Italian Critters, Doom & Gloom
Hi all...
Another question.
As we are arriving at the borgo at about 20:00 or 21:00, we were going to have a small supply of groceries waiting for us at the apartment, so that we'd be covered for a snack upon arrival and then breakfast the following day. However, we've just been told that the surcharge for this is E30.
My first instinct was to yell, "highway robbery!" -- but then, I don't know how it's done for holiday rentals in Italy. Is this the usual rate? I believe the normal surcharge near us is E10-15 for a small supply of groceries at the gite upon a guest's arrival. But even if E30 is typical, the bride and groom have rented the entire borgo for the wedding (around 40 people; a 7-bedroom villa and 7 apartments), so some volume discount ought to be included, I say. At E30 per grocery order, the surcharges will really add up.
Anyway, I probably won't be ordering groceries this way now. So my question is -- are any stores open on Saturday evening or Sunday morning? I would expect them to be closed. We're probably taking a train and then taxi to the villa instead of driving from the airport (we're flying into Bologna, and the borgo is about 15 minutes outside of Florence), or we'd stop at a roadside station and get what we needed there. A large fraction of the wedding party is arriving into Milan and has chartered a bus; we were thinking of asking someone on the bus to pick up extra groceries for us.
If it were you, what would you do?
Thanks.
Another question.
As we are arriving at the borgo at about 20:00 or 21:00, we were going to have a small supply of groceries waiting for us at the apartment, so that we'd be covered for a snack upon arrival and then breakfast the following day. However, we've just been told that the surcharge for this is E30.
My first instinct was to yell, "highway robbery!" -- but then, I don't know how it's done for holiday rentals in Italy. Is this the usual rate? I believe the normal surcharge near us is E10-15 for a small supply of groceries at the gite upon a guest's arrival. But even if E30 is typical, the bride and groom have rented the entire borgo for the wedding (around 40 people; a 7-bedroom villa and 7 apartments), so some volume discount ought to be included, I say. At E30 per grocery order, the surcharges will really add up.
Anyway, I probably won't be ordering groceries this way now. So my question is -- are any stores open on Saturday evening or Sunday morning? I would expect them to be closed. We're probably taking a train and then taxi to the villa instead of driving from the airport (we're flying into Bologna, and the borgo is about 15 minutes outside of Florence), or we'd stop at a roadside station and get what we needed there. A large fraction of the wedding party is arriving into Milan and has chartered a bus; we were thinking of asking someone on the bus to pick up extra groceries for us.
If it were you, what would you do?
Thanks.
Brooke
Teehee -- you have such a great attitude!
Don't worry, I will leave all my travel stress at home.
Actually, it's really weird for me to be planning any trip. My mother was a flight attendant (she retired a couple of years ago), so we were always flying stand-by off to exotic places and rarely planned things like rental cars and hotels. It just wasn't possible. So I'm completely used to doing everything spontaneously!
Don't worry, I will leave all my travel stress at home.
Actually, it's really weird for me to be planning any trip. My mother was a flight attendant (she retired a couple of years ago), so we were always flying stand-by off to exotic places and rarely planned things like rental cars and hotels. It just wasn't possible. So I'm completely used to doing everything spontaneously!
Brooke
Brooke,
I know what I wouldn't do. If you "stop at a roadside station" for food in Italy you'll be spending your 30euros surcharge without the quality or variety of a village shop or supermarket.
Be prepared for higher prices than in France. The surcharge might represent 2 hours' driving/shopping/queuing/loading/driving/delivery time @ 15euros an hour. High, but not outrageous.
Have breakfast in a cafe: you'll never make a capucino like that yourself & there will be something interesting to eat (litlle rice cakes, straight out of the oven, are a speciality in the area). I know, too, what I would do if I arrived near Bologna (the gasronomic capital of Italy): eat dinner in a restaurant. Not to do so would be criminal. This is not Rome, not Pisa, not Florence ........ this is seriously good food.
Train/taxi sounds right.
Anyway, have a great time: weddings in Italy are a lot of fun. A lot less formal than in France, too.
I know what I wouldn't do. If you "stop at a roadside station" for food in Italy you'll be spending your 30euros surcharge without the quality or variety of a village shop or supermarket.
Be prepared for higher prices than in France. The surcharge might represent 2 hours' driving/shopping/queuing/loading/driving/delivery time @ 15euros an hour. High, but not outrageous.
Have breakfast in a cafe: you'll never make a capucino like that yourself & there will be something interesting to eat (litlle rice cakes, straight out of the oven, are a speciality in the area). I know, too, what I would do if I arrived near Bologna (the gasronomic capital of Italy): eat dinner in a restaurant. Not to do so would be criminal. This is not Rome, not Pisa, not Florence ........ this is seriously good food.
Train/taxi sounds right.
Anyway, have a great time: weddings in Italy are a lot of fun. A lot less formal than in France, too.
Best,
Alexia.
Alexia.
Brooke - I'm with Alexia on this one. The first thing I ever used to do on arrival was to stop for a cappucino!
Opening times for shops can be a pain and take some getting used to. Generally supermarkets are open on Saturday evenings (but unless it is in a big town, will probably close by 8pm). Our supermarket is open on a Sunday from 10am to 8pm, but many shut for lunch from 12ish to 3.30/4ish (get used to 'ish' time in Italy!)
Maybe your hosts could give you some guidance.
Weddings in Italy are wonderfully informal - hats are only worn at top society weddings (much to my disappointment!), and I wouldn't be surprised to see guests dressed in anything from jeans to very smart.
Have a wonderful time - when do you go?
Opening times for shops can be a pain and take some getting used to. Generally supermarkets are open on Saturday evenings (but unless it is in a big town, will probably close by 8pm). Our supermarket is open on a Sunday from 10am to 8pm, but many shut for lunch from 12ish to 3.30/4ish (get used to 'ish' time in Italy!)
Maybe your hosts could give you some guidance.
Weddings in Italy are wonderfully informal - hats are only worn at top society weddings (much to my disappointment!), and I wouldn't be surprised to see guests dressed in anything from jeans to very smart.
Have a wonderful time - when do you go?
We're leaving on 9 September and we'll be there for a week.
Though the wedding is in Italy, we're all Americans, so it'll be a standard American wedding -- not horribly formal, but the bride was quite upset that our bridesmaid gowns were delivered to us in tea length, not full length. Her wedding dress is like a ball gown -- very puffy, with a huge train. So it'll probably be a formal ceremony and then just a "have a good time" evening!
Alexia, thank you for the fantastic idea of eating and shopping in Bologna before we set out to leave. I'm sure we'll be hungry and I doubt an autogrill will have all the groceries we want. I think that's exactly what we'll do... provided that I can sleep on the plane! Otherwise I know I'll just want to get to the borgo and fall into bed.
I usually have a horrible time sleeping on planes; I don't feel tired, and when I finally do doze off, I wake up less than an hour later, feeling parched. Recently I think I've developed a solution, though -- on my last flight I used a linen napkin and soaked it with water, then draped it over my face and used an eye cover to keep it in place. I could breathe fine and the cloth got dehydrated, not me! I slept for hours. I think I'll be trying that again. It looks utterly ridiculous, but it really helped with my usual jet lag.
Though the wedding is in Italy, we're all Americans, so it'll be a standard American wedding -- not horribly formal, but the bride was quite upset that our bridesmaid gowns were delivered to us in tea length, not full length. Her wedding dress is like a ball gown -- very puffy, with a huge train. So it'll probably be a formal ceremony and then just a "have a good time" evening!
Alexia, thank you for the fantastic idea of eating and shopping in Bologna before we set out to leave. I'm sure we'll be hungry and I doubt an autogrill will have all the groceries we want. I think that's exactly what we'll do... provided that I can sleep on the plane! Otherwise I know I'll just want to get to the borgo and fall into bed.
I usually have a horrible time sleeping on planes; I don't feel tired, and when I finally do doze off, I wake up less than an hour later, feeling parched. Recently I think I've developed a solution, though -- on my last flight I used a linen napkin and soaked it with water, then draped it over my face and used an eye cover to keep it in place. I could breathe fine and the cloth got dehydrated, not me! I slept for hours. I think I'll be trying that again. It looks utterly ridiculous, but it really helped with my usual jet lag.
Brooke
-
Alan Knighting
- Posts: 4120
- Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 7:26 am
- Location: Monflanquin, Lot-et-Garonne, France
-
Alan Knighting
- Posts: 4120
- Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 7:26 am
- Location: Monflanquin, Lot-et-Garonne, France
Hi, all --
Nearly a month later, I am back to the forum!
We had a fabulous time in Italy and I just wanted to thank everyone who posted with advice.
The villa we stayed in was really nice, and our apartment was well equipped with cooking stuff, storage for clothes, etc.
The villa owners are in the camp of self-catering providers that don't provide toilet paper, dishwashing liquid, or any cleaning supplies. Luckily we knew that in advance, so we purchased TP and such, but we didn't buy full cleaning supplies so couldn't really give the place a full clean before leaving. Overall, I would prefer to be charged E15 extra and have enough toilet paper and dishwashing liquid provided.
But it was really a fabulous time. The wedding was spectacular!
Okay, on to catch up on all the posts I've missed!
Nearly a month later, I am back to the forum!
We had a fabulous time in Italy and I just wanted to thank everyone who posted with advice.
The villa we stayed in was really nice, and our apartment was well equipped with cooking stuff, storage for clothes, etc.
The villa owners are in the camp of self-catering providers that don't provide toilet paper, dishwashing liquid, or any cleaning supplies. Luckily we knew that in advance, so we purchased TP and such, but we didn't buy full cleaning supplies so couldn't really give the place a full clean before leaving. Overall, I would prefer to be charged E15 extra and have enough toilet paper and dishwashing liquid provided.
But it was really a fabulous time. The wedding was spectacular!
Okay, on to catch up on all the posts I've missed!
Brooke