Hooray! hooray! it's a holi-holiday

Yesterday was Ferragosto, one of the important holidays of the year in Italy, so like any self-respecting Brit on a bank holiday, we visited to a DIY store, went shopping to a mall and ate a big meal. Oh, and to make it seem like we really were back home, it also poured with rain.

Firstly, to explain: Ferragosto is a public holiday that is celebrated on 15th August, which coincides with the Assumption of Mary, mother of Christ. As it also occurs in the middle of the Italians’ summer holiday period much of Italy comes to even more of a halt than usual for August. This year, with it falling at the weekend, it was virtually a two-day shut down – a bit like Christmas, without the presents but with lots of sunshine instead.

Sunshine? What about the rain? Well that came yesterday evening and this morning, but Saturday itself started out gloriously sunny and hot without being ridiculously humid. As our lunch date was not till 1 o’clock, we decided to head back to Civitanova and check out those bargain garden chairs that we saw on Friday, stopping on the way to measure up the door frames in our wing of the house as we had also seen some potential new doors at the DIY store.

In the event, we had something of a wasted journey thanks to Obi’s imprecise signage. On closer inspection, the bargain price we had seen previously referred to the cheap looking and flimsy chairs at the aback of the display, whilst the much more attractive and solid ones at the front were a tad more expensive. We decided not to buy: at less than €7 they were a bargain; at €17 we will hold out for something fabulous next spring.

We fared little better with the doors, this time the problem being that (surprise, surprise) the size we require is non-standard – and as the style of door we liked for the bedroom and dressing room has a glass panel running from base to top without an edging, there is no way it can be cut to size. We should have known from Ramsbottom that with older houses nothing is standard, but as ever it was hope over experience that was driving us.

So it was back home for a quick walk with Bella and Harry before showering and donning the glad rags (festa time so Fabi was in order) and a short car journey to the Agroturismo Ortenza. I won’t give a blow by blow account of the meal, as it ran true to form for Italian gatherings: large tables full of family groups, much wandering and copious amounts to eat (including enough galantina di pollo and insalata russa to feed that country’s army). After the brodo (a mighty tasty broth with fine grains of coated semolina suspended in it) there was no room left for the chopped up chunks of chicken used to make the stock and the pickled vegetables that came with them. We did, though, manage to squeeze in a piece of mimosa cake, a deliciously light sponge covered with fruit and cream.

After this, a quite evening was in order: a visit to The McIntosh and shared bowls of chips and olive all'ascolana to keep away night starvation.

And today? As it was pouring down this morning and continued dull after lunch, what made more sense than a quick trip to Corrodomnia and a scoot round what is rapidly becoming our go to store, Maison du Monde. This time we bought two chairs for the terrazzo (it was raining after all), a small patio table and chairs set (so I can have my breakfast outside the kitchen door in the morning sun) and a doormat – ah, essentials again. We did, however, cause a bit of a shock in the Stefoni household – not with our purchases but by the fact that the skies were leaden and the temperature had dropped to the low twenties… and we went out without jackets. Those British.