Livorno Man's Country Retreat

Note there are two doors, one old, one new. Only the new one is in use as a habitation. The other half belongs to.....the old priest, Don Felice. Who else?

The house is so small that the sofa bed downstairs fills the entire room when pulled out. The balcony, behind the weathered boards, is the largest space and is a summer dining room. Trailing geraniums will tumble out of the troughs quite soon.

There are no windows, only the drying vents which are now backed by glass.

We call the owner Livorno Man because that's where he lives and works. He is out every weekend, always with his dog -- and the dog always with a ball clenched in his teeth -- and with his wife, weather permitting.

Across the road and down a steeply terraced hillside, he has about 60 olive trees, which he tends faithfully, and now he is building a pathway to them. In passing I can see that a new fruit tree has been planted and a few square metres cleared for planting. My guess is tomatoes.

He has no place to park his car but uses a bit of our land just out of picture behind the olive tree. To show his appreciation, he brings us panetone and biscotti from time to time.

We do not know if this reconstruction is legal or illegal but everything he has done is in sympathy with the sheds surrounding his plus which, a kind of neighbourhood omerta exists. We do not rat on each other.

The shed to the right, out of picture, is owned by a third person and is still used to store olive nets and tools. The old door to this shed can be seen by clicking :
http://twitpic.com/1azzf8
HERE