How To Enjoy Your Italian Cooking School Tour To The Max
Keywords: Italy travel, Italy cooking schools, Italian cooking schools, Italian cooking tours, cooking schools
You’re off to Italy on a cooking school tour you’ve been dreaming of for years, perhaps in the magnificent Barolo wine country in Piedmont or on the east coast in Sicily with views of the Mediterranean and snow capped Mount Etna.
You want to enjoy your sensual experiences in Italy to the maximum: the beauty, the countryside, food, cooking lessons, wine tastings, sightseeing excursions and visits with local people.
Here are four detailed tips on getting all the joy possible out of your Italian cooking school tour, gleaned from my 12 years of experience creating and leading cooking tours in Italy.
1. Many cooking school tour members tell me, “I’ve eaten too much! There’s too much food. I’m a food lover so how can I discipline myself when everything is SO delicious.”
Find out what is on your lunch or dinner menu so you can pace yourself. That way you avoid eating a lot of one course only to find three more courses are coming and you don’t have room for all the wonderful food.
Most Italian meals for special occasions (all cooking school tour meals are special occasions) have five courses: one to five appetizers, pasta or rice, meat or fish, vegetable side dish and dessert, so pacing yourself makes a big difference in your enjoyment of your meal.
A good cooking school tour guide will list all the dishes on the menu to the group before a meal. If she doesn’t, ask her to do so.
Sample a little bit of everything so you experience as many flavours and dishes as possible. That’s one reason you go on a cooking school tour, isn’t it?
Trying a bit of everything will also avoid offending your hospitable cooking teachers or chefs. Then you can smile and say, “It was absolutely wonderful, but I just don’t have the space.” I’m on the petite side, so this line makes perfect sense to my Italian hosts.
2. Some cooking school tour participants say, “The cooking classes were hands-on but I didn’t get enough time to cook hands-on during the lesson. The chef did too much of the cooking in the class.”
If you want to participate more hands-on in the class, get beside the chef and jump right in. If you hang back, waiting to get asked to do something, you may wait awhile and go away feeling disappointed you didn’t get a real hands-on class.
Some tour guides and chefs notice who is shy and hanging back in the kitchen and encourage them to “step up to the plate”, but others don’t. You have to be assertive and volunteer.
3. Some cooking school students wonder, “Will I gain weight during my cooking tour with the vast quantities of irresistible food?”
One woman told me she lost 10 pounds during her cooking lesson trip in Italy. No fried chicken or hamburgers, just healthy, natural, less fatty foods. Italians eat less junk food and more fresh, local foods than many North Americans. She drank water and no pop. She did much more walking than she ever does at home.
If you can find time on your cooking school tour to go for walks or hikes, you’ll go home weighing the same or less, and feel much more energetic while on your cooking tour.
Better still, choose cooking school tours that include some good walks perhaps along paths in the Tuscan or Piedmont wine country or along coasts in Cinque Terre, the Amalfi Coast or Sicily.
4. Communicate in a direct, friendly way with your tour guide about what you want.
Once you’re in Italy in the middle of experiencing your cooking school tour, you may want to change the tour itinerary slightly. For example, you discover many tempting leather shops in a Tuscan hill town and want to spend more time shopping and forego your spa treatments on the itinerary.
Ask your tour guide how you can change activities. Most tour guides try to be as flexible as possible. After all, their job is making sure you enjoy yourself!
If there’s anything you’re not enjoying on your tour, take your tour guide aside, give constructive, friendly feedback and work together to make changes. Don’t be like some people who say nothing about their disappointments until they fill out the tour evaluation form at the end of the tour when it’s too late to help them.
If you’re enjoying an activity tremendously, ask your guide how you can do more of it. “I loved that boat ride! Is there any way we can do more boat rides?” Tour guides love seeing you happy and will do all they can to delight you.
In conclusion, if you pace yourself at the table, try a small amount of everything, assert yourself in the kitchen, enjoy the healthy cuisine, get some exercise and communicate well with your tour guide, your Italian cooking school tour will give you all you dreamed of and more.
Margaret Cowan of Vancouver, BC owns a tour company, Mama Margaret Italian Cooking Holidays at www.italycookingschools.com.
They ran their first Italian cooking, wine and walking tour in 1995. Margaret and her local Italian tour partners offer cooking school tours all over Italy.
Previous Articles Highlighter:
Last Minute Cruise Deal - How To Find Them! (1)
Online Deals The internet is a terrific source in finding those last minute bargains. It wasn't too long ago when you needed to rely on the cruise companies themselves and travel agents to find a good deal at the last minute and while the latter is still a viable way of sourcing out great deals, going online has presented a myriad of opportunities.
African Safari Trips - 3 Ways To See Africa On Safari (2)
These can range in length from four to fourteen days and in many instances, you can spread the trip out over several destinations. While each of the listed African safari trips offers different aspects, in the end, it is your decision on what to choose.
Things To Do In Cape Cod (3)
Moreover, Cape Cod and its islands - like Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard - are home to a substantial number of working lighthouses, including Highland Light, Nauset Light and Chatham Light.
Important Things To Pack When Vacationing At A Tropical Country (4)
Bring as well aspirin and other pharmacy items. Bring along the medicine from their original packaging and bring along with you your prescription. Bringing along a guide book to your vacation destination will not only provide you with a guide on the best attractions that you could visit but it could as well provide information with regards to important phone numbers in emergency cases.
Phoenix Arizona - Valley Of The Sun, American Paradise (5)
Voted one of the top 10 safest cities by Risk and Insurance Magazine back in 2005 because of the unlikely event of natural disaster, the biggest concern for residents is the summer heat.
Wine And Dine Napa Valley Style (6)
Keywords: Sacramento Limosines, Napa Valley Limos, Luxury Limos, Wine Tours, Napa Valley Wine Tour On a typical bright, sunny spring day in Napa Valley, you'll find the Napa Valley wine train pulling out of the railway station and rolling northwards heading towards the valley.
India's Tourism Set To Rise (7)
India is hoping that this success is going to be repeated as they start preparing for the games which are due to start in three years time. According to ASSOCHAM India will receive an estimated 10 million international foreign tourists in 2010.
Spice Island Of Grenada (8)
Two popular options are the Douglaston Spice Estate and the Gouyave Nutmeg processing station. Douglaston Spice Estate is a historical monument to Grenada's past where most of the spices are grown and receive primary processing.
Take A Joy Ride On The Napa Valley Wine Train (9)
They match the romantic and luxurious mood of the train. A typical lunch on the Wine Train would include a salad of lettuce tossed with hazelnut and sherry vinaigrette.
Touring Napa Valley (10)
Most wineries will have a shop selling souvenirs, as well as their own wines. Sacramento Limousines are available at Luxury Limousines. We have custom and planned Napa Valley Limos which our expert drivers can impart the secret local hotspots.
Newer Articles Highlighter:
The Pacific Islands A South Sea Dream (1)
Most of the people choose Tahiti and its neighbors Moorea and Bora Bora as their first choice for their vacation. In the case of Polynesia, the high green peaks and luminous reefs of these island is supreme.
Majorca To Have Spain's Top Hotel (2)
The luxury hotel has come about unexpectedly from a project started some ten years ago that ran into financial difficulties, nd it is that will be transformed into Spain's finest, with the hotel anticipated to open for business some time in 2009 or 2010.
The Hilton Hotel & Beach Club In Dubai (3)
Towels are even provided so you can leave your towel in the room. There was plenty for us to do on our package holiday tour to Dubai in and around the hotel but venturing out further was never a problem either.
How To Realize A Discount Disney Vacation (4)
To reduce your expenses and save a little more on traveling expenses, you might want to consider driving to Orlando or Anaheim if at all possible. Packing everything into a rented minivan along with the kids can save you several hundred dollars alone even taking into account high gas prices.
A Merlot Lover's Wine Tour In Napa Valley (5)
Although Napa Valley is particularly famous for Cab, it is also a huge draw for Merlot lovers who simply love the wine. Wine lovers love this thin-skinned variety that's as popular as Cabernet Sauvignon, but has more lush.
Planning Walt Disney Vacations The Right Way (6)
Do research online to help you understand what a Walt Disney vacation is all about. An important thing to keep in mind is that Walt Disney World Vacations are very pricey; the prices vary depending on the time of year you want to travel.
Flying With Kids: Useful Tips For Family Travelers (7)
Carry a small towel that you can spread out underneath the board to catch any stray pieces, as even magnetic and clip-together games may lose small pieces. Air travel with kids doesn't have to be a nightmare.
How To Have Cheap Disney Vacations (8)
Most Walt Disney packages will cover accommodations and tickets to some of the popular attractions in Disney World. Others may include food as well. There are some which include only accommodation and Disney admission.
800 Number Directory Brings Travel Bargains (9)
Published by the editorial staff of National Tollfree Directory. For more information about the 800 Directory, Toll Free Directory and 800 Numbers, visit The National Tollfree Directory: www.internettollfree.com. Please direct any feedback on this article to editorial@strbusinessmedia.com.
NYC's Empire State Building: A Must-See For Students (10)
The Empire State Building has been host to important dignitaries and political and entertainment figures and the observation deck has been the site for many movie scenes. Movie fans will remember that King Kong even toured the building--from the outside.
Permalink to How To Enjoy Your Italian Cooking School Tour To The Max