This week was our 15th wedding anniversary. It’s been getting warmer in Tuscany so we decided to rent a vintage car and go for lunch.
After dropping the kids at school we headed an hour south to pick up our cherry-red Fiat 500 from a garage full of other Fiats, Citroen DS’s, Alfa Spiders and even a Volkswagen Type 2 van.
After a quick drive around the block with the owner, who told me not to ride the clutch (but neglected to tell me how to engage reverse - more on that later) we headed off to Montepulciano.
The first 10km was pretty stressful, getting used to the quirks of a 50-year old vehicle. But pretty soon I was feeling comfortable.
We arrived in Montepulciano and quickly found that driving the smallest car on the road makes Italian parking much easier.
We had a quick coffee (well, I had a coffee, Mandi had an Aperol Spritz) and walked around the town.
Then we headed back to the car to make it to our lunch reservation in another town about 20km away.
We arrived right on time.
We had a great lunch in a tiny Michelin-reviewed trattoria in Monticchiello.
Of course, a day with a vintage vehicle isn’t complete without at least one breakdown, so when we got back to the car it wouldn’t start.
But after a call back to the garage and some MacGyvering of the electrical system on my part, we got going again and soon found ourselves on another stunning Tuscan road.
I’m not sure if my travel insurance covers cameras hit by cars in the middle of the road, but I decided to risk it.
After a couple of wrong turns, we made it back to the garage just in time to get back in our car and get back to school in time to pick up the girls. The whole day reminded me why I love driving old cars but don’t own one.