The San Francisco Chronicle publishes today this most interesting article:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2012/02/05/internationa...
Personally, I think that to allow cruise ships into the lagoon is lunacy. They should be banned immediately. The Costa Concordia tragedy should be a serious warning and even if this kind of accident does not happen again, Venice and its lagoon is too precious and fragile to allow cruise ships in it.

We moved into our house in the Val di Vara in November. We signed a contract with Vodafone for 'ADSL tutto flat' which is for local & international calls and Broadband. It is now Feb 5 th and they have still not connected us! We have been onto their help line and have been 4 times to the Vodafone shop where we took out the contract but nobody seems to be able to give us an explanation for the delay. It is not a case of me not understanding as my Italian is good. Has anyone had any similar problems with Vodafone. I am starting to get VERY angry!

Sooo... I applied for my Codice Fiscale this summer with the Italian Embassy here. When I received my card (a few months later) I noticed they had my gender listed incorrectly, so we reapplied. NOW, after many legal documents have been processed [using my 'gender corrected' CF], I realise it should've been created using my 'maiden' name.

I feel like such a dink! What do I do now? We've purchased a house and are going to start the process of applying for residency, etc...

I'm sitting at my laptop at the window facing the garden watching the first snowflakes start to come down. We're due a heavy snowfall tonight in Buckinghamshire. There's a blackbird sitting on the garage roof wagging his head around. I wonder if he knows what is coming and is out searching for his supper.

We have a leak in our roof. We want to repair this as soon as possible obviously but we have decided to insulate at the same time. Do we need permission to do this from the Commune? The roof tiles will remain the same.

Hi everyone,
I'm looking for a (temporary) english speaking carer for my Mum who is 86 years old for 4-7 days, so I can visit the Uk for a wedding in March.
She has all her marbles (still does cryptic crossword every day and uses internet) but has difficulty walking and uses a walker and so needs keeping an eye on! She would need meal preparation, light housework and companionship! We are near Loro Piceno, Le Marche and a double bedroom with en-suite is available for the stay. If you're interested or want further details, send me a private message. Thank you. Sue

Whilst snowed in here in Penna San Giovanni, I was looking for some bright spots in the financial world. Sadly, not a lot to see, the following article with graph is going to keep my cash funds here in Italy on the low side.

S
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/8960332/Graphic-How-e...

It has come to my attention that I may have inadvertently misled in an earlier post. In response to a member asking for recommendations I posted not to bother contacting Michael as I had misunderstood a mail from his office. It appears Michael is still taking on new business. Looking back I can see how my post could also be misinterpreted. I have nothing but praise for Michael, Anna Hussein and Roberto who all are very efficient, knowledgable and quick to respond and as always I would recommend their services to anyone. As indeed I always have in the past when members have asked.