SECURITY

Burglary, robbery, housebreaking and vandalism are almost unknown. Most children live at home with the parents and would not dream of touching goods not belonging to them.

Sometimes one sees people walking through the streets carrying a car radio, obviously afraid of theft. Enquiries will reveal that these people are from Rome, Milan, Naples or one of the large cities where car theft is rife. Cars in Umbria, when parked at home, are rarely locked; garden sheds never are and houses always have the key in the lock if the family is at home, or under the mat or an adjacent stone if not.

If one is unfortunate enough to see a car with an envy scratch down the side, one can take bets that the number plate will reveal that it comes from a big city and isn't local, though now the plates don't have the revealing PG for us from Perugia, or AR for the Arretini, those from Arezzo. PG was interpreted by our Tuscan neighbours as standing for Povero Gente, Poor People, and we Umbrians interpret the AR as meaning Arrivano Ricconi, the arrogant wealthy ones are arriving.