Cinque Terre & Lake Como 2018

Cinque Terre & Lake Como

September  14 – 23 /2018

Photography / Plein-Air Painting Workshop
Taught by Scott Williams & Niki Gulley

“Crescendo”

Expanding the scope of our travel again this year, we have combined a couple of stunning destinations into one exciting trek, Cinque Terre & Lake Como. This gives you the opportunity to double your pleasure and cover two distinctly amazing locations. There is also the option of combining this with our Tuscany trek for an amazing two week Italian adventure, see the bottom of the page for more details!

“Adrift”

Brightly colored homes stacked one on top of the other, looking like they were carved into the hillside with the ocean lapping at their doorstep, is what awaits you in Cinque Terre. Translating into the “5 Lands”, you get to experience the beauty that each city has to offer. From the southern most stop of Riomaggiore with its vertical ascent of pastel homes, to Vernazza with its medieval fort protecting the harbor and finishing along the beach at our home base of Monterosso in the north.

“Riomaggiore”

This trip literally has almost every form of transportation to heighten your traveling adventure. You will ride the rails  from one city to another, take a boat between them if water is more to your liking or to truly experience Cinque Terre in all of it’s glory, you can hike cliffside trails with the landscape spread out before you. These are your many options as you expand your creativity through paint and film capturing this stunning setting.

“Pandora’s Box”

The second stop on our Italian pilgrimage, is the place that Niki considers the most beautiful place on earth, Lake Como. Imagine sitting at a cafe’ along the water with waves gently lapping the shore with the Alps as a backdrop, it truly is “La Dolce Vita”! From our hilltop hotel overlooking the city of Varenna, to the opulent villas surrounding the lake and to the shop lined stairs and alleys of Bellagio, every destination offers a multitude of opportunities to capture this amazing locale!

“A Moment in Time”

Niki will conduct the Plein-Air Painting Workshop from different picturesque locations daily, teaching through a combination of demos, discussions, assistance and critiques.

Sessions will be broken into different morning and afternoon locations, with plenty of time in between for shopping, sightseeing or to dine al fresco for a leisurely lunch.

“Peaceful Harbor”

Scott will take the photographers on a daily walking tour through Cinque Terre and into the regions surrounding Lake Como.

You will have the opportunity to experience these areas through your lens as Scott guides you to use your camera to define what you see while achieving your own artistic vision. As with the painters, there will be daily destinations with time allowances for exploring on your own.

“La Dolce Vitta”

This unique Workshop affords you the option to choose which aspect interests you, whether it is painting, photography or both. Thereby giving you an opportunity to make the most of your Tuscan experience.

There will also be valuable critique sessions throughout the workshop. This will give everyone an opportunity to discuss the day’s events, compare notes, ask questions and get a chance to know each other. It also presents a unique option to get views and perspectives from both painters and photographers.

View from Lake Como hotel

 So come join us as we take you on an inspirational exploration of Cinque Terre & Lake Como with an emphasis on observation and perception as we help you develop your own style – or just ride along to enjoy the Italian countryside, as artists and non-artists alike are welcome.

Space is limited to 12 participants on a first-come basis, so we encourage you to enroll as soon as possible. There will also be space open for non-participating partners at reduced rates on a limited basis. 

Wine Tasting

 

 

 

Work Shop includes:

  •  Private van transportation to Cinque Terre & Lake Como.
  •  Lodging for 8 nights, 4 nights in the beach town of Monterosso and 4 nights in Lake Como. (Pricing is for shared rooms)
  •  Continental Breakfast 
  •  4 days of train tickets in Cinque Terre
  • Hiking Pass for the trails in Cinque Terre
  • Wine tasting in Cinque Terre
  • Boat transportation in Lake Como
  • Admission to Villa Monastero in Varenna
  • Boat transportation and admission to Villa Balbianello in Lake Como
  •  Optional cooking class
  •  Emergency Medical insurance
  •  Instruction, guidance, experience and fun
Dinner with a view

Your cost for all of this is $5,395 and to reserve a spot, simply send a completed application form (the forms will be provided by email upon request) along with your deposit of $1,500 per person. There also is a final application cut off date of 1/27/18. Prices after the cut off date are based on current airfare. 

A second payment of one half of the remainder after deposit is due by Nov. 11th, with a final payment due by Jan. 20th. We can take credit card payments, however it will incur a 3.5% fee.

For those wanting a single occupancy room, there will be an additional cost of $750.  There has to be a minimum of 6 people for the workshop to make. If the  6 person minimum is not met by the 1/6/18 deadline, deposits will be refunded.

Cooking class

There is a discount of $350 for partners wanting to accompany participants on the trip, but not take the workshop. We will also setup optional spa tours and food, wine or cooking classes where  available at an additional cost for participants not interested in the painting/photography sessions.

There is also the option of combining the Tuscany trek with this one, thereby making both our Italy Workshops into one fantastic two week Italian adventure. The cost for that would be $7,995 with a $2,500 deposit per person.

Our trips, while not overly strenuous do require a reasonable amount of physical fitness. In order to derive the greatest experience from our destinations, we spend a fair amount of time walking within each location. Our goal being that each person should see and experience as much of the scenery and culture as possible during our excursions.

In the event of inclement weather during the trip, arrangements will be made for museum visits, etc. Once deposits are received, there will be no refunds for cancellations as trip arrangements will have been made. We suggest trip insurance for travel difficulties or unforeseen illness.

Please let us know if you have any questions or if we can help you in any way and we hope that you will be able to join us!

Scott Williams      214-289-8512         /         Niki Gulley     214-803-5812

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Email Scott at,  photoguy@blind-squirrel.org  if you are interested in joining us.