I continue to make small inroads in my quest to become Italian.
This morning, I signed contracts to have electricity and gas turned on at the apartment. Because I don't have a bank account yet, I am supposed to print the emailed bill and bring it somewhere to pay, I forget where. I have to Whatsapp the representative (whom Alessio kindly brought to his office this morning so that I could sign the contracts) about having the water turned on, and she will then contact the water people -- no idea why it must be done this way -- and I will ask her for this information then.
He is also going to help me get the trash collection set up.
I told him I would bring referrals, but now that Meloni's government has changed the citizenship law, fewer people want to move here, so I guess I will buy him something. No idea what. His girlfriend called when I was in the office yesterday, so maybe a gift certificate to a nice restaurant in Orvieto?
If anyone reading this *does* want to emigrate to Italy, let me know, and I will connect you. He is really great.
I ran into Leslie, the expat from New York who introduced me to Alessio and Paola, my citizenship contact, and also to the geometra, Valerio, and I didn't even recognize her as I am battling heat exhaustion and extreme confusion simultaneously. We chatted for a few minutes, I have no idea about what. She has been an amazing resource for me, and everyone she recommends seems to be in awe of her.
"You should have Leslie choose the appliances for you," Valerio told me yesterday. "She has great design sense."
"Perhaps we can hire Leslie to translate at the closing," Alessio said to me last year.
(We couldn't because she is not an "official translator").
I met Valerio last evening, signed some paperwork required by the comune, and will know in about 10 business days whether I can go through the outer wall into my terrace. The rest of the work is pretty basic, he says, but because distant homes overlook my terrace from the side, I may not be allowed to change the outside of the building.
I bought a tape measure from the "Chinese shop," which sells a depressing array of cheap goods busily off-gassing on the shelves, and will go back to the apartment tomorrow to measure everything and start prioritizing the options we discussed during our meeting. I also need to take the bus to Ponterio, the town at the bottom of the hill, to get an Italian sim card and order a mattress. I'm taking a cab down, fuck it. I'll figure out the local bus schedule later.
Lastly, it appears that I will have to go to the Questura (regional police headquarters) in Perugia to have my passport stamped in Italy before I can submit my residency application. I'm not 100% sure this is necessary, but Paola says it is, and they are driving me there on Thursday, so what the hell.
There is no pet store in Todi, and no good dog food in the grocery store, so I guess I will be cooking for Astro. It's probably better for him now that he is older anyhow.