Toothiness

The Monculi dentist has done us proud. Despite the best efforts of the London dentist and those gods who strike down celebration and holiday by visiting non-life threatening but beastly conditions on revellers. And if it's not us, they go for the cat when the vet's away.

London teeth passed as in tip top condition, bank account depleted severely, it took only one day for things to start going bad. And bad on a bad day for recession-proof, holiday-making professional Italians. Our dentist, actually a German married into and settled here, he who offered Mr HG 'the final solution' on his teeth - in the mountains skiing. No substitute offered either, just keep on taking the tablets but they would provide a prescription for pure morphine if it got desperate. As the household is addicted to alcohol rather than other substances that was not a solution at all.

We called the Mr Teeth of Monculi. Yes he could come. Yes it would mean squeezing him in between appointments, if we would excuse the waiting. Waiting? Had he any idea what getting dental treatment is like in England?

All you need is courage in Italy. As there was no time it was going to be without anaesthetic which would have brought into play all sorts of unbreakable regulations, and took time. Out came the London filling, clean up the abscess, prescribed the antibiotics (dentists here are doctors too), pain stopped before nightfall. Careful chewing over Christmas and Boxing day but no misery. Then back in the chair, complicated manouevres with drains and roots removed. Back two days later for a permanent filling, all clear.

100 euros. Done and dusted. Over Christmas. Popping in for a check up before setting off next week. Wouldn't you?