Living in a place, if only for a week or two, offers a completely different experience from the brief glimpse possible from a tour bus. Though art and history play vital roles in our understanding of a culture, a traveler must reach beyond museums to experience daily life. Go to the grocery store, the post office, the bank and you'll find the unfamiliar becomes familiar, acquaintances are built, and is a sense of belonging emerges.

Umbria is an exceptional place -- it was the home of St Francis of Assisi and artists like Perugino and Gozzoli; it's the site of some of the most beautifully preserved medieval towns in Europe and the world. Excellent olive oil, wines, porcini mushrooms, truffles, wild asparagus and more fill our plates, providing insights into what it means to be Umbrian. And, there is more -- the essence of an ages-old way of life, the traditions, values, appreciation for beauty, elegant simplicity, and authenticity.