As you may know, my daughter, son-in-law and I all ride Ducati motorcycles. Therefore, I felt it necessary to make a pilgrimage to Bologna where Ducati manufactures their bikes. I made two attempts at the trip, only one successful. On the first attempt, the Italian train workers called a strike shutting down the trains between Florence and Bologna. The second attempt was successful. Except for one, these photos are all from the Ducati museum. The last is from a giant billboard advertisement outside the factory gates.

We did get a chance to tour the factory, which was great fun. But there were no pictures allowed in the factory itself. Ducati is an interesting company with an interesting history. Originally it was a conglomerate making radios, electronic equipment, bicycles, ... well all manner of stuff. Unlike most businesses which tend to diversify, Ducati narrowed and narrowed its product lines and now, all they make are motorcycles and motorcycle paraphernalia. They also run a successful motorcycle racing team. Check out http://www.ducati.com.