Archive for September, 2006
Pics from the Vespatour, Four out of Thousand Four
Once I was back home from the Vespatour I’ve been busy to set back on track the projects I was working on, but at the same time I managed to make a selection of the pics I took along the journey.
It was more difficult than I expected, since every pic has a story to tell, so you can understand how complicated was selecting only 4 to post on the blog.
Before getting to the pics, the image on the left shows the 4200 km-long route I followed: from Como to Milano, Torino, Genova, Rapallo, Monterosso al Mare, Marina di Massa, Forte dei Marmi, Lucca, Pisa, Pontedera, Livorno, Vinci, Firenze, Tavarnelle Val di Pesa, Monteriggioni, San Gimignano, Montieri, Siena, Cortona, Arezzo, Assisi, Norcia, Melezzole di Montecchio, Marmore, Roma, Caserta, Bisceglie, San Giovanni Rotondo, Vieste, Loreto, Recanati, Rimini and back to Como. 🙂
The first pic was a total surprise: she is Sophia, the Vespa Peter Moore rode in his trip around Italy. I couldn’t believe I would have found her in the workshop-museum of Marco Quaretta in Livorno, so I took a pic of her with Peter’s book that inspired my journey. 🙂
The second one was shot in Forte dei Marmi during an aperitif with Federico Farioli, country manager of Handango Italia, the italian version of Handango, the leading content provider for mobile devices.
In the third one I had a unexpected meeting with Alberto, Angelo and Claudio from Mantua’s Vespaclub when I stopped in a restaurant in Palazzetto for lunch on the way to Siena. We had a pleasant conversation and a big laugh when they called me the “Vespista del 2000” (2000’s Vespa rider) when they noticed my Vespa with the GPS navigator. 
The fourth is very special: it’s my Vespa on the Colle dell’Infinito in Recanati, with the Monti Sibillini on the background. I took it the last day of the journey from below the wall with the hedge that inspired Giacomo Leopardi to write his poem, L’infinito.
Being able to visit that particular spot – it’s possible only since 2003 – was one of the numerous surprises the journey presented me.
I’m slowly working on a online photographic album with the best pics of the journey.
For the rest of story you’ll have to wait for the book, including the name I gave to the Vespa, just as Peter did… 😉
The Bel Paese Showed Me Its Beauty
After 4200 Km riding a Vespa – not including the kilometers I walked 😉 -, 1400 pictures taken while getting amazed by the finest pieces of art the human genius ever created, from the Birth of Venus by Botticelli in Florence to the Sistine Chapel in Rome, just to name the two masterpieces that impressed me the most; after being captured by the atmosphere of the Palio dell’Assunta in Siena and by the enogastronomic sagre in Umbria; after being kissed by the sun while bathing into the sea of Puglia; after hearing the different dialects spoken by the inhabitants of the italian regions I travelled through…
After all that, I’m back home in Como with so many things to tell that a book would be the most appropriate way to give back this travel experience! 🙂
I think a book would also be a nice way to thank all the friends who helped me making the journey possible and those who gave me a hand along the way.
My Vespa GTS 250 with a GPS navigator did a great job bringing me from north to south and back home without problems.
I think this sentence written on an advertisement I spotted at the Museo Piaggio in Pontedera fully reflects the value of the Vespa as symbol of freedom for italians of all ages: “One day a small airplane left his wings in the sky to become a myth on the ground“.
It has been a great experience, well worth the effort. I hope you also had a great time and relaxed during this august and that you’re now back from holidays with new energy. 🙂
In the picture, here I am on my Vespa in front of the Colosseum in Rome!
The picture was taken by Monnalisa… well, she actually was a girl with “Monnalisa” written on her black shirt! 😉