Capitalism's advocates point to the way in which competition in a free market drives down prices, thus benefiting the consumer. The disastrous consequences of privatising Britain's railways and public utilities suggest this is far from a universal truth. However, in other fields it has some validity. RyanAir has a monopoly of flights between the UK and our two local airports, Ancona and Pescara, so allowing O'Leary to quadruple the cost of flights at Christmas. However, there is a large choice of carriers flying from England to Fiumicino in Rome and, consequently, fares remain stable over the holiday period.
Thus Candy and Quinn flew to Rome on the 22nd, arriving at 9 in the evening and staying overnight at a hotel. I took the coach from Pedaso to Fiumicino to meet them, stayed overnight at the same hotel, and the following morning we travelled together by coach to Pedaso where Pat picked us up to complete the journey to Montefalcone by car.
Inevitably there was a downside. I had a four and a half hour journey to the airport and a six hour wait at Fiumicino before their plane arrived, which I spent reading Donna Tart's The Secret History. Owing to heavy traffic the return journey took five and a quarter hours. Even worse was Candy and Quinn's return journey on the 29th. She had two very large suitcases to lug as well as Quinn's case and her handbag. As an OAP I'm used to spending hours sitting around reading a book; Candy had to spend her six hour wait a Fiumicino keeping a seven year old amused. The pain didn't end there as the text which Candy sent me makes clear:
What a horrendous journey. Plane an hour late. Then at gatwick they didn't put our luggage out for nearly an hour and a half. Then my eyes got really bad so I couldn't see whilst desperately trying to find the bus. The bus drivers sent us to different stops. Finally got to the hotel at 2am. Up at 7.30 am. Replacement buses for the trains, so queued up got half an hour in the rain for the bus to east grin stead! Then dragged those heavy bags across the underground, with no lifts. Waited for half an hour at Peterborough for train in the pouring rain with no shelter. What a long long journey.
En route to Pedaso we found a bridge had been destroyed by the torrential rain earlier in the month.
Sophy and Adam arrived on Christmas Eve, flying from the UK to Pescara and hiring a car to complete the journey. Pat had cooked Moroccan Lamb which we all enjoyed apart from Adam who was ill as a consequence of his airport breakfast.
It was delightful watching Quinn opening his stocking. I filmed it - this may well be the last year in which he still believes in Father Christmas. Once again I had to cook three mini roast turkeys rather than one big one owing to the organic shop in Servigliano's suppliers letting us down again.
On Boxing Day I cooked roast pork while everyone else went to the living presepe in Comunanza and the following day we all went to Ascoli. Pat took her iPhone, which she'd inadvertently soaked earlier in the month, to the Apple dealer at the Battente shopping centre and then we adjourned to the Caffé Meletti in the Piazza del Popolo for refreshments. Candy cooked salmon for herself, Adam and me. On Saturday I went to the stables with Pat, while Sophy and Adam took Quinn tobogganing at Sassotetto. Pat cooked turkey curry in the evening.
On Sunday evening Sophy and Adam took Pat and me to the Villa Funari as a day early celebration of Pat's birthday.
They flew back to Dubai from Fiumicino the following day.
Once again we enjoyed John and Jean Conway's hospitality for New Year's Eve. And once again Montefalcone went crib crazy with eight of them sited around the village.
The Christmas season was rounded off by a one man dramatisation of Guerrin Meschino in the village theatre on Saturday 4th.
