SAVATION GATE

This looks pretty sordid, doesn't it? That's because it is and accounts for the splash of pink on one pillar. It's our gate and will be painted that insipid colour over my dead body. To the left is a sheer cliff, to the right is a steep drop. Passage way for pedestrians had to be left at the right because there is no law of trespass in Italy. It is not a fun road but it's ours and it's concrete.

The story of this gate is long, funny and tragic but will do a concise version. We bought a total ruin in Italy for almost nothing because it had no road, only a cart path clinging to a cliff side. We had a dirt road built for less than £3000. Happy holidays when all was done. After two years and after one brief stay, I cried all the way from our door to Pisa airport, I sobbed in the airport, I snuffled on the plane and through Heathrow. Himself pretended he didn't know me. I cheered up on the shuttle to Edinburgh because I would see the dogs.

The handwriting was on the wall. We sold up and moved to Italy. The dirt road was a menace under daily use. There were clouds of dust when dry, it was slippery when wet and pot holes increased. We applied for permission to cover it in concrete. Permission granted by the local council. The concrete went down in record time and the road was bliss. Rome had 30 days to object.

On the 30th day Himself arrived waving a letter. "It's permission for our road from Rome," he said gleefully. I looked at the long letter written in officialese Italian but two words at the top grabbed my attention. Permissione annulata. Permission rescinded. Uh-oh and OMG! Putting down concrete is one thing; removing it is another. We were doomed.

We put in another road application, this time with a gate. Permission granted. Rome agreed. The road was now legal but we had to build a gate. There are several possible reasons permission was granted for sure this time. One, both the local council and Rome knew the road existed already. Two, just anybody can't have a concrete road but people who want gates can. Three, and most likely, a different set of people looked at the request for permission. All this took place in a year riddled with anxiety. Life in Italy is never dull.

By tomorrow, the gate posts will be all neat and tidy and oxblood red.

This picture was in perfect focus before uploaded. This fuzziness is not my fault! I tried another, straight from the camera, and it was even worse. Porca miseria!

For the record: +14. Cloudy, scattered showers.