Itinerary:

Day 1: Departure from the U.S.

Day 2: Arrival into Paris, and check into your hotel. Welcome and orientation. Seminar and meeting with Philip Gardiner and Gary Osborn.*

Day 3: Visit The Place de la Concorde. Standing beneath the column brought over from Luxor, we will discuss the symbol of the pillar or column - the obelisk - its link with the serpent - the basilisk and the link it has with the Grail and rebirth. The pillar is of immense importance to secret societies, including the Freemasons, around the world and has many meanings. However, Gardiner and Osborn will reveal the true and original meaning to these enigmatic and often mysterious monuments.

Also today go to The Louvre. We will look at the all the serpent imagery on display at the Louvre - especially Mesopotamian art, and those, which depict the 'Tree of Life' - a symbol of the human spine and the shamanic axis mundi - again the sacred pillar.

Day 4: See The Church of St Sulpice. Commentary will again include the Rose Line that runs inside the Church to the Astronomical Gnomen. Almost all churches, cathedrals and great stone monuments have been built by Stone Masons, however as Gardiner and Osborn will show, these buildings also incorporated many of the ancient secrets of the Freemasons and some even they did not realize they were portraying.

Then visit Saint-Germain-des-Prés Church. Close to The Church of St Sulpice, we will visit the oldest church in Paris and the original burial place of the Merovingian kings who figure so prominently in the Grail mystery. We will discuss the mystical symbols that run throughout the church - placed there by the secret societies such as the Freemasons.

Go to the L'Observatoire de Paris, the Palais Royal, and the Pantheon, commentary on the oldest serving observatory in the world - dating from 1667. Again we follow the Rose Line to the Palais Royal, and the Pantheon, which contains Foucault's Pendulum.

Day 5: We will experience the most famous church in Paris Notre Dame Cathedral, known throughout the world and note the symbolism we find there. We will then visit one of the most interesting and intriguing monuments in Paris Mystery Monument on the Champ de Mars. A virtually unknown mystical building - which is odd in a city that has reams of information about practically every paving stone. In the middle of the Champ de Mars, within view of the Eiffel Tower, is a monument that was dedicated in 1989 for France's bicentennial celebrating the Declaration of the Rights of Man. It is built like a small Egyptian temple and is covered from top to bottom with esoteric symbols. It was commissioned during the presidency of Francois Mitterand, who had a definite attraction to things mystical, especially if they had Egyptian-oriented themes.

Day 6: We will spend a day visiting Chartres Cathedral, which is just outside Paris. Considered by some to be an 'hermetic book in stone', the geometry and symbolism built into this remarkable building are believed to provide the key to understanding the mysteries of the universe, clues which have been hidden in plain sight for hundreds of years. We will especially be looking at the famous Labyrinth and discussing its link with the Serpent.

Day 7: Go back to The Louvre. See The Glass Pyramid. Commentary will include its construction; why it was commissioned by President Mitterand and the work carried out by its architect M Pei. There will also be commentary about the glass pyramid's connection with Masonic plans to build a pyramid on this site during the French Revolution and the links the glass pyramid has with the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Also at The Louvre you will see The Rose Line Meridian and the Arago Markers in the courtyard. Commentary on the origin of the Paris Rose Line or Prime Meridian and the connections this has with the Great Pyramid of Giza - the location of the original Prime Meridian.

Itinerary:

Day 1: Depart Paris, France to Tuscany, Italy and check into your hotel.

Day 2: Set on three hills and reputedly the best-preserved, walled city in the Tuscany region, the pedestrianized medieval center of Siena is well worth a visit. We will be visiting the Campo, Siena's central square, which is really shaped like a semi-circular cape. It was designed to resemble the cloak of the Virgin Mary. We will also be exploring Siena's medieval city hall, the Palazzo Publico with its stunning frescoes that evoke the world of the Middle Ages. We will walk from the spectacular Porta Camollina, and visit the stark 12^th century Templar Church of Magiona. We will be visiting Pinacoteca, Siena's national art museum to look at Siena's art treasures.

Day 3: In Arezzo we will visit the Civic Museum and see the frescoes by Piero della Francesca and where the stunning "Resurrection" is displayed. We will see "The Legend of the True Cross" and the haunting 13^th century Cimabue cross at the Church of San Francesco, proceeding on to the portrait of St Mary Magdalene in the Arezzo Cathedral, both compelling works by Piero. We will then visit Sansepolcro to see the famous 10^th century sculpture entitled the "Volto Santo" in the 12^th century Duomo or Cathedral (according to legend, brought back from Palestine where it was seized during the Crusades) and the haunting fresco of St. Thomas a Becket who allegedly took refuge in Anghiari.

Day 4: We will view some of the western world's most extraordinary architecture. Witness the art, culture and history of Florence, one of Italy's most romantic cities. Included in the sightseeing of the city of Florence is the Duomo, the spectacular Uffizi Gallery and the Galleria dell Academia.

Florence is the birthplace of the Renaissance, a period of exciting inspiration and innovation. We will experience the paintings and sculptures of such greats as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Botticelli: Michelangelo's famous statue of David, Botticelli's "Birth of Venus," Primavera and other magnificent works.

The Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore is one of the largest in the world. It demonstrates an outstanding example of the polychrome decoration and harmonious lines of fine Florentine architecture.

Day 5: We will set out on a two-hour walk from the Conventino up through the surrounding hills of Monti Rognosi (an ancient range of mountains where gold and native copper was mined by the Etruscans) and then along the escarpment towards Sasseto and the mediaeval castle of Montauto, with wonderful vistas down towards the Montedoglio Lake and Sovara valley beyond. St.Francis climbed La Verna and on the "rough rock" was given the stigmata. We will then visit the prominent rock fortress of La Verna, sanctuary of St. Francis of Assisi, to visit his secluded bed of iron and spiritual retreat under a cleft of rock, as well as spectacular ceramics from the Della Robbia School.

Day 6: We will visit the Etruscan and Roman ruins at Vulci where we will also visit the famous bridge that leads to the Ponte Della Badia (Templar Church). In the cliffs near the Ponte is a natural cavern.

We will also be visiting the Necropolis in Vulci, which once embraced both banks of the Fiore. From here come most of the vases in the Vatican and the British Museums. Of the multitude of tombs here opened, one particularly deserves attention. Discovered in 1830, it is called Grotta del Sole e della Luna "Tomb of the Sun and Moon." It has eight chambers, the walls of some are curiously adorned with panels, and the ceilings with mouldings in regular patterns, all carved from the rock in relief.

Day 7: Depart today for the U.S.