KarenSheffield's activity

I love the joke! Sadly, I don't think he's as much of an idiot as that. It would be more characteristic of him to leap out with all three parachutes, using one and selling the other two for an exorbitant price!

Although nearly all my experiences of Italy and the Italians have been positive, the exception was Gravina in Puglia. The centro storico is a nightmare to negotiate, the museums are badly signposted, and the people we asked either professed ignorance - of the Cathedral! - or misdirected us. To cap it all we were waterbombed by a group of teenage lads, and harassed by another on a motorbike. I would never go there again!  

Thank you for your posts, Moruzzo and Bagni. Yes, it does seem rather strange to exchange a two-bedroomed house in a 'white village' in Andalucia (Torrox), with patio, garden and roof terrace and only five minutes from the beach and an hour from Malaga airport for a completely unconverted wine vault in a small hilltop village in Basilicata, with no outside space and at least forty five minutes from the beach and two hours from the aiport!  Why? Well, we have had the Spanish house for 18 years now and feel we have 'done' Andalucia now. Other reasons are that the coast is getting overdeveloped, the sea is often dirty, a lot more Brits have moved into the village and the food isn't great.   Also, I have always loved Italy ever since I first went there as a student, Basilicata is relatively undeveloped, the Italians are friendly and the food is fantastic. And we wanted a change. It may turn out to be a terrible mistake, but hey, let's live dangerously!

Well here in the north of England it is 16 degrees and we consider ourselves lucky! I have been checking out Italian temperatures, it seems to be pretty hot over, in fact hotter than the aptly named Costa del Sol in Spain where we were last week.  

He's an idiot in some ways, being vain (the hair transplant), always saying tactless things in public (did he really call Obama 'tanned'?) and obsessed with young women old enough to be his grand daughters (ok, he's not alone in this!). But he does have political cunning, or he wouldn't have survived so long. He has realised that he who controls the media controls the terms of political discourse, hence his media empire. He has managed to wriggle out of attempts to bring him to court, and appears to lead a charmed life. I am genuinely interested in how he does this, and wonder what it will take to finally bring him down?

I'm sorry to sound negative, but in most respects Italian food is superior to British food. I can't imagine why people would want British bacon, to take the example given, which is usually wet slimy stuff in packets. Or British chocolate, which is mainly sugar and fat and has a very low cocoa solids content. Italian tea is weak, I grant you, unlike the coffee! As other people have suggested, you would need to do a lot of research to find out if there really is a big enough market to make importing foodstuffs worthwhile. And Italian bureaucracy is a nightmare, you would certainly have to jump through no end of administrative, legal and health regulations. On a more positive note- the children's sweets suggestion sounds promising- it obviously worked in Belgium. And children's clothes are horribly expensive in Italy, it's easier to find cheap and trendy clothes in the UK, so that might be an avenue worth exploring. On the other hand, the Italian birthrate is very low... If you do decide to go ahead I wish you the very best of luck! Let us know how you get on. BEst wishes, KarenSheffield

Thank you Moruzzo- it is reassuring to know that there are people out there who have bought from Tricali successfully. How many properties did you look out before deciding on the one for you? And is there any pressure to buy from the Tricali people? I'm very interested in your experience. Any before and after pictures?

Thank you, Musetta, that's very helpful. They do say on their website that the furniture is a bit basic, and things like wood-burning stoves or other forms of heating are extra. But we just want a little holiday home, we wouldn't want to sell it on at a profit or rent it out, so it would probably be OK for us. It's reassuring to know that the company does exist, and that there are satisfied customers!

I'm sure this is good advice. I hope I am strong minded enough to follow it. But speaking as someone who bought a little house in Spain on the strength of the lemon tree in the garden and the mother cat with litter of kittens in the shed, I do tend to get carried away! (There was also a stuffed badger in the outside - and only - loo, and a cage full of large snails hanging from a wire in the patio...) But this time I shall have my sensible husband with me, so will probably not be making rash decisions.  The company claim that they provide a standardised service, and all their furniture comes direct from the factory, so that way they can keep costs down. But like you, I tend to think that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! Having said that, they were also involved in the development of the Antico borgo di Calitri, near Naples, and there is at least one satisfied customer blogging about his house there.

I don't think they have summer camps in Italy. But Italians love children, I am sure you will be able to find playmates for them.