itineraries are available at www.classicjourneys.com. To speak with one of our personable and knowledgeable guest services coordinators, email us at blog@classicjourneys.com or call 800-200-3887.

I first ventured to the Amalfi Coast about 16 years ago to scout the Classic Journeys’ cultural walking adventure there. Almost since our first departure, Amalfi has been one of our most popular regions. And with the benefit of many visits back, I’ve been fortunate to be sort of adopted by the locals. When my wife and I had our first son, we brought him to Amalfi as a one year old. In fact, he learned to walk on that trip. Over the years, we’ve returned many times as our family has grown. We’ve brought friends with us on several occasions. And we enjoyed our most recent trip to Amalfi last June. That trip had boys and girls from 8 to 17 on it.

Each time I return, friends ask me to share with them my favorite things to do in Amalfi. A top five is a difficult assignment because the area offers so much from which to choose. So this time, I enlisted the help of a focus group: the kids who traveled with us in June.

With them I was able to edit the myriad of fun into a manageable list that your family can enjoy in a week. So, without further ado, here goes our top five family activities along the Amalfi Coast:

1. Sea kayak along the coast – The waters are calm and warm. You have the perfect point of view, being able to see the villages, cliffs and coves from sea level. Two man kayaks make it easy for any age. And along the way, you have the chance to swim in beautiful coves, relax on little beaches
and explore the most spectacular sections of the coast.

2. Visit the Blue Grotto on Capri in the late afternoon when the day trippers are gone – Everyone has heard of Capri. And middle of the day it can sometimes seem as if everyone is IN Capri. But the smart money heads for the hills (literally and figuratively) during the middle of the day to explore more quiet parts of the island. Then, late in the afternoon, when the day trippers have left the island, explore the Blue Grotto without the crowds. Your kids will love the caverns and the iridescent blue waters.(If you do this as part of a Classic Journeys’ family vacation in Amalfi, our guides will take the kids to the Blue Grotto so that the parents can relax back in the village, shop, or stroll to the piazzetta for a drink and to watch the sun set.)

3. Learn to make your own pizza in the true Neapolitan way – Pizza was first made in Naples. And the famous mozzarella cheese is made nightly from local water buffalo and cows’ milk. So it stands to reason that there is no better place to learn to make an authentic pizza. And we know the best place to do that: in our friend Luca’s cliff top home, set just below a 14th century monastery and a thousand feet above the sea.

4. Taste test all four gelato shops in the town of Amalfi – How can you not love a town whose main square has a gelato shop on each of its four corners? That’s really the case in the town of Amalfi along the famed coast of the same name. Adults in the know can walk one block to a little limoncello factory where our friend Marco will show you how the famed liquor is made and offer a tasting of his favorites, including the
crema and a limoncello that is espresso infused.

5. See Pompeii with a guide who makes the ruins come alive with stories – Any kid or teen can read the facts on Pompeii. They already know that the city was lost 1600 years ago when Vesuvius erupted. What makes the ruins a can’t-miss-hit with kids and teens is a guide who can make the UNESCO site breathe with real stories of the people who lived there: the families, kids, pets. Where they shopped, went to school, played and had fun. Last year, we lived an unintended test on how to visit Pompeii. We literally ran into neighbors who were visiting Pompeii with their kids on their own. On return from Italy, we compared notes with them. For the kids in our group, Pompeii resonated like a real and vibrant city still alive. For our friends who chose to go it alone, it was just a bunch of ruins. Do your kids a favor: inspire them with a good guide in Pompeii.

Whether you go it alone or with Classic Journeys, Amalfi is a paradise for families. If you do choose to travel on our Amalfi Coast family vacation, we’ll take you on the chairlift to the top of Monte Solaro, walk the rim of Vesuvius, and introduce your family to the sea kayaking guides, the gelato makers, the boatmen on Capri, and many other friends like Luca who’ll make your vacation unforgettable for everyone in the family.

Scheduled departures of the week-long trips take place over school breaks in April, June and July. And if you don’t see a date that works for your family or you want to customize it according to any wish list (gladiator training in Rome anyone?), just give us a ring at 800-200-3887 or email Amanda@classicjourneys.com and we’ll be happy to chat.

2500 miles away across the country, Conor Hayes from San Diego joined our Galapagos family vacation in December with his mom and dad.  A freshman in high school, Conor just gave a six minute presentation to his speech and debate class about the benefits of travel owing to his trip to the Galapagos.

For anyone who’s a type A parent (go ahead, raise your hand; I am too), finding those experiences that inspire your kids are thestuff of dreams. But so much of what our kids are learning now is becoming homogenized and routine. We take them from one soccer game or recital to the next. They all join the same club team at the same age. And all are in lockstep on what they learn academically; whether they’re growing up on the East Coast, West Coast or anywhere in between.

So how to inspire a child or teen? And how to help them break out from the pack so that they can see something out of the routine, and be seen as someone other than routine?

I recently saw former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice speak at my son’s high school. Her comments were decidedly non-political in nature. Instead, she spoke to the kids directly about being kids. Among her advice: find a mentor, do things that really challenge you to get out of your comfort zone, understand your place in the broader world, and find something that you are passionate about and pursue it.

Those last two pieces of advice resonated with me and reminded me of a conversation that I had with Dr. Karen Gouze back in 2009. Karen is the director of training in psychology at Chicago’s Children’s Memorial Hospital and associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. She told me then that, “Children are much more knowledgeable…than they used to be,” she said. “They’re exposed to a much more
diverse group of people in their everyday lives, so they’re much more interested in the outside world.” (You can read the entire blog titled “Eight is the new 12” at http://classicjourneys.com/blog/8-is-the-new-12/)

At Classic Journeys, we seen firsthand what traveling with biologists, historians, naturalists and the like can do for kids. (Especially when it’s not in a classroom session.) Cultural stereotypes breakdown when they spend a day with a Berber tribesman in Morocco who is dressed in headscarf, robe and sandals… speaks 6 languages…and has a PhD in cultural anthropology.  World history class comes alive for your child after they’ve taken a gladiator lesson in Rome.  Science transforms into Technicolor after kids spot emerald toucanettes from a handing bridge in Costa Rica with a naturalist guide. And Spanish class is mas interesante when your child connects it to exploring the ruins of Machu Picchu with a native guide.

Traveling as a family also provides valuable time together that gives you all a rare chance to put aside your collective daily distractions and share a unique experience together. We often catch ourselves using the phrase, “see the world through younger eyes”. Nothing beats seeing your kids awestruck by something
they observe, or do, or someone they meet, in a place far from home. Like Philippe and Conor, they’ll remember it and so will you.

About Classic Journeys:
Classic Journeys offers family vacations in North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and the South Pacific. Families enjoy luxury accommodations and gourmet meals that reflect the best of each region, coupled with multi-sport activities, daily interactions with locals, and native guides who make countries and cultures come alive. Tours are six to 12 days long. Land-only tour prices range from $2595 to $8895 per person (with discounts for small groups and children traveling with parents). Average tour size is 10, limited to a maximum of 18 guests per departure. Full details and links to itineraries are available at www.classicjourneys.com. To speak with one of our personable and knowledgeable guest services coordinators, email us at blog@classicjourneys.com or call 800-200-3887.

How did Classic Journeys compare to your other travel experiences?

I toured with Classic Journeys in 2010 for the first time on your Peru and Machu Picchu trip. And I will tell you, as a travel agent and a traveler…Classic Journeys is by far the best tour company I have ever worked with or toured with. From answering my questions beforehand, to offering advice, to giving us one of the best guides ever, it was an outstanding experience!

What’s the value in a guide, and how they impact your time in-country?

I have a guide I work with in Egypt. I have traveled there four times escorting clients. Having traveled all over the world and having had many great guides and some not so; my guide and dear friend in Egypt has been head and shoulders above any other guide I had ever had…until I went to Machu Picchu with Classic Journeys.  Your head guide Franklin was our guide in Peru, and I found him to be the first guide to equal my friend in Egypt.  Not only knowledgeable but so passionate about what he was showing us. He loved his job, he loved his Inca sights, his country, and he passed that passion and enthusiasm on to us.  In addition, he took such great care of us.  I have had many knowledgeable guides who loved their jobs and took good care of their clients, but this passion for what they are showing us like Franklin and my friend in Egypt…that is what takes the trip to a whole new level!

Isn’t all customer service the same?

My husband and I traveled to the Arctic this past June on [one of the highest-end cruise lines].  The crew and staff were wonderful. However, their reservation agents in New York were horrible. It was like pulling teeth to get any help from them. I called several times with questions and not only got the impression they had no idea…they did not feel the need to find out for me.  I have been in the travel industry for 20 years…I was stunned. I say all of this because I have worked with budget travel and high end travel. Needless to say I expect more from high end and got horrible service from them.  BUT, the service I got from the Classic Journeys office in terms of answering questions, being proactive, helping with logical thought process to make our decision, your friendliness, professionalism, patience—it was all The Best I have ever experienced.

How do the phones work in Peru?

This was a first for me! The Classic Journeys’ office called me half way through the trip to be sure everything was going well and was there anything they could do to help make it better…amazing!

What’s next on your travel agenda?

A few months ago I saw that Classic Journeys was going to offer island based tours in the Galapagos…I was hooked!  I am very excited to see that once again you have a tailor made tour for me and my traveling friends! I have been recruiting people and plan on taking this tour in 2013. I know for sure my husband and I will be doing this, and I also have 4 or 5 more people very interested.  We would most likely extend our time in South America to include Machu Picchu along with the Galapagos. I want my husband and my friends traveling with me to see it. And I hope we can request Franklin to be our guide again!

About Classic Journeys:
Classic Journeys offers adventure vacations in North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and the South Pacific. Guests enjoy luxury accommodations and gourmet meals that reflect the best of each region, coupled with easy-going walks, daily interactions with locals, and native guides who make countries and cultures come alive. Tours are six to 12 days long. Land-only tour prices range from $2595 to $8895 per person (with discounts for small groups and children traveling with parents). Average tour size is 10, limited to a maximum of 18 guests per departure. Full details and links to itineraries are available at www.classicjourneys.com. To speak with one of our personable and knowledgeable guest services coordinators, email us at blog@classicjourneys.com or call 800-200-3887.

I’ll turn it over to Luciano:

When I heard about the Costa Concordia ship wreck last Saturday morning in the news, it didn’t seem real. It was right in front of the Giglio Island, where it feels like home. We travel there in our “Coastal Tuscany and Pisa” tour; it is beautiful and un-touristed. So many of our guests have enjoyed the day we spend there, when we walk from the port, through an ancient trail up to the cozy medieval village with its stunning views of the sea and the continent. The water has different shades from blue to light green and when the sky is clear you can see Corsica. One of our friends there, 80 year old Mario, works in his garden and skillfully shows us how he waves his baskets. He even takes us to his cellar, a medieval stall, toasting with us from his own wine production.

American friends wrote in, asking if what they saw on TV was the place they had explored with us. As a native guide I worked together with my colleagues in the Classic Journeys’ head office in 2006 to create this wonderful exploration, looking for such warm hearted locals as Mario. Out of other islands in Tuscany we chose this one for its beauty and for being less crowded in the southern part of the region; far away from Florence and other well-known cities. During the Renaissance, the Medicis, Grand dukes of Tuscany, named it the “Giglio”, which means “lily”, the flower symbol of Florence.

When the shipwreck happened, several of those same local people we meet in the Giglio Island were up all night, assisting the thousands of passengers that landed ashore. Shops stayed open all night: the local café with warm drinks and food, the general store with blankets and food, the clothing store with clothes, the hotels with hospitality. And the same thing happened on the mainland, when they came to Porto Santo Stefano and the Argentario. No one could believe it. Inhabitants’ solidarity came out fully in one night.

The news keeps on giving reports, as more details are coming out. In Italy it takes most of the news—prime time on TV—and people talk about it all the time. It seems that this is touching people’s hearts more because many see themselves in the people on that cruise. I won’t really get into the news details, but as an Italian guide familiar with the island and working with the public, I would like to express that my deepest thoughts go out to all the people that suffered and died and families that lost loved ones. As reports have stated, evidence shows human mistake, such as the fact that the ship was far away from its allowed course, came too close to land and the rocks. Not even local ferries that travel daily many times back and forth venture near those rocks. From a professional point of view I would like to say that what happened doesn’t reflect the way we work here. My colleagues and I care deeply, making sure guests and fellow travelers are not only having great times, but also are safe and well cared for on their vacation to Tuscany and Italy.

Thanks, Luciano for such a thoughtful report of what’s going on in Giglio with rescue efforts.

Luciano is one of Classic Journeys’ most popular and senior gudies worldwide. He leads departures of Coastal Tuscany & Pisa, Tuscany & the Cinque Terre, Taste of Tuscany, and our Tuscany Family Journey.

If you have questions about events in Giglio, or if you want to talk about Classic Journeys’ Coastal Tuscany & Pisa tour or any of our other cultural walking adventures, culinary tours, or family journeys elsewhere in Tuscany, Italy or around the world, drop us a line at blog@classicjourneys.com or download an itinerary at www.classicjourneys.com/itineraries.