My big gardening project from just a year ago has come to somewhat fruition. Some plants didn't make it. Others are taking their time about thriving. But still others are happy and healthy and it looks quite lovely in it's mini urban garden way.

I planned the garden all around spring and autumn bloomers as I am gone in the summer. Gian Piero shouldn't have to do more than a evening water to keep it going til I get back. Speaking of which, the EU is opening up. Travel should be available this summer with relatively little hassle. If you plan on visiting this side of the pond, bring your masks however. I don't see those going away for a looooong while. Meanwhile, MIL turned 89 a few days ago and we took her out for lunch. We had a lovely fish grill and a bottle of dry Rose'. I had to go home and sleep for 2 hours. She went to the supermarket. They are made of strong stuff the people of that generation.

Last week we spent a day at the sea. We took a 14 kilometer walk along the coast on sidewalks built above the beaches and connecting many of the towns along the Italian riviera. Oh how I've missed the water! Speaking of which, I'm beginning to look into returning to the States. As per my usual route, I want to pass through London to see the daughter but the UK is not being very cooperative! Apart from a test before entering and a test before leaving, one has to buy a 200 pound self-test packet to test oneself on the 4th and 8th day of your stay in the UK. Obviously during this time you have to quarantine. They make no exceptions for people who have been fully vaccinated! What's the point?! So if I DO go through London I'll be adding 200 Pounds onto my trip. Child.....$$$$$.....????? Sheeeeet. When will we return to "normal"? Ugh. xxoo me

We've just had a week of spring rains and all mother nature is bursting forth. Today was beautiful and sunny and we took a three hour walk up into the hills. There are so many roads and trails to explore. Farms are cheek by jowl with magnificient old houses surrounded by high stone walls with massive gates and big growly dogs. There is so much money in the real estate of these hills I wonder where all these folks come from. Torino is a city of a little over a million and there are hundreds, no thousands, of amazing properties. A lot is old money and the families do not necessarily even live here. Torino is the base of Italy's "nobility" so there are all sorts of mini castles and elegant hill homes that at one time were considered country houses for the hot summers. Now they are a mere 10 to 20 minutes from the city center.

The yellow fields are canola, the wildflowers wild salvia and daisies, the view the alps. On another note, I've gotten my first vaccine! I was called in on Friday for the 60-69 group and as am on the "cusp" got Pfiser instead of Astra Zeneca which they are giving most of the oldies. The site was hilarious. They've converted an old livestock market into a vaccination site. We all walked in under a sign that read "Mercato Bestiame". Seemed appropriate as we marched in obediently, masked and standing on painted lines on the floor. Just like sheep we were! I celebrated by stopping in the nearest greenhouse and buying some much not needed plants. After a long period of lethargy, this has instigated me and I am looking into flights home via London. This winter and spring have been truely a blur of too many hours on-line, too many bottles of wine. Oh my God I rhymed! I did it again! Geesh. xxoo me

As there is such a thing as spring in this here place, I have been enjoying it as best one can when you can't go any farther than your town line. Fortunately we've discovered our town line is much farther than we'd thought. What we had always assumed was a separate community, a lovely little hamlet in the hills, we've realized falls under our city's territory. We've been walking up through farmland and woods and bucolic residential areas we've never before visited. Up and down all those small roads and paths we just drove by without a thought back in our pre-covid days. Vaccines are still far off in the future for us here. They've just opened up to the over 70 crowd and that is a very big crowd indeedy in this old, old country. Italy is now considering buying vaccines from Russia. There is no way that I am getting a vaccine called Sputnik V for Chrissakes! Nuh uh. Not gonna happen. Americans are flying back to the States to get vaccinated. I'll probably do the same.

So the only exciting news we have around here is the change in status of the upstairs neighbors. Dad (the singer) has taken an apartment elsewhere and mom (the vacuumer) and son (the irritating arguer) are alone above us. Except they aren't. Dad still comes by late every afternoon, watches TV and has dinner with them. But he no longer sleeps on the fold-out couch. He left and took the bedroom furniture with him. Now she sleeps on the fold out couch. Her old bedroom seems to be empty. I think the parents are stealthily moving out and leaving their gruesome kid behind. They're hoping he won't notice. Easter has come and gone with a quiet little lunch here with MIL. She's still thriving and at 89 is just getting her second shot tomorrow. We have had to stop her from cooking for us. Her concept of well-done is shot and we can't eat another dish of charred green beans. Easter Monday, called "little Easter", is traditionally a day for picnics. We made do with a cook-out and lunch on the terrace with our neighbors in covid fashion. Separate tables. Waving distance. That's about as social as we get. Should anything happen I'll be back. If not, it means restrictions still in place and I ain't doing nuthin! xxoo me