We awake to deer on the side of the mountain and the church bells ringing. The continuity of time here gives you the feeling of being apart of history. We are up early to go to the post office to buy an envelope full of papers that we have to fill out for our visa. We have to do this and get it sent off to the Questura (immigration) within 8 days upon arrival. We happily go off with our envelopes thinking how easy this will be. Little did we know. We decide to fill it out that evening as the post office here closes at 1 pm so we have time up our sleeves. But first, something else important to do.
I am here on a mission, to redecorate our apartment that hasn't been renovated in 30 or more years. It is full of my late sister-in-laws objects that she possibly couldn't fit into her apartment. She was a hoarder. On the day I arrived, I started to pack up some of the strange Balinese masks and paintings, Murano glass cats that have decorated the apartment ever since I first came here. Today we decide to go to Cortina, a classy ski town up in the mountains with a beautiful department store where I'm hoping to get some items for the reno. We start with a brioche and macchiato of course and then I look, I buy, I'm given discounts on everything which alleviates my guilt of buying beautiful linens.
That afternoon, I try unsuccessfully to complete the paperwork which is all in Italian and realise I need the help of my late husband's friend. He knows everything, he likes to improve his English by speaking to me and he knows literally everyone who can help with any issue. Armed with the huge envelope I head down to his shop and as soon as he sees me he says: Let's go for a coffee (or a thick hot chocolate that's flavoured with different aromas as I have today - Amaretto with amaretto biscuit crumbs) or gelato or after the magical hour of 7 pm - a Spritz (the only time apart from around midday that you can consume Spritz according to Italians). We fill it out with difficulty, even he scratches his head.
Next morning, we head to the post office and she says it's not right, we have to go across the road to some random woman called Carmen who will help us. Also did we get the $25 stamps from the tobacco shop to put on the paperwork and our photos and copies of our visas from Australia and passport? No, we didn't. We head up the road to the tobacco shop which happens to also be the photo shop and discover that we're related to the owner, her mother and a whole host of family we were only vaguely aware of. We then go to Carmen, she and her colleague only are open in the afternoon but she takes pity on us and we make our way into their smoke filled office and she prints out notes for us, tells us we have to go to the Questura, not the post office. We don't believe her. We try one more time at the post office. We need to know the price of the lodgement she tells us. We leave, knowing that we have to take this into our own hands. We check with a friend who's just arrived and done the same thing with the same problems. We write what she writes. We decide to go the post office in a bigger town as obviously at this post office, they have no idea.
Next morning, we pray for a miracle. We drive an hour away in the pouring rain on a winding mountain road where everyone is doing 10-20 kms over the speed limit. In the end, I do the same.
Our Green passes are needed to get into the Post offices. We head towards a woman with hope in our hearts. She looks, she shakes her head. There are things we haven't filled out, we need to make an appointment with someone to check. The daughter speaks in Italian and says we've been there, done that and suddenly, the woman helps us fill it out.
We hold our breath as she says you have to photocopy all stamped pages of our passports. She says she can't do it but then suddenly off she goes to do it. She tells me there are too many pages for her to do in my passport...but then she does it. She asks for our credit cards....we barely breathe as she puts them through. Then suddenly we have an appointment for further action at the Questura. Our relief is palpable. We almost dance out of there. Steps 1 and 2 completed, we go for another brioche and macchiato as a Spritz would be frowned upon at 10.30 in the morning.
On the way home, we see the famous Tre Cime of Lavareddo, (the world famous UNESCO site that this area is famous for) in crochet form! Love it!
Comentarios