One of the essential skills for a traveler is the ability to make a rather extravagant fool of oneself. — John Flinn
What’s the first thing you do when you wake up in Italy on the first day of your vacation? The choices are clear: from where we are, we can go to any of the great Shakespearean cities — Padova, Verona, Mantova — or we can take a longer trip to romantic Venice or even drive up to the lakes. Yes, the choices are many, and the consensus comes quickly: Screw culture, art and architecture! We want to see the Ferraris! And so we sped off, that first day, eight of us in two cars, driving the hour or so west, towards Maranello.
The new red shoes
First stop? The Ferrari Store, of course. Not exactly where you buy the car itself, but just about everything else that could possibly carry that “prancing horse” logo. There were shirts and jackets and children’s clothes; journals and watches and beverage holders of all kinds; there were fancy shoes and skis and even model cars. As I was choosing from among a half dozen spiral bound notebooks, I looked up to see my husband in the shoe department. Now, Tim is not a souvenir buyer and he always looks for a bargain. So what the heck was he doing asking for help in the Ferrari Store shoe department? (Definitely not the place to find a bargain!) I quickly picked out a journal and went over to see what he was doing. And then I saw them: a gorgeous pair of Ferrari-red leather sneakers. On his feet. Made by Puma, these were real beauties. And I knew he had to have them. The one thing I’ve learned about Tim after all these years is that, aside from pottery and the occasional 200-year-old chair, the one thing he really has no resistance against is good-looking shoes. So the very first souvenir of our trip was bought by the person least likely to buy a souvenir. We were off to a good start.
After about an hour, we all decided we’d bought everything that we were going to
A bevy of Ferraris
buy, and went off in search of The Ferrari Gallery. Now, this place surprised even me. All that red. All those shiny sports cars — antique ones, late model ones, displayed both on the ground and running up walls. You could touch them, look into them, read all about them. I thought we’d spend half an hour there and move on. I was wrong. Even the most girlie-girl among us was enthralled. And there was much to be enthralled by: along with the dozens of classic red Ferraris were silver Maseratis and one special baby blue Alfa Romeo that was to die for. We looked a little, then had lunch in La Caffetteria and then went back and looked some more.
The beautiful Alfa Romeo
About 20 minutes south of Mantova (Mantua), Maranello has a lot to offer. The main destination is, of course, The Ferrari Gallery, which lays out the legend of the Prancing Horse Team. It’s open every day from 9:30 – 6:00 p.m. and tickets are required. In the Piazza Libertà near town hall you’ll find the monument to Enzo Ferrari which was put there in 1998 by his son, Pietro, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his father’s birth. And speaking of monuments, there’s also a “Prancing Horse” statue near the Via Grizzaga roundabout, which has stood there since 2003 in celebration of Ferrari’s victory in the Formula 1 (F1) World Championship that year. Other attractions include the Galleria del Vento (Wind Tunnel) designed by Renzo Piano to simulate the real-life experience of the F1 cars (no visitors allowed); the well-used Enzo Ferrari Auditorium which, during race week, opens to all the fans who want to attend the free showing of the F1 race; the Villa Rangoni Machiavelli Park and the Madonna del Corso Cultural Centre. And while Maranello is most noted for being the “City of Ferrari,” it is also famous for its excellent Emilian cuisine. A worthy day trip, by anyone’s calculations.
Did we make fools of ourselves in Maranello? Probably. But we had a ball. Best of
Making a fool of myself, happily
all, while we thought we were doing something especially for the “guys,” it turns out we were all equally won over by the sleek, winning machines and the story of Enzo Ferrari and the legacy he created.
Buon viaggio!
Linda Dini Jenkins is a card-carrying Italophile, travel planner, freelance writer, and amateur photographer. Travel is her passion, so writing about her travels just comes naturally. She hopes all her travelers find a way to express their joys, surprises, and fears as they travel and gives every traveler a nifty journal to help smooth the way. Learn more…
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