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IT’S DARK and cold and the small group huddled outside of the cemetery bundles up their coats
against the damp breeze. The first rays of the sunrise are not yet bright enough to dim the light of the
hundreds of candles twinkling on the graves. Everyone is there for one reason: fun. It’s a gita!
Gita means day trip in Italian and it is a much loved and used tradition. There is a gita for anyone and
to everywhere for every reason. Small and large groups of friends, couples, families and even strangers
gather on all sorts of informal or organized gita. There is a gita for shopping, sightseeing, religious
events and anything else you can think of where you get there and back in a day.
There may be many reasons people take a gita and they go to many diverse and interesting places, but
they all have one thing in common: they are all organized around eating and drinking. This should be
no surprise as everything in Italy is structured to facilitate not only eating well, but to finding the time
to do so.
We are gathered in the pre-dawn light at the cemetery only to take advantage of the free parking lot.
Cars continue to arrive as we wait for our bus. Out of each car emerge sleepy-eyed friends, many with
their even sleepier-eyed children. Soon a gigantic, gleaming blue Mercedes bus arrives — we will be
traveling in comfort.
The demand for tour buses in Italy is high. It is a small country, only about the size of Arizona, and
tour groups can see many things in a short time on a bus. Group vacations and tours are extremely
popular and during the summer the highways are packed with buses full of tourists from all over the
world. During the off-season it is easy to find them at discounted rates making it the perfect time to
organize a gita. Because tour buses are so popular the buses are also beautiful: VCR, CD stereo, large
overstuffed seats, huge windows to see the view: a great way to travel.
We are off to Mantova, just over three hours away at the other corner of Lombardia from our home
near Lago Maggiore. Mantova is an ancient city proud of its dramatic mediaeval architecture and of
its native son and famous poet Virgil; you may remember his best seller, The Aeneid.
Within an hour the call for caffeine rings out and we stop at the Autogrill, the fast food and gas stops
along the autostrada. What Italians consider food fit only for a quick bite and fending off hunger while
you are traveling is a culinary wonderland for traveling Americans. Meals at the Autogrill are usually
stand-up affairs where people down their meal quickly and then get back on the road. Some Autogrill
even have full-service restaurants, but once you discover the wonders of panini — the Italian version of
the sandwich you learn not to bother with the restaurant.
Americans approach sandwich construction with plans as complex as the blueprints for the Sears
Tower. Layers of various meats, pickles, cheeses, condiments, greens and other vegetables reach for the
sky on thick slices of bread. The Italian panino looks deceptively simple compared to these wonders of
sandwich engineering. It is often simply a few slices of prosciutto crudo (cured ham) on a fresh roll,
but don’t let appearances fool you as the intensely flavored ham only needs a few slices to make its
point and combined with fresh baked bread creates an unforgettable and habit forming flavor. There
are many other combinations to tempt your palate and choosing is a difficult, but a no-lose
proposition.
After the bar with its drinks and panini the designers of the Autogrill are always sure to force you to
pass through their gift shop on the way out. These roadside gift shops would qualify as the best Italian
gourmet shop in town in the United States. The shelves are full of pasta, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic