The beauty of it is that it’s live! exclaims an enthusiastic spectator of the Palio in Siena. In the background, Umberto Eco is taking notes; the semiotician deciphers the signs of his country. Eco describes his Italy through stories: the crazies on the highway, the pace of cultural trends, Milanese natives, Italy as a Mississippi steamboat, the sad lack of enemies, football as a sexual perversion, how not to use a mobile phone, the bureaucratic tangle when losing a driver’s license, and the unrestrained passion for grandmothers. But Eco also offers counter-proposals: What could an ultimate film by Visconti look like? What about a future Italy? How would women behave if they followed Dante? An intelligent and simultaneously giggling guide!.