We’e coming up on our one year anniversary for making the move to Italy. Every day, we still live the dream and the fact we’ve been here a year still blows us away… truly.
So what have we learned? Is it what we hoped it would be? Absolutely. We came into this life-change with eyes wide open and any bumps we hit along the way haven’t thrown us. But what would we have done differently or what really bugs us? I’ll go there first and save all the good stuff for later..
First, living on a farm…. hmm…well, this particular farm, would we have changed that if we had time or could find something else…most likely. Or at least dig a bit deeper…yes an unintentional pun… to really understand the facts. We were told at the onset that the vineyard surrounding the farmhouse was organic. Well, at one time it was, but the farmer gave it up as too costly. Yes, there is a biologic vineyard down the road, but unfortunately…down the road. We endured constant chemical blasting most evenings as insecticides were sprayed in different sections around us, depending on the day of the week. Then, there were the applications of pig waste as fertilizer. You say that’s organic, and yes, but an amazing stench assaulted us through our windows at night.
The farmhouse we lived in had a barn below our living area. This is very common in rural Italy. This area had to be winterized to keep the cold air from blowing under our floor. John tacked up lots of cardboard and tarps and we knew that would help. But unfortunately, even with the radiators and fireplace going, we froze in the winter. And many folks will tell you that is how it is in Italy in the older houses, unless your sitting right in front of the fireplace. So now we understand why there are daybeds in the kitchen. That room becomes the center for living during the winter.
Then there’s the septic tank….our property manager believed that our sewage system was connected to the comune’s, similar concept of county sewer back in the States. Again, we should have dug deeper…or probably not, just asked more questions. Turns out we were on a very faulty private septic system which alerted us as the weather got warmer and we did more laundry. I won’t go into the nasty details, but just know that raw sewage was escaping out into the field behind our house.
There was the issue of the farm road. Great in dry weather.. a disaster to drive in the wet winter, mud bogging the tires down. This past May, the comune did come out (right before local elections) to work on the road. It made a huge difference, but I’m only going by summer weather. Not sure how it would fare in the wet winter.
Even though we lived on a farm, we were about 15 minutes for the beach. Beautiful, yes, but oh the traffic! Off season a bit crazy but we endured it. Summer was another story and it was just too much for us country folk. We did the bulk of our shopping there, as John had fallen in love with IPER supermarket. When the summer tourists arrived, we realized we would gladly change our shopping habits when we moved to Roccaspinalveti.
As far as paperwork and bureaucracy in Italy, we came expecting it, so it really didn’t bother us. Whenever we had an appointment, I did my research well in advanced to be prepared. Not too many bumps, but just some frustrations as they handle paperwork very differently here. And there is a lot more of it, especially in social services and government offices.
Farewell to the farm in Treciminiere
So yes, there were some issues that we dealt with but through it all, the views and our awesome neighbors (though few and far between) made it worth it for our short stay in the Atri area. Just living in Italy basically erases any annoyances we found on this farm!
We woke to amazing views of the Gran Sasso Mountains and rolling fields, vineyards & olive groves. We made great friends there, some English-speaking, some not, and we hope to continue those friendships even though we have moved a bit further south. Romeo and I joined Sea Rescue Dogs out of Pescara and we look forward to new endeavors with them this coming year. John became one of their unofficial photographers, enjoying new friendships and the beach 😉 Our neighbor, Ugo, checked in on us most days and gave freely of the bounty of his very large garden. He amazed us, at 86 years old, out working his garden as well as in the groves and vineyards. Our first year…. the list goes on..what a blessed first year.
Our move to Roccaspinalveti and to our very own home was a bit exhausting. We did many runs in our car with the small stuff over the course of a month, then the movers brought our furniture. The dogs have settled in and I’m still working out some areas to take Romeo on some long treks. (Basically, I’m scoping out where the boars are mostly during the day and to stay clear of those areas.) We have been welcomed in this lovely mountain town with open arms from our neighbors. Everyone is ready with a ‘buongiorno’ and ‘would you like to stop in for coffee’. Our neighbors directly across the street from us have been a God-sent. And John has a true buddy in his friendship with Franco. It’s wonderful to hear them both laughing and see them working together. John’s language skills are on super drive!
Moving Day – Great Guys
The boys settling in
Our house is sturdy, but needs some cosmetic updating. John and I both have projects, but take time to be more Italian. Work a bit, take a break, visit neighbors, take a nap, work a bit more, go for a walk, oh and don’t forget to enjoy some food in all of this…
We’re catching up on our sleep, as the move knocked us down a bit. As we start visiting the local hill towns as well as enjoying fun stuff around our new hometown, I promise to share what we see and certainly assault you with pics of the delicious food here. And as always, I post some pics from John..
Ciao for now
Peppers drying at a neighbor’s house
Fantastic Pizza – 5 minute walk from our house
Chiesa di San Michele Arcangelo located in Piazza Roma – festivities in honor of the Holy Liberata and Filomena
Roccaspinalveti at dawn – view from our balcony
John and I both came to our marriage with dogs. Well, not just dogs per say, but more like dog children. And a funny thing, we both turned out to be lab lovers. The thing about labs is they actually do remain children all their lives, even when they become elderly… We kid each other that it’s like living with 3 year olds… every day…
I’ll try to condense Orso’s treatment as best I can. They removed the lump on his leg, sent off for analysis (non malignant), did ultrasound, found spots on his spleen, returned after a given time for second ultrasound, concerns that spots appear to be growing, removed spleen and 4 lumps on his side, all sent off for analysis. And through all this, Orso was a trooper. John and I… not so much and the staff couldn’t have been more caring to our feelings as well.
First time seeing waves. And he really wanted to test the waters, but the exercise was to teach the dogs, at this point, to remain on shore while the handlers approached the water. Lots of fun and we’re invited back as either a guest or a member.
It’s one thing to chat with our new Italian friends in our basic Italian and to have them take the time to make us understand or even speak a little English back to us. But when you need to get some official paperwork completed, such as a visa, you better be up on your Italian, have a friend come to interpret and pitch hit for you, or you’ll be using Google translate and still be misunderstood and also not understand. All in a day becoming a new resident of this country.
A few weeks back, I mentioned us signing up for our Italian classes. Twice a week, we meet at a school, for our class. Our teacher, Cristina, is a lovely young lady, that speaks rapid fire Italian with just a smidge of English. And I mean a really small smidge! Sink or swim as John and I see it. It’s a good review for me, as I have had weekly Skype with Stef for over a year, and definitely a great start for John. The other students are all from Africa, progressing toward their work documents. Brave young men that risked all coming to Italy on a boat with many others. Last night we chatted with two young men from Nigeria, who both have high hopes of making it to the United States for jobs. They are all drawn to New York City, Chicago and LA. John and I admire their courage and determination, and wish them all the best. We will all be together in this class for the next 6 months, as 100 hours are required to complete.
Navigating Life in Abruzzo 