THE FIRST VISIT

We had booked a trip to Italy, using last years tickets and followed the information intensely regarding the current covid situation. We were relieved to see a positive move in the numbers and it felt safe, if somewhat strange to travel. The government gave the go ahead for travel to Italy only days before and it felt so good to finally be there as a family again. It, of course, felt somewhat peculiar that first time we drove to Belvedere Ostrense to see what was ours. First there was an excitement and then a strange silence fell over us as we got closer. We knew the landscape from before. We had been in the area, just not right there. Had we made the right decision or was the whole thing a fiasco? The day was overcast, but there was a warm glow inside me as we saw the property for the first time. It was as expected, with one exception, the view. It was even better than anticipated and that on a less than average summers day. We explored the plot, excited to find various fruit trees and olive trees. A little walk through the village and we couldn’t stop smiling. We almost had to pinch each other, to be sure that it was true. 

We visited the property a number of times and took with us one of our Italian friends also. We enjoyed every moment and tested the restaurant in the village center.  Now we shouldn’t be so surprised, it is often more difficult to find poor food than good in Italy, but wow. We had a fantastic meal with wild boar as the main dish. 

Towards the end of the trip it was time for a major step forward in the whole project. I met with Diego and the contractor Stefano. We went through the details of project and we discussed how we could move forward. The application had not been sent to the local authorities yet. So much had to be in place first. However, we all agreed that we could work together. Although it was not strictly corona friendly, Stefano and I looked one another in the eye and shook hands on the deal. We had a contractor and a contract to move forward with. Our aim was to start on site mid to late September.

Now the race was on to get the permission to build.