Paul watched once again behind himself and shook disconsolate his head.  That damned 
jalopy had left him out in the street!  He could not still believe it.  That holiday 
was begun  in a not much pleasant way  and  there  was still several days to end it. 
What a nuisance!  In effect  it  was  a cure stay,  rather  than  an holiday. He was 
convalescent  from a enough serious nervous breakdown.  He had  become  ill  because 
for a long period  of time  he had had  to invert  the natural rhythms of the sleep, 
because  of his job,  remaining awake at night and sleeping  during the day.  It was 
been necessary  a good amount  of medicines  and  of analysis to let him recover the 
right biological rhythms and at the end  of therapy,  the doctor had advised him, as 
conclusion  of  the cure,  to  stay  for some time  at the most quiet place  that he 
succeeded  to find.  He had addressed  a very famous,  and  unfortunately expensive, 
travel agency, with this particular requirement and therefore they had organized for 
him two months of permanence in Vitrulio,  a village that he had never felt to name, 
but that,  they  had  assured  him,  was  the most calm  than  anyone could imagine. 
Really they had not been mistaken,  indeed they had been also  too much moderated in 
their affirmation.  That place was beyond  the tranquillity.  At least four thousand 
persons lived there, and therefore he was enough large as country,  but it was as if 
only fifty persons lived there.  In fact on the road you did not meet ever more than 
three or four persons for time. People even seemed to speak softly, even better they 
really whispered.  The stores seemed perennially empty. If you entered within one of 
them, you stayed before some minute alone and after you had always to ask; "Is there 
anybody here?",  and only then a store clerk or the store owner came out of the back 
of the shop,  and  always  never  more than a person at a time. Coffee shops or Bar, 
where  people could  themselves be met a little, there were not. Milk and other food 
came sold  in the most strange supermarket  that  he  had never seen.  Also this was 
always empty  and  when you arrived to the cash desk you had to call in order to see 
appearing  the store clerk,  nearly  that  they did not have any fear of the thefts.