"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen." "Just a few words while you're waiting." "As you know, James Miller will be joining us." "He's a little late." "He can't blame the traffic." "His room is upstairs." "I hope he won't be long." "We're here for the presentation of his latest book," "Certified Copy, that was awarded best foreign essay of the year." "Well, that's about it..." "Here's James." "Please, take your seats." "Autographing will be after the conference." "I'd intended to briefly introduce James to you, but who better than himself." "Over to you." "Good morning." "I'd like to sincerely thank my friend and colleague Marco Lenzi, whose translation is simply perfect." "He's really conveyed the spirit of my book and made this Italian edition possible, as well as our meeting today." "Well done and thanks again." ""A good copy is better than the original."" "This is the famous Musa Polimnia, the portrait of a woman whose dramatic story is told on the cartel next to the painting." "For years, this painting was believed to be Roman art." "It wasn't until the 20th century, about 50 years ago, that it was revealed to be the work of a skilled forger from Naples." "However, the museum decided to conserve this fabulous portrait as an original." "It is actually as beautiful as the original." "When was it made?" "In the 18th century." "And it was considered as an original for 200 years." "After the Second World War, in-depth research revealed even the name of the forger who made this amazing work." "The museum then decided to keep it with great care." "In a sense, it's our Mona Lisa." "The original is in Herculaneum, near Naples." "The story of the discovery itself is interesting." "It was part of a Roman fresco." "And the excavation director happened to be from Tuscany." "He commissioned the forger to make this perfect copy, so as to claim that it was found in his region and use its prestige for Tuscany." " A coffee and a cappuccino." " Coming up." "It's ready." "His coffee's going cold." "That's how he is." "He's a good husband though." "Sorry?" "He's a good husband." " How do you know?" " I can tell." "Where do you come from?" "I'm from France." "Where did you learn Italian?" "I've lived in Italy for five years." "Where?" "First in Florence, now in Arezzo." "How come you speak English together?" "He's English." "And he doesn't speak your language?" "Nor Italian?" "He only speaks his own language." "But you can speak his." "Good for you." "He's not into languages." "He's not into anything." "Except himself and his job." "That's good." " A man must love his job." " What about us women?" "It keeps them busy." "And we live our lives." "I didn't get married to live alone." "I'd like to live my life with my husband." "Is a good husband too much to ask for?" "Our lives can't be all that bad if all we can complain about is our husbands working too hard." "You see, when there's not another woman, we see their job as our rival." "We also work, but with moderation." "Moderation is our choice, whereas they can't help it." "For them, not working is like not breathing: impossible!" "I never asked my husband to stop." "Of course not." "How could you?" "The world would simply stop." "But we put the brakes on." "My sister keeps encouraging her lazy husband to work." "There are exceptions." "Don't you think there should be a happy balance?" "Ideally, yes." "But that doesn't exist." " Bring us some wine." " Coming." "It'd be stupid of us to ruin our lives for an ideal." "But mum's the word." "They don't need to know." "But how can I put up with a husband who's never there?" "They're never totally absent." "He makes you a married woman." "That's what matters." "At my age, you understand that." "How long have you been married?" "Fifteen years." " Do you have children?" " Yes, a son." "It was his birthday last week." "He didn't even bother to call him." " I don't believe it." " It's true." "All he cares about is himself and his job." " And his friends?" " And his friends, of course." "And his mistresses?" "That, I don't know." "That's why you're wondering who's calling him on Sunday, right?" "I'm just looking at him." "But with suspicion." "Whereas I admire him." "May I know why?" "Sure." "On Sunday mornings, what do most men do?" "They sleep in." "He doesn't." "He takes you out for a coffee, he tells you stories with a lot of pleasure." "He looks like he's still courting you." "Tell me about it!" "If only he'd shaved, he'd be perfect." "My husband shaves every other day." "Even our wedding day was a no-shave day." "Now, you're used to it." "On our wedding day, my uncle asked me why he hadn't shaved." "I said I didn't know." "So he asked him:" ""Couldn't you have shaved this once?"" "Know what he replied?" "He calmly stroked his beard and said:" ""Yes, but I only shave every other day."" "It's cold." "I'll change it." "How strange you don't speak Italian after five years here with your family." "Sir..." "Come and take a photo with us." "Sorry, no." "My wife and I would be very happy." "I'm sorry, but..." "As you wish." "Thanks." "Hurry up." "We've been waiting for ages." "We'll be done in a minute." "Excuse me..." "Can you come take a photo with us?" "I beg you. it's my wedding day." "You can't say no." "Sir, please, you can't refuse!" "Thank you." "Just a second." "Just a moment, I'm coming." "Please." "Thank you." "A bottle of red wine, please." "Straight away." " What kind of red wine?" " A good one." "They're all good." "Red, straight away." "Congratulations." "I can't open it." "Congratulations." "Take care." "Good evening." "Excuse me..." "My husband and I spent our wedding night here 15 years ago, in room 9." "We were wondering if we could have a look at it, if it's free." "We wanted to remember the good old days." "Room 9." "Third floor."