Italy: Fast Cars
Driving on the autostrada is a relief after Rome. Watch on the right, my partner says repeatedly, having been traumatised when the mirror on our rented manual Fiat Punta was flattened against a truck in Rome’s crowded streets. I’m the driver, having learnt to conduire à la droite in France, as a student there. Mark will prepare lots of fresh dishes, based on heavenly tomatoes, plucked straight from the fields. When we get to the outskirts of Siena, we ask for directions to our destination.
Tonni: an Etruscan Village
A rusty sign on a hedge, after winding roads and an unsealed gravelly stretch, marks the hamlet. First settled during the Etruscan era. Dogs, cats, a few children and a smiling woman with false teeth greet us. Several small cars are parked on the narrow gravel street, mediaeval buildings, the lot set in field and forest—oak, laurel, elms, conifers, and the ever-present cypress pines.
Moree, with a population of about 8,000, is situated in the north-west of 
Being a member of the Friends of Waverley Library (FOWL), I am happy to be included each year on the guest list for the Nib Awards. The Nib is an annual literary competition administered by the Waverley Council, already in its sixteenth year. It was held last Thursday morning, 23rd November, at 7.30am in a venue that overlooked Bondi Beach and the sea. Generously sponsored by Mark and Evette Moran this year, the prize money had increased to $30,000 with a first prize of $20,000.