Gala Placidia's activity

Casa Monal, the said forms - that the owner asked me to complete by myself while she was showing my husband how to control the air conditioning, etc - were from the Rome Chamber of Commerce and asked for full details about the occupants of the apartment during the rental period, including full names, passport or ID numbers, overseas address, phone numbers, email, etc. My Italian is good enough to fully understand that the forms were not a mere survey but a full record of occupancy of the premises. I have no problems regarding passports and ID cards, on the contrary, I wish that everyone could prove their identity anytime, anywhere. Nothing to do with a police state, just proving who you are and that should not present any problems to law abiding citizens. I know that this concept worries certain nationalities who are not used to ID cards (using a driver's licence to identify themselves.... which is another kind of ID control, although less effective). Have we become paranoid about security? Well, although security has been strengthened, many of these procedures were already in place a long time ago, the only difference is that they were not followed. And as long as terrorism is a worldwide threat, these measures will continue. In my opinion, it is always a good idea to carry some form of ID at all times. Even a photocopy could be of assistance.

The cognà or grape pickle is an interesting alternative: http://www.cathayway.it/italian-recipes/cogna-grape-pickle.php

Further to Ram's post, I think that identity controls are going to become tougher not only in Italy but throughout the world. Everyone should become aware of the need to have all your documents with you when you travel. By the way, the forms that we had to fill up with our document details were provided by the Rome Chamber of Commerce.

I think that the problems mentioned by Flip can be avoided if your property is duly registered as a rental one. We had to fill up special forms and show our passports when we rented the unit in Rome, so the Police can trace culprits very easily if they do anything wrong. Your letting agent should be able to inform you accordingly.

To have an Internet connection is becoming very important. I think that, within a few years, it will become a normal feature in any house, just as having a washer or a microwave oven. When we rented an apartment in Rome in May, it had Internet and I think that it is becoming increasingly popular. It is a feature that I always take into account when renting a property.

Could this help you to identify them? http://www.google.com/search?q=black+caterpillar&hl=en&biw=1024&bih=545&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=zvZoTpHVEsn1-gb1tfndCw&sqi=2&ved=0CCwQsAQ

Seeing that you have been very successful with the sweet potatoes, perhaps you could consider growing purple potatoes. I have been reading a lot about their great properties, the only problem is that they are very difficult to find. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1318079/Sainsburys-healthy-purple-potatoes-taste-white-variety.html Just let us know how you go about this...          

I agree with Alan, the UC paper is very comprehensive.

Everything you need to know about sweet potatoes, including storing and recipes. http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/publications/guides/carver_sweetpotatoes.html

Fabbriche, you are not a cynical but a realistic person and there is a big difference between the two positions. Anyway, here is the list of the ten richest people in Italy: http://www.famouswhy.com/List/Top_10_Italy's_Richest_People/749.html Poor Silvio is only ranked second on the list...