So we received the phase 1 bid from the contractor and it is less than both Robert and I had expected. So that is good, right? You have to figure if the demolition will already cost a fortune, then what will the rebuilding be. So, as I said, it was a good bid, so we are relieved. Unfortunately, since the house is not 100% ours yet (we still have to finalize the purchase) the contractor cannot start yet. Since Robert and I are not in Belgium, we are having the final paperwork done by power of attorney -- which seems a little bit more complicated than we at first thought. Of course, we could have expected that it would be somewhat complicated. It is not that small of a purchase after all, and it is Europe. Just think if we had bought in Italy (which still by the way, is my dream... one day! ) things would be far more confusing than they are now. So all this to say that we are not entirely sure when everything will be finalized (title companies here, title companies there, signatures, translations, notaries, etc. etc. ). In the meantime Robert and I continue to change our minds about how we want everything to be. We sat down with all the pictures and plans with one of our architect friends the other night. It is always great to hear from a pro. If only he could take on the project. I have been in contact with an architect in Belgium, who was always very cordial via email and always replied immediately, that is until I sent him the photographs. I haven't heard from him since! What does that mean? Help!
Apart from thinking about the house, we go on with work and teaching. I covered ancient Near Eastern art this week, and tried to stress to my students that it is in this place of the world, now torn apart by war and violence that civilization sprang forward. I tell them that here animals were first used as beasts of burden, the plow was first used, yeast was used to make bread and beer, here writing was invented. I wonder sometimes if they ever thought about these things before and if they too find it ironic that now this is not what Iraq is known for anymore.
I finished a little article today for the newsletter of the International Women's Forum in Bologna. While I lived in Bologna this group of ex-pat women was a great resource and social network and I have kept in touch with a few of them. When they asked me to write for them again, I gladly said yes. So I did a short piece titled "The spectacle of death in the Italian piazza," about the public executions that occured in the town centers during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Here is a little visual to go with that. It is a painting by an unknown artist, depicting the burning at the stake of that (in)famous Dominican monk Savonarola. He was burned by the Florentines in Piazza Signoria in 1498.
Once the article makes it to the newsletter, I will try to put a link here on the blog. This was probably not quite the image you expected to see here, especially since I promised more of the house. But that promise stands. For now, greetings from Texas, with love.
1 comment:
Good luck with the renovations! When we were negotiating the contract for the renovations with our contractor or entrepreneur as he’s called in France, my husband asked him to include a clause regarding late fees. The clause said that we would take 100euros from what we owed the contractor for every day he’s late. This helped to keep the work moving and when our apartment was late being finished, (because of course it was late!) we weren’t so angry and reduction ended up covering all the changes and additional things we asked for after the initial contract was signed. Our apartment still isn’t finished (just some small cosmetic stuff to do) but we got the expensive shower head, a built-in closet with dressers drawers, extra electricity outlets, an exhaust fan in the toilet, etc… all for free.
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