On last Sunday the Vespa Club Como organized the Cagna la Castagna (Eat the Chestnut), a public party at the bottom of the ancient roman walls of Como, where people could eat roast chestnuts, drink wine, listen to music, meet friends and stare at the line of Vespas and Citroën 2CV.
It was my first time at one of their public events since I joined the club only a couple of weeks earlier.
I went to their weekly evening meeting, invited by the president Gianluca Cesana, with a bit of hesitation, because someone warned me that new Vespa models like the GTS weren’t appreciated as much as older ones.
So when I had to answer to the first question about what Vespa I owned, the president told the members to wait for any judgment and let me tell them what I did with my Vespa this summer, right while some of them began moaning ( although with a clear joking tone 😉 ) about the fact I owned a GTS, since they already spotted it. I told them about my trip around Italy and they soon started telling me about their longest journeys done on a Vespa. The ice was broken thanks to Gianluca and we immediately found something to share. 🙂
Gianluca gave me a sticker of the club which is pretty original as you can see on the left. The smoking puppy on the Vespa was made by an artist working at Bonelli, the well known italian comics editor. Now I bring it proudly on the windscreen!
I liked the introduction I got from the club members, they’re a good bunch of Vespa-fans indeed.
Vespa is a myth for italians and most of all a great passion to share.
“L’Italia s’è Vespa” was one of the slogans I spotted on a old advertisement at the Museo Piaggio, recalling the beginning of our national anthem, “L’Italia s’è desta“.
Marketing guys are really crazy you know… 😉