Wow That Went Fast!!

mercoledì, 2 maggio

Well here I am 1 week away from my 1st year anniversary of my move to Italy.  Oscar and I left Minnesota on May 8th. I arrived on May 9th and Oscar the next day, May 10th, and so our journey began.  Wow that year went fast.  At times it feels like I just got off the plane and others like I have been here for years.  

So how has my first year been - some friends have asked me questions like:

How does it feel to be a true Italian resident?  Am I still happy I made the move and would I do it again?  What do you miss, if anything, from the states.  When are you going to open that  agriturismo/ bed and breakfast you talked about?

All good questions and for my final blog I thought I would answer them.

I’ll start with the last one - the agriturismo/bed and breakfast.

Yes for many years my vision included me opening up a business here in southern Italy.  However, the longer I am here, that part of the vision is fading for many reasons. Running a business in southern Italy, any business, has its challenges.  The bureaucracy is thick and heavy (worse than the states for sure) and many times the rules/regulations make no sense.   In addition I am not sure I want to work that hard - haha! I want the freedom to travel when I want and don't want to be tied down to a schedule.  And luckily at this point in my life I don’t need to work.  I am very grateful for that fact.  So those of you that have been waiting to visit until I had my business up and running - well you better change your plans.  I know many wonderful places you can stay in the area - some agriturismI (plural), some bed and breakfasts as there is a difference.  Just let me know and I will give you some great options very close to me. 

Italian Residency

I don’t feel any different as an Italian resident than I did as an American - although I sure wish I spoke Italian better.  Don’t get me wrong - I have improved a lot since arriving here last May BUT this language is not an easy one to learn.  I’m not afraid to speak it and usually it is not 100% perfect - but I get my message across.  If I waited or worried about speaking perfectly I would get nowhere so you just dive in and do your best.  People here are so understanding and helpful when I tell them I am just learning.  So with that said I might feel even more like a resident if I spoke better.  Understanding the news, laws, regulations, etc. can be challenging when you don’t speak and understand the language fluently.  But I voted in my first election as a resident.  What I have not done yet is get my Italian driver’s license.  THAT I am leaving for year 2 - I do have the books and mobile app for studying but it will take some concentrated studying.  The other item I’m just learning about and may be a less than positive thing is Italian taxes.  They can claim some of my income (retirement, investment earnings, etc.) as taxable.  This is not an easy thing to work out.  So I now wait for the Italian tax consultant to advise me.  Tax Day is October 31st here in Italy.  I’m sure after that experience I will feel 100% like an Italian resident!!

Am I happy with the move and would I do it again? 

100% yes - the move itself was easy but then you know I’m a planner so all the details were very well organized and my arrival along with my stuff and Oscar was painless  - with just a small amount of stress.
  
I would say I doubt if I would have made the move without having family here.  That is one of the main reasons I wanted to come but having them here has made so many things that much easier as far as transition.  If I had a question they could help me.  In addition getting things done here is a challenge so knowing people is key.  Remember the old saying - it is not what you know but WHO?  Never truer than here is southern Italy. 

 What do I miss?

Oh my lot’s of stupid stuff -  that really is not important - good red meat on occasion, like a good burger or steak.  Certain foods I guess but really I can do without.  The two things in my house that I miss are a furnace and a clothes dryer.  I know I mentioned this in a blog post but the damp, cool winters are no fun without a warm house. BUT with that said you can always find a fix.  Angela, Luigi and I will be finding a bigger “stufa” or stove/heater for the house next winter.  And oh what I would give for a clothes dryer.  My house does not have enough electrical service for a dryer BUT I have recently found a solution - really only necessary in the winter.  There is a new self service laundromat that just opened up.  I stopped the other day to check it out and the owner was there and explained everything to me.  Big washers and dryers so I can even use it this summer for large comforters, etc.  But in winter I could take a few loads of wet clothes and use the dryers.  So again, there is always a solution for the downside - sometimes you just have to search a bit. 

And finally the other thing I do miss are my family and friends.  BUT with technology today I can stay in touch just as easy from here - Video calls are fabulous and using different software I can talk to people for free.  I just can’t call a friend up and say - let’s meet for dinner.  I do miss that spontaneity of friendships. 
I will say my blog has been an easy way to communicate with a large group of people who have an interest in what the heck I am doing.  I am considering keeping the blog going - “A years of Firsts - continued…..”   So stay tuned and thanks for following my adventure this past year. I hope it brought some joy and laughter to your life - it sure did mine!!

Patio and Gazebo Project - Part 3

venerdi, 20 aprile

The day arrived for the installation of the sun shades.  Cousin Antonio arrived first - of course as he is Mr. Punctual!!!   The weather - well - it wasn't raining yet - but it was real foggy.

The installers arrived along with cousin Emilio.  Let the work begin.  It was quite a process but when finished I was very pleased.  Too bad the weather turned foul in the middle of the installation.  Just enough rain to make things uncomfortable but they persisted and did not stop (thank goodness).  There are a few minor finishing touches that will be completed later this week.  

Now the fun part of finding some outdoor furniture (I think I may have found it already),  planting some fun plants and placing them around the terrace and maybe even hang some from the beams.  Will also decide where I can hang some little fairy lights.  

I am also excited to hang my bronze Solari Windbells.  I brought these from the U.S. and they come from Cosanti in Arizona.  However, there is a great tie to Italy.  Here is a brief excerpt from the Cosanti website.  Paolo Solari (mentioned below) was born in Turin, Italy and is very well known here in Italy.    

The Cosanti Story

"Cosanti is a designated Arizona historic site, designed by world-renowned architectural innovator Paolo Soleri, featuring terraced landscaping with experimental earth-formed concrete structures. Hear the tones of bronze and ceramic wind-bells strikingly suspended amidst courtyards and visitor paths. View the dramatic bronze casting process weekday mornings here at Cosanti’s foundry.

Cosanti, located in Paradise Valley, AZ, is where world-renowned architectural innovator, Paolo Soleri established the Cosanti Foundation. Since 1956, Cosanti has been the headquarters for this nonprofit educational organization dedicated to architectural research. Cosanti is where Paolo Soleri also established his diverse line of bronze and ceramic Soleri Windbells which are famous around the world. Cosanti is the headquarters, foundry, studio, & gallery for Paolo Soleri Bronze & Ceramic Windbells & Sculptures."  

So hanging the bells is very important!

The BBQ area still needs to be finished as well.  Mariano, the tile worker will return to create a masterpiece area for the grill area.  

For now enjoy the pictures.  Once it is totally finished I will post more pictures.  

The materials and men have arrived

Unpacking the tracks - I am pleased with the color!

These 4 men worked all day - a great team!

Hanging the shades on the tracks

One side is up but much more to do

Installing the pull cords

The rain hasn't started yet

The second side is up

Good view of the track

Working on the pull cord for the second side

Now for the area over the BBQ
This is a fixed cover.  Now the rain has started.

Hurrying to finish before it gets too wet and sloppy

This is great covered area for the grill (yet to be purchased)

And we are done!!!

Now bring on the good weather!!

Patio and Gazebo Project - Part 2

giovedi, 12 aprile

Well progress continues on the outside project.  Antonio and I had decided on the design and now we just needed to communicate with the officials from the Comune di Casal Velino and then we could start - or so I thought.  I knew this was going too smoothly.  

So Luigi tells me "his friend" from the Comune would come on a Monday to review our project.  Prior to that Antonio had delivered all the wood for the gazebo so we could start quickly.

All the material is now on site!

Monday comes and everyone arrives pretty much on schedule.  A discussion ensues - of which I do not understand one thing that is being said.  They are speaking rapidly and I believe in dialect.  The one thing I could tell however was it was not going according to plan and no one was smiling - not a good sign.  30 minutes later the "inspector" leaves.  Luigi and Antonio and I go inside to talk.  Basically the inspector expected blue prints of some fashion and said we must go through the "normal" approval process - oh by the way - that takes 6 months!!  I about died.  But then they proceed to tell me Antonio will start on Friday.  I was totally confused until they told me - the fine for building without permission is CHEAPER than the cost of paying for the normal approval permits.  WHAT???  Yes you read that right.  There is alot of illegal construction in southern Italy - now I know why.  Using basic reasoning doesn't seem to work here - you would think you could stimulate the local economy by making approvals for small projects easier to obtain right?  Amazing but also quite sad as the bureaucracy is massive and obstructive.  So........we will proceed without the appropriate approvals.  I did also learn that approvals for interior projects are not required.  Thank goodness as the kitchen renovation is next on the list.  

So Antonio and Giulio arrive as expected on Friday to build the gazebo.  It takes one day with a few minor touchups on Saturday.  

The next step is the canvas cover for shade.  This becomes a bigger project than the wood structure as everyone has different ideas of what can be done.  Oh my.  We call on my second cousin Emilio (first cousin to Antonio).  He owns a drapery/reupholstery business.  He comes out the following week and for 30 minutes he and Antonio heatedly discuss what can and can not be done based on the way the structure is built.  All I want are fabric shades that can be opened and closed.  I showed them pictures from the internet.  Well at the end of that discussion it was decided the "technica" from the manufacturer should come out and look at the structure to help decide.  Now everyone knows I want this done by May and they continue to tell me - no problem it will be done.  

Well to make a long story a bit shorter - a few meetings later I have decided on the shade coverings - it will be a bit more complex than originally planned due to the wind on the hill and the structure of the gazebo.  It will have tracks and be in two sections.  The area over the BBQ will be fixed canvas.  They are now on order and I hope to have them installed soon.  So stay tuned for Part 3 of this adventure.  

Oh and send cash in case Luigi gets arrested (just kidding).  The home owner is responsible so I guess I am off the hook.  

Stay tuned.......

Patio and Gazebo Project - Part 1

lunedi, marzo 12

This spring and summer I have plans to make more progress on my house project list.  I am now beginning my patio and pergola project.  To the side of my front porch is a patio where I put my green iron table and chairs I brought from Minnesota.  I decided I wanted to build a pergola or gazebo as they call them here, over the table.  The more I researched I also decided I wanted to tile the patio as now it was just ugly concrete with weeds growing in the cracks.  Here are some before pictures.  Note the palm behind the table for later.  Also note the view of the sea in the other pictures - should remove any doubt why I want to improve this outdoor space.  You can't really get a feel for the size but it is quite a large area.  

So a few weeks ago the tile work started.  The worker (Mariano) is the son-in-law of my cousin Nicola.  Mariano is a stone mason/tile worker by trade.  He and his brothers are from Romania.  They do amazing work - very detailed, clean and efficient - totally un-Italian!  HAHA!  This part of the project is so not Italian - as he came over on a Monday to review the job, came back on Tuesday to review again and give me the price, then started the work on Thursday, continued on Friday and finished the following week (only due to a rain delay of about a week.  In total it was a 4-5 day project.   I can't say enough about them.  But as the project started I once again thought about "Under the Tuscan Sun" when she hired the Polish contractors.  Well here they are Romanian - are really good looking and very talented.  So really not the same - but the vision was fun!

The one part of the project that WAS Italian was the contracting/price negotiation.  There were no contracts involved, no haggling over price.  He told me the price, I agreed. No paperwork, no contracts, no attorneys, no lien waivers, nothing!!!!  Now I'm not sure if that was because I am "family" but in all my other dealings there have been no contracts, paperwork, etc.  So I believe that is the Italian way, at least in the south.  I like it!

Here are pictures of the process:

The palm tree must be removed and
hopefully relocated

The new home for the palm in my garden
The good news is it is surviving in its new place

Prep for the concrete base

The new concrete base

Tile work begins
Tile edging is first

Even covered the former concrete steps
Nice Look

The main tile work in progress

The finished product

Can't wait to add potted plants
and maybe some fun outdoor furniture

This dirt area will be covered and become
an area for my BBQ grill

I have now starting working with my cousin Antonio, il falegname, (the carpenter) to design my pergola/gazebo.   We have agreed on the design and now waiting for the approval from the Comune.  Anticipated completion is early May. Stay tuned for Part 2 of the project.

Observations about Italian Life - Part 2

Sorry for the lengthy delay between posts.  Winter time here is a calm and quiet time so not a lot going on.  I have started an outside project so will be posting on that in the future but for today how about some more observations I have made about living in Italy and the Italian ways.

1.  There are no traffic lights here - it just hit me the other day as I was driving around doing errands.  There are very few stop signs as well.  There are roundabouts that are used to help traffic flow. I have learned the rules but as anything else here - rules are made to be broken - so the best rule to live by - be defensive in your driving and stay alert. 

2.  Most cars here have at least one light (headlight, turn signal, brake lights, etc.) that is not working.  Not sure if there is a law against it like in the states but they don't seem to care.  And  even if the turn signals work they don't use them so again see #1 above for the best way to drive!!

3.  I read an article the other day that said Italians don't dress for the temperature they dress for the season.  I get it - even though in the summer I still don't understand why the women wear long pants at night - whatever - but when out shopping in Vallo this past fall I noticed many people had on jackets - not just light jackets but "down" jackets.  Now I agree the sun was setting and there was a chill in the air but down in October????  It proved the point of the writer - they do dress for the season and not the temperature.  Many even had scarves around their necks.  Now that winter is here they do dress warmly as the temperature does get chilly at night.   

4.  Local notices - so how do you find out about local events, festas, deaths, etc.? You find out from the local boards in the village.  Most important information is posted on boards throughout the village.  There is a very large board as you enter into town across from the Farmacia.  In addition there are smaller boards throughout the village.  Notices of death which include the details of the funeral, thank you notices from families after funerals, notices of upcoming sagras and festivals and even notices of upcoming elections.  Other news will travel via word of mouth as well.  Villages are starting to have Facebook pages as well so those into technology can check out the FB pages for some things but those mentioned above typically don't get posted on FB.

Notice about upcoming election - Sunday, March 4th

Local Board - notice how new notices are just
plastered over older notices so if you don't read
them promptly you are out of luck

5.  Post office hours are not posted - and it can be closed when you think it should be open. This can apply to other stores as well.

6.  Package delivery - expecting a package? - you better be home.  No courier service will leave a package at your house.  You must be home and you MUST sign for it - no matter what it is.  The good thing is most courier services will at least tell you the day it is to be delivered once you placed your order and the item has shipped.  But that means you sit at home all day and wait.  They will then call when they are close to ensure that you are home.  I am learning that many things I need/want I can not find locally but I can find them online.  So I do order quite a bit on line now - i.e. cosmetics, hair care products, ink for my printer, etc.   But I am also learning the delivery patterns of the couriers so I can leave the house briefly if needed.  The scary thing is some of the deliverymen now know me as the "Americana" - haha!!  And some will try and speak English.  So fun!

7.  Vegetation - it continues to amaze me as to what grows here.  In the fall there are some trees that lose their leaves but most do not.  Fig trees lose their leaves, olive trees do not.  Winter gardens are planted and many different type of flowers grow or are available at garden stores and the markets for planting.  Here are some pictures I have taken on my walks with Oscar over the past few weeks.

Citrus trees produce fruit all year long
Lots of lemon trees in Acquavella

I love this person's winter garden
 It is so organized, beautiful and I am sure will
be very bountiful

Flowering trees in winter

Bird of Paradise plant

This fig tree is literally growing
 out of the side of the wall

Proof that it is still alive
Notice the buds and small figs already forming

And how about some beautiful daisies
to brighten your day

Fino alla prossima volta!