Anyone have a spare tent?

When I did a quick run down of the things yet to be accomplished the other day, I forgot what is probably the most important task: finding somewhere to live.

Now we always intended to rent in the first instance when moving to Italy before choosing a property, buying it and carrying out whatever work might need doing. Stephen, on his trips, has been scooting around the vicinity of Monte San Pietrangeli scouting out possible homes and has a short list of likely contenders. Heading this is a house we spotted on the internet a couple of years ago that is still on the market; this may be a good thing as, with it being €100,000 over the top of our budget, the owners may be willing to take a bizarre offer.

What we had not anticipated, however, is the difficulty we are having in finding a place to rent. A couple of people who had offered us houses then backed out when we said that we were interested - don't they realise that as a gay couple, not only would the place be tidier and better decorated when we left but there'd also be a quiche in the oven. Stephen did view a lovely flat on the fourth floor of the post office building in MSP. Its two terrazzi offered wonderful views of the square one way and the countryside the other, but as the wall was only knee high visions of Bella and Harry flying over the parapet counted it out.

The upshot of all this is that for the first couple of weeks at least, we will be staying in the family house, now only inhabited by the four doyens of la famiglia Stefoni as the children have been long gone and have families of their own. We will have to see how Bella and Harry take to being in the flat on the third floor and, more importantly, how the family take to having two dogs running around the place. I just hope that Remo remembers to close the gate when he takes the car out, or it will be me doing the running, chasing Harry all the way to Fermo.