Right now, in Italy, I am sitting in my house on the side of a mountain, in a cloud.
The view from my terrace.
It changes constantly.
The rain means no gardening for the day. I am hopeful for tomorrow.
As in most of the rest of the world, the Corona virus is causing chaos all around me. Our area is unaffected right now, but that could change at any time. I’m pleased I went to Florence last week. I might be grounded for a while.
As the Italian government announced the area around Milan in Lombardy would be in lock down, thousands of people ‘scappata’, escaped, or fled…great word.
They ran for trains, causing chaos at Milan Central Station. They jumped in their cars and headed south. Many came down to the Versilia Coast and the nearby ski fields of Abetone. The slopes were crowded. So much for staying one metre apart.
This caused a ‘coda’, another delightful Italian word which means tail, or, in this case, a traffic jam lasting hours at the autostrada pay station in Pisa.
The upside is that the coastal towns had a boom weekend. The downside is that Tuscany, Lucca province, including the Garfagnana, where our house is, are now coming close to being locked down. If the escaping people have helped to spread the virus it may happen.
I am happily sitting in my mountain house. I have minimal contact with anyone. I went down the mountain briefly today to get supplies and now I will stay at home and hope it all calms down soon.
It is no trial to be at our lovely mountain house. Here is the evening sky a couple of nights ago.
If the sun comes out tomorrow I will have a happy day in the garden. Filippo has pruned most of the lavender and the enormous fig tree in front of the house. The lavender that was struggling under the chestnut trees has been replaced with hydrangeas and we have planted a few new things…life goes on.