This is a most entertaining and well written
book that tells it as it really is, the life
of rural Italians is beset with complications
yet still an experience for retired noted
Australian journalist, Geoffrey Luck and his
wife, Audrey.
With good humour, persistence,and, yes,
luck, they find an abandoned farmhouse
in Umbria, overlooking Lake Trasimeno,
renovate it, plant olives,produce their own
oil, and travel to some out-of-the way places.
Geoffrey says Italy is the "simplest country in which to live a complicated life and the most complicated country to live a simple life".
My favourite chapter is "Justice, Fascism and Wine" and with considerable insight, Geoffrey
takes us on a history lesson concerning
Mussolini and his home-town burial.
This book will leave you thinking more deeply
about what is involved in living in another
culture, without the rose-tinted spectacles,
but with sensitivity, humour, and love.
Highly recommended, and surely Geoffrey's
dedication of his book to his wife, Audrey,
is to one who is a a true companion in life.
