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At imes, we all wander why we bother....

Tomorrow I am going to the Betti Pharmacy in Bagni to get the Arnica preparation recommended by Flip (thanks) as my ankles and wrists are still inbad shape after my week on the Costiera. No problems at home in Bagni, but I was massacred in the south...

Raining in Bagni di Lucca, but the river is looking great and mighty with so much water. About 14C outside. I can see smoke coming out of most chimneys. Baked a "castagnaccio" and I have prepared a lovely lentil stew. It is nice to spend time at home, relaxing.

Thank you all for solving my enigma. I was perplexed by the fact that the mozzies were leaving me alone here, keeping in mind that we are literally hanging on one of the river banks; however, opposite our place, there are two spots which are official fishing competition sites and there are plenty of trouts of all sizes there. My husband is the one who ventures into the area as there are too many rocks for me to walk, but he says that he regularly sees the trouts feeding on insects. I can see them from my windows, but not in so much detail. So that is my maintenance-free fish pond. Thank you for letting me know.

We spent last week on the Costiera Amalfitana and the mozzies ate me alive. I bought al kinds of expensive citronella candles, etc, and ended up buying "Autan". It was the only thing that worked. Back in Bagni di Lucca and even if we are on the river, I do not have any problems. I keep the Autan bottle nearby, just in case...

Panner, thank you so much for all your enlightenment on such a difficult topic. Your wealth of knowledge and experience is a great contribution to this community. It is a privilege to have you on board. 

I guess that it also depends on where or into which account this pension is paid, meaning that pension monies could be paid into a UK bank account or transfered to an overseas bank account, in this case Italy. If monies are paid into a bank account in the UK and the relevant authorities have not been informed that the beneficiary is now a resident in Italy or any other countries, tax will keep on being deducted at source. Otherwise, the UK will transfer the gross pension amount overseas and leave it up to the beneficiary to sort out the tax bit according to the rules and regulations of the country of residency...

Cannot help you with Umbria; however, I can say that our local fallegnameria took care of everything, and they were quite a few double-glazed PVC windows (an excellent wood imitation) and they had to fit them into a 17th century stone building, which is also qualified. walls are about 70 cm thick and very irregular. We are very happy with them as they insulate the place. Expensive, but worth every cent. My advice would be to contact local trades people. 

THe celebration of Halloween is becoming increasingly popular throughout most of Italy. You can see it through the amount of articles related to this festivity that you see everywhere, including supermarkets. Yesterday, I bought a large bag of special lollies and party favours to be prepared... In Ponte a Serraglio (Bagni di Lucca) there will be a dinner on the piazza... I guess that you will have the same sort of events practically everywhere...

Never say never again... We shall see you after your break