I could never understand why Italians have such admiration for Alonso, Schumacher or Gilles Villeneuve – some of the great drivers that graced Ferrari with their skills.

Italy produces some of the best sport cars in the world.  Bugatti, Maserati, Ferrari, Lancia and Lamborghini just to name a few, but  are there no Italian drivers capable of taming these beasts?  It appears that driving in Italy is more of  a chore  than the fun and exhilarating experience that it is.

° Merging onto a highway is always done at 1/10th of the highway speed or 1/3 of the current exit road speed – always preceded by a full stop at the end of the merge line.

° It is ok to drive 20 or 30km/h less than the posted speed limit on the highway

° It is okay to pick an arbitrary speed limit that is below the posted speed limit and stick to it – the speed will eventually change so why bother speeding up or slowing down.

° Non-committed lane change.  When passing another car, just take the middle of the two lanes so as to get ready to pass another car or simply block someone from passing you.  This is played like a professional sport on Italian Autostrada!

° No one ever turns on their indicator on roundabouts, you are supposed to know, innately, where that car will be exiting and stay out of the way

° The general rustiness of the safety barriers on mountain highways is directly proportional to the steepness of the cliff and speed you are supposed to be going at, and the radius of the turn you are attempting to negotiate.

° Tunnels in Italy are crazy narrow and very long, but have an occasional window

°  The best place for a sports car, new or vintage, is on the back of a trailer being towed on the highway.

°  An average tank of gas 80l or so, when it is cheap costs about $210.00

°   We can’t wait to go back, we really can’t, the food is great, the people are great and the scenery is amazing.