The Long Way Round

The Mille Miglia, a four-day race that covers 1,600km from Brescia to Rome and back in a loose figure-8 route, has been described as “the most beautiful race in the world”. We call shotgun

- Shikha Sethi

Few things are more Italian than the sight unfolding before me this cold spring morning in Brescia: A string of classic cars are lined up facing the Duomo Vecchio and the Duomo Nuovo (the Old and New Cathedrals) in a sleepy piazza. The crowd that’s gathered to admire them includes silver-haired Italian gents in impeccably cut camel-colour coats, toddlers swaddled in blankets and journalists from across the world. Alfa Romeos dominate the line-up, but there are also vintage Bentleys, Bugattis, Porsches and Ferraris.

It’s easy to see why the cars, all produced between 1927 and 1957, elicit so much interest. There are retro colour palettes (Rosso Corsa red, sky blue, pastels); gorgeous typefaces (Superleggera, Giulietta Sprint); exquisite badges (Bertone). There are also elaborate grilles and horns you can toot, frog eye headlights and leather straps that tie bonnets shut. Inside are sumptuous bucket seats and metal dashboards with wideeyed dials and an array of metal toggle switches, giving the cars a distinctively tactile quality. Each car has a story and a personality, oozing character.