Meet Lance

When I arrived in Rome, I picked up Lance, and we were on our way.  Lance is a Lancia Ypsilon, whatever that is.  I think it's Italian for small car that has a mind of its own.
With only 16 km on the odometer, we were off to the races, so to speak, or as the old commercial used to say, "not exactly."
I think there are a bunch of hamsters living in a hamster habitat under the hood, and every time I fire up Lance they start running on the wheel, but when they get tired, I can tell--they slow down quite a bit!

Lance and I have been from Rome to Spello, and to Assisi and back most days.  The road to Assisi goes up the lower part of Mt. Subasio, and is a twisty, curvy road which Lance manages fairly well, except when I go to shift him into 3rd gear--then he decides that 4th is really the best gear and keeps me there.  This car is an automatic (no clutch) but you can drive it as a shift car, or as an automatic---go figure.  Anyway, Lance and I have our moments, we've navigated the narrow streets of Spello and Assisi, and braved the autostrada without difficulty, it's just when he gets going up the twisty, curvy roads to Assisi that he seems to decide he's in charge. 
Looking like a big white egg, he's definitely the right car to have here, since the streets are narrow and he can fit into tight spaces.  He's my guy for this trip and I'm trying to understand him as best I can. I know when I turn him in to Hertz at the end of this 3 months, the hamsters will heave a huge sigh of relief and be very happy.  For now, they have to deal with me!