From Quiliano to California, to the heart of the Silicon Valley

This tale starts when, in June 2005,
we have received a direct phone call from Apple USA, Cupertino.

You can read the reportage of that historical moment here:

http://www.allaboutapple.com/speciali/riconoscimento.htm

In that occasion Apple USA shown gratitude to us all for the official opening of the museum, and in the same time they told us that we were, and still we are, the most complete Apple Museom of the world.

Followinf this "first encounter", by the way of an official invitation of our middleman and Senior Marketing Manager Brett M., we went to California visiting the core center of the Apple firm.

This is the reportage of our journey...

January the 9th 2006, Monday

The vojage starts in the worst way: after the transfer of our group to Nice, we soon disconer that the flight 8:30 am for London has been cancelled.

A real negotiation at the desk office lead us to a alternative flight, but after several hours of delay and sharing the 6 people of our group in three different airplanes: Mucich, London, Frankfurt.

As a partial compensation, some of us join a flight in business class... well pals, we were not allowed to this...

In S. Francisco, we rejoin each others (a bit shaked) and reach the hotel in a rented car.

January the 10th 2006, Tuesday

Due the stress of the flight, the following morning we reach Moscone Center, where the Macworld Expo was there to start at 7 o' clock am, althougt we wanted to be there soo. Steve's Keynote would have started at 9:30, so we were waiting patiently.

Now it comes the second stroke of bad luck: only after we reached our sits we discover that we are going to watch the keyonote not directly but in a second screen.

Very angry we leave the room and ask for an explanation, but the responsibles tells us, in a very naive way, that aon audience of only 1500 is allowed in the big room where Stave was speaking (mainly press journalists and V.I.P.) all the others (the great number of us) whould have seen a projection; it would be better to stay in Italy. The only thing to be done is to ask for a repayment, a cold comfort.

Saddened and disappointed we visit the Macworld Expo; he fair is not a sbig as expected, but due the density of visitors we spend the main part of the day there. For a reportage about Macworld 2006 you can visit the very good reportage made by the fiends of Macity.

We close the first American day with an evening trip in San Francisco roads, where we bump into some Italian friends: Emanuele Trussoni and Alberto Ricci from Ovolab, Antonio Dini from Macity, Dario Tortora from Applicando and our member and donor Walter Mandorino: with no appointment!

Wednesday Januar the 11th 2006

Reassured from meeting the italian friends, next morning we start travel towards Cupertino; Emanuele Trussoni travels with us in our car, and Dario Tortora e Beniamino Cenci Goa, another friend met in California, follow by train even.

Worried to miss the appointment with Brett we are under annoyance... don't miss to laugh at us watching our video of the arrival to out destination.

Movie of our arrival in Apple (Quicktime 7 required)

in mpeg 1 version too (Mac OS 9 - Windows)

The visit in Apple has been a success: after crossing the threshold, forbidden to the most, for more than five hours we have been with Brett, the Senior Marketing Manager whose voice in our answering machine have been the first encounter with Apple.

As first thing, Brett registers us as visitors, and then lead us to the Apple Campus, an oasis of green in the structure, where silence and peace dominate.

After that, we took a seat in the big refectory - 'where even Steve comes', says Brett , and there we found with great pleasure a table reserved for us, yes, it's not an hallucination

Once settled down, we fulfill Brett with all kind of questions: his job, his colleagues, the internal ambience, the nearly announced products (iMac intel and MacBook Pro), the commercial company strategy and, yes... STEVE!

How is Steve? What's his real temper? Brett must confess us thet, despite the fact he works in Apple for years now, he spoke to him only few times, and he admits that his personality and his magnetism are so great to inspite everything but respect, admiration and dread to everyone, even to the the one who knows him so well.

Here comes the time togive Brett the three paper boxes, each of them has the printed pictures od our museum, a brochure of the Amug, our two mugs (one of the Amug, the other of the museum) and a letter from the mayor of Quiliano, showing gratitude and infiting Brett and the two Steves to visit our region and our museum as well. The letter has a commemorative plate and an escutcheon for the commune attached.

Time is passing by and, due some indication of tiredness from our kind host, we find us speaking from more than one our; only them we start eating... the refectory is endless and magnificently, the cook are Italians, mostly from our region; everything offered by mother Apple (it's a pity that before entering the building we have had a preventive and abundant breakfast!!)

Today's menu

After lunch, Brett take the plunge to take us in the sancta sanctorum of the building: the offices. We step into the heart of the mothership and we feeel the beauty, the elegance and the peculiarity of the internal forniture, the sobriety of the offices, mostly individualized: everywhere the order is at the maximum level, even the wastepaper is clean and with it's own brand! See how they are worried - even on the baskets - that nothing reserved could go out of the office, even like garbage.

Sight of Apple Campus Apple from one of the offices

We arrived in fornt of Brett's office, that oddly is sealed with toilet paper; due our astonishment Brett explains that this is a sort of rite: everytime there is a launch of a new product (Brett is personally responsible the marketing of the new Apple products, among them iMac Intel e il Macbook Pro) his colleagues seal in this picturesque way his office: it seems to be for good luck ... and of the product won't be a best seller, the paper could be used in different ways!

Brett M. whith one of our boxes in front of his office

In our wandering Brett lead us to the office of a special person: it's a lady working in Apple for more than twenty five years: Linda P; Brett introduce us and shows her what's inside our boxes: Linda shows her excitement, expecially turning over our pictures and looking at some machines: the Apple III, the Lisa... she admits naively she has used all of them, starting from Apple III, and promise us to give them directly to the two Steves: mission accomplished!

Confused by all these informations, discoveries, emotions, we nearly miss that the time is running out, and the voyage is going to its end; Brett lead us once more in the Campus towards the porter's lodge for the checkout.

But it's not finished yet! Brett insists to take us to the Apple Store #0, the internal shop reserved to the workers, where they can take advantage of special discounts, thanks to that we get everyting we can, from the Ipod to the t-shirts and mugs.

It's nearly 4:30 pm when we exit the shop, a last embrace to Brett, the ritual shot in front of Infinite Loop 1 and we share the promise to meet each other again, maybe in Italy where Brett and his wife have planned a vacation in 2007.

Do you think this is the end?

You are wrong....

Click here for the second part of the story...