I am almost 65 years old, and I bought my Vespa almost three years ago because I needed something to do that would be new and fun in my early retirement. I had a love affair with the idea of riding a Vespa that had lasted almost fifty years. It was a romantic thing with me, beginning with a long-ago ride around the block on my aunt's Vespa when I was just 16. And every time I watched a movie that had a Vespa in it, I dreamed of faraway places like the romantic Italian countryside with a pretty girl riding on the saddle behind me. The 1962 movie, "Rome Adventure," was constantly on my mind all those years, and the love song, "Al-Di-La," sung by Emilio Pericoli, from that movie became and remains my favorite love song of all time. I have no less than 6-7 different versions of that one song, including two copies of the original soundtrack from "Rome Adventure." When that day of owning my own Vespa finally came, no other scooter would have given me the same thrill as my Vespa. For me, the classic style, panache, instant recognition, and sheer beauty of the Italian Vespa could not be substituted for any other brand of scooter, which had a tendency to confuse me because they all looked similar to each other, and I felt no romance when looking at them.
I like to ride quiet country roads in the mornings, especially on Sundays, after glancing at a map to determine my general direction. My ride is for mental stimulation or "wind therapy." I may occasionally pull over to get a drink from my water jug and catch my breath, taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of my environment, without worrying about when or where I'm going to stop.
I prefer riding alone, or with one or two friends, and I never have felt completely at ease when riding in large groups. I ride for the ride itself, not for the destination. It's not about riding at maximum speed to get to a restaurant by a certain time, or to see how far I can ride in one day without falling asleep. It's about my Vespa and me...that's all.
