With Chris and Amy in tow, we retraced our steps of four days earlier, catching the local train back to Spello. Aah, beautiful Spello, the ancient hilltop town where the cobbled streets are polished smooth by the passing of many feet, the stones of the buildings whisper their secrets to each other across the narrow laneways that snake through the town centre and the very air crackles with the weight of its history.
We had hoped that Chris and Amy would share our passion for this special place and over the ensuing days its magic captured their hearts too. We used the time wisely, allowing the now seasoned travellers to unwind, regroup and rest from their busy European Summer schedule that had encompassed many countries, cities, towns and landscapes. Sunset drinks on the terrace became our daily ritual along with slow meandering walks up and down the slopes of the town centre and through the neighbouring olive groves.
On one day we visited Assisi, the region’s jewel made famous for its stunning St Francis Basilica, a Renaissance architectural masterpiece and a globally popular destination for Catholic pilgrims. Other days were spent gently whiling away time over coffee and pastries, pizza and paninis in the main square, pasta at the cute Ristorante Pinturicchio or cooking at home in our little kitchen.
Monday 16 September saw the arrival in Spello of Laura and Patrick from Toronto, who had been attending a wedding in Sicily. They had scheduled in a detour to Spello specifically to meet up with us so that we could all celebrate Sue’s 60th birthday together. And, despite the deceptive familiarity that social media allows, Patrick hadn’t met Chris and Amy in person before. It was, as predicted, a very special and emotional time.
On the big day itself, we celebrated over a long lunch in Spello’s premier osteria, or traditional regional restaurant, La Cantina, on the Main Street. The food and wine were superb, but the company and festive atmosphere were even better. Many toasts to Sue’s continued health and happiness on her milestone birthday punctuated proceedings. The memories of this day and all the others we spent together in our Italian Happy Place will live long into the future.
All too soon it was over and we were saying our goodbyes as we alighted the bus in the Borgo, en route to Perugia airport, leaving the two young couples to spend their final day together in Spello. Touching down later that day at Stansted, we took a local bus on a one-hour scenic tour of North Essex to Chelmsford. The sun was shining on a beautiful warm autumn day and as we journeyed slowly past green rolling farmlands and through cute little country villages, we felt at home once more in England, our England. This, coupled with memories of the past three months filling our thoughts, found us considering our blessings far too numerous to count.
We stayed the night with Mark in Great Baddow, unfortunately missing Nicky who was on a two-day overnight training course (very bad timing), and the next day we were back in London en route to Heathrow. The final chapter of our trip involved meeting up with Amy G, who caught a train from Nottingham, and Laura & Patrick, who flew in from Perugia. At Hamilton Hall, the Wetherspoon pub at Liverpool Street Station, we sat together chatting and laughing over stories and reminiscences. For Amy it was an opportunity to see Laura and Patrick for the first time in three years. They would hang out in London for the rest of that day and the next. For us, it was a chance for a last minute farewell, a stoic scene as we set off in different directions to our separate underground train lines, us towards Heathrow and them towards Croydon. Later that evening we were on a Malaysia Airlines plane bound for Perth via KL.
Now we are home, if only for four days before our greatly anticipated Piggies 60th celebrations in South Australia, where we will gather with a whole bunch of good friends, many of whom share our 1959 birth year. As with every homecoming following an extended overseas trip, we quickly slipped back into the familiarity and comfort of Perth life in glorious Springtime weather. The events, people and places of the preceding 14 weeks are very real and yet tinged with a sense of the surreal. Were we really half-way round the world in an ancient Romanesque/Renaissance village with our family celebrating Sue’s milestone 60th just four days ago? Did we really stay for a month in Devon and walk over 100 miles of the coast in June, a mere three months earlier? Was it only in July that we wandered around Medina, the old capital city in Central Malta?
Our lives feel bifurcated, one in Perth and one on the road somewhere else in the world. Both are very real when we are living them and yet clouded in memories that dim over time when we are not. Is this what retirement will represent for us now and into the foreseeable future and if so, how have we managed to be so fortunate to have such a privilege? There is no answer to the unfathomable. Perhaps the best response is – BRING IT ON!
Clapmacks Foray into Retirement 