We spent a lot of time, effort and angst finding our home in Italy. We were quite forensic in our search criteria, demanding a gorgeous view, with neighbours (but invisible ones), no further than an hour from Rome, less than 500 metres above sea level, with easy access to trains, motorways, shops and doctors etc etc. One thing that we didn’t consider, however, was access to friends, and to a social life. We hoped to make a few Italian friends, but assumed that, apart from occasional visitors from Rome and from home, we’d be alone most of the time. Wrong. … Continue reading An Absence of Loneliness