A MASTER OF RED TAPE

Meet Danilo Evangelisti. The name rolls right off the tongue in a musical manner, doesn't it? He is a geometra', a profession I'd not heard about before moving to Italy. A gemoetra' is part architect, part surveyor but most of all, a dealer in red tape. They have to know all of the planning laws, the constant changes in these laws and the ways around them. Danilo has seen us through many a planning permission pickle but one of the best is about our road.

We carved a road to our house out of a donkey cart path. It was a dirt road, narrow with steep inclines and hairy drops down ravines over the sides. Rain made ruts in it and in dry weather a single car created a dust storm that permeated the house and ruined any laundry hanging on the line. People would arrive and say, "La sua strada e' brutta,"Your road is ugly. There was no denying it.

We applied for planning permission to pave it. Permission was granted. Our builder was at it immediately. The iron grids went down, a cement mixer churned incessantly. In 30 days we had a paved road. We knew that Rome had 30 days to object and to deny permission but what did Rome care about a little road in the boondocks?

Exactly on the 30th day a letter from Rome arrived. "We have permission for the road," my husband said. I looked at the letter and struggled with the officialese. "No," I said, "we do not have permission. It has been denied."

Our car had illegal French license plates at the time, but that's another story. So there we were, driving our illegal car up and down our illegal road. What to do?

Danilo said if we built a gate, he would apply for new planning permission for a road with a gate. I did not think much of the idea and had visions of jack hammers tearing up the concrete. But apparently both the local council and Rome thought a cement road with a gate was perfectly all right. I can only think that a gated road is somehow important whereas one without a gate is a crime against nature.

When I took this photograph, Danilo asked why I wanted his picture inasmuch as he was not beautifiul.

"It is better," I said, "that you do not know." :-)