Living in San Giorgio di Pesaro and Kingston

A couple of years ago we heard that an English couple had bought a house near the church at the top of our alley. Then the nationality was changed from English to Danish. But nothing happened to the house. About a year ago we heard some workmen hammering  in the house but they were only there for one day. Now work appears to have started again with scaffolding being put up.

When work has been approved there is always a board put up with the names of builder etc. From this board we now know the work is being done for Pamela and John Roscoe. So we may have English neighbours after all.

The weather has been very variable here in the Marche but one morning this week we woke up to the valley between us and Mondavio being filled with low lying mist.

Here in Italy the news is full of reports about Influenza A in Italy. Naples has been particularly badly affected with 7 or 8 deaths as a result of the flu.

As Christmas approaches Neapolitan craftsmen are creating their cribs which they often people with carvings of people currently making news. This year the craftsmen have decided to reflect the arrival of Influenza A in Naples.

(photo taken from: <a href><“http://www.ansa.it/web/“></a>)

The olive harvest seems to be getting earlier each year – climate change or something. We started collecting last Wednesday and finished on Saturday morning. Other people had complained of a small harvest this year but for us the result has been excellent. Not sure if this is due to the fact that we are almost south facing or that Bill did an excellent job pruning the olive trees in April or just luck. Whatever the reason we collected 9 large boxes of olives which may weigh in at nearly 200 kilos.

To avoid falling off ladders this year all harvesting was done from the ground, putting the small rake used for harvesting on various lengths of bamboo to enable us to reach the top of the trees. We are always being told that our trees are too big and at harvest time we believe it. But for the rest of the year the large trees look so good.

Last night Sanzio, our very patient and always helpful neighbour, arrived to take the olives to the mill. We now await the new oil.

Thi morning on the regional news they played part of the “Hymn to the Marche”. This workLovers of classical music and pictures of landscape can now see both together on U-tube where “Inno alle Marche” is now available.

The hymn was composed by the pianist Giovanni Allevi in 2007. The composer was, apparently, paid 18 thousand euros plus 84 thousand for work in advertising the region.

The music with pictures of the Marche can be found on U-tube

Students of Italian (including Italians, including me) always battle with the subjunctive – a form of the verb used afted other verbs of doubt, hope etc. Over recent year Italian young people have tended to stop using it. Good news for foreigners trying to master the language and bad news for Italians wanted to maintain the language.

So in response a “Committee for Saving the Subjunctive” was set up a few years ago to attempt to turn back the tide. However, it looks as if the battle might be lost as the last comment on the blog was in January 2008.