90 Days of Seduction

In the words of Mark Twain, ‘Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life’. That has been my philosophy for life and never more so than the day Ciao Italy Tours was conceived. But now it’s even better and worth the many years of stumbling, faltering at times, financially struggling and staying on a path that I never wanted to leave, no matter how hard it became.

An unwavering self belief and a burning passion that has never diminished, but grown stronger during the last seventeen years, has proven that you can achieve anything you set your mind to.

So here I sit writing to you, back in Australia after 90 days in my beloved Italy, here in body but not quite mind yet, as I reflect on three months of magic and moments in time that are indelible memories to be savoured forever.

This is the thing about Italy

You could visit any one of the twenty regions that make up this small peninsula, all of which have their own unique identity, and have vastly different experiences. You can visit the same towns many times over and discover things you missed the first time because there is never enough time. Italy is a feast for the eyes and a seduction of the soul from charming hilltop medieval towns to crystal blue seas to fiery volcanoes and majestic mountains. Traditions, dialects, food, architecture and economy change from one region to the next. It’s over 160 years since the unification of Italy as one nation and the north is still very different to the south. It is the diversity, contrasts and contradictions that promise a lifetime love affair.

It’s important to say here that I don’t have rose coloured glasses on. I know Italy is not perfect and can be totally frustrating, chaotic and ridiculously bureaucratic. My son knows far better than me, having lived in Italy for two years. However, take the bad with the good because Italy is hopelessly romantic - every day full of beauty, history, art, fashion, style, food, culture and a thousand different ways to appreciate it all.

Let’s dive a little deeper

As soon as I’m on the way from Fiumicino airport along the now familiar road to a place dear to my heart, I’m home. It is a joyful moment arriving at the front door of Hotel Gregoriana and reconnecting with every single person that works there. I love Italian people! From day one it wasn’t just Italy, but the people that I felt a deep connection with. I love their enthusiasm for life, infectious energy, how freely they express themselves, how romantic they are! It is their intense love for family, friends, food and an appreciation and enjoyment of the small things in life that resonates with me.

Living like an Italian

One month living in a small apartment in Montepulciano to attend Il Sasso Language School gave me a brief, but all encompassing feeling of being a local. Adopting the daily rituals of Italian life meant un caffe and cornetto standing at the bar on the way to school; another coffee at morning break in the beautiful cafe with the amazing frescoed ceiling; buying fresh, local produce at the market for lunch; walking the country lanes in the afternoon whilst talking Italian to myself; loving the regular tolling of church bells; saying buonasera every afternoon to the same three men sitting on a stone bench in the piazza. Why is shopping at the supermercato so much more fun in Italy? I loved trying different Italian brands and products, even the washing powder because it just smells so good! Every day it was the simple things that brought so much joy. Racing down the winding cobblestoned street of Montepulciano on the way to class (no-one in Italy walks that fast at 8:00am) and greeting the same dog walkers and the rubbish truck driver; walking home for lunch and the same cafe owner every day asking me how school went that day. Did I need any help?

What makes my dream possible?

It is all of you who have said yes to an Italian adventure with Ciao Italy Tours. And it is all of you who make the journey so much fun. There are hundreds of photos I would love to share in this newsletter that show the spontaneous joy shared every day during the last four tours in May and June. I am truly grateful to so many of you who continue to travel with me year after year and to those who chose a Ciao Italy tour for the first time.

I am also very grateful and proud of my son for leading a Ciao Italy tour for the first time who, with his engaging personality and wonderful sense of humour, made it a journey his travellers will never forget! What happens on tour stays on tour.

Sharing an intimate adventure with a small group of people fosters a special bond and longlasting friendships. Grazie a tutti voi!

Tour update

The Tuscany/Italian Riviera/Lake Como tour in September and the Sicily tour in October are booked out. However, two spots/one room has become available on the Matera/Puglia tour from 3rd to 17th October 2025.

Next week, I will confirm all of the tours and dates for 2026.

Ci vediamo la prossima settimana.

Deb