November 2019 www.womanthismonth.com 44 LIFESTYLE | travel Drive the new Jeep Compass through the autumnal Tuscan countryside. Enjoy an Italian cookery class in a rustic farmhouse. Have a day of sports entertainment, yoga and meditation. Enjoy lectures and workshops with experts in various disciplines of experiential well-being activities. Have a go at aerial yoga, acro-yoga and hooping, sample the new discipline of Surfset Yoga and testdrive the entire Jeep line-up. What’s not to like about that invite?! In my haste to accept, I possibly overlooked the 5km race that was also part of the invite. More on that later… Arriving into Bologna’s rather compact airport, it didn’t take long to get out the other side and be introduced to the new Jeep Compass. Prior to 1940 the term "jeep" had been used as US Army slang for new recruits or vehicles, but the World War II jeep that went into production in 1941 specifically tied the name to this light military 4x4. This, arguably, makes Jeep the oldest four-wheel drive mass-producer of vehicles now known as SUV’s. First impressions count and believe me, this is a good-looking SUV, albeit a mid-sized one. It’s the size of a Qashqai or Kia Sportage and climbing inside doesn’t disappoint either. Seating is upholstered in black leather with distinctive tungsten accent stitching. The 8.4-inch infotainment system boasts Apple Car Play which provides you with a smarter, safer way to use your iPhone in your car. You’ll be able to get directions, make calls, send and receive messages, and listen to your favourite tunes without taking your hands off the wheel or eyes off the road. Brilliant. The 7-inch colour Driver Information Digital Cluster Display allows you to view key driving data, also without losing focus on the road ahead. You can keep track of active safety features, vehicle speed, available navigation, radio information and more besides. Features like these make Jeep a brand highly appreciated by women, with a growing customer base that now exceeds 20 per cent of all buyers. Nope, that percentage wasn’t something I had previously been aware of either. Jeep considers this to be a further demonstration of how the values of the brand have gained the favour of AN ITALIAN ADVENTURE Shirley Potter tells of her experience on this year’s Jeep Wanderlust escape.
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