Day 11: Bologna

Today we went on our much anticipated visit to the Ducati factory and museum. Even for those of us who were not formerly enthusiasts of motorsports, the enthusiasm of others had rubbed off on us and we were all excited to find out how Ducati motorbikes are made. After meeting at Liceo Malpighi as usual, we used a combination of walking and taking the autobus (bus) to arrive at the Ducati factory. Even the bus ride itself was an adventure as the bus was larger than buses we ride back at home and felt more like a tram in terms of the comfortability standing up and space available.

Upon our arrival, we were escorted inside a building where we met our tour guides for the day, Ducati experts Martina, Gianluca, and Davide. They started us off by explaining some physics principles which our students understood to varying degrees. It was a highly interactive session as we got involved in various experiments measuring force and velocity, dismantled and reconstructed an engine to identify the parts, and some of us even went for a literal spin on modified motorbikes (don't worry, they were all safely secured to the ground!)

After a quick pit stop at the Ducati cafè, we followed our tour guides through the factory iitaelf where we saw people working on the production line and testing the vehicles. It was an incredible experience and we were all amazed at how clean the factory was inside. Everything was running incredibly efficiently and we could understand immediately why Ducati is such a sought after and admired brand of motorcycle. We finished our tour in the Ducati museum where we gained an appreciation for the long history of Ducati motorcycles here in Bologna and took turns pretending to ride some more stationary vehicles. 

In the end, we had all had such an incredible time that we were inspired to make some purchases in the negozio (shop). After this, it was time to return to Liceo Malpighi where we finally got to taste our tiramisù... che buono!