Grey skies in Biella

We arrive in Biella and set aside 2-3 days to get things organized in the apartment, make sure the kids have somewhere to go to school and kindergarten, and check up on the progress of our still-absent permesso di soggiorno.

Our apartment, the pretty pink palace

We move our bags into the apartment in about half an hour and the place is just like we remembered, great warm colors, cosy bedrooms, a big fireplace in the centre of the loungeroom, and a big, new kitchen (oh yeah!)...luckily the lights come on and we have running water, although the first gushes from the taps surprise us with a slow trickle of yellowy water. No hot water or gas for the stove, but we're pretty happy and so far so good, the boys are running around, and even though the apartment is small by Australian standards, the boys test out the cat-swingability and it passes the test. A strict 'no jumping on the bed' rule gets enforced within the first 5 minutes, quickly followed by 'no climbing over the balcony or onto the nearby roof'. Our kitchen balcony is overlooked by about 4 buildings so no cooking in undies for Shano.

Without pots, pans, cutlery and gas, we head out to grab a bite to eat and I'm relieved to find a Chinese takeaway restaurant nearby, hooray, no Italian for us tonight! Unfortunately the brusque order taker tells us in Italian with a Chinese accent (I still find this hard to get used to), that there is no chicken and sweet corn soup...disappointed! We get by on fried rice, duck and some 'special fish' soup (read fish stock with corn flour and crab sticks - ewwww) that makes its way straight into the bin.

On first entry, Biella doesn't really do a lot for the eyes, it's a small town that made its fortune by becoming one of the textile/wool/cashmere powerhouses in Italy. If the number of 'For Sale' or 'For Rent' signs are anything to go by, it has struggled its way through the GFC and come out the other side negatively affected. We've been told that the Biellese (people from Biella) tend to be quite closed and don't open up to strangers that easily.  It could be the grey sky on our first few days, but I get that impression too. Walking into the centre changes my mind a bit - the old centre is beautiful, with stylish Italians doing their walk in their new Autumn clothes, it's the old cliche that I remember from when we were in Italy last time.

I'm feeling restless and a bit stressed and the only contributing factors might be that the apartment is dusty which brings on my hayfever, the kids are restless and have no warm clothes, water pressure in the shower is woeful (first world problem I know, but who doesn't love a good shower?! )my clothes are getting pretty damn tight from living the good life (vowing to avoid alcohol when we get back from France) so I'm feeling a bit yuck and I have no warm clothes either because they are still making their way over to Italy in a box (I must check on that box's progress to make sure it hasn't been lost). Regardless of my malaise, Shane is content and very excited about being in Biella (maybe a little bit anxy but not much). I am sure you all feel really sorry for me, so I'll stop complaining :)

Shane's idea of happiness, bloody mary, connectivity and chippies

Charlie's school is all organized and he is starting on Thursday the 13th Sept. We get Sam into the nearby kinder which was actually full, only because the last child on the list who's mother the director had tried to contact hadn't answered her phone (lucky for us, not so great for her). Sam starts on the Wednesday 12th and seems to like the vibe of the place when we knock on the door for information, so it all seems like it's coming together. I speak to the Steiner kinder as well who are lovely, and I'd really like Sam to go there, but at 3000 euro for the year compared to nothing, it's a hard deal to sell in, and once I see how happy Sam is at the local kinder running around and exploring the space, it's a done deal.

Apartment - Check
School - Check
Kinder - Check
Car - hmmmm.......Small obstacle - still no permesso di soggiorno - after our appointment at the Questura on 19th July, we were told I would receive an SMS in a month when the permesso was ready. The phone has been silent in that regard and so we are still unable to buy a car (need a permesso to buy a car). The one good thing about this is that I can ride the clutch as much as I like in the rental car and Shane doesn't mind at all :)


We decide to head off to France to stay at mum and dad's villa in Grasse without checking in at the Questura - best to leave this until we get back next week.