The city of Lucca has always been my favourite. Not only because it is only 25 minutes away from our home and I go there at least two or three times a week, but also because you do not feel like a "tourist" there.
Gala Placidia's activity
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In this icy cold weather, hot drinks and comfort foods are a must. Preparing and consuming them are good ways to spend time when we cannot venture outdoors.
Wed, 02/08/2012 - 06:10
The cold weather is affecting most of Italy and creating difficulties concerning energy supplies. Russia, the most important supplier, has been reducing the provision of gas up to 30% due to increasing demand in their area.
Tue, 02/07/2012 - 02:22
The San Francisco Chronicle publishes today this most interesting article:
Sun, 02/05/2012 - 12:45
Whenever we are in Italy, we love to visit antique and vintage markets and fairs, looking for that special piece that we would love to have. Sometimes, we find it...
Wed, 02/01/2012 - 02:47
One of my favourite activities in Italy is to visit those markets that sell antique and vintage items.
Tue, 01/31/2012 - 06:38
Some members may have noticed that I have been fairly quiet for the past month and a half. The reason for this was that we have been visiting our daughters who live in San Francisco (CA).
Fri, 01/20/2012 - 02:59
The new ½ûÂþÌìÌà government has been announced and it is obvious that we will have a fight between technocrats and politicians.
Wed, 11/16/2011 - 14:24
A lot has been written about the dangers of overheating Teflon coated cookware. Toxic fumes can be extremely dangerous for our health. Personally, I have never liked that type of cookware and I do not buy it anymore.
Sat, 10/29/2011 - 06:24
In another thread, we were discussing Tuscan herbs and "funghi porcini". Tuscany is a paradise for herb lovers and many varieties, such as rosemary, sage and "nipitella" grow wild.
Thu, 10/27/2011 - 11:23
Comments posted
 or going back to Italy, great excuse!
 Try to find yourself and enjoy!
 ½ûÂþÌìÌà customs officers Five Englishmen in an Audi Quattro arrive at the ½ûÂþÌìÌà border.  The ½ûÂþÌìÌà customer agent stops them and tells them: "Itsa illegal to putta fiva people ina Quattro."  "What do you mean it's illegal?" asked the Englishmen.  "Quattro means four," replies the ½ûÂþÌìÌà official.  "Quattro is just the name of the automobile," the Englishman says, not believing what he is hearing.  "Look at the papers: this car is designed to carry 5 persons." "You can'ta pulla thata one ona me," replies the ½ûÂþÌìÌà customs agent.  "Quattro means four.  You hava fiva people ina your car and you are therefore breakin'a the law".  The Englishman replies angrily, "You idiot! Call your supervisor over We want to speak to someone with more intelligence!" "Sorry," responds the ½ûÂþÌìÌà official, "he can'ta come".  "He's a busy with two guys in a Uno". Â
 I would try one of the ½ûÂþÌìÌà Banks, such as Monte dei Paschi di Sienna (the world's oldest bank). They do have an office in London, but I do not have their address. We deal with them in Bagni di Lucca and they are very helpful, although we opened our account in Italy. Do you already have your Codice Fiscale number? Otherwise, you must obtain that document first.
 Fillide, I do not think that you are aware that some of the members of the old forum you mention left well before the demise of that forum and the creation of the new Community. And those events happened at least 2 years ago. I do not know much about the circumstances because I was away at the time, but there were quite a few posts and threads deleted, so if you were not there, you would not have a clue of what was going on. [admin comment: this was a reply to a post that we removed] As you say, some of those members were very valuable and I regret that they took that decision. Other members mentioned by you are still here, such as Adriatica and Geotherm (posting now under the name of Badger). I am not quite sure about the meaning of your paragraph about nationalities. In my opinion, a mixture of nationalities is beneficial for the forum and it is up to non-UK members and visitors to decide whether this is the right place for them. Otherwise, this community would become a very boring ghetto. The community is open to all those who love Italy and things ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ, at least this is the way I understand it.
 I guess that it may depend on the particular Comuna and the scope of the works. Some of the Comune publish in Internet their requirements, just like this: Make a search through google.it using the name of your Comuna and the words "marche bollo urbanistica edilizia privata" Good luck!
 I agree with Gromit that the prices found at the San Lorenzo markets are excellent and some of the ties are quite beautiful, but they come from China. Here is a very interesting article on this topic:
 Here you are!
 Italy has lost most of its silk industry due to the low Chinese prices. Even some of the silk scarfs are only stamped in Italy. Next to our place in Bagni di Lucca there used to be a mill which employed many locals in the old times as the area was able to produce its own silk.... Unfortunately, it is now a ruin....