2026 SPRING RETREATS
Experience the best Italy has to offer š®š¹ š
Dear lector augustus,
If youāve been with us for a while, you might know that last summer I hosted two summer retreats in Italy. On the first, we explored the hidden gems of northern Italy while studying the philosopher Joseph Pieperās seminal work, Leisure: The Basis of Culture. On the second, we told the history of Rome through the eyes of its heroes, travelling through each of the 5 major historical eras of the Eternal City.
Because of the great success we had on both of these outings, weāve decided to host two more retreats this coming spring. The first, in early May, will be a repeat of the Leisure: The Basis of Culture tour. The second, at the end of May, will be hosted in none other than La Serenissima, the magical city of Venice herself!
The rest of this email is an overview of what each retreat entails, plus some shots of the fun we had this past summer. Check them out, and if youād like to join us in Italy this spring, click the āApplyā button at the end of this email to get started!
Leisure: The Basis of Culture
May 4 - 8, 2026
āLeisure, it must be remembered, is not a Sunday afternoon idyll, but the preserve of freedom, of education and culture, and of that undiminished humanity which views the world as a whole.ā
This retreat is an in-person walk through philosopher Josef Pieperās seminal work, Leisure: The Basis of Culture. For one week, my friend O.W. Root and I will take you to the hidden gems of Northern Italy so you can experience firsthand what it means for leisure to be the basis of culture.
Youāll get to explore everything from philosophy and fine dining to the art of cocktails, conversation, and classical music. Each day weāll study part of Pieperās Leisure: The Basis of Culture so that by the end of your trip, youāll have learned how to properly unwind, enjoy the finer things in life, and embrace the adage āless is more.ā
Leisure is a form of that stillness that is necessary preparation for accepting reality; only the person who is still can hear, and whoever is not still, cannot hear.
Such stillness is not mere soundlessness or a dead muteness; it means, rather, that the soulās power, as real, of responding to the real ā a co-respondence, eternally established in nature ā has not yet descended into words.
Leisure is the disposition of perceptive understanding, of contemplative beholding, and immersion ā in the real.
-Josef Pieper
The majority of the retreat will take place in Bergamo (watch this video to check it out), but we will also visit Lake Garda and other hidden gems of the Lombard pre-Alps. To apply to join us, click the button at the end of this email.
Building Heaven Out of Hell: The Values that Made Venice
May 25 - 29, 2026
āWhen I seek another word for āmusicā, I never find any other word than Venice.ā
-Friedrich Nietzsche
Today, more than two centuries after she lost her independence, Venice is still regarded as one of the most beautiful cities on earth. But it wasnāt always this way.
The humble people that fled the wrath of Attila the Hun into the swamps of northern Italy ended up building a 1,000 year republic, and the most stable form of government since the pharaohs. So how did they do it?
Thatās exactly what we look at on this retreat, as James a.ka. Western Exile (historian; former resident of Venice; co-author of INVICTUS) and I take you on a trip through Venice unlike any other. We explore everything from anthropology to high-culture, visiting the very first Venetian settlements and attending opera by candlelight. Weāll view the dockyards where Venice assembled its fleet, travel to other islands in the lagoon, and discover what enabled the Venetians to build a heaven out of hell.
Our goal is to help you experience the hidden gems of Venice that the vast majority of tourists miss: from the local cuisine to the historic palazzos and the treasures that lie hidden in forgotten alleyways. The purpose is not simply to study history, but to uncover the values that enabled the Venetians to build heaven out of hell, and learn how you can apply them to your own life.
No other retreat gives you such a 3-dimensional experience of the most wonderful city on Earth. To apply to join us, click the button at the end of this email.
Pricing & How to Apply
Pricing for each retreat is $4,750. This covers lodging, activities, and all meals, and excludes transport to and from the retreat.
Whereas many popular tour providers cut costs by skimping on quality, we set ourselves apart by making sure you enjoy the best local food, drink, and experiences that Bergamo and Venice have to offer. Our goal is to provide a boutique retreat, with smaller, more personalized group sizes, in which the culinary experience rivals that of everything else we discuss and explore.
To join us, click the button below to apply now. To ensure we only review serious applications, you will be asked to make a 100% refundable deposit of $50 upon application:
I hope you can join us for one of our 2026 spring retreats! Feel free to reply to this email if you have any questions about the tours or your application.
See you in Italy,
-Evan