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I agree with what has been previously said and particularly with Fillide's last comment. Restoring an old building is not a straightforward task and there are generally contingencies beyond anyone's control. This is what contingency sum item in any building contract is all about and you have to have the money to pay for this. If you are on a very tight budget, this could be trouble. Litigation in a foreign country can be difficult and costly. It should be avoided. This does not mean that the project cannot go ahead. But you are going to have to watch it (and your purse) very closely. Best wishes! 

Yes, you can grow a passionfruit plant in a large pot with a trellis. It needs to be protected from frost, wind and intense summer heat. Try to put the pot on top of one of those bases with castors so that it may be easier to move, considering that you will also have the trellis. Passionfruit plants have short lives. They last about 4-6 years only and then you have to replace them; however, their flowers are beautiful and the fruit is delicious!!!

Welcome Darren, and what a great thing to do: to give a home to an animal. Good on you! As Anne said, there are some kittens ready to go which are looking for homes. Keep us posted.

Lovely story, keep us informed, please. And welcome to the Piazza. Best wishes

If you are interested in a Tuscan city besides Florence, I would strongly recommend Lucca. It is one of my favourite cities in Italy and the "centro storico" within the old walls is pure fairytale. Also, it is conveniently located, near airports, other interesting cities, beautiful countriside and the sea is nearby. The train takes you to Santa Maria Novella station in Florence in an hour and a few minutes without having to go by car. It also exudes quality of life and style and it is not overcrowded by tourists. I would advise you to have a look before you decide.

Hi Dawn! I would look through the website and I would make just two or three appointments with those agents that may have an interesting property on their lists. Give them also an idea of what you are looking for. Some properties are not advertised and the agent may organise four or five similar properties for you to inspect at the same time. Also, look at other local agents. This is what we did and it worked for us. Best wishes,

I think that we need a crystal ball to guess what is going to happen with currencies in the future.

Thank you for the information. I'll have a look for these in May, when I will be in Lucca.

All types of spray paints are prohibited, both in your hand luggage and the one that is checked in.

Don, from my Spanish dictionary , as we have the same verbs: ahogar and sofocar: affocare: From the Latin ad (at-to-in and many other meanings in English) and focus (fire) Originally the meaning must have been to extinguish the fire, but it got other uses as well. suffocare: Also from the Latin verb suffocare, but I would say that it is a combination of sub and focus, meaning to cover a fire in order to extinguish it. I did not find etymologies in my ½ûÂþÌìÌà dictionaries, but I trust that these would be accurate.