"Obviously I'm left with wonderful memories and great photographs. But AHA has given me something much more special than that: not just an intense love for Italy and everything that it encompasses, but also a genuine yearning for both knowledge and new experiences in general. I find myself utterly enthusiastic about the rest of my gap year, what university has to offer and everything beyond."

Mary-Jane Wiltshire, Autumn 2005

Is the course fun

Most people join the course on their own and everyone, both students and the tutors are on the course because they share an enthusiasm for art and want to have the best time in Italy. This perhaps explains why many good and lasting friendships are made. There is an abundance of things to discover in Italy other than art and the evenings are an excellent time to explore

Free time

Many split their free time between further exploration, rest and shopping, however on many occasions tutors have led optional intrepid expeditions to exciting seasonal exhibitions, trips to other towns, and football or rugby matches. Our student feedback forms indicate that students are happy with the amount of free time, with the 2 hour break for lunch and the various ‘frees’ spread throughout the course.

Lunches & Suppers

We feel it is un-adventurous to have set arrangements for eating when one of the more attractive aspects of Italy is the food. Lunch tends to be taken according to where each tutor group ends up; if it is a fine day it is nice to have a picnic or our tutors, who know the cities we visit well, may know some student or marketeer’s cafe nearby. Each evening we suggest somewhere new and inexpensive to eat and, despite the fact that students can go their own way for supper, we tend to all eat together. We suggest that students bring £27 per day to cover lunch and supper and occasional spending.

Evenings

Tutors are constantly on the look out for good things to do; concerts, gigs and clubs. We appreciate that budgets are tight on such a course so we organize additional evening entertainments within the course fees. To date, a few examples of evenings out are; dinner with readings from the diaries of Marco Polo in a good restaurant opposite the great travelers palace in Venice; a visit to the opera in Venice; a viewing of ‘Tea with Mussolini’ in Florence and an evening at the football to see a crunch match in Rome. Last, but by no means least, we always sample the best clubs in each city.

 


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