KarenSheffield's activity

        As you can see, we store our wood here. We are having the railings reconditioned as well.  

In our village, Grottole in Basilicata, last summer there was a litter of 6 abandoned puppies at the bottom of the hill below our house. The mother dog was around, but the puppies were weaned- and starving. They were hiding in a cave, but the owner of the land had blocked it up so they were running around. I was feeding them, but the old woman who owned the land came banging at my door early one morning shouting imprecations and insults and telling me not to venture onto her land again. I told the vigile urbano about the puppies, and he said he would phone the nearest animal rescue centre, in Matera, 50 k away. Of course he did nothing. Then, just as we were driving out of the village to return to England, we came across one of the puppies lying dead in the road, obviously run over. I was distraught, and gave the vigile a good earful for not having taken action. I heard from a friend later that the puppies had all gone, but she didn't know where. The whole episode was very upsetting. I just hope the puppies were rescued and found homes. It made me despair about the Italian attitude to animals.

As a naive student in the early 70s, I expressed disbelief to an Italian friend that people could actually describe themselves as Fascist. Worse, he assured me, there were - and are - people who still say 'sono fascista, e me ne vanto!' - I'm fascist, and proud of it!

In the 1980s I rented a flat in Bologna- 'la Rossa'! - from a couple who had pictures of Il Duce in their hallway. I did not comment on this, as you can imagine. But I think it is patronising to say that Italy needs a 'strong leader'. It needs a more representative political system, and a more effective political system and a reformed legal system, but few dictators are interested in making government overall more effective and more responsive to the wishes and needs of the population.

Thank you all for your replies and your helpful advice! I think we would prefer to avoid Switzerland if possible- I'm allergic to mountains. Is there an alternative route?

Thank you Alan. Of course you are right, decisions need to be made. My only previous experience of driving to Italy was going to Tuscany, and we stopped off twice, but then we had small children with us. Given that it is so far, the make-it-part-of-the-holiday option seems better and less wearing. And as we are in the North, Hull-Rotterdam seems a sensible option too.

We might be interested in some kitchen units as our kitchen was put in by the selling agent and is very cheap-looking. Could you post some photos? If you send me a personal message and include your e-mail we can take it from there.

Thank you Molinello. Unfortunately I am in Basilicata, but thank you for the advice, and thanks to Lucy and Gerry for raising the issue. Hope you get it sorted soon, it must be miserable having no hot water!

I have a similar problem. When we had some extra sockets installed, the electrician told us that the fusebox where the power supply came into the house was not earthed, and that it needed to have an earth wire from the fusebox down the outside wall and into the ground. As the house is on the first floor, and there is a concrete flight of steps leading up to it and a pavement made of solid slabs of stone at the bottom, this seems like a complicated and expensive undertaking. Is it really necessary? We only have a water heater and lighting that use electricity.

Maybe you should get an independent valuation of the property? this might strengthen your hand in pressing for a higher price for your share. As for the other questions, this is clearly a complicated issue and I would advise you to consult a specialised Italian property lawyer who speaks English.