Why Italy?
Italy is the birthplace of some of the world’s most famous dishes. But Italian food is more than just the food itself—it’s also history, land, and community. The Italian-born Slow Food movement evolved out of concerns that regional cooking traditions, and the culture they foster, could slip away in the face of a growing global fast food industry. Emphasizing farm-to-table systems not only preserves multi-generational practices and local communities, it also prioritizes more universal issues like health and sustainability.
On this program we will explore how connecting with tradition can also mean that the environment is kept cleaner, workers are treated more fairly, and customers know where their food is coming from. We’ll also consider what lessons the world can learn from this movement – how can we make our own local food systems more sustainable? Will understanding Slow Food change the way we eat at home?
0-3 Nights - Rome, Italy
Redefining Old and New
Discover Rome to gain an understanding of Italian history and identity by visiting ancient and renaissance sites. Taste fresh gelato on the Spanish Steps and pass the McDonald’s that inspired the Slow Food movement in the 1980s. This modern capital offers a thorough introduction to daily life and culture in the country.
0-3 Nights - Pompeii, Italy
Regional Cooking and Iconic Cuisine
Travel to Pompeii, famous for its volcanic landscape that defines the farming in the region and produces incredible home-grown tomatoes. We will visit the archaeological site, taste the incredible Napolitano pizza, learn how Bufala mozzarella is made, and maybe even stay at an old seaside monastery.
0-3 Nights - Calabria, Italy
Farm to Table Experience
Explore the sun-baked region of Calabria, the “toe of Italy’s boot,” where we will have the opportunity to live on a farm. We’ll meet local chefs and make pasta with grain grown right out our window. Together we’ll prepare a meal cooked entirely with ingredients that are sourced from a one kilometer radius. We’ll then end our program reflecting on how our experience in Italy might inspire new thinking about what, and how, we eat back home.
