​Up close and personal with the wind in your hair. What could be better than being in control of the road ahead, choosing when and where to go, come rain or shine.
​Up close and personal with the wind in your hair. What could be better than being in control of the road ahead, choosing when and where to go, come rain or shine.
I'm scootering along country roads on my pink Vespa, complete with a matching helmet. It's my best travel companion. It hijacks me on tours of the outdoors, steers me through many landscape paintings where trees entwine to form canopied tunnels heading towards hills undulating on the horizon. Nature at its most colourful.
Around a bend I steer into a vision of rhododendrons, the fragrance filling the air beckoning me to stop, just for a while amidst a purple haze. I do as nature requests. The whirring of the engine quietens, idles and stops. All is peaceful, calm and still. I'm in the heart of an outdoor wardrobe kitted out in coloured floral edging woven with every tone of green and laced with transparent apertures peeping into the fields beyond.
I continue my journey along twisting lanes and sleepy side roads, feeling totally immersed in this moving canvas, bursting with shape, flushed with colour. The breeze stroking my face, the rustle in the hedgerows, floral scents and traces of recently cut grass. My gaze turns with envy at dreamy cottages with thatched roofs so neatly groomed and perfect. Hamlets rich with plants, peppered with flower boxes and gushing with blooming bushes: displays that would easily qualifying for the best kept village award. Roadside tables selling sticks of rhubarb, jars of jams and jellies and potted cuttings of basil and mint. Bags of manure - no thanks. A squirrel scurries up a chunky tree trunk, a pheasant escapes my path, a swan waltzes across a pond to the delight of a family picnicking while I come face to face with rather large airborne creatures - ouch! A herd of cows rudely turn away, too busy munching. I spot lunchtime specials chalked on pub boards - the Ploughman's lunch very tempting. I smile as I envisage the scrolling scenes that could be captured and cropped as quintessentially English postcards.
Clad in gleaming chrome, my shiny two-wheeled scooter brings delight to children, as if a toy has come to life.Fellow motorcyclists nod and smile. Horses commandeer the road, clipperty clopperty at slow speed. I overtake mucky tractors but shy away from cruising Harleys and faster sports bikes.Devoid of traffic, this form of travel is a perfect way to explore the countryside. Life in the slow lane, mindful and real.
The Vespa is an Italian classic scooter manufactured by Piaggio, born in Florence back in 1946. Seventy five years on, more than 18 million models have been sold. Tracing its history is a dedicated museum in the heart of Rome, not far from The Colosseum, with celebrated models, videos and vintage photos, reminiscent of the 1950s heydays. Here the memorabilia highlights featured roles in films such as Alfie and Larry Crowne and Audrey Hepburn riding side-saddle with Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday.
The rivalry between mods and rockers was the all the rage in the 60s. The mod revival in 1979 was fuelled by the release of Quadrophenia which attracted the attention of a new generation. Today, vintage Vespas and Lambrettas wrapped in the full regalia of lights, mirrors, badges, chrome and whip aerials are still popular and parade at many gatherings today.
Home and abroad, from exploring the ancient roads and grandiose monuments of Rome to guided tours of water drenched rice fields, workers laden with baskets wearing conical leaf hats and humble villages of Vietnam. There are many two wheel tours available to enhance any holiday or day trip.
As for my future journeys, I'm opting for a Vespa tour in Italy. How can you resist riding through vines, past olive groves, the smells and the scenes of Italian life with gingham tablecloths laden with olive oil, french bread, and carafes of wine. That cooling light wind on your face while the sun crochets a pathway as it meanders through vineyards of a variety wine estates. Slow travel, Italian style. After the tour, wine tastings or a tipple of the finest Pino Grigio is definitely on my to do list. In the meantime, helmet on, the coast is clear, I'm off on my own sightseeing tour.
Hop-on, rev-up and enjoy the moving scenery for yourself.
Safety First
A moped up to 50cc can be ridden if you have held a UK driving licence for a number of years.
A CBT test. (Compulsory Basic Training) is not compulsory but helps to gain confidence.
Always wear a helmet and suitable protective clothing
Be mindful, observant and enjoy.
www.vespa.com
Useful links
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