Woke up to a gloomy rain-soaked Sunday morning. After a breakfast of porridge and toast (some rituals must be upheld) we took Daisy for a walk. Since we cut her hair the weather has deteriorated and temperatures fallen, so she wore her coat. By the time we got back home, patches of blue sky had appeared and the clear air gave wonderful views over the valley to Monte Cetona.
We found the details for a furniture shop and it is near a shopping centre that our friend P had recommended so we thought we’d kill two birds with one stone and see just how good it is. We stopped in nearby Foiano for a bite to eat. There was a bakery open in town and so I went in to pick up a loaf. The grandson of the proprietor must have seen our car pull up as when I went in I was greeted with ‘Good Morning’. I asked him how old he was and if he studied English at school. He told me he was eight years old and asked me my name and Daisy’s name and he did really well and was enthusiastic at showing off his skills. Grandparents were broadly smiling and I hope his enthusiasm doesn’t fade into the embarrassment of even trying to speak a foreign language, as he gets older.
After lunch in a local little restaurant/bar we headed off to the Valdichiana Outlet Village which is Umbria’s version of Clark’s Shopping Village for those local to Somerset. Daisy is allowed in too which was nice and quite an experience for her to go into stores and be made a fuss of by everyone. In one posh bedding store called Bassetti we came across a very posh dog bed which was in the sale. Shame they didn’t do matching bed linen for the owners. Daisy has given it her seal of approval by sitting in it and we wait to see if she prefers it to the sofa! I spotted a woman with two teeny dogs, the size of pencil sharpeners, approaching a dress store. She stopped outside, bent down and both dogs jumped into her handbag and she then she went into the shop.
Arrived at the furniture shop in pouring rain by about 5 o’clock. They have the strangest opening hours sometimes. The furniture shop opened at 3pm and shut at 8pm. The outlet shops were open all day, which is quite unusual as Sunday shopping is not that common in towns, only in large out of town centres. I am still finding it hard to remember that shops shut at 12:30 and re-open at 3pm. You can bet that you need something crucial for lunch at 12:35! We are a bit luckier as one of our supermarkets remains open all day on Fridays and Saturdays.
This furniture shop had a really fabulous display of room sets with not only great furniture but also lighting and accessories. You always have to ask the prices as nothing is ever displayed and there always seems to be a deal to be done or a discount taken off. It is such hard work and Jamie was definitely losing the will to live when presented with a trolley full of possible fabrics and leathers from which to choose for a particular make of sofa. Each covering then had its own price code etc etc. Where is John Lewis or DFS when you need them?
Sunflowers and Saffron 