Armchair Travel to Italy

Italy! The boot-shaped country that fires the imagination in us all! Food, fashion, music, antiques and artifacts, amazing landscapes, volcanoes, opera & more!

Planning the Session

1. Choose a date and advertise the session for good attendance
2. Organize a comfortable room with a large TV for the occasion
3. Print out passports and boarding passes for residents to add to the fun
4. Hold a craft session prior to the day to decorate the TV room
5. Organize someone to demonstrate cooking an Italian dish
6. Purchase drinks, finger food (cookies) and ask your Chef to prepare an Italian dish to serve after the session. For example:
   • Lasagne with Dean Martin
   • Spaghetti and Rita Pavone

Sample Program (approx 2-3 hrs)

1. Welcome
Seat residents comfortably and welcome them. Hand out passports and boarding tickets.
5 - 10 minutes

2. Introduce
Announce your destination and read out some fun facts about Italy.
Ask residents what else they know about Italy.
10 - 15 minutes
Italy Fact File (Golden Carers)

3. Serve Italian Drinks
Offer light versions of Aperol Spritz, Prosecco & Peach juice, Mock Martini or Cinzano.
10 - 15 minutes

4. Enjoy a Quiz & Some Trivia
Enjoy some Italian themed activities
Italy Quiz (Golden Carers)
16 Snippets of Italian Trivia (Golden Carers)
15 - 20 minutes

5. Watch First Video
Rome, the Eternal City (YouTube) - 25 minutes.
At the end of the video allow residents to comment.
30 - 40 minutes

6. Italian Cooking Demonstration
Announce the demonstration for making Italian ‘Biscotti’ that will be served at the end of the session.The person doing the demonstration should be dressed as a Chef and have a fake Italian accent. After the demonstration, send the biscotti to the kitchen to be baked and continue with the session.
10 - 15 minutes

7. Watch Second Video
Milan and Lake Como (YouTube) - 25 minutes.
At the end of the video allow residents to comment.
30 - 40 minutes

8. Coffee & Biscotti
Serve biscotti with espressos or cappuccinos.
15 - 20 minutes

Ask which country would they like to visit next!
Thank the residents and invite them along to the next scheduled Armchair Travel.

Happy Travels!

The above example of Armchair Travel will last a good two hours or more. You may stop there, but if you want to take the session into lunch/dinner time or extend to an all-day Italian Theme Day event, check the related links below and choose what suits you.

Extending the Session

Tips on How to host an Italian Day
Tips on How to Host an Italian Day (Golden Carers)
Italian Themed Party Ideas (Golden Carers)

Video of Interest
Cinque Terre (YouTube) - 8 minutes
A coastal area within Liguria, in the northwest of Italy. It comprises the villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Namarola, and Riomaggiore.

Italian Cooking Class
Cannoli Dip (Golden Carers)

Italian Songs
Ask an Italian resident to sing with piano or guitar accompaniment.
Singing in Italian (Golden Carers)
Favorite Italian Songs (Spotify) - Songs + Lyrics

Opera Video
The Best of Verdi (YouTube) - 2 hours
Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi was the leading opera composer of the 19th century. Some of Verdi’s operas: Rigoletto, Il Trovatore, La Traviata, Don Carlos, Aida, Otello, and Falstaff. Here is a compilation of his best work; you don’t have to listen to it all at once, make it into three or four sessions. Alternatively, hire an opera DVD from your local library.

Artist Impression
Beatrice (Golden Carers) by Amedeo Modigliani
Alice (Golden Carers) by Amedeo Modigliani
The Boy (Golden Carers) by Amedeo Modigliani
Coloring ativities give older people the opportunity to demonstrate their continuing capacity and creativity. Make it relevant by offering quality paints, pencils, canvas and anything else to make them proud to take part.

Word Searches
Italian Cities Word Search (Golden Carers)
Italian Pasta Word Search (Golden Carers)
The Legend Of Tarantella Word Finder (Golden Carers)

Crossword
Italian Food Crossword (Golden Carers)