The biggest American community in Tuscany is naturally Florence. If you really want to live in Italy without a car outside a major city you will have to live right near a regional train station. That may not be the Italy you are looking for. Italy is not Brooklyn. Buses are sparse outside major areas. Countryside living in Italy is great because you can still be near a city and have all the perks of the countryside but you will need a car. Going for passeggiate in Florence is great but may get old real fast. Firenze is small. Come here with a plan A B C D and plan on improvising plan E when the former ones do not work out. I am not trying to scare anyone or pass on negativity- it is just the reality of living abroad. Hanging with fellow Americans can be fun but I am in my early thirties and would not have assimilated and learned the language if I was in an English speaking community. But it will help your wife and you during the period of culture shock all people naturally go through. You both will need others to lean locally on during that period. It will be harder not speaking the language. Italians are kind when you try to speak Italian -even badly.
An Englishman i met in Italy explained the process of culture shock -it may help you to understand it when going through it. Most people making large life changes go through it.
The first step is being in love with the new place and thinking it is better while comparing it to your former life. You will most likely temporarily withdraw from you friends and family back home as you brain adjusts to your new life.
Frustation will set in as many things will be different. Depression will set it. This is when strong interpersonal relations help. Embracing the local culture and not rejecting it at this point is crucial.
The third phase is when you can move between your two worlds with ease. You bloom again and get back on with living well.
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The biggest American community in Tuscany is naturally Florence. If you really want to live in Italy without a car outside a major city you will have to live right near a regional train station. That may not be the Italy you are looking for. Italy is not Brooklyn. Buses are sparse outside major areas. Countryside living in Italy is great because you can still be near a city and have all the perks of the countryside but you will need a car. Going for passeggiate in Florence is great but may get old real fast. Firenze is small. Come here with a plan A B C D and plan on improvising plan E when the former ones do not work out. I am not trying to scare anyone or pass on negativity- it is just the reality of living abroad. Hanging with fellow Americans can be fun but I am in my early thirties and would not have assimilated and learned the language if I was in an English speaking community. But it will help your wife and you during the period of culture shock all people naturally go through. You both will need others to lean locally on during that period. It will be harder not speaking the language. Italians are kind when you try to speak Italian -even badly.
An Englishman i met in Italy explained the process of culture shock -it may help you to understand it when going through it. Most people making large life changes go through it.
The first step is being in love with the new place and thinking it is better while comparing it to your former life. You will most likely temporarily withdraw from you friends and family back home as you brain adjusts to your new life.
Frustation will set in as many things will be different. Depression will set it. This is when strong interpersonal relations help. Embracing the local culture and not rejecting it at this point is crucial.
The third phase is when you can move between your two worlds with ease. You bloom again and get back on with living well.
This can take years to play out.
In bocca al lupo.
-Siena