In a few days the real winter will come to Motovun. No watering hole will remain open after the coming weekend. There will be nowhere to go for the morning coffee or the evening glass of wine. Until about Easter, when the dead season commonly ends, only the grocery store and the post office will remain open. And people are sure to linger there a bit longer than usual, on the odd chance that someone else will come along for a quick chat. Or just a moan. Only the weather does not conform to this bleak prospect, though. It is not only sunny, but it is also quite warm. Unseasonably so, as the old expression goes. A few more winters like this and the tourist season might shift. For better or worse, the real winter could be in some danger. The danger of temporary extinction.