The history of Tuscany goes back more than three thousand years. This is your chance to enter the world of the Etruscans, discover the rivalries of popes and emperors, visit the Medici’s world and examine the creativity and discoveries of the Renaissance. Explore the history, art, and architecture of Florence, Siena, Pisa, and Lucca. Travel the backroads to Volterra, Arezzo, and Cortona. Visit Pitigliano, San Gimignano, Montepulciano, and Pienza. Immerse yourself in the land, the light and the people of Tuscany—the same elements that have inspired artists, architects, and writers for centuries.

The first in a series on the history of England begins with Britain on the verge of the Norman invasion, delving into the world of the Angles and Saxons, as they take over the legacy of the Romans. Learn about the Middle Ages, the Domesday Book, the Magna Carta, and the Black Plague. Study Henry II, Thomas Beckett and the birth of the modern state. Discover the who and the why of the Wars of the Roses and then continue on to the Tudor era, with plenty of time for Henry VIII, Cromwell and many wives. The class culminates when Elizabeth I is crowned.

For centuries the artistic creations 0f women have been ignored. Social constraints barred women from receiving formal training and schooling. Legal issues even prohibited women from exhibiting or selling their art. Fortunately, the time has changed and these ignored creators are being rediscovered and are finally receiving recognition.  Travel to Florence, Italy and enter the world of Florentine nun-painters, female court artists, copyists and teachers. These overlooked geniuses are emerging from the shadows of the past and their paintings, sculptures and architectural designs are finally being recognized as gems of Florence’s creative genius.

We will discuss the chronological history, and social and cultural context, of paranormal phenomena of our region from pre-history to the present day. An attempt will be made to understand the ongoing debate over whether or not such phenomena are an empirical reality and more broadly come to place the paranormal within an arc of exploration, settlement, urbanization, and the influence of wider popular culture within a local context.

Between 1347and 1350 the pandemic known as the Black Death devasted Europe. In Italy, the epidemic had a shattering impact on Italian society, a society which was transformed by social, economic, cultural and religious changes. These modifications resulted in the emergence of the Renaissance, one of the greatest periods in human history. It was more than just painting and sculpturing that were changed by the plague but also architecture, city planning, religious celebrations, traditions, and literature were transformed as well. Throughout the course comparisons will be made between the events that unfolded during the Bubonic Plague to similar events that we are experiencing during the present pandemic.