In late October (yes, I know I’m behind…) I had the privilege of my family becoming part of my experience in Italy. My parents, grandparents, aunt & uncle, and little brother all came to visit me in Florence. I met them on the steps of the Duomo and shortly thereafter we went to 4 Leoni, where all the Arcadia students had eaten our first night in Florence (more about this restaurant in coming posts). Some of my family ordered the pasta with pears that I had previously, while others tried different items, but everyone enjoyed their meal. I had pasta with an eggplant pesto, which was delicious — I tried creating something similar at home, but it did not turn out well. Perhaps I will figure it out and then share with you!

The following day, we spent time at many of the major sights in Florence, including the Accademia Gallery and the Uffizi. It was surreal to stand underneath Michelangelo’s David. Replicas simply cannot capture the details and poise that are so apparent in the original. The Uffizi was quite overwhelming as well — although it’s filled with remarkable paintings, I was perhaps more impressed with the countless sculptures that lined the halls. I have always thought that white marble is one of the most beautiful artistic media, but I do now more than ever. That evening we went out for dinner at Trattoria da Tito, which served some tasty dishes typical to Tuscany. I had a fresh pasta with rabbit ragù, which was wonderful and reminded me of a similar meal I had eaten in Siena.

The following day, my parents, little brother and I headed off to Venice for a long weekend. The Alta Velocità train made quick work out of what would otherwise have been a very long journey. We stepped out of the station and into what seemed like a sea of people, but quickly found our bearings and boarded a ferry for our hotel. After getting settled, we went back out into the city to find somewhere to eat. I had written down a restaurant suggested by Fred Plotkin, Vino Vino. Although I had the address as well as a map, we simply could not find it — we walked back and forth, searching for where it might be on Calle del Cafetier. Finally we gave up and decided to find somewhere else to eat. We walked in a different direction and suddenly found ourselves on a continuation of Calle del Cafetier, with Vino Vino just a few steps ahead! The food they served certainly did not disappoint. I had salmon with a red bell pepper sauce and it was delizioso! The sauce was pink and creamy with a little zing from the peppers, but it still allowed the flavorful salmon to shine through. After dinner we walked around for a while and visited Piazza San Marco, which was very beautiful at night. Before heading to bed, we stopped at a cafè by our hotel and had some warm drinks.

The following day, we ate a quick breakfast at the same cafè and then went to Piazza San Marco to see it once more in the daylight. It seemed as though the tower in the square was leaning, but we quickly noticed that this was not an uncommon sight in Venice. It was amazing to see the intricacy of the artisans’ work on the Basilica di San Marco’s elaborate facade. We then walked over to the Ponte di Rialto, another major Venetian landmark. Although the Ponte Vecchio in Florence may also have shops on it, the Rialto bridge has a much greater allure and more powerful presence. It is a beautiful example of Renaissance Architecture with it’s elegant arches, and it still uses the wooden supports it was originally built with. We continued exploring and seeing major interests points here and there, but mostly just taking in the city as a whole.

Later in the day, we reached a point where we weren’t sure what to do. We decided to split up, so my mom and brother went their way while my dad and I went to the Biennale, a giant biennial art international art show featured in Venice. We only had time to visit the Arsenal, but that turned out to be more than enough. There was warehouse after warehouse with installation pieces and handmade works of art ranging from ink and paper drawings to absurd, abstract collages made from found objects. It was highly engaging, almost to the point of being visually overstimulated.

After leaving the Biennial, we rejoined my mom and brother at Piazza San Marco and walked to a restaurant we had spotted earlier that day. Our waiter was a a gray-haired yet energetic gentleman who made some helpful suggestions and brought us a wonderful meal. Afterwards, we strolled just down the street to a nearby gelateria. My little brother had been asking for gelato all day as we saw countless gelato shops. I had to keep telling him to wait because the shops we saw were not good. How did I know? For a dead giveaway, always look at the pistachio (which is a standard flavor at almost any gelateria). If it is a bright yellow-green, this means that it has probably been made with food coloring and perhaps artificial flavoring. Artisanal, natural pistachio will be almost brown in color, with a light tinge of green — nothing extreme. The gelato at this location was a nice treat, despite the cool weather.

The following day I returned to Florence, while my family continued to Rome where they rejoined my grandparents, aunt, and uncle. As we left Venice, I thought of its unmistakeable beauty, yet it felt as though it was a different city than the one described to me. Later on, I overheard someone describe a common criticism of those living near Venice, and it seemed to put my feelings into words. I was told many citizens feel as though it is no longer actually Venice because it has become overrun by tourists and the true Venetians have moved out of the center. Even after the end of tourist season, I still sensed this. The streets already felt crowded by foreigners (such as myself), and I can only imagine what it must be like during the summer. I think this shows just how much the beauty of a place is intertwined with the people that live there — take them away, and the city becomes something else entirely.

My family returned to Florence in the middle of the week, and although I was unable to be with them during the daytime, I was still with them for dinners (the best part!). Their first night back, I showed them how I make red sauce and we ate it with pasta. The following night, I went all-out and made them a full Italian meal. We started with antipasti such as crostini, prosciutto, salame, and some Grana Padano cheese. For the primi, I cooked Penne con Ricotta e Noci, followed by Modenese Veal for the secondo with sauteed zucchini as a contorno. Finally, when they thought they could eat no more, I served pesche cotogne with wine as a dolce. And, of course, this was all served with some wonderful Tuscan wines.

On their last full day in Italy, my family and I went to Sant’Agata Bolognese to visit the Lamborghini factory. This was a treat for all of us, especially Paul and I. It was absolutely incredible to stand mere inches away from cars that are worth possibly more than I will ever earn in my lifetime. Lamborghini clearly had an innovative style and spirit at conception, and although they struggled during the ’90s, it is obvious that they still have it today. One of my favorite cars in the gallery was the Silhouette, which I had little knowledge of prior to visiting. Apparently only 54 are in existence, which is a shame because they are quite beautiful. We also got a tour through the factory, but unfortunately pictures were prohibited. Nevertheless, it was quite an experience to see the level of detail and care that goes into producing each car. The color combinations and options are individualized and nearly endless. Outside the factory were several unique models, including some racing versions. The weather as we left was less than inviting, but while waiting for the bus we were treated to a pleasant soundtrack as post-production cars were tested. It is a sound I can only describe as heaven’s choir.

The following day, I saw my family off to the airport as they returned to the US. I was sad to see them go, but glad that they, as well as my extended family, had been able to share in and become part of my experience abroad. It is certainly an adventure that I will never forget and I hope it has been the same for them.

Some days it seems the world is just working against you. This was how I felt a while ago when my roommate Hunter and I set off for the motherland of motoring, Emilia-Romagna. The day began with bad weather — in fact, I’m not sure if it stopped raining the entire weekend. This was followed by missing two trains and having to take a taxi to Ducati, where I realized I had made an error in the schedule. We then attempted to visit Pagani, but missed our stop and ended up in Modena. We decided to take this in stride and go ahead and make our way to Maranello, the home of Ferrari — problem was, we couldn’t find the bus stop! After wandering around for close to an hour, we gave up and decided to head to the hostel. It wasn’t until we were walking the opposite direction that we spotted a sign for the Autostazione.

We finally arrived at the Ferrari Museum and were greeted by the raspy exhaust note of a Ferrari F430. Finally things were starting to look up! The museum was filled with gorgeous old and new Ferraris. I even got to see the new 458 Italia! However, some of the most beautiful objects there were the engines. It was interesting to see a 120-degree twin-turbo V6 used in F1 Racing.

After returning to Modena and checking into our hostel, we asked about a place to eat. The receptionist recommended Trattoria da Enzo. It turned out to be a wonderful, small restaurant with a mom-and-pop feel. As we sat and waited for the food to arrive we watched the owner, an elderly gentleman, straightening the wine bottles and making his way around the restaurant, casually chatting with patrons in an Emilian dialect. It was obvious that even at his ripe age he still had a passion for life and wouldn’t be slowed down. I ordered the pumpkin ravioli with butter and sage. It was very different, but so delicious! The roasted potatoes were delicious as well. It might seem that potatoes are a difficult food to mess up, and in some sense, this is true — you’d probably have to try to make them taste bad. However, once you’ve tasted potatoes done right, there is a noticeable difference. There was a perfect balance between the flavors of the seasonings and the potato. Everything was great. Even a vegetarian such as myself couldn’t help eyeing Hunter’s balsamic roast beef.

The next morning we got up early and caught a taxi to the Panini Museum, home to historical Maseratis, race cars, and many motorcycles. Strangely, this treasure trove of automotive history is tucked away on a quiet dairy farm not far outside of Modena. There was no showy architecture for the museum, just a small warehouse. Inside, the museum had an intimate, hometown feel to it, and it smelled of old oil and vintage machinery, a scent I am font of. Upon entering, I was immediately drawn to the A6GCS. It was probably the most beautiful car there, and possibly one of the most gorgeous cars I’ve ever seen. Everything there was immaculate. Maseratis have always had quite quirky styling in my opinion, but when you’re standing next to them it all somehow works.

We finally made our way back to Modena and decided to head home when the bad luck set in again. Our train from Modena to Bologna was 30 minutes late, resulting in us missing our train from Bologna to Firenze and having to wait at least another hour. There were a lot of frustrating parts to that trip, but the cars were all beautiful and if nothing else I know it helped me learn more about traveling in Italy. I am sure that my journies since then have been smoother as a result of the struggles that weekend.

This weekend I took an early weekend and returned home to surprise my brother for his birthday and to watch a school play. My parents and I were worried that my brother had caught on and knew I was coming, but our fears were not well-founded. He didn’t know and was very surprised.

The night I arrived, we went to the Greater Milwaukee Auto Show as it has been a tradition in my family to go [almost] every year. Over the past couple years, my interest in cars has been pushed aside somewhat by newer ones, so it was interesting to come back to it, especially with a little more design knowledge than in prior years.

One of the first cars I saw upon entering was the new Audi R8. I was stunned not only by the fact that it was at the Milwaukee Auto Show, but that they had even put it on the floor, rather than raised on a platform. It is a truly stunning car and a fine manifestation of the exotic Audi two door that I have been eagerly awaiting. I only wish that they had sold one at International Autos while I was working there. It would have been great to experience it firsthand.

While there, I stopped [briefly] at the Saturn showcase. I have never been a fan of American auto makers, and Saturn has always been among my least favorite. However, recently Saturn has introduced a new design aesthetic to their lineup and I must that I actually like it, perhaps more than Ford’s current designs. I wondered [was even optimistic enough to hope] that their utilitarian quality had improved along with the aesthetic. However, upon stepping into a Saturn Sky, I was quickly disappointed. The interior materials, especially the plastics, failed to meet or even attempt to keep up with its competitors’, such as the Mazda MX-5. This trend unfortunately carried over to GM’s prodigious Corvette Z06. The interior is notably improved since the prior generation, and has gotten rid of some of the GM blandness as a result of overly-universalized parts. However, despite the improvement it is still seriously lacking for a car with a price tag just south of $70,000. I think Saturn’s changes are a good move on GM’s part and they might profit from doing similar innovations with their other brands, but they also need to work on their material quality. After all, “details are not details. They make the product.” - Charles Eames

Another car I have mixed feelings about is the new Subaru Impreza. The first Imprezas were extremely attractive in my opinion, and the 2001 redesign made me ecstatic. However, it was a downhill journey from there. In 2004, the WRX received a face lift, which I initially disliked, but came to appreciate. However, I never did understand why it was necessary. Then, 2006 came around and everything went horribly wrong. The WRX once again received a redesigned front end, only this time I simply could not be as forgiving. Now Subaru has redesigned its Impreza once more. My first reaction upon seeing the redesign was that it looked like they had taken the current Toyota Corolla, smoothed it out, made it a little more aggressive, turned it into a station wagon, and changed the badging. Seeing the WRX STi in person changed my mind a little. Just a little. I took a brief seat in it and was pleased to find that the transmission seemed to have been updated to eliminate some of the notchy-ness and brute force required in earlier WRX’s. However, shortly after I wandered over to Mitsubishi’s display where I found the new Lancer Evo X. It is mean-looking, stylish, and has the power to back it up. Mitsubishi truly went out on a limb with this one. It is possibly the most change between model years seen with the Evo. Contrast this with Subaru. Presumably due to criticism received over the Impreza’s [numerous] redesigns, Subaru started with a clean slate and produced a new, fast, powerful…and bland Impreza. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi has completely redesigned their Evo with a very fresh and innovative look. Trying to please everyone, Subaru opted for the safe way out and produced a relatively plain WRX; not ugly, but not horribly attractive either. However, given the competition, safe isn’t safe for Subaru.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the auto show and had tons of fun just taking pictures. You can view all of them on my Flickr page. And just when I thought I had seen it all, I snapped this in the parking garage on the way back to our car.