– SUNDAY, MAY 13. Welcome cocktail at Grand Hotel Sofia. It will be open to all participants and accompanying persons free of cost.

– MONDAY, MAY 14. After the science sessions at the Tina di Lorenzo theatre, the company “Il cuore di Argante” will perform a stage show based on the myth of Perseus. It will be a short emotional play suitable for an international audience. It will be open to all participants and accompanying persons.

– TUESDAY, MAY 15. A tour of the city visiting Baroque palaces in historic downtown Noto. The cost for accompanying persons will be 5€. At 9pm there will be a public lecture in Italian by Dr. Stefania Varano: you are welcome to attend it at CUMO (https://goo.gl/maps/PfuSCnSuoEE2), yet note this will be mainly an event organised for the local general public

– WEDNESDAY. MAY 16. This is the day of the social trip and dinner. At the time of writing (May 4th) we are considering two options for the trip. One tour will go to historic Syracuse, with a visit to San John’s catacombs from the fourth century AD, and to the island of Ortigia, the historical nucleus of the city, where walking through the city streets you can admire a small part of the archaeological and architectural heritage of what was the birthplace of Archimedes. The other option is to relax on San Lorenzo beach, about 20 km from Noto, also with a chance to visit the Villa Romana del Tellaro on the way. Based on the preferences expressed by participants, we will later decide the final program (ie we may keep both trips in parallel or only make one). After the trip, we will go directly for the social dinner at Dafne restaurant. The cost for accompanying persons will be 50€ for trip and dinner together.

– THURSDAY, MAY 17. After the science sessions, we will visit the INAF 32m radio telescope near Noto and have a dinner with traditional dishes there. The cost for accompanying persons will be 20€.

– FRIDAY, MAY 18, AND LATER. At the end of the conference on Friday afternoon, the week end of the Infiorata will begin in Noto: a cascade of thousands of flowers, expertly arranged on the road, making the vision of baroque city full of scents and colours. For trips on Saturday and Sunday, feel free to get in touch with Shougun agency (info@shougun.it) who can organise trips for you (at your own cost). The area is rich in history (from ancient Greek and Roman ruins and theatres, to baroque cities), nature (beautiful coast, and mount Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe topping 3000m), food-and-wine in nearby villages.