Distracted….

Sorry I haven’t been blogging but I keep getting distracted with things I need to take care of!

First off, I’ve been trying to get my residency or citizenship in Italy so that I can stay here. I had started the process of applying for my Italian citizenship via jure sanguinis (which means through descent by blood) in 2016 while I was still in the USA but the process was never completed – my bad. So we are trying to get it through from here and simultaneously applying for a long term visa called an Italian Elective Visa for retirees who wish to live in Italy and can provide proof of sufficient financial means. We’ll see which one happens first!.

Most of my things are still in storage in Spain and I don’t want to bring them here until I have the whole residency thing settled so I’m having to manage with very few pots and pans, etc. I’ve had to buy plates and glasses already but I’m trying to make do. I don’t want to buy things I already own! The only problem is that most of my colder weather clothes are in storage. I have one pair of jeans with me and a couple of heavier sweaters and that’s it, although I did find some socks to wear.

It’s been getting quite chilly here at night – 13-14C or in the 50’s F but the apartment has stayed cosy so far. The exterior walls are 6” thick, my front outside door is very heavy steel and glass and my inside door is solid wood about 4” thick. There are also shutters on all the windows. I have a fireplace in the living room and a pellet burner in the kitchen which generates the heat for the radiators throughout the apartment. Hopefully all this will keep the place cosy come winter. The inside wooden door automatically locks when it is closed which I discovered the hard way when I went out without my keys. I couldn’t get back into the apartment! I was with Fabrizio (the real estate guy) and my landlord Roberto. Fortunately the kitchen window was open so the guys gave me a boost up to the window (and thank God no one was watching because it was ugly!! Just picture these two men with their hands on my ass trying to lift me up 🫢) so I was able to climb in and open the door from the inside. Never again!!!

I am still without a car. In Italy without residency you are considered a tourist. If you want a car you have to rent one for about €400 a week. You can’t buy a vehicle without that long term visa or residency so I’m stuck here with no transport. Ironically, if I had driven a car from Spain I could drive it with no problems. The van is so damn big and the streets are so narrow that I can’t take it anywhere. It would be impossible to find parking for it and I can’t sell it until I have the visa, etc. Nightmare!

The dogs and I walk at least a couple of miles a day along the road and down the farmers’ roads that run next to their fields. We’ve been watching them bale hay and then truck it away to storage. The pictures below are from inside the apartment and what I see when I go out my door.