Italians have a weird relationship with their dead.  I suppose it's much the same in many Latin countries but I don't live there, I live here, so I tend to think it's uniquely Italian.  Whereas in the States we dedicate community funds to the Library or sport's venues and parks, here an inordinate amount of time, thought and money goes into maintaining their cemeteries.  Cemeteries are like little marble cities with paved roads and walkways, lighting and high walls and gates.  Families have their own tombs if they've been in town for a while, but people are packed away in drawers in walls if they're new to the area and tomb space is all taken up.   Families compete with neighboring tombs for who has the best flower arrangements which are changed seasonally. There is a lot of eyebrow raising and tsking coming predominantly from old women walking amongst the graves.  The arrangements are very elaborate on Nov. 1st, "Il Giorno dei Morti" or "day of the dead", the equivalent of memorial day.  Old family feuds are usually brought up at this time of year when one family member might have disrespected an ancestor with an inadequate flower display or shoddy "tomb keeping", (weekly sweeping, dusting, polishing etc).  As well as flowers, there are electric candles or lanterns on all the tombs and drawers, though I don't know why because cemeteries are closed up tight at night.  Often times there are rows of framed photos of the deceased on display going right back to sepia prints from the turn of the last century.  The more "upscale" areas of the cemetery have statues and cypress trees lining the "streets".  Apart from the potted flowers and the rare Cypress, there is little green.  No grass, no shade trees.  This is a place for suffering and reminiscing, not picnicking.  But the most bizarre thing has been the introduction of technology.  Some cemeteries are now installing bar codes on tombs so that using your phone, you can download information about the deceased.  I guess each corpse will have their own "profile page" just like on Facebook.  I don't know which is creepier.   The reason I thought of this is that as we were leaving the Apple Festival in Cavour yesterday we walked past the cemetery all lit up like a Christmas tree.  I really hope no one ever stuffs me in a drawer for eternity.  I get claustrophobic.  xxoo me

Illuminated "drawers" at the cemetery in Cavour