Travel Program, 2007
[July through December]
AGS Publications Travel Program, 2007
Last Updated:
April 13, 2007
The AGS Travel Program
THE 2007 SEASON [January through June]
brochure for the individual AGS Education Tour.COMPLETED PROGRAMS
CROSSROADS OF EMPIRES: PART I - Aqaba to Crete
March 27, 2007, to April 14, 2007 (19 days)
CROSSROADS OF EMPIRE: PART II - Crete to Venice
April 14 to April 23, 2007 (14 days)
The art, architecture, and archaeological wonders of the eastern and central Mediterranean are legacies of the world's most celebrated
empires. Over the millennia a succession of cultures traded, conquered, and settled in these fabled lands, and we follow in their wake aboard
the superb, 40-cabin Le Levant, piecing together the pages of the defining chapters of Western civilization. We offer two itineraries of
remarkable discovery that can be enjoyed separately or, for a more complete historical perspective, taken in combination. In all, we visit
ten unique countries and explore a dozen World Heritage Sites. Our Jordan to Crete voyage begins in hospitable Amman, one of the oldest
cities in the world, and from here we cross ancient caravan routes to explore the incomparable rose-colored ruins of Petra. We board our ship
in Aqaba and sail into the indigo Gulf of Suez, transiting the Suez Canal in daylight, and into the legendary waters of the Mediterranean.
Explore the many historically-rich countries that border the Sea: Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Turkey, and Greece. Our Crete to Venice
voyage sails through some of the world's most fabled seas: the Ionian, Aegean, and Adriatic. We visit ports built along ancient trade routes,
tracing a timeline that features Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders, and Ottomans traveling from Crete and Olympia in Greece, along the Albanian
and Croatian coasts, to magical Venice, Italy.
Click here to view the full color tour Brochure.
AGS Lecturer: Dorothy Drummond, retired Adjunct Assistant Professor of
Geography at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and Indiana State University.
SPLENDORS OF SOUTH ASIA: PART II - Madras, India, to Bombay, India
February 23–March 8, 2007 (14 days)
In the spirit of innovative adventure travel, we are thrilled to present our unique Splendors of India experience: two back-to-back coastal voyages by
ship—Calcutta to Bangalore and Madras to Bombay—that trace the eastern and western shores of the magical, multi-faceted Indian subcontinent, showcasing a
world of contrasting wonders through close-up, interactive experiences. Sail aboard the superb, 40-cabin Le Levant through the Bay of Bengal, the
Indian Ocean, and the Arabian Sea to discover the kaleidoscope of cultures, landscapes, and architectural achievements that collectively define India. We
also offer the option to combine these itineraries in a single coast-to-coast voyage—surely one of the greatest travel adventures on Earth.
Witness the colonial remnants of the British Empire in Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay; discover Portuguese influences in Goa; learn about the Dutch in
Cochin; and on an overland, overnight excursion explore fabled Bhubaneswar, where 2,000 temples once stood. Visit the 13th-century Sun Temple in Konarak
that sits splendidly among the sand dunes along the Bay of Bengal; the 11th-century Lakshminarasimha Temple in Vizag, a masterpiece of Indian architecture;
and the World Heritage Site at Mahabalipuram. Our west coast program highlights a visit to lovely Trivandrum near India’s southern tip, as well as an
in-depth visit to the wondrous Meenakshi Temple Complex in Madurai. For those who choose to combine both itineraries, we also include a remarkable
three-day overland excursion to Thanjavur and its World Heritage Site.
AGS Lecturer: Elizabeth Chacko, Chair and Associate Professor of Geography and International Affairs.
AMAZON AND BRAZIL GRAND VOYAGE
February 26, 2007, to March 18, 2007 (21 days)
This coming March, shed the grey of winter for the bursting, exuberant landscape of Brazil. This grand voyage aboard the all-suite 57-cabin Corinthian II begins with an exploration of the Amazon
River and several of its tributaries. "The Amazon," wrote geographer Euclides da Cunha, "is the last unwritten page of Genesis." This, the world’s largest rainforest, is where the astounding diversity of life on
Earth is most completely comprehended. For four thousand miles the Amazon flows, fed by 1,100 tributaries, gently carrying two-thirds of the planet’s flowing water down to its Y-shaped delta. One-quarter
of the entire world’s bird species flit, flutter, and wade here; and nearly 2,000 types of butterflies brush the air among the mahogany, balsam, and sapucaia trees of the forest canopy. Cruise along the great
Rio Amazonas, turning down the Breves Strait, which is in places hardly wider than our ship. Then we will cruise some of the innumerable tributaries and embark Corinthian II’s fleet of Zodiac landing
craft to explore even smaller channels where the sun is darkened by the soaring, arching foliage of the rainforest. We will step out on to the forest floor, with its scent of crushed herbs and sounds from
above—parrots, monkeys, crickets—and peer into a rainbow of orchids or a trail of leaf-cutter ants. Return to the Atlantic, and cruise down the coastline of Brazil. This vibrant and dynamic democracy, the
world’s fifth-largest country, is just now rising to its potential, fusing the breathtaking diversity of its cultures with the limitless natural beauty of its rain forests and coastal wilderness. The whole of Brazil’s
natural history, colonial past, and exciting kaleidoscopic culture is here for you to savor on this voyage.
AGS Lecturer: Jim Wiley, Professor of Geography at Hofstra University.
SPLENDORS OF SOUTH ASIA: PART I - Calcutta, India to Bangalore, India
February 12–27, 2007 (16 days)
VOYAGE TO ANTARCTICA
January 19 - February 1, 2007 (14 days)
Travel to Antarctica on a voyage exploring the wildlife and history of the mysterious "White Continent" during the mild and beautiful austral summer,
when the days are long and relatively mild, when seabirds are courting, penguin chicks are hatching, and massive icebergs thaw into beautiful sculptures
of brilliant form and color. Each day presents a new discovery, whether while cruising through ice-filled channels, walking among crowded penguin
rookeries, or witnessing minke, humpback and orca whales cavorting in the sparkling waters. This extraordinary voyage combines unparalleled natural
wonders with an unparalleled level of comfort. Travel aboard the luxury, 57-suite Corinthian II, which is equipped with a fleet of sturdy,
maneuverable Zodiac landing craft to whisk us among ice floes to deserted beaches where we come face-to-face with penguins, seals, petrels, and albatross.
AGS Lecturer: Robert Dodson, Geography and Antarctic Explorer and Photographer.
Click here to go forward to the second half of 2007.
*** For further information about these or possible future trips contact:
47 Main Street, Suite One
P.O. Box 938
Walpole, New Hampshire 03608-0938
Tel: (888) 805-0884 or (603) 756-2553
Monday - Friday, 9:00 am - 6:00 pm EST
Fax: (603)756-2922
Email: ags@studytours.org