under another sun

The alarm on Lorraine's phone got us up early this morning, and Lorraine volunteered to drive us to meet our guide for the guided tour of ancient and modern Noto. We were to meet him in Noto Antica, the remains of a hilltop walled town destroyed by devastating earthquake in 1693. Getting there proved an adventure, particularly for Lorraine. Guided by google, we were taken down a road that became narrower, and when we began driving across shallow rivers flowing across the road, alarm bells began to ring. We began climbing up the mountain in our little hired Renault Clio, on untracked roads of white rubble, some of which, to Lorraine's horror, had sheer drops on one side. At one point, as the track ahead proved almost impassable, we stopped. Romy ran off and found two women ahead, and discovered the road improved a little. With just Lorraine in the car, we got over the bad patch, and then progressed up to the top of the hill. We had reached the ancient ruined town by the donkey r...

Another day of honest labour. Although slightly less arduous today. Lorraine and I got up early, and drove off to Burgess Hill where we recycled bags of soil, and then went to Dorton reclaim, reclamation yard by the station festooned with various bits of architectural salvage. A fascinating place. Lorraine and I bought large pieces of broken slabs there to use in the great garden design. Amazing photos to be taken there, if you weren't on a mission. Then home again, and carried the slabs down into the garden. Then the last of the black bags of soil off to the recycling by the racecourse, and then down to Lidl to do some shopping. It is definitely cheaper there, and there are things you can buy that aren't in sainsbury's. Then home, a feed, and then the complex business of laying the pieces on the membrane with sand under them, in preparation to be surrounded by a river of cobbles and pebbles. This done, tired at the end of the day, we simply sat on our patio and drank...