Anyone who has witnessed the passage from summer to autumn in Italy knows that here the seasons are defined by dates, not weather. On September 1, the beaches empty and people put on their light piumini and scarves no matter what the temperature. As the supposedly cooler season progresses into winter, a number of date-related rules call for action.
A couple of days ago, I got an SMS from my husband: ‘Remember to put the chains in the car.’ Because it’s 17 degrees, raining and I have go to around the block to Esselunga? Apparently, yes. A 2010 law decreed that from November 1 (or 15, depending on the area) until April 15, all cars traveling on highways and in certain cities must either have winter tires or carry snow chains. Back in Toronto, when snow banks were shoulder high, my late-1980s Oldsmobile never required extra equipment to make its way through the frozen stuff. But puny Pandas are not known for their traction on ice.
Neither are ATAF buses. This was proven once and for all on December 18, 2009, when a late-afternoon snowfall of 15 centimeters left workers stranded. There was mayhem on the roads as buses slipped and slid, many of them eventually being abandoned by all (drivers included) in the middle of the street. The 2010 law was passed to blanket—warm pun aside—this issue, and it worked: when it snowed again on December 17, 2010, people were slightly more prepared. Although simply having chains does not necessarily mean knowing how to put them on (as The Florentine staff discovered during a ski trip to Abetone). As for the end date of April 15, last spring our winter tires were covered in sand, since around the beginning of April we were already lying in the sun on the beach with our pants rolled up.
Which brings me to heating. A state law dictates its use. In Florence, heating may be turned on on November 1 and must be turned off by April 15; it can be used for a maximum of 12 hours per day, between 5am and 11pm, divided into two or more periods; in private homes and offices the temperature should be 20 degrees Celsius, plus or minus 2 degrees.
In homes with condominium-wide heating, the topic of hours and temperatures is a favourite at condo meetings. My ground-floor apartment in a suburban 1950s building is sweltering, while residents upstairs, all of whom are retired, claim it is freezing and have dictated absurd on-hours (like between 2 and 4pm). But at least I’m warm. If you have what translates literally as ‘independent heating,’ you control your own heat, but you also pay for it. Plus, you have to book and pay for your yearly caldaia-check, a kind of driver’s license for gas heaters.
Winter in Florence is a bit of an inconvenience, regulated as it is by law. But the truth is, bad weather may well bring everything to halt at any time between November 1 and April 15, from canceled flights due to fog, traffic jams due to heavy rains, and unexpected walks due to freak snowstorms. So tighten on a warm scarf, bring out the sleeping-bag coat, crank the heat up to 20, and make the best of it.
