The next blog post, I hope, will be back to the usual nonsense.

Well, I think it’s fair to say that my last post has not aged well. Many thanks for all your messages congratulating me for being level-headed and not over-reacting to the circumstances we find ourselves in.

I was, of course, completely wrong.

I suspect I wasn’t alone in indulging in a certain amount of wishful thinking that Venice was still open for business, with the added attraction of overcrowded public spaces now being almost devoid of people. Hands up, I called this one wrong.

Plenty has been written about the current situation in Italy and so I’m not sure I’ve got much to say that hasn’t already been said. The articles below by Tobias Jones and Gregory Dowling both give as clear a picture of the current situation as one could wish, and are well worth taking the time to read.

Tobias Jones : How my beloved Italy is changed by Coronavirus

Gregory Dowling : Venice in the time of Coronavirus

As well as the good wishes, I’ve received a few questions along the lines of “when will it be safe to visit?” or “when can we travel again?”. To which I can only answer – I don’t know. Again, I’m just a bloke on the internet who writes crime novels.

Anyway, Caroline, Mimì and myself are all fine. All of a sudden we find ourselves with time to read, write, listen to music (I’m working my way through John Eliot Gardiner’s set of the Bach cantatas) and catch up on television. We have a well stocked fridge, and time to cook properly.

The thing is, of course, is that we’re the lucky ones. Yes, we’ve taken a slight financial hit on this – I’ve had to cancel a couple of paid events and both Caroline and I work part-time as freelance teachers and there’s no sign of the schools reopening any time soon. But I’m lucky enough to have a job that I can do from home. Most people don’t have that luxury and the current situation can only be described as devastating for them. Sometimes, looking out of the window, I think how nice it would be to just be able to go to the bar across the street and have a spritz. The owner, however, would think it even nicer to be able to sell me one.

Thanks for all your messages. Italy is taking a kicking at the moment and can take as many good wishes, thoughts or prayers that you can spare but, in the words of the great Joey Ramone Don’t worry ’bout me. Or, indeed, about us.

Joey Ramone : Don’t worry ’bout me

Sincerest good wishes to all of you, wherever you may be, over the following weeks and months.

And the next blog post, I really do hope, will be back to the usual nonsense.