The Fiat 500 Club

Today we joined an elite group of visitors to Florence. The Fiat 500 club! An adorable British gal named Sophie and her husband Alex started a little touring company here in town. What makes they're company so unique is the cars that you use to take the tour, the Fiat 500! This car is an automotive icon in Europe and was produced to meet a city dwellers needs. It is truly the first "City Car". Mini and Smart are second and third when it comes to fun little cars. The fiat came with a 497 cc engine that made a whopping 14 horsepower. The second variant had a much more powerful 19 horsepower. That is less then almost every scooter on the road. Anyhow as you can see from the pictures they are restored and look and drive great. They all have been given names by people who helped Sophie and Alex start they're company and today we had the privilege of using Giancomo. Our group was 8 including Sophie and we were partaking in the wine tour. They offer a picnic tour, a quick one hour city tour and just about any other fun tour that you can think of. I can't tell you in words how much fun this was. If you are ever in Florence or know someone that is going to Florence they must do this tour.

Our procession of cars drove four in a row through the city and out into the surrounding hills. We were led by Sophie to a winery where we had a red and white tasting as well as some small gastronomic fare. Salami, prosciutto, olive tapaned, two different cheeses and a bruchetta. A lovely way to spend the early morning and afternoon. We stopped at the Palazzo Michelangelo which has commanding views of the city and then drove back through town to the 500 garage.

All in all it was one of the highlights for me. It reminded me of why I like to get into a car and drive so much. Tomorrow we go get our rental car and start heading out into the hill towns of Tuscany. It should be fantastic.

www.500touringclub.com