We managed to get to sleep OK then at 1:40am, the fire alarm went off. I poked my head outside the door and still couldn't smell smoke, but we donned modest clothing and padded down to the foyer, where there were already a fair few congregated. After a few minutes, the trigger was found to be a burst hot water pipe on floor 4, so the lads in that room were bragging that they were the only ones with their own in-room spa pool.
We staggered back to bed, but our room neighbour was then on his mobile for about 30 minutes, dealing with issues back in NZ, so it was at this point that we found out how badly soundproofed the rooms really were and couldn't get back to sleep until he'd finished. A shame really, as this was the one part of the hotel that let it down. Often a problem with modern hotels it seems.
Breakfast was a crowded affair so we had to wait for a table but as we had no major plans, it wasn't a problem.
Whilst most were doing the Ferrari factory tour in the afternoon, we had volunteered to stand down, as Ferrari wouldn't take more than 32 and we knew some were really desperate to do it. Sure we would have liked to have done it, but we stood down anyway to save others being bumped off.
We headed across the road to one of several local shops specialising in merchandise and models and Paula managed to buy a nice pair of lightweight Ferrari badged shoes and I spent a whopping €4 on a Maserati MC12 model, before we went to the Ferrari museum. We managed to get in at the seniors rate of €11 and spent a pleasant hour or so, wandering around the exhibits. A well laid out facility but mainly road and sports cars and a few more recent F1 cars. It is a popular attraction so there were plenty of visitors around.
We strolled back to the hotel and had a very nice toasted focaccia and a coffee but there were several Ferrari employees around smoking which rather ruined things. We had a relaxing afternoon after downloading my pics.
As last night, we opted for Drakes restaurant and unusually for me, I had exactly the same meal again! Why not? It was so good.
The number of Italians smoking is staggeringly high and after a fair bit of exposure in Venice and now in Maranello, my head and throat are suffering, so a dose of vitamin C tablets before a fairly early bed.
Tomorrow, we leave by coach for Monaco – the main purpose of the trip. Everyone is looking forward to that.
No comments:
Post a Comment