Casa Monal's activity

  Glad to hear that their intention is to protect UK nationals but yes, if the claw back rule was their only concern, then it would seem logical to opt in with the exception of the claw back rule. Perhaps it wasn’t an option…a case of all or nothing. Difficult to keep up or even understand the EU for us mere lay(wo)man 

  Wow, that is a coincidence!  We were ‘in residence’ a few weeks ago and our Italian/English friends recommended the book. Apparently, the author is English and her husband Dutch, vice versa in our case Off to check if it is available in Kindle format.

    I have to be very creative when I am in Italy...it is difficult to eat out, as there is not much choice!  

  Other half is from Yorkshire.  Yep they did brilliantly…if Yorkshire had been a country they would have been 12th in the medals table

  @Rickardo – it is a 'joke', a play on words I have no class  but I have a wash hand basin in the bathroom and a sink in the kitchen but I often hear my 84 year old Yorkshire father-in-law refer to the wash hand basin as the ‘sink in the bathroom’. So perhaps it has more to do with language evolvement than with class or the north/south divide

Thank you for keeping us updated Charlotte

  Wonderful house but I agree the house is only worth what someone will pay for it.  In my opinion, houses in Italy are no longer worth anywhere close to what people are being convinced to pay for them.  And with reference to the off topic chat: Italy's government has the biggest debt burden of any of the major eurozone countries, which makes it particularly susceptible to a loss of market confidence - something that would make it impossible for the government to reborrow its debts as they come due for payment. Full article here

  Wow good for you   Great to know that the pioneering spirit is still alive and kicking…says she who needs more than a hairdryer…. Have a wonderful time and keep us posted!  

Never mind Mrs Google, I found the orginal source   Tuscan village up for sale on eBay for £2 million

The entire 800-year-old medieval hamlet of Pratariccia, which totals 25 run down and abandoned houses has been put up for sale on eBay for £2 million.

The idyllic Italian hilltop hamlet plus adjoining agricultural land has been uninhabited since the early 1960s.     As time took its toll on the elderly in the village, youngsters moved out in search of work and now it resembles a ghost town, as some of the houses, made from the trademark traditional Tuscan stone have collapsed – and in fairness the eBay add does describe it as being "in need of restoration". Set in beautiful rolling hills 2,400ft above sea level, Pratariccia, is deep in the Tuscan countryside, just 25 miles east of Florence and close to the region of Italy dubbed Chiantishire for its abundance of British residents and holidaymakers. The pictures used to illustrate the hamlet show weeds and grass growing out of the abandoned houses and the grazing fields nearby which are included in the sale are also overgrown and could do with being seen to by a tractor. Nevertheless, the potential for the sight as a lucrative luxury holiday development is clear – although the last 150ft of road that lead to Pratariccia are also in need of some tarmac and tender loving care. Nearby are the hilltop villages of Bibbiena and Poppi, the latter being famous for its castle with Renaissance frescoes and Latin manuscripts from the Middle Ages and it is also close to the home of the order of the Camaldolesi monks.   Pratariccia borders onto a national park in whose hills lies the source of the river Arno that flows through Florence and across much of west Tuscany before ending in the Mediterranean close to Pisa. The village, which is now owned by an undisclosed monastic order, was put on eBay earlier this month by estate agent's LPQ Immobiliare based in Prato and so far they have received a "number of interesting bids" and two have fallen through but the sale is still on and offers are being willingly accepted. Although advertised for sale on the eBay, Pratariccia is not in the bidding section of the auction site but instead in the classified adverts where it is listed as "medieval hamlet for sale" with the asking price 2.5 million euro (down from the initial 5 million) and the name of the estate agents. Carlo Magni, who is handling the sale, said: "It's a unique once in a lifetime opportunity to own your very own Tuscan hamlet – and the price is a complete bargain. Where else would you get all those buildings, land, panoramic view, plus all the history for 2.5 million euro. "The place has been uninhabited since the 1960s, up until then around 120 people lived in the hamlet but then as the older generation died out and the economic boom gripped Italy those youngsters that were left moved on and never returned. "It is currently owned by a group of people who live outside the area and they are looking for a quick sale and to make as much as possible. We have had a couple of bids and two came very close to completion but they fell through so it's still on the market and available. "I'm an estate agent so it's my job to sell property – I put out all the usual details via the usual outlets but then thought why not use eBay – so many people buy and sell online these days that it has to be worth it. "I posted the advert two weeks ago and I've had lots of calls about it and I'm hoping to get some viewings arranged over the next few days. I think it has potential as a private hotel or luxury spa and that's what one of the potential buyers wanted to do but it fell through. "The second time we came close to a sale was when a group of local artists wanted to buy it and turn it into a typical artists village with original labourers and craftsmen but that fell through as well. "These are difficult times and the people who own it, who have asked me not to mention them or their line of work, are very keen to sell – that's why we have dropped the asking price from the initial five million euro." Luca Santini, mayor of Stia, the nearest inhabited town, said:"It's a wonderful hamlet with beautiful views across the Tuscan countryside but it could do with some work. Some of the houses have collapsed and others are on the verge of collapse and there is some work to be done. "If someone with the money to spare invested in the village and rebuilt it they would have a fantastic development and it would generate work for the local economy. Putting the hamlet on the internet is the best way to get publicity so hopefully it will sell quickly." Two years ago the cash strapped Italian government put up for sale 9,000 properties, worth £3 billion via it's land registry website with palaces, castles, islands and palazzos being offered for sale in a bid to cut the country's growing public debt which stands at £1 trillion. Source

  Hertz always offer us this option but on further questioning, they did tell us that it is only cost effective if the tank is less than a quarter full.  So towards the end of our car hire, we run it as low as possible, work out the km/l ratio and put in just enough petrol to get us back to the airport.  Most times it has been on reserve when we’ve returned it.