6 July. The morning of the start of the Meeting, the alarm rings early and throws us out of bed in a flash (we can't arrive late!); after having had a good breakfast, we head out towards Garlenda. Before arriving, we take a photo (we couldn't not do it!) with the writing 500 (12) and also with the town sign (3) and we reach the registration square. While waiting for the rest of our group to arrive and checking that everything is in order on our 500s, we hear a voice addressing us: the first person to welcome us is our president Stelio Yannoulis. After having exchanged a few words and taken a nice souvenir photo together, we say goodbye (4). Once the rest of the group arrives, we park the cars in the registration square (15) and receive the beautiful bag containing the various gadgets, including the fantastic beach towel with the Club symbol. We decide to visit the Multimedia Museum of the 500 (finally Filippo and I can see it with our own eyes) and, as I imagined, we were left speechless by all the fantastic things inside, starting from the oil cans and ending with the reproduction of a specialized Fiat workshop (16): it's like taking a dip into the past or entering a toy house, from which an enthusiast would never want to leave. Everything is fantastic and we also know the "custodian" of this wonderful Museum, the curator Ugo Giacobbe, a very helpful and knowledgeable person. After another souvenir photo with our little ones (17), we go to eat and get ready for the first event, the tourist tour of Laigueglia.
At 14 pm we set off from Parco Villafranca, amidst the roar of engines and horns of all kinds, happiness printed on the faces of the participants in motion (8). A long line of 500s winds along the road, I can't see the beginning or the end... fantastic! We arrive festive and noisy in Laigueglia and everyone, from the child to the elderly, from the barman to the lifeguard, stops and stays to watch us parade through the streets of the small seaside village, fascinated and amused at the same time (19-20). We park the cars for the joy of tourists and passers-by (21), and we remain to admire the fantastic village and the gulf in which it is enclosed, amazed by the wonder of certain places that we did not know.
The time has come to leave again, we're going to theFruit and vegetable in Bastia d'Albenga for an aperitif with delicious local products; while we are chatting, we see an elderly lady who we think we recognize coming towards us: it is Graziella Giannini and we approach to meet her. Without having to be told twice, with kindness and manners that only a lady from another era can have, she agrees to take a photo with us and we thank her for the time she has dedicated to us (22).
After the aperitif we go back to settle in and have dinner and then return to Parco Villafranca for the concert of the band “Libero Arbitrio” (23) and then leave for Alassio (another seaside resort) for “500 by night”. Once we arrive in Alassio and park our 500s on the pier (24), we breathe in a magical atmosphere, between the summer heat, the street lights reflecting on the sea and the nightlife of the town; we enjoy this beautiful evening in the company of friends and our beloved 500s, which are observed and are the subject of comments by the people walking on the pier (25). Midnight arrives and among the excited shouts of the kids who have improvised a swim (the euphoria of 18 years!), we also decide to dive in, before drying ourselves off and going back for a bit of rest in view of another full and demanding day (26). I think of taking another photo with the illuminated sign (27) and satisfied with this first day, we run (so to speak) to our accommodation.
