December in Umbertide

We are back in Italy but for just a few moments.  We stayed in Rome one night, and then pushed on to get here.  I liked it much better than arriving in the middle of the night to a cold and dark place.  We will leave here on Friday and be back in California on Saturday.  A whirlwind trip.  I always wonder why we make these trips so short when we are here.  When I am home in Oakland, I always say we can't stay long because of my work or whatever.  A dilemma. Reminder to self, 14 days in the minimum stay here, 10 days is way too short to even adjust to the time zone changes!

We have had a variety of weather here.  Sunny, raining and foggy.  The market is here today, and unlike California, there are only autumn things for sale: persimmons, leeks, potatoes, pomegranates.  The market is filled with oranges, reds and browns, just like the landscape.

The fog across the valley looks like a large cloud just plopped down between the mountains.  There is something romantic and sad about the fog. Maybe I have seen too many English movies with single women walking through the mists only to meet their untimely demise. Thankfully, the sun is now starting to break through and there are pink streaks on the tops of the hills.  The Tevere is a muddy green from all of the rain, but the sky is blue and the color of the river is starting to change. I wish you all were here to see it with me.

While we were gone the grandmother of Max died.  Now the estate is being contested by the mother and the cousins and the nieces.  Thank god we are not in process of buying that apartment.  I am sure it will sit empty for the next 50 years, and the attorneys will "eat" all of the money in the estate, according to the Italians.

They brought a 30 meter Christmas tree into the piazza yesterday.  I don't know how many feet that is but it is huge.  It was quite the production getting it into the piazza, off the truck and into the stand.  They used a cherry picker to put on the lights, (only blue lights) but it won't be officially turned on until Saturday.

We are making progress with the new apartment.  Here are some "before" pictures.  Can't wait for you and Me to see the after pictures! This is our new front door.

Only 20 steps to get to the apartment, not 65!!!!!

This is our living room.  We will put in new hardwood floors and new windows.  There are 13 windows in the apartment, but we need to replace them with double pane windows if we will be able to afford the heating bill!

THis is the kitchen.  It is lacking a few things....they come to measure for the kitchen today and will make it to fit this space.  It is so much bigger than our current kitchen.  The Stoic One will be very happy.

I am standing in the kitchen area taking this toward what will be the TV room.  The window to the left is where we will have our breakfast table.  There is a little balcony off the french doors to the right.

This is my sister Sarah's bathroom, otherwise known as the guest bath.

View of Lucio's orto (garden) from Sarah's window.

View of master bath and master bedroom.  Lots to be done here.

We just met with a realtor who is going to list our little apartment for sale.  I have so loved this place. It probably will take forever to sell, so I won't worry about it.  I will miss this view but not the stairs!

Update on the Manuele family.  He is such a trip.  We were at Antonietta's (the mamma) for dinner and we were talking about the move over here.  I told him I was thinking about shipping over my MiniCooper and wondered about the process.  He said, there were some things that needed to be modified for Italian standards, but not much.  Should only cost a couple hundred euros according to him.  Then he looks at me suspiciously and says, "What color is the car?"  I happily respond it is purple with white stripes.  He looked as if he were going to faint dead away right in the middle of our lasagna. "Nooooo," he says.
"Yes,"  I say "that is the color."
"Bah, leave it in California," he says. Mamma nods agreement.
"But why." I ask even though I have told myself to NEVER ask why in Italy because the answer never makes sense.
'Everyone will know where you go," Mamma says and they all nod their heads in unison.
  (As if that doesn't happen now.)
When you come to Italy next, see if you see any purple cars.  If you do, undoubtedly, it will be ME!


Off to the market.