Everything went swimmingly last night, except for the fact that it all took an incredibly long time.
We met with our agent, Marcella, and the seller at the apartment at 5 pm. The seller showed us how things worked, where things were and we were able to see that everything was as promised. The place was very clean which pleased me no end.
At 6 pm we went to the Notaio's office. It was the same one we used last year when we sold our house. The notaio acts like a cross between an escrow office and an attorney. It is his job to see that all the i's are dotted and t's crossed. Everyone involved in the transaction sits down together and the contract is read and amended right then and there. We had the geometra (another role specific to Italy--it is his job to see that all the technical and legal data is the same as is registered at the land use office), our real estate agent, the seller, our interpreter Dom and I plus the notaio. We started about 7 pm and finished at 9 pm. At the end we were all just sitting around chatting (mostly the notaio and the seller (an architect) about architecture and land use in Lucca) and most of us were quite antsy to get going.
After we left the notaio's office it was too late to go back to the apartment so we headed off for dinner. We went to La Terrazza, one of our favorites, and ran into two sets of people we know. It was a good, enjoyable dinner but we finally made it home just after 11 pm.
This morning we were up early and over here for a quick stop. Then we went to Marcella's office and she helped us transfer the utility bills to our name. Hopefully it will all work as promised.
After that we returned to the apartment where we made a list of things we needed and went off to the home improvement store. We bought lights and some plumbing supplies (one of the toilets is not working quite right) and came back to the apartment for lunch. I found some spots that needed to be wiped out (under sinks and on some shelves) and took down the horrible trellis with fake ivy on the patio. We have to get do some more pigeon proofing of the patio tomorrow among a myriad other things.
In a short while, Mary and Orlando are coming by to be our first guests. They are loaning us a ladder so tomorrow will be a light installation day. After that we still need more lights and there are a few other repairs to undertake. The exciting event will be Monday when the movers come.
Tomorrow I will post some pictures. I do not have the cable to download from the camera with me today. Our internet connection works a lot better here in Capannori.
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