Ferarri Store

There are few brands as closely associated with
speed and style as Ferarri. The brand is a national symbol in Italy, a source of
pride and patriotism. And here in the states the Ferarri is lusted after by playboys and corporate raiders. And who can
forget Tom Selleck, zooming around Hawaii in his blood-red
Ferarri 308?

Well if you’re traveling to Italy, you might be interested to know that there is a Ferarri
store just waiting for you patronage. The five floor emporium is tucked away
just around the corner from the famous Duomo in Milan, and of course there’s a branch in Rome as well as outlets
in the Malpensa and Fiumicino airports.

The stores are a high-tech men’s dreamland where you can run your
hand over the burnished chrome of a bumper and play around with scads of interactive gadgetry. It is truly a shrine to
speed that has everything for the Ferrari aficionado. And of course if its swag you want, they’ve got lots of that,
too, from cashmere jumpers to t-shirts and luggage, all branded with the cavallo nero…the horse. And for kids you’ll
want to check out all the toy cars. A full-scale model down in the basement allows you to live out your Ferarri
fantasies with the help of state-of-the-art plasma-screen. This is a man’s Disneyland.

Disney Cruises to Set Sail in Europe

From CNN.com:  Starting in May 2007
through August 2007, Disney Cruise Lines will begin sailing to Italy, France and Spain, in an attempt to "chart
new waters."  The cruise line will offer 10- and 11-night cruises starting in Barcelona, and traveling to
eight European cities.  The news comes in at a time when the industry is soaring, and is predicted to reach
pre-September 11th highs.

"The cruise takes care of [guesswork associated with traveling Europe with
small children] and people trust Disney. At the end of the day you know you’re coming back to the ship and having
five-star dining, great entertainment and you know your kids are going to have a good time,"  said company
President Tom McAlpin.

Update: Before you book, you may want to check out this report on cruising with young
children from Blogging Baby
.

Word of the Day: Coglione

Out of , we have a new word to add to our limited
Italian vocabulary…a vocabulary that has only seen some growth due to an obsession with the Sopranos.  Well, in
right now, folks are growing increasingly unhappy with their leader, the TV Magnate, all around manipulative guy, Silvio
Berlusconi. And a while back he referred to someone as Coglione. Turns out the name means something vulgar,
like "bloody idiot," "dickhead" or "moron", and is derived from a slang for testicles. So
nice. And now
everyone is wearing
T-shirts with a slogan using the tasteful term. Ah, Europe.

Roller Coasters, Theme Parks, Cultures & More

Call me out of touch with the whole
amusement park business, but "Dude! Where’s My
Passport?! 2005"
doesn’t strike me as a likely film title for theme park reviews. Am I alone on this one?
The new DVD by Don Garrison and Monica Jack showcases 15 parks across Europe like Thrope Park in England, Vidampark in
Hungary and Alpine Coasters out of Austria. Thrill Network does an amazing job
describing each segment of the DVD
and as a whole offers this for any interested other, um, coaster ‘tools’ out there:

"These DVD’s
include amazing footage of not just roller coasters, but cities around Europe. From Thrope Park to Parc Asterix and
back again, these tools are in for a world of fun. From being crazy "gangsta" to touring Europe, Don has a
few run-ins with a certain trampoline that will have you laughing when the trampoline actually beats him!"

Wait  – crazy gangsta? Since when did ‘crazy gangsta’ and theme parks become almost one-in-one? Last time I
went to Disney World or Knotts
Berry Farm
I don’t remember Mickey or Snoopy being crazy gangsta. Perhaps I was at the wrong park? If you’re a lover
of coasters worldwide I suggest checking out the DVD.
Furthermore, I welcome you to come back and make some sense of all this for me. I may not know which ride your passport
flew off on, but Dude, I’m sure feeling like I need to trade mine for a lesson in Roller Coaster Cool 101.

To
order the DVD or find out more visit Theme Park Review.

Fly to Cyprus for Less Than $40 US or Not?

Well here’s a rather bizarre story about Orbitz, one of the third-largest online travel agencies and Italian airline Alitalia. Apparently the airline accidentally listed a business-class flight from Toronto to Cyprus at $39 US on a central reservation system which then feeds flight information to online booking agencies. CNEWS notes the incorrect round-trip airfare from Toronto to Cyprus with a stop to change planes in Italy was posted with multiple departing dates on Orbitz.com, where some very lucky and not so lucky folks will probably have the vacation of their dreams. Before word among online shoppers really began to spread red flags went off and Orbitz pulled the rate to discuss with Alitalia.

To cut the crazy tale short Alitalia will be honoring a vast majority of tickets booked on Orbitz.com for those who actually received confirmation numbers from the airline. Those who never got the airline confirmation will only be reimbursed the service fee paid to Orbitz. Having experienced an online error in the past myself I have to include a moral to this story and that moral is: If something seems far too good to be true, chances are it is far too good to be true. But ahh, those very, very lucky few! Most of all it teaches us to be extra careful when booking online where glitches may be infrequent, but can always occur.

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