During the Congress some guided tours will be organised to allow the vistit to the following touristic sites of major interest near Grado.

Tour 1) GRADO and AQUILEIA (half day)
Transfer by bus from Grado to Aquileia.

Sunday 14th May 2006
9.00 - 12.30 a.m.
€ 42,00 per person

Let’s start with a pleasant walk through Grado, the town built in the Roman epoch as harbour and dockside of the nearby Aquileia. Nowadays' historical centre, of great artistic value, corresponds to the antique “Castrum” and is where the Duomo, the basilica St. Eufemia, the Baptistery Santa Maria delle Grazie can be admired. In 1892, under the Austrian Emperor Franz Josef, Grado got the status of Seaside and Health Resort and still nowadays is one of the most important seaside and health-resort points of the Adriatic Coast.

Aquileia was founded in 181 BC as a military outpost, it became the capital of the "X Regio Venetia et Histria” and is the most important archaeological site in northern Italy. Many are the Roman ruins still visible today: the Roman Forum, the Roman graveyard, the Fluvial port, the street and some Roman houses. No one can miss the Basilica, the church that preserves a unique example of mosaic floor of over 700 square metres.

Tour 2) UDINE, PALMANOVA and CIVIDALE DEL FRIULI (full day)

Monday 15th May 2006
9.00a.m. – 6.00 p.m.
€ 72,00 per person

Sightseeing of Palmanova, a star-shaped citadel founded during the XVI century by the Republic of Venice and developed by Napoleon at the beginning of the XIX century, in 1960 was officially declared a “National Monument” by the Italian Republic’s President.
The star-shaped fortress with nine points, walled with mighty bastions and broad moats, can be considered an ideal city of the Reinessance culture, as well as the strategical point for defending the Republic of Venice territories on their eastern borders against possible invasions from the East (Imperial or Turkish).

Udine stands in the centre of Friuli Venezia Giulia. During the XII and XIV centuries the city had a very important expansion, but only in 1420 it changed thoroughly: it was annexed to the Republic of Venice, becoming one of the most prestigious art cities of the area. Rich in monuments, important both from the historical and the artistic points of view, Udine lets the visitors admire the castle, the Loggia del Lionello in venetian Gothic style, the Clock Tower that follows the project of St Mark’s Square in Venice, the Cathedral, Tiepolo’s works of art and Andrea Palladio’s architecture.

Cividale del Friuli can be easily reached driving towards east, towards the border with the Republic of Slovenia and among beautiful valleys. The Roman town "Forum Julii" was founded around 50 b.C. to guarantee the defence of the roads leading to Aquileia. Cividale features a number of monuments bearing witness to its three most important periods: the Roman times, the Langobard era and the Patriarchs' age. In 568 a.C. it was conquered by King Alboino who founded here the first of the 35 Langobard kingdoms of Italy leaded by his Nephew Gisulfo. Among the most interesting places to visit there are: the Cathedral, the beautiful square "Piazza Paolo Diacono" surrounded by ancient and interesting buildings, the famous Langobard temple "Tempietto Longobardo", the bridge "Ponte del Diavolo" from which it Is possible to enjoy a beautiful sight over the river Natisone.

Tour 3) TRIESTE and Miramare Castle (full day)

Tuesday 16th May 2006
9.00 a.m. – 6.00 p.m.
€ 76,00 per person

Mitteleurope and advanced research, great architecture and good cuisine, Roman, Serbian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox Catholicism and Judaism, scientists and internationally famous writers and poets: you will find all this and much more only in Trieste, the capital of Friuli Venezia Giulia Region and the only city with a square with an open side looking onto the sea. The famous Castle of Miramare lays few kilometres far from Trieste. Maximilian of Habsburg, Archduke of Austria and Emperor of Mexico, chose the cliff where to build his residence, surrounded by the sea and hidden by a 22 hectares wide botanical garden.

Tour 4) VENICE (full day)

Wednesday 17th May
2006 9.00 a.m. – 6.00 p.m.
€ 76,00 per person

A day spent in the most famous city of the world cannot be missed. A walk through old quarters and bridges, a visit to San Mark’s square, including San Mark’s Basilica, the famous Rialto bridge and eventually, by boat, a cruise down the Grand Canal to see Venice from a different perspective while learning about the beautiful Palaces and Churches that line the banks of the World's most beautiful street.