My journey to Tuscany began during another adventure in Saudi Arabia, where I worked for nine years. As I am a woman from the green north of England, those drab, desert colours, not to mention the highly artificial life of a foreign compound, left me aching for an oasis of verdure and something of the ‘dolce vita' for which Italians are famous. I therefore began to scan websites of Tuscany, solely to drink in its beauty, and sustain the dream of buying a property there, and one day transferring myself and the four-poster bed in which I slept, (plus hundreds of useless high heels in which to break my neck on the steep cobbles) from the middle east to that more genteel terrain of old Etrusca.
Of course, there were a few hitches along the way. As a Sagittarian, I am a great one for ideas, creativity and faith in the eventual unfolding of all things pleasurable to me, but time and patience are required for any undertaking in Italy, where one must learn to pace one's quick brain with the piano-piano (slowly slowly) approach of the Italians. Not always easy! And so I bought a shell of a house, perched atop a medieval village in the Valdievole, overlooking the magnificent valley and beyond. It was love. But, as with any overseas project, especially when one does not yet speak a word of the language, nor understand the manner in which Italians operate, the journey from shell to shelter was met with considerable effort. Indeed, obtaining my residency and receiving my shipment was stress enough to inspire drinking dry a Tuscan vineyard.
After all of this, however, I was very happy to find myself with a finished home, and the prospect of a new livelihood by which to look after the young life which was now growing inside of me! And to this end, in part while pouring over the internet in Arabia, or taking many photos and videos whilst on holiday in Italy, I became impassioned by social & multimedia and its endless possibilities for being creative, promoting the villages of Tuscany, being my own boss, and sharing in the Tuscan adventure with my beautiful daughter, Lily.
I'm sure fellow property owners like myself can relate when I say that I'm still overwhelmed by the beautiful spirits, camaraderie and warmth of my neighbours, and feel truly blessed by my surroundings.
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