I may be a little biased, but I think small town Italy is the best to be found! In our village of just over 750 people there seems to always something going on. There are concerts every weekend during the summer, the was "la comedia" last summer of which we were asked to be a part of, there are church dinners and live nativites (of which we were also a part of).

Last summer, when we first arrived, our neighbors brought us fresh fruits, vegetables, and eggs on a daily basis! One day when I was walking down the street I encountered an older woman who lives on our street. She had her hands behind her back. When she saw me she brought out a bunch of radishes and split them with me!

The week before Easter last year several of our neighbors brought us fresh eggs to take to the blessing of the eggs! They went into great detail on how to boil them first, put them in a basket, and take them to church on Palm Sunday to be blessed. And then reminded us to eat them on Easter Sunday! Our priest came to our house (and everyone elses) to bless the house and the family just before Easter.

Our landlady, Paola, brings us gifts almost everytime she comes to visit and/or pick up the rent. She has given us wine, fresh fruit, pastries, glasses, fresh made cappelletti, lasagne, and tagliatelle. She sent Christmas gifts home with us for two of our grandchildren and recently a gift for our newest grandchild! Everyone in Belforte has made us feel so welcome. Now that we are working on our new old house everyone stops us to let us know that they have been up there and what they think of the work! And tell us what a beautiful villa we will have!

Do we often get frustrated at how things are done in Italy? You bet! Would we trade this experience for anything? Not on your life! Insomma,this is a fairytale land where the dollar is worth a whopping 68 cents! Or maybe it's 67 cents today! Sz

Thank you for sharing such a wonderful story, Sz. It's great that you take the time to appreciate such wonderful gestures from your neighbors. It sounds to me like you've found your home. :-)

Thanks for such a positive post. From the looks of things your 'new old house' is going to be a work of art!

Lovely post, sz! My town has given me a similar experience what with being included in all the winter holiday feasts with the friends I've made here and their extended families. And the Ferragosto festa at one huge family's farm down the road where we eat, dance, play bocci and generally have a spectacular day- all three hundred of us. And that's just friends and family. The total population is about 600. In the summer we do movie night under the stars in one of the piazzette. Free for everyone and usually 30 to 60 show up. Wouldn't trade this place for any other.

Reading these posts affirms that I have made the right decision. Thanks for all of the positive stories

quote:

Originally posted by SheriLA:
Reading these posts affirms that I have made the right decision. Thanks for all of the positive stories

Reading these posts affirms that I have made the right decision to apply for my Italian citizenship and, eventually, move to Torre del Lago, a small community in Tuscany. Can't wait!

I was going to write yesterday, but never got around to it and now I have more! Yesterday after paying for my groceries the owner ran over to the section where she has plants and flowers and handed me a potted bougainvilla and told me it was for me! I asked from who and she told me there was a card attached. When I got home and read the card I saw that it was from her and the other two women who work there wishing me and my husband a happy anniversary (42 years tomorrow). I had mentioned our anniversary a few days ago!

Today we were away from the house when the skies began to darken. By the time we got to our house it was raining big heavy drops. I opened the garage and then ran around to the front door so I could get in and out to my balcony to take the clothes down and found my 84 year old neighbor on a wobbly chair taking my clothes off the line for me! She told me it was a shame that it was raining because my clothes were already dry so she wanted to take them down for me! The sad thing is, I would have not thought to do it for her! Shame on me.

I've just returned from three weeks in Italy (I have citizenship but don't live there). I covered about 2000 km by car: Rome-Bologna-Umbria-Marche-Abruzzo. Stayed mostly in small agriturismi. In three weeks I was not only wined and dined with cheap, delicious meals, but I received kindnesses at every turn from my hosts and from total strangers: The agriturismo owner in Abruzzo who did my laundry and thoughtfully ironed my shirt. A mechanic who re-attached my bumper after a little "incidente" and adamantly refused to take any money. The countless occasions when I was lost and someone physically got into their car and led me home (including the waiter in a restaurant where I had just eaten, and two vigili who left the firehouse on a rainy night in Chieti to lead me back to an agriturismo - where my dinner was waiting and re-warmed for me). Near Assisi, our host called ahead to a restaurant to make sure they treated us right after a long, crazy drive (to date, it's the largest meal I've ever eaten.) In Marche, my hosts sent a courier to pick up a pair of glasses I left in Bologna (and offered to make me a sandwich for my plane ride home yesterday). Saw a beautiful little exhibit in Calderola (Marche) and a sweet curator gave me a personal tour, explaining all the paintings and patiently suffering my questions in broken Italian. Even in Rome, a young guy walked us all through Esquilino to help find a restaurant we were looking for.

I know the reality of living in a place every day is very different than being on vacation, but whenever I go to Italy, it always delivers. I love it there.

Sounds like a lovely trip. Yes, people are very friendly here.

I have pretty much always had good treatment here too, but my skeptical nature makes wonder if primina isn't also young and cute, as well as female?

quote:

Originally posted by jhelm:
I have pretty much always had good treatment here too, but my skeptical nature makes wonder if primina isn't also young and cute, as well as female?

That's how it was in 1998 traveling with my 20 year old daughter when she was studying in Florence. My rental car got a flat in the small town of Nola (South of Naples) and the three young guys in the garage spent about two hours fixing the tie along with giving the car a general check up. They even sent out for coffee and pastry. When they got all done they didn't want to charge me anything except for the few liters of gas that the car took.

Fixed typo!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Gil,

Dang, Gil. Your daughter's 60 now?

Thanks for the heads up. I just fixed the typo. I hate to think how old that would have made me. I'm not staying up for the Turkish GP as I will now set the VCR.

quote:

Originally posted by jhelm:
my skeptical nature makes wonder if primina isn't also young and cute, as well as female?

Female, yes. Well over 40. Cute? I last saw cute in the rear-view mirror about 12 years ago.

I think the same thing can be said about any small town in general and not just in Italy. Even in Brooklyn outside "the city" people are much friendlier and life is full of yard sales, block parties and street fairs.
When people are a little more relaxed they get a lot friendlier (then again, what the hell else are you going to do in a town of 750 people).
I do have to say that the center of Italy is probably the most community minded place in Italy. There is much more a sense of "le cose comune". In my house in Spoleto I've noticed there is a lot less graffiti than in the north or in the south. Where else in Italy can you find open air affrescos untouched? In Naples they would have about three inches of spray pain, a penis and balls drawn over the Virgin's head and a lovely mound of trash underneath(I'll only except comments about that last remark from people who actually LIVE (not visit) in Naples).
I am beginning to think that big cities are only for those who can truly afford them. I'm at a point of my life in which I am no longer willing to share an apartment or take a two hour commute into work. Unless I can afford to live in th center and take adavntage of the culture places like Rome,Turin and Milan offer than I would prefer to just sit on my balcony and watch my petunias grow with a glass of Sagrantino in hand.

quote:

I would prefer to just sit on my balcony and watch my petunias grow with a glass of Sagrantino in hand.

Roger that.

I'm out here in southern Lazio, border with Abruzzo, with the sheep and the horses and the vegetable gardens and fruit trees (and let's not forget the olive trees). For me the perfect balance is one or two days a week trekking into Rome . That way I get the best of both worlds with just a little inconvenience (packed on the train, standing part of the way--about 90 minutes commute each way to Termini).

Full time out here gets me a little depressed after two or three weeks, even though the people are wonderful. Too much fresh air and quiet I guess.

I always thought of myself as a city girl, that was until I moved to Italy. Here I am a small town girl. I live in town of approximately 1600 residents and I absolutely love it. The ocean is only 20 minutes away and I can usually sit at my favorite bar and see the Adriatic. For me it is the perfect set-up.

Dear Everyone,
Hi there! My name is MaryAnn and my husband and I plan to relocate to Italy probably withing one to 2 years. This July we will visit Calabria to determine what we think of that area. We would love to live in a small town to grow old in, but one which has the essentials for when we cannot drive anymore. I would like to be as close to the sea as possible and not too far from a larger city, maybe 45 mintutes or so away. We have our 2 week trip mapped out, hotels, booked, etc. WE begin with 3 days in Scalea. Can anyone tell me of any coastal towns where property is reasonable and also a view of the sea? This visit will determine if the place we buy a small home will be Abruzzo region or this. Also, I am hoping to find a town whee the home will not be on a mountain,with a long curvy road to travel down. We ae so excited. I am in love with Italy, the country of my heritage, maternal and paternal grandparents born in Sicily. I thank you for reading this novel! (I knew it would be longer than the rest, and I tried so hard. Sorry.
Grazie,
Marianna

Hi MaryAnn! I'd recommend looking at this blog- lots of insight into life in Calabria. Might help with the decision.

www.bleedingespresso.com

Welcome MaryAnne and good luck finding the village of your dreams. It's out there I'm sure. There are so many beautiful areas with nice people.

My husband retired back to the village he was born in (anywhere else in Italy and he'd be a "foreigner" he said)and so I tagged along (an early retirment h.s. special education teacher myself).

I love to sit outside and look at the Apennines and the hill towns that surround us. The food is wonderful, the weather beats NY, and most people are very friendly.

That said, I'm sure you're aware there will be hoops to jump through before and after you make the move: visas, language, new driver's license (on stick shift most likely). Then no doubt you'll feel homesick at times, miss the ease of shopping in the States, not to mention friends and family. It's all an adjustment and keeps our brains young, I'm sure!

Search this board as questions come to mind, as many topics have already been discussed, then ask away. There's lots of practical expertise (been there, done that) here.

Good luck, and have fun searching!

First of all: I apologize for intervening here as an Italian in an expats’ blog.
I only wanted to say that these same thoughts are shared by many Italians who live in big cities with a 9/5 job. In a certain sense, these 9/5 people have the same longing for a simpler, slower life in a small town. You don’t have to have lived in New York or Portland to be fed up with the urban lifestyle.
The area the poster writes about is not far from where I live and I know what he’s talking about.
The question is: what does one do for a living in a small town?
Big cities are big for a reason: many people earn their bread there. And small towns are small for a reason: there’s not enough for more than those who live there.
So, in the end, living in a small town is a privilege for the well-to-do.

Or am I missing something?

Yes, you're missing the name of this sub-forum:
Happiness *IS* Italy

quote:

Originally posted by Giovanna:
I always thought of myself as a city girl, that was until I moved to Italy. Here I am a small town girl. I live in town of approximately 1600 residents and I absolutely love it. The ocean is only 20 minutes away and I can usually sit at my favorite bar and see the Adriatic. For me it is the perfect set-up.

Dear Giovanna:
I enjoyed reading your note. I hope I am clicking the correct symbol to reply. Tell me, I am also looking for a small town. We have been to Italy a few times and now, with this trip to Calabria in July, we are trying to decide whee we want to live. We thought it was lovely Abruzzo, but when I have seen photos of the sea views in Calabria, well, wow! We would like to be in a town w