Fernando Alonso has been at work on the Ferrari simulator in Maranello as he and his team prepare for 2014.

According to the Italian outfit the purpose of the day was to get a first taste of all the new procedures in which the driver will be involved, in managing the 2014 car.

"I'm pleased with the way the day on the simulator went," Alonso told the team's website. "We managed to get through everything on the programme that we had in the pipeline. It was nice to be driving again, even if only in a virtual way.

"We went through a lot of ideas with the engineers: we are only at the start of a learning process which is moving forward all the time and it's nice to be able to contribute to it."

The Spaniard later flew to Rome to join company president Luca di Montezemolo where they took part in a charity event with RAI Uno, aimed at raising funds for Telethon, the foundation, of which Montezemolo is president, for scientific research into curing rare genetic illnesses.

The team's traditional lunch takes place today (Saturday), when all the men and women who work on the Maranello outfit's racing activities, gather together to exchange Christmas wishes, along with the drivers as well as people from the team's technical and commercial partners. It will also be the final time to get together with Felipe Massa as a Ferrari driver, the Brazilian heading off to Williams next season.

This afternoon and Sunday is Kids Christmas, an event organised for the children of all the employees, who tomorrow only will also be joined by their peers from some elementary classes from schools in Maranello and Medolla, one of the areas most severely affected by the earthquake that hit the Emilia region in June 2012.