The flight from Palm Beach to San Francisco is on time.
From the porthole at the bottom, as the descent towards the airport begins, you can glimpse a long road suspended over the Pacific Ocean.
I think of the kilometers that await me, of Jack Kerouack's words from his timeless On the Road: “We must go and never stop, until we arrive. ...”
Driving into the city, from where the view of Treasure Island is magnificent, the red SanFran taxi drops me at the Sutro Beach baths, once a public bathhouse with seven indoor pools.
Perched atop granite cliffs at the western edge of the city, it symbolized the great wealth brought by the gold rush. Today it is a ruin, devoured by the majestic waves of the Pacific. The wet sand is cold under my feet as I enter the back of a cave, beneath sheer cliffs. My American business partner, Dylan Ratigan, New York Times best- selling author, anchor of Bloomberg, CNBC and MSNBC, now entrepreneur and creative between Milan, Los Angeles and New York, escorts me.
With him I travel hundreds of miles along the Pacific coast aboard Black Porsche Panamera 4S, with a black interior, black tinted windows, and black rims, a style they call “murdered out” in American car slang. It is my first experience driving a car like this -- on roads such as these -- and immediately it feels more like a small jet airplane tan any ordinary car ready to take us on the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) heading the south of Los Angeles. Dylan had been tasked with interpreting an art collection from a Silicon Valley veteran and one of the first “alumni” of the company called PayPal.
And we are here precisely to present the collection designed together, made up of twenty models of Italian luxury sneakers, super exclusives inspired by the founders of PayPal; founders who also mean Tesla, SpaceX, YouTube, LinkedIn and who have guided the investments and vision of Facebook, Sequoia, Ancestry and countless others, in the field of global technology.
After the treasure cave, a metaphor for the treasure that we are about to deliver in honor of the creative clusters that guide our lives, in our worlds and in our passions, our road-show begins with the first stop in Pacifica, the city of San Francisco in San Mateo County. The pier on the ocean is impressive, lapped by a set of waves that are formed here by the currents from Alaska and by the seabed with its incredible canyons. The nearby Taco Bell by the Sea was the first of its kind before it became a global fast-food franchise..
We chose the Panamera 4S for its touring pedigree, a longer wheelbase than a 911, room for shoes in the trunk, and a full back seat for snacks and supplies.
On the road Dylan tells stories about Henry Miller, who went to Big Sur for three days and stayed there for 18 years. The PCH is considered the one of the most beautiful roads on earth, offering lovers of large cars an extraordinary performance hanging off the cliffs of North America.
The Panamera 4S does not dissappoint. It’s shocking to feel so much power pressed into the tires of this heaving beast combine with a sense of total control.
Between meetings with PayPal members and visits to the castles and sea lions of San Simeon, the journey unfolds between breathtaking landscapes and other stimulating encounters.
Breakfast at the Ritz in Dana Point, followed by a drive to Zuma Beach, adds a note of luxury and relaxation to this exciting exploration that culminates in a meeting with Elyas, the world's largest sneaker seller: an innovator in digital technology that has developed the worlds best methods for direct sales to the consumer, it has made it the undisputed leader.
But Dylan and I have a second mission: to create a new Italian luxury brand that integrates art and next-generation technology, inspired by the design principles of the golden ratio. Of which our sneakers are the first creative translation.
At Hearst Castle we stop to admire the beauty of the architecture commissioned by the great American tycoon after a trip to Europe that lasted two years.
Creativity needs to devour kilometers to restore beauty, sublimated by the journey. Here in the Cuesta Encantada home, Leonardesque "divine proportion" finds
space everywhere: from the swimming pool facing the ocean, rebuilt three times by William Hearst, to the numerous Greek and Roman sculptures scattered along the route.
We arrive at sunset in Carmel by the Sea, 120 miles south of San Francisco, where the view of the Monterey Peninsula is enchanting and Clint Eastwood was once Mayor. For thie first time I can relax and really see nthe car. The city lights are reflected on the shimmering black body of the Porsche Panamera parked in front of the hotel.
It's a night where the charm of the place merges with the luxury and power of high- end cars. The Panamera 4S is a work of art on four wheels, with its jet-black body appearing to absorb surrounding light rather than reflect it. Its sinuous and aggressive lines give it a sense of power and speed even when it is stationary.
As we resumed our journey along the coast, Dylan felt free from worry and stress, free to travel familiar yet unexplored paths: free to experience limitless
adventures. We both knew we were carrying with us much more than a collection of sneakers, but a new project, a mission inspired by the creativity and
resourcefulness encountered along the way, in a state that still represents the gold rush.
At the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles, between Beverly Hills and Brentwood, our car is welcomed with admiration. Rather then give us a valet ticket the attendant simply asked for the key, implying that car is itself is its own valet ticket simply by its exceptional presence. They park us up front to the white Audi of Sasha,
a friend who is a collector of visual art as well as cars. There is still much to explore, to create and to share and we talk about it with enthusiasm, in the place of
luxury immortalized by Hollywood personalities such as Elisabeth Taylor, who spent
one of her honeymoons here, Lauren Bacall as well as Nancy Regan whose favorite salad today bears her name.
On the way to Palo Alto, a stop at Westward beach is a ritual.
Here there is an excellent observatory for whales that migrate from Alaska to southern California to give birth. And then go back up again. We see many
dolphins jumping on the waves together with countless surfers, right in front of the Sunset Point Restaurant, where we park our Porsche to enjoy an extraordinary view with Catalina Island on the horizon.
Westward, (Zuma Beach) is the beach in Malibu where Big Wednsday was filmed, a 1978 film directed by John Milius, dedicated to the world of surfing.
After a pause at Mavericks, where the highest waves in the world crash onto the coast, we arrive in San Jose: six hours of driving. A stop at the Wild Horse Cafe, for gasoline and a quick breakfast among the truckers of a Pulp Fiction yet to be written.
At the airport of the most technological city in California, Christian awaits us: the man of technology who is revolutionizing the authentication and
traceability system for luxury and consumer goods globally.
Even a Porsche like ours can have a small chip, somewhere in the car, which contains the most important information: the year of construction, ownership, history, and all the relevant technical and emotional information. Christian produces this software in Phoenix, Arizona and is a leader in his industry.
As the trip comes to an end, Dylan and I think about the meaning of this experience: not just an immersion in technology and luxury, but a true search for inspiration and human connection, a testament to shared power and adventure.
We conclude our journey in Palo Alto: in the heart of Silicon Valley, today the center of digital gold. Here former PayPal alumni celebrate the birth of the email
payment system, invented by Max Levchin.
And it is a pleasure to see so many young creatives, entrepreneurs, visionaries and writers designing their own destiny. And many questions emerge about what one takes away on a journey like this.
But this is precisely what we take home: that baggage of memories and emotions that we drank in, like a sponge. What else can be done?
There is no alternative to passion, drinking the world and mystical deliriums, said Whitman, more than anyone else, is a source of long life and happiness.