To Roscoe’s relief, the shopping trips have yielded some results. To his disgust, what we’ve bought so far hasn’t come from Pescara or Rome where I dragged him to see bathrooms and kitchens, but in most cases, the comfort of our own internet connection!
By chance, we took a wrong turning and ended up at a bathroom shop where a chatty chap called Paolo explained that he had a cheap-ish loo-and-bidet set that are even smaller than the ones we were planning to order. They’re 47cm long, giving us a whole 6cm more room to squeeze into our “cosy” bathroom. Best of all, he had them in stock!
Paolo also told me about agevolazione fiscale, or tax incentives for those in historic centres that were damaged by earthquakes. Nevermind that I personally wasn’t around to lose out in the 1984 earthquake, I’m helping to put things right, so the state wants to help me. All this means I pay 10% sales tax on my loo and bidet rather than Italy’s normal 20%.
I tried this neat trick again with a washing machine which was on offer in the summer sales. Didn’t work. Turns out it’s only for rebuilding the house, not furnishing it. I guess loos must be considered structural...
Meanwhile Ebay wins again with some lovely (I hope) taps and a super-cheap mini sink for the downstairs cloakroom. None of it has arrived yet, so here’s hoping.
If I was impressed with all this bargain hunting, Concenzo the geometra was less so. He rolled his eyes at my confession of having ordered a washing machine. I guess it’s not the easiest thing to shift around while you plaster... Nonetheless, the lads helped me by manouvering it out of the car and carrying it all the way up to the roof terrace (lots of steps!). I would love to say I stood up for women’s equality in this moment, but I decided that looking helpless was more likely to get the job done.
On an unrelated note, Roscoe found a very small baby shrew (possibly) by the front door. It liked hiding inside his glove. Picture above for your enjoyment. I wouldn’t let him take it home, so it has probably fed a cat by now...
Our budget for the works so far:
Previous total EUR 5,354
Mini loo, bidet and loo seat EUR 220
Sink tap EUR 60
Wall tap x 2 EUR 83
"Lavamani" sink (45x35cm) EUR 27
Bosch washing machine EUR 259
TOTAL EUR 6,003
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