Preparing for tonights shooting stars.

Wilf walked ahead of me on the morning tour of the olive groves and lavender fields completely immersed in the scents and sounds of the Italian countryside. His little brother sat at the farm gate waiting impatiently for our return - in addition to his sore hip he now seems to have managed to rub the skin off one of his paws leaving it raw. The walk ended with Wilf initiating a quick 'splosh' game in the pool.

Tonight is the 'night of the stars' in the local village. Not as we first imagined when we moved here anything to do with Hollywood but rather a mass gathering of star watchers. They arrive in their hundreds in the village carrying a variety of telescopes and settle down between midnight and four in the morning to watch the annual shooting star shower. In a civilised touch, the local restaurant moves its kitchen outside and serves meals until dawn. With no light pollution ( sodium lamps are unknown this deep in the country ) the heavenly display is really quite something. The sound effects from the Italian families gathered en masse in the cool of the night air is equally impressive with cries of enraptured delight echoing around as the shooting stars scurry across the sky. Silent reserve is not a concept that has much purchase in Italy.