FromNowOn's activity

Questions Asked

EasyJet's allocated seating is working out fine for me - without paying for selected seats.  I like to sit towards the back away from the wings but within 6 rows of the rear exit and not too close to the toilets.

Tue, 05/21/2013 - 09:45

Dreadful.Totally unmanageable. 

Fri, 05/17/2013 - 20:15

Well, we've got to drive home either tomorrow, Friday or Saturday, as our ferry sails from Calais on Monday 3rd. After 5 weeks at our apartment a few miles from the Tuscan/Ligurian coast, it's time to leave. Reluctantly.

Wed, 08/29/2012 - 16:44

We arrived at our place in Lunigiana after a slow drive through France and three nights camping. Despite the slow journey we arrived zonked and we haven't been out of our garden since arriving three days ago.

Thu, 07/26/2012 - 14:47

I thought I'd do a post as nobody else seems to be saying much. We're off on our car journey to Italy on Friday morning (for the fourth time).

Sun, 07/15/2012 - 12:34

I have not been able to view the CiaoLunigiana website for a couple of weeks. Does anyone else have the same problem? Whether I type in the web address, or click on a link from google, the same thing happens.

Thu, 07/12/2012 - 17:43

Can somebody please tell me what the brightly coloured drinks are that I see Italians with late afternoon? Bright green, bright pink, blue.I thought it was granita, but I ordered and got a slush puppy.

Sun, 07/01/2012 - 13:40

Well, having just made a posting about living frugally in Italy, I have got in the mood and I am on a roll and there is no stopping me now. This time I want to talk about travelling by car through to Italy.

Thu, 06/28/2012 - 17:40

A terrible thing has happened. I dropped my Kindle down the stairs. It slipped out of its case and and slid to the bottom step and then somersaulted onto the floor where it landed with a crack. It switches on but then gives up and turns off.

Thu, 05/10/2012 - 17:37

I'm sitting at my laptop at the window facing the garden watching the first snowflakes start to come down. We're due a heavy snowfall tonight in Buckinghamshire. There's a blackbird sitting on the garage roof wagging his head around.

Sat, 02/04/2012 - 13:23

Comments posted

Mon, 01/23/2012 - 06:56

Thank you everybody for the suggestions to progress my breadmaking in my Christmas Panasonic bread machine.  I have been making a new type of loaf every day, and can't help cutting each one in half and passing it on to a member of my family to try.  All recipes have come out extremely satisfactorily, with the exception of the Panettoni recipe given in the Panasonic book.  I followed the instructions closely, but the result was nothing like the Italian-made Panetone I have enjoyed.  In fact, I ended up throwing most of it in the bin.  I did not realise how much butter went into making Panettoni - nice, but so unhealthy, just like cake! I have decided to buy a basic bread machine for the apartment in Italy for use when our lovely shop bought Italian bread has dried up and there is no time to run down to the bakery.  Having read the bread machine blog on the old forum, I will remember to take out some dried yeast with me for the store cupboard.

Fri, 01/13/2012 - 08:00

Yes, my machine is Panasonic too.  I use the Italian option and the bread is very good and crisp. (My machine has a crisper crust button). What I like about the bread I buy in Italy is the lovely, crunchy, thick crust, and the lightness of the bread inside.  I suppose I could make the crust of my bread machine bread even more crisp by placing the cooked loaf in the oven to finish off, but that defeats the convenience of having a bread maker.  I suppose what I was wondering about is the kinds of flour that are available in the supermarkets in Italy and how they might produce different texture breads.  Do they vary from the flour types available in the UK?  I have never looked at flour types when shopping in Italy. Here I use wheat strong white, strong brown, wholemeal, granary, and seeded.

Answer to: Don 't give up
Sun, 07/31/2011 - 15:10

Sorry, it was.  Best ignored anyway.  Apparently, my key was not stuck in the lock (my husband says), just it would not engage when turned.  A different key did the trick.

Answer to: Kindle
Mon, 05/09/2011 - 17:31

I purchased my Kindle from Amazon UK and took it with me last time I visted Italy.  We don't have wi-fi in our Italian flat, but the Kindle signed onto the internet using the free Amazon Whispernet over the mobile telephone system.  I found I could access the Amazon bookshop.  I can't remember if I downloaded anything then, but I will be in Italy this week and I will give downloading a try.  If you are worried about an Italian Kindle being different, why not buy it from the Amazon UK bookshop?

Mon, 03/14/2011 - 13:25

http://www.valkarana.com/en/index.htm Loc. Lu Lioni, 07030 Sant'Antonio di Gallura, Sardinia, Italy We stayed in this place when it first opened in 2006.  After reading the recommendations on http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk  the hotel has fulfilled its promise.  A beautiful new hotel set on a hillside overlooking the lake, in a fabulous, very quiet setting, ideal for exploring the island.  If you search around booking sites it seems you can get rooms for £75 per night with b&b for a week's stay - although for their superior chalets with private garden, patio, and lake views, it is considerably more (but worth it). We were amongst the first guests in 2006 and took our pick of the chalets at something like 50 euros per night!  Lucky us!    

Sat, 02/19/2011 - 08:37

Prosecco for me every time - and all those tasty bits and pieces they present with it too!

Sat, 01/29/2011 - 16:56

We have got to get around to booking our Dover/Calais/Dover ferry crossings for August, so I had a look at the P&O site and their offer for Spirit of Britain you refer to. Between my first search a couple of hours ago and my second search just now, the site has changed, and the offer now applies up until the end of March only.   Earlier today the site had said 40,000 any-time crossings were on offer, so I assume that quota has now been used up. This new ship is huge.  I hope the queuing system works efficiently - and that roads from the ports don't get clogged with the drive-off traffic.

Fri, 12/03/2010 - 08:39

http://ciaolunigiana.com/2010/12/focus/

When we bought our property in Lunigiana a while ago, the Italian estate agent told us not to be apprehensive of the way Italian agents work; she said it is some of the English agents in the area we need to be wary of.  At the time we didn't know who she might be referring to although we had heard odd rumours ..... now we know!

Answer to: Hot or Wot !!?
Mon, 07/19/2010 - 10:56

Well I had good luck both ways.  I enjoyed the hot weather in Italy last week sitting in my garden there, whilst in England, the rain refreshed my hanging baskets and brought the sunflowers along a treat!  Only problem was that my English lawn flourished a bit too much and now needs a good mowing.

Answer to: New to the forum
Wed, 07/07/2010 - 09:06

Take some sachets of PathClear too, it helps to keep down the weeds in the important areas where you want to sit or relax.  PathClear equivalent is expensive in Italy we found.