Today I Walked to the Mailbox: Quarantine Day 3,427

Okay - so I exaggerate just a bit.  It isn’t really day 3,427 of the quarantine lockdown here in Lucca.  But some days it sure feels as though it is.  

The days take on a sameness, which feels a bit like living in the film “Groundhog Day” (and who would have thought that possible at the beginning of my exciting Italian adventure?). It feels especially long because the tentative end date has just been pushed out again, this time from April 15 to the new tentative date of May 3. There is logic to this new date - the curve of disease cases has flattened but not quite enough to return to normal and there is fear that the April holidays will encourage too many big gatherings. These April events include Easter and the day after, which is also a national holiday, the Sunday after Easter when the celebration of Lucca’s liberation from Pisa takes place with all of its Medieval pageantry, Liberation Day on the 25th, marking the end of Nazi occupation in Italy, and right on to the first of May, which is another national holiday.  So, waiting until May 3 to begin to loosen the restrictions makes sense.   

Last year crowds gathered to celebrate the liberation of Lucca from Pisa in the 1300s. No such gatherings will take place this year.

The people I know are mostly in good spirits here and have taken to heart the two Italian sayings: Io Resto a Casa (I Stay at Home) and Andrà Tutto Bene (It Will All be OK). And yet, we are getting restless with days that center around mundane tasks masquerading as big outings - taking the trash out, going to the laundromat, grocery shopping. Worse, the days seem to go from “what can I have for breakfast” to “is it time for a coffee” to “oh good, it’s time for lunch” to “hey, is it too early for a cocktail” to “what’s for dinner” and, worst of all to “oh my gosh I’m out of cookies.”  This focus on food (a natural side effect of combined anxiety, sadness, and inability to leave the house I’m told) is worse due to our marked decrease in outdoor activity and exercise. One can only walk circles in the house and hoist cans of tomatoes as ersatz weights so many times a day. We live in fear of gaining the Covid 15 (or should that be the Covid 19?).

A pretty terrace above old brick walls, out by my mailbox

Today, because I’m expecting a package, I made an excursion to my mailbox. There are two ways for me to get to the mailbox. I can go through the lobby of my building, down a hallway, out the room where the bikes are stored and then out the portone (big door) to the back of the building where the boxes are. This requires three door keys and a flashlight for the dark part of a hallway.  Or, I can go out my front door, walk half a block down my pretty street, turn up a tiny covered alley (top photo), and through a pretty outdoor space to the back of my building. Option 2 is much more inviting!    

The outdoor space behind my building is a hidden gem. It isn’t an official piazza and it has neither a name nor a designation on my map. But, like so many hidden corners here in Lucca, it is a fascinating and charming space. 

Quintessentially Lucca, the small courtyard behind my building

There are balconies and large terraces to be seen, beautiful brick work, pretty and neatly tended front doors, graceful street lights, and mysterious old wooden doors. 

What’s behind these old doors ? I keep thinking it would be a good spot for a table, some chairs, and an outdoor reading space. I don’t think my condo association would go for that idea though.

I enter through the small alley with an arched roof, at the other end of the space and just around a bend is the back of a little church (now used as an exhibit gallery). 

Santa Giulia Church, from the back. This church sits across from the Boccherini Institute and is now used as an exhibit space.

Take a few steps further (permitted if I’m heading to the grocery story after checking the mail) and you get to two of my favorite views in Lucca - the Piazza Suffragio in front of the Boccherini institute to the right and the Vicolo dell’Altopascio to the left.  All this just steps from my apartment’s mailbox.  

Vicolo dell”Altopascio

I might still be in lockdown here, but most days I’ll make at least one trip out to check my mail. With scenes like this, the quarantine is a bit less difficult.

Wherever you are during this challenging time, I hope you are safe and hopeful. And I would love to see you here in Italy when the day comes that we can all travel once again. -post by Joanne

Looking down onto the Piazza Suffragio in front of the Boccherini Institue

Italian Tax Codes and Back Roads

There are many steps along the road to becoming Italian, or at least as Italian as “stranieri” (foreigners) can be. For me, one of the first “ah, now I really belong here” moments was when I received my codice fiscale, or tax code. That magic string of letters and numbers, uniquely mine, signified my existence here in Italy. Surely if one has a tax number he or she must be Italian, right?

The tax code is useful for longer term apartment rentals (technically required for rentals of more than 30 days, though not all landlords asked for mine). It’s an absolute necessity if signing an extended contract (one year or the more standard four-year contract) and for setting up bank and utility accounts. So, if planning a long stay in Italy, obtaining a codice fiscale is high on your to-do list.

One of the joys of wandering is finding views like this, as seen from Montecarlo.

There are two ways to obtain the codice fiscale. One is through the Italian consulate in your home country.  The other is to apply for one during a stay in Italy, in the area where you plan to reside.  In Lucca that means a trip to the nearby town of Guamo, about 15 minutes away by car.  I recently went with my co-blogger to Guamo to apply for her codice fiscale. It was an easy process, taking about 30 minutes tops (we arrived right as the office opened to avoid a wait). Be prepared to speak in Italiano.

A monument on the campanile of the Badia (Monastery) di San Salvatore in Vorno

Because we were in and out of the office so quickly, we decided to spend the rest of the day wandering along back roads and ending up .... well .... wherever. Our first stop was in the small village of Vorno. This is a lovely place, full of stone walls, trellises, grape vines, and well-tended villas all set amid beautiful hills and views of distant mountains. We stopped for prima colazione (breakfast Italian style, cappuccino and a sweet) and then explored on foot, ending with a stop at the local church with its interesting campanile (bell tower) and historical monument. Carlo Piaggia, intrepid explorer (his bust is pictured above), sounds like my kind of guy!

The fortezza (fortress) in Montecarlo, Italy

Where to go next?  Our trip through the back roads led us to the small town of Montecarlo, famous for wines and an ancient fortress. 

Montecarlo, Italy

The town was quiet, tourist season still a few weeks away. The uncrowded streets were fun to wander and I was most intrigued by the many interesting doors and windows. Fun to imagine who has passed by them and what lies within.

Montecarlo

What a joy to have an unstructured day to wander the back roads in this part of Tuscany! -Post by JMB

Montecarlo

A Home in Lucca

Back in September I returned to Italy with a big question on my mind. Did I want to move to Lucca, making it my home for the foreseeable future, or did I want to continue to maintain a home base in the U.S., and remain a part-time visitor to Lucca? Not an easy decision - there are trade-offs and compromises either way (but then that’s life, right?). 

I heard from several readers after that post. Some offered encouragement and others asked me to please share my final decision, as well as some of the details involved in searching for an apartment and obtaining residency. I get the feeling that many of us “of a certain age” are day dreaming about making this type of life change. 

The front door to my new apartment in Lucca

Key to my decision was finding a reasonably priced and suitable apartment. Luckily, I have worked over several years with Debora del Sonno of Lucca Holiday Homes and she very patiently searched available apartments and showed me a number of options. 

A terrace was high on my priority list and this small one is perfect! (photo from Lucca Holiday Homes website)

The entry has 38 steps - good exercise! (photo from Lucca Holiday Homes website)

Just as when looking for a home in the USA, it is important to remember to set priorities but also to stay flexible and be prepared to compromise. That was particularly important for me to remember when the owners of my first-choice apartment decided they didn’t want a long-term tenant after all and so my search had to begin anew. The apartment I eventually chose met my big priorities – central location, a terrace, nicely furnished.  The compromise was the number of steps up to the apartment (38). I also increased my budget a bit to afford a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment with loads of Italian charm. 

I did find an option for a much smaller and less expensive apartment, but it had no outdoor space or views. To make a final decision I had to balance budget, amenities, and space. The apartment I chose has slanted old wood ceilings, a view of the Torre Guinigi from the terrace, and one of the clock tower and Campanile of San Michele from the bedroom - those views were pretty seductive and definitely influenced my choice.

The clock tower and the bell tower of the church of San Michele as seen through a small bedroom window

I was able to live with the decision for several days before meeting with my new landlords to sign the contract. This was a good test of my confidence in the decision to make this move. It also gave me a chance to doublecheck my finances and make sure my budget was realistic. In the end, I signed on the dotted line without hesitation and started planning my move. There were a couple of complications, mostly related to the process of applying for citizenship on my return to Italy (rather than beforehand at an embassy in the U.S.) and whether I needed to first obtain an elective residency visa in the U.S. More on that process in a later post.

Brick and beam ceilings in the mansarda (attic) give the bedrooms a rustic Tuscan feel

Based on my experience, here are a few things to consider when thinking about a long-term rental:

1. I was glad that I had a good agent. Debora provided me with information about the process of long-term rentals, answered my many questions, and also provided a copy of the contract (in Italian and English) well ahead of signing. She promptly registered the contract and provided copies of the signed lease and the registration. Having her help took much of the stress out of the process. It was well worth the agency fee to have her assistance and advice.

2. A common form of rental contract in Italy is the “4+4,” which means the lease is for four years, during which time you can keep the apartment on the initial terms. The four-year term protects the renter (no rent increases, you cannot be forced out of the apartment except for non-payment or not adhering to the terms of the lease) but the renter has the ability to cancel the contract with written notice (usually three months). At the end of the initial four years, the renter has the option for another four-year contract.

3. Budget for significant upfront costs, including an agency fee (of about one month’s rent) and the first two to three months’ (or even more) rent at the time the contract is signed. There is also a security deposit (mine was equal to two months’ rent, refundable at the end of the lease). These costs add up to about six months’ rent and I was glad I had set aside enough funds to cover them. On the plus side, in December when I move in I will have already paid rent for December, January, and February so won’t have another payment due for three months. Even better, I was able to put the upfront costs on a credit card which means I earned a lot of airline points!

4. Most landlords will want rent paid via bank transfer directly into their accounts. Not all U.S. banks will do online bank transfers (in fact, the bank I use in New Mexico would not, insisting that I had to physically come into the local branch to make an international bank transfer - not very practical). It took some time to investigate other banks and other methods of transferring money. TransferWise looks like a good option with low costs to transfer money internationally and good exchange rates from U.S. dollars to euros. I felt I also needed a back-up method, and so also arranged for an account at a bank that will do online transfers, though the cost is higher than TransferWise. The U.S. banks I found that do online transfers include Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and TIAA bank. 

5. Renters in Italy are responsible for utilities (gas, electric, water, trash, internet, TV) as well as everyday small repairs and upkeep (for example, routine boiler checks, a dripping faucet, etc) while the landlord remains responsible for major mechanical repairs. In my case, Debora provided me with the average utility costs for the past 18 months so I could budget appropriately. To keep utility costs reasonable, it’s important to realize that Italians do not heat and cool their homes to the same extent that Americans do. If you like your home at a constant 72 degrees, prepare to pay a lot in utility costs! (Note that the above information is based on my experience and applies to 4+4 rental contracts negotiated through an agency / real estate company.  When renting directly from a landlord or on a shorter term contract, terms and costs will vary.)

With the apartment contract signed, I headed back to New Mexico for one month to finish up some part-time work, make the needed arrangements for a move to Italy, and spend Thanksgiving with my family. But I will spend Christmas in my new apartment - and for the first time I can say that I have truly come home to Lucca.    - post by JMB