I was stationed in Italy from 2010-2014. Sometime around 2013 my wife and I went to the Ducati dealership in Firenze and I sat on a Monster 696 (she has a picture). I have wanted one ever since. A couple years later after getting my motorcycle endorsement I test rode a Monster 1100 Evo at the dealership in Pisa. I had a permanent smile on my face from that thing and I was hooked. It was almost like they obtained a mold of my rearend when they designed the seat. It was amazing, and that is before even mentioning the thump-thump look-at-me sound from that L-twin that could only come from one place. Fast forward 8 years and I finally got one. I would have prefered red but this was a left over 2020 model that I feel I got a pretty good deal on. This one is mine. Picking it up in a couple hours.
Here is the 1100 Evo
And here is the very first Monster I sat on all the way back in 2013.