3 months with just an Opinel.

[Macchina]

I've added a lot of pictures to the second page

Last year I accepted a position that would involve spending a prolonged amount of time in Italy. My wife and I began this trip 3 weeks ago. I've traveled here for a week at a time for work, but living here is a whole different ballgame (soccer [futbol] game). There are many adjustments but in the end we are so blessed to live in this beautiful country for a few months!

One big adjustment for me is the legality of knives. You cannot carry one unless you have a good reason and the knife should be built with that purpose in mind. You CAN cut cheese with a balisong but that's a hard argument to sell. During the packing process I sorted out all my traditional looking knives and decided to bring two that wouldn't cry if I lost: a #9 Opinel Carbon and a SAK Alox Farmer. The SAK is for any hiking we do (we are stationed close to the Dolomite Mountains) and the Opinel is for anything else. I leave it in my desk or car when not in use, as carrying it in a pocket wouldn't be correct. I've had this Opinel for a while and over time I sanded the handles a bit and semi-polished the blade. I am so thankful I brought it! Turns out lunch here is a "bring your own everything" including silverware and most every fruit is cut instead of bitten. Italy is a place of incredible fruit, and almost all of it is sliced with my Opinel. Apples, Oranges, Bananas, delicious giant white grapes, and best of all: White Peaches! The best ones are purchased from a farmer in my small town. You have to buy them in small batches because they are always perfectly ripe the day he sells them. My Opinel has taken on a dark patina slicing them, but only it's thin razor-sharp blade is up to the task. Any thicker of a knife and the juice will spray during the cut. These things are what I imagine once grew in the Garden of Eden.

Though only some of the pictures are of traditional knives, all of them are of traditional things

Pesca Bianca:

Opinel #9 Carbon:

A bit of our first weeks in Italy (Venice, Burano, Treviso, etc.):

 

[Markesharp]

Great knife and nice pictures. The roads are narrow but the rivers are wide.

 

[RRaconteur]

Great pics! Thanks for sharing. One of these days, I gotta get me one of those Opinels.


Michael

 

[Macchina]

I am only a couple weeks into this journey, but I can already feel how this change-up in knife use will be extremely welcome. Back home, I always carried a medium to large modern folding knife (Benchmade, Spydercos, and a Sebenza). Coming to Italy has forced me back to the fundamentals: and that is what an Opinel is. This knife is simply a thin blade made only for cutting and a handle to hold while you do that cutting. All excess is removed from the Opinel and what is left is actually more useable than the knives I carry at home. A month at home would have me using 20 knives for 30 minutes total. In Italy I now use one knife in that month for 300 minutes.

A modern folder is completely out-of-place here and would probably be offensive to my colleagues. In some ways do regret not bringing an additional traditional (Case or Queen Trapper), but in others I am very happy to be forced to use just my Opinel. At home I carry my knives because of many reasons. Here, I keep this knife near because I NEED to.

 

[yatsunil]

Beautiful pictures! You've just proven that it's possible to live with just one knife. :thumbup: But where's the fun in that

Linus

 

[arizonaranchman]

What an experience indeed, thanks for sharing. Talk about minimalism!

 

[Macchina]

Great knife and nice pictures. The roads are narrow but the rivers are wide.

I have had to drive the company car (new model VW Passat TDI) since day 1 here. Nerve-racking at first and new roads were met with the question: "I found the walkway, now where can I drive the car in that direction"... The answer usually was: "Oh, this is a 2-way road with motorcycles zipping both ways up and down the centerline.

This place has some ballsy motocyclers! I was zipping along at about 100 KPH when 2 people riding a fully-loaded Ducati zipped between me and the car passing me on the left on the Freeway. If he had 6 inches clearance per side I'd be suprised. And it was raining pretty hard.

 

[Chris Larrikin]

I think this is a wonderful thread; it's full of soul. I think you're right about the minimalism of the Opinel. It's only what it needs to be and by being that it is close to perfection. There's so much to the minimalism though; it needed to be convex ground. It needed to be a certain thickness. It needed to have beautifully ergonomic rounded wooden handles. So then one sees the effort in making something exactly what it needs to be and nothing more...but nothing less.
Opinel threads make me happy. Travel threads make me happy. Thank you for making this tired Australian smile/.

 

[Brisket]

Nice photos and story. I think you made a good choice with the #9 and the Alox Farmer as they are among my favorites and can do so much.

Have you been able to determine what knives are popular among the locals?

 

[Cap’n Smudge]

This place has some ballsy motocyclers! I was zipping along at about 100 KPH when 2 people riding a fully-loaded Ducati zipped between me and the car passing me on the left on the Freeway. If he had 6 inches clearance per side I'd be suprised. And it was raining pretty hard.

This reminds me of living in Los Angeles. When traffic was heavy the motorcycles would ride between the lanes. My first month living there I accidentally put my cigarette out on a passing rider. I watched in horror as he wobbled left then right. He quickly recovered without hitting any cars, but it was close.

 

[Macchina]

I think this is a wonderful thread; it's full of soul. I think you're right about the minimalism of the Opinel. It's only what it needs to be and by being that it is close to perfection. There's so much to the minimalism though; it needed to be convex ground. It needed to be a certain thickness. It needed to have beautifully ergonomic rounded wooden handles. So then one sees the effort in making something exactly what it needs to be and nothing more...but nothing less.
Opinel threads make me happy. Travel threads make me happy. Thank you for making this tired Australian smile/.

A fellow Engineer? My favorite quote is "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” (Leonardo de Vinci). This was said less than 200 miles from me! I am a Product Design Engineer, it is what has brought me to Italy to work with some very talented Engineers and Designers. The Opinel may have been designed many years ago: but then it was even more important to make something as simple as possible to while retaining as much function as possible. Often times (almost always) the result is a compromise. The Opinel on the other hand is an example of Synergy in it’s perfect design and materials.

Everyone experiences a knife in different ways; but to an Engineer some knife designs are kin. As a mason looks at the Great Wall of China and a Submariner looks at the Blue Whale do I look at the story of the Opinel.

 

[Macchina]

Nice photos and story. I think you made a good choice with the #9 and the Alox Farmer as they are among my favorites and can do so much.

Have you been able to determine what knives are popular among the locals?

Very dull steak knives taken from their wife's kitchen long ago...
I will report back when I see something different.

 

[mwhich50]

The Italian stiletto may be the world's most famous/recognizable knife, but you can't carry one in Italy. How ironic. Great pictures! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Chris Larrikin]

A fellow Engineer?

I take that to be a great compliment, but no I work with data and statistics all day. But there are similarities; finding order in chaos and discovering that one way to make a process optimal. I have a simple ritual at work; eating an apple. I have sensitive teeth (now recorded on the internet forevermore) and the apples here are good so if I bite into one i risk both the unpleasant twinge of acid on my teeth as well as spraying apple juice onto my computer monitor. My solution; I keep an Opinel in my desk drawer and often almost unconsciously cut uniformly thin slices of apple, munching away contentedly while I stare at a nightmare of numbers, trying to make order from chaos. If only all problems were so easily solved!

 

[mnblade]

Last year I accepted a position that would involve spending a prolonged amount of time in Italy ... There are many adjustments but in the end we are so blessed to live in this beautiful country for a few months!

One big adjustment for me is the legality of knives. You cannot carry one unless you have a good reason and the knife should be built with that purpose in mind.

Great post, Macchina.

FWIW, I've been to Italy a number of times and have carried all sorts of knives, some bigger than an Opi 9, most smaller. My usage is much like yours (primarily food), and none of the knives ever raised an eye. With the exception of super fancy museums (many have airport-like security measures in place), I wouldn't hesitate to carry an Opinel anywhere in Italy.

Enjoy the rest of your trip!

-- Mark

 

[jackknife]

I am only a couple weeks into this journey, but I can already feel how this change-up in knife use will be extremely welcome. Back home, I always carried a medium to large modern folding knife (Benchmade, Spydercos, and a Sebenza). Coming to Italy has forced me back to the fundamentals: and that is what an Opinel is. This knife is simply a thin blade made only for cutting and a handle to hold while you do that cutting. All excess is removed from the Opinel and what is left is actually more useable than the knives I carry at home. A month at home would have me using 20 knives for 30 minutes total. In Italy I now use one knife in that month for 300 minutes.

A modern folder is completely out-of-place here and would probably be offensive to my colleagues. In some ways do regret not bringing an additional traditional (Case or Queen Trapper), but in others I am very happy to be forced to use just my Opinel. At home I carry my knives because of many reasons. Here, I keep this knife near because I NEED to.

Macchina, you have discovered the unpleasant truth that lays just beneath the surface: the simple fact is, we really don't need much of a knife to get by in the modern civilized world. Only we few, the 1% of the greater society, the obsessed knife knut, is overly concerned with what, and how many knives we have on hand. Like your fellow co-workers who just grab a worn out steak knife from the drawer at home, most people are not even conscious of knives until they need to eat. Then, any old thing that looks sort of like a knife will do.

As knife knuts, it is our curse, to be obsessed as we are. But on the other hand, knives are cheaper than drugs, or even booze in th long run, so what the hey?

I enjoyed my time in Italy, so many years ago. I didn't have a car then, but got around on a very Italian piece of machinery that I still have a love for today. The Vespa.

As long as you're in Italy, have you run across any knife shops that may have some Sardinian resolza's for sale? You have to pick one up if you see one.

Italy has some very nice knives, you need to think about souvenirs!

 

[Beard&Owl]

Yep those Opinels are great knives and white peaches really are fantastic. Looks like a really fun trip and what beautiful pictures. Thanks for sharing!

 

[pinnah]

I am only a couple weeks into this journey, but I can already feel how this change-up in knife use will be extremely welcome. Back home, I always carried a medium to large modern folding knife (Benchmade, Spydercos, and a Sebenza). Coming to Italy has forced me back to the fundamentals: and that is what an Opinel is. This knife is simply a thin blade made only for cutting and a handle to hold while you do that cutting. All excess is removed from the Opinel and what is left is actually more useable than the knives I carry at home. A month at home would have me using 20 knives for 30 minutes total. In Italy I now use one knife in that month for 300 minutes.

A modern folder is completely out-of-place here and would probably be offensive to my colleagues. In some ways do regret not bringing an additional traditional (Case or Queen Trapper), but in others I am very happy to be forced to use just my Opinel. At home I carry my knives because of many reasons. Here, I keep this knife near because I NEED to.

Bravo!!


As an engineer who has worked in the brackish co-mingled waters where engineering and marketing come together, it is worth noting that functional requirements and market requirements can be entirely different.

It is the world of market requirements where we get into why people buy what they buy and the marketing reality that people buy consumer products mostly to satisfy emotional "needs". Which is why Cody Lundin can correctly say that 90% of the knife business is BS. Two of the deepest held emotional, pre-rational and almost religious beliefs in the US regarding consumer products of all sorts are a) BEST can determined through object performance criteria (e.g. faster, lighter, stronger, harder), b) PRICE correlates to function, and c) NEW is always better than old. The first leads to the deeply held belief in metrics, quantification and statistics. The second leads to the game that can be played with pricing strategies like the premium pricing strategy. The third leads to an incorrect dismissal of solid engineering done by our elders.


A knife like the Opinel (or the Mora or many others) cuts through this consumer product/self-affirmation haze. One really doesn't need all that much knife to survive.

And from an engineering perspective (for me), I think the Opinel design is a great example of a highly refined design that has survived competition against many other competing designs and somehow, after over a hundred years, is still functionally relevant (relevant from a marketing pov is another matter). Other examples are the Svea 123 stove, the Trangia alcohol stove, the Brooks B-17 bike saddle. These are classic designs and IMO great engineering and design work seeks out designs that survive. Classic designs are hitting a sweet spot among all sorts of competing requirements. That's tough to do.

 

[Macchina]

One thing that struck my wife and I here is how far we are from this being a vacation. We can go to Venice for the day, but we grocery shop on our way back and only go there when we have something to do.
Our separation from home and our lives is evident every 5 minutes. Finding what we need is difficult, talking to people to find those things is more difficult. We bike and walk to many places because that is how you do it. I work 10-11 hours a day and am quite tired after.

This is not a complaint: it's a blessing. It's a blessing to really live in a place so foreign, not just visit and see the shiny parts, but to be a part of the grimy parts. We struggle to even get through some days (spending 6 hours trying to navigate getting a cellphone fixed, walking a kilometer only to find out a place is on it's 3-hour siesta, etc.) and smile through others, but we live them all. My employer was (ehem) tardy in sending us. My wife quit her well paying job almost a year before we left because we "were leaving later that month". The leave date has been pushed back 10 times or so, but always so soon that we didn't have time to re-settle our lives. To say we have had a stressful (and frugal) year is an understatement. But we will remember this year until we die.

 

[Halfneck]

Looks like a great place to visit. Living there for a bit is even better because as you said, you get to experience the non-touristy side of it.