Arrive at Catania Airport and transfer to Siracusa and our hotel in the historic center on the island of Ortygia, separated from the mainland by a bridge. There will be a brief introduction to our week as we enjoy aperitifs before our welcome dinner.

We will spend today in and around Siracusa, colonized in 734 BC by the Corinthians and converted to Christianity by St. Paul himself, who preached in the quarries.

To walk here is a journey through history among Greek temples, Baroque buildings and courtyards, and Arab workshops and squares. We will explore the Neapolis Archaeological Park with the Greek and Roman Theatre, the Latomie del Paradiso, once an ancient limestone quarry, now a delightful garden shaded by orange, palm, and magnolia trees, and the Orecchio di Dionisio with its own unique history.

In the morning we will travel to Morgantina to spend all day with Malcolm (Mac) Bell III, Professor Emeritus of Greek Art and Archaeology in the Department of Art History at the University of Virginia. We will explore one of the most interesting archaeological sites in Sicily, the ruins of the ancient Greek city of Morgantina. Mac Bell has directed excavations to reveal the remnants of a once-important market town; the site now retains a certain isolated beauty, surrounded by hills with sheer cliffs.

We will also spend time in Aidone, where we will see the 11th-century Parish Church of San Lorenzo, built by the Normans and greatly damaged in the 1693 earthquake, and the 10th-century Castello di Pietratagliata.

This morning we will visit Piazza Armerina, famous for its magnificent Baroque cathedral but above all for the Villa Romana del Casale. Here excavations have revealed superb mosaics in the foundations of the villa dating from the 3rd or 4th century. The mosaics depict a variety of subjects, including the Labors of Hercules, the Fall of the Giants, Child Grape Harvesters, hunting scenes, and women in a gymnasium.

After lunch we will continue to Agrigento and our hotel, situated only 200 meters from the Concordia Temple, an ancient Doric masterpiece and one of the best preserved Greek temples outside Greece.

We will spend all day in and around Agrigento. We will visit the Greco-Roman Quarter with some of the best-preserved ancient houses in Sicily and the National Archaeological Museum.

The highlight, however, will be a walking tour of one of the most important archaeological sites in the world, the magnificent Valley of the Temples, dedicated to Juno, Concord, Hercules, Jupiter and the Dioscures.

We will also have an opportunity to taste the famous Marsala wines.

Segesta and Selinunte are our destinations for the day - two great 5th-century cities whose rivalry led to all-out war.

Segesta lies in rolling countryside. We will see the great Doric Temple and the theatre that dates from the 3rd century BC.

The enormous ruins of the temples at Selinunte form one of the most impressive archaeological site in the Mediterranean. Excavations have uncovered extensive ruins, butexperts now believe that the destruction was caused by earthquakes rather than by armies. The remains of five temples litter the fortified acropolis, while the ruins of three more, bearing massive Doric columns, lie on a hill to the east.

After breakfast we will depart for the Palermo Airport.