Two Polish Lowland Sheepdog brothers in Italy - now about to head to France
Saturday, 9 May 2009
Castel S.Angelo
Castel S.Angelo sits on the other side of the Tiber like a vast wedding cake that's waiting for the icing to be applied. It was designed by Emperor Hadrian as his tomb and work started on it in A.D.135. Originally it was covered from tip to toe in pure white marble and the top was planted with several thousand cypress trees. At the very top stood a giant bronze fir cone which is now in the Vatican gardens. For a Scot it's interesting to think that the Emperor Hadrian and his successor Septimius Severus , both of whom were laid to rest here, had both been to Britain and had tried to deal with my fellow countrymen. The mausoleum survived intact for five hundred years but was eventually plundered by the Goths who tore open the tombs of the Caesars in search for gold. After that it was all downhill until it was converted into a fortress for the Popes. Right at the top you'll find the beautifully decorated bathroom of Pope Clement VII built in 1527 - a daintier more incongruous discovery in this vast fortess it would be hard to imagine.
2004 - We sell the farm in Scotland and move to the warmth of southern Europe. 2 lively Polish Lowland Sheepdogs - Wilf and Digby - our patient and comical companions. After a year in Provence we head to Italy to restore a hilltop Roman watchtower . Following an unpleasant 'housejacking' in late 2009 we set off for new adventures in South West Franceto get to grips with a large and exceedingly rickety old farmhouse. Empty nesters life after the violence of Italy has a gentler tempo. Digby passed on from piroplasmosis in May 2010. HIs brother, despite being diagnosed with cancer and having become blind ,soldiered on for another two years. Bob and Sophie joined us in 2013. Bob passed on in 2019. Sophie enjoyed the fresh air in Scotland after we returned in late 2022 but ran ahead in the summer of 23. This blog records all those little things about living with dogs that are too unimportant to make it into a diary but which make life, life.
Castel S.Angelo sits on the other side of the Tiber like a vast wedding cake that's waiting for the icing to be applied. It was designed by Emperor Hadrian as his tomb and work started on it in A.D.135. Originally it was covered from tip to toe in pure white marble and the top was planted with several thousand cypress trees. At the very top stood a giant bronze fir cone which is now in the Vatican gardens. For a Scot it's interesting to think that the Emperor Hadrian and his successor Septimius Severus , both of whom were laid to rest here, had both been to Britain and had tried to deal with my fellow countrymen. The mausoleum survived intact for five hundred years but was eventually plundered by the Goths who tore open the tombs of the Caesars in search for gold. After that it was all downhill until it was converted into a fortress for the Popes. Right at the top you'll find the beautifully decorated bathroom of Pope Clement VII built in 1527 - a daintier more incongruous discovery in this vast fortess it would be hard to imagine.
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