Adventures of a Different Type - Seeking a Home Base in Umbria

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We have returned to Italy with a different goal this time.  We don’t have any plans for a significant bike tour although we have some shorter ones planned if time allows. However, the goal is to look for a small apartment to purchase so we have a future base here and can simplify our comings and goings.  It would be nice to have a place that we can share with friends and family.  So first stop is Spoleto for a few nights. The picture above is the underground “travelator” which moves people from the lower level of the city to the upper levels.  It is quite an engineering feat. 

Then the next day we take the bus  to Castel Felice to the wonderful family agriturismo where we store our bikes.  It is always a joy to visit. 

Then on our bikes for the ride back over the mountain on the rail trail.  Another engineering feat with its eight tunnels, multiple bridges and acquaducts all surrounded by magnificent mountain scenery and vast valley vistas. 

We spend time walking around town and looking at apartments that are for sale.  There are some possibilities but for now Spello is the town we want to check out thoroughly first.  So off to spello.  Below is the entry to the town. 

We are staying in a lovely apartment that was put up for sale right before we left for Italy. This was the first morning view out the window above.  We made an offer from home without even seeing it.  The owner decided not to sell and took it off the market. He rents it through Airbnb and so we decided to spend our first week in Spello here. It is beautiful and we would have been happy to own it. The only down side is that it is a terra a cielo (earth to sky). There are three floors with flights of stairs. The bathroom being on the top level. So we find ourselves doing a lot of stairs!  Anyway, it gave us a bar for comparison. 

So our first morning here Jim left bright and early as he ran into the president of the Spoleto mountain bike organization a few days earlier in Spoleto and he invited Jim to come to an event in Trevi called GustaTrevi.   So he left for Trevi. My plans were grocery shopping and provisioning for the week. Grocery store wasn’t open yet this Sunday morning so had to stop at a bar for a typical Italian breakfast.  Then I decided why not head over to Trevi and watch the finish.    

This is Trevi in the distance enroute. 

   

  

The above pictures are Jim’s from the event including this selfie by Luca Ministrini with Jim behind.  It was a large event.  There was a short, long and pazza (crazy) category. Fortunately Jim only did the long which was 32 miles and about 6000 feet of climbing.  Don’t forget he had to ride 12 miles to Trevi to get to the race and 12 miles home.  It was also in the 90’s.  Jim was a very tired puppy at the end!   He enjoyed it, he said espresso shots were even available at the aid stations! 

Jim at the finish. 

Then with Monday , the serious house hunting begins. In Italy, you don’t deal with just one realtor which can show you anything you want, you have to deal with each separate company to look at their listings.  We started with a realtor in Spello and the listing that we wanted to see was sold.  They just hadn’t bothered to remove it from the site.  He showed us another one that was currently under renovation which got us excited but was too rich for our budget. 

In the afternoon we had a Remax appointment and we started with a low budget one that was pretty grim. A typical tiny stone apartment but it turns out it had no heat and outdated utilities and was pretty rough.  Then we looked at one on one of the main piazzas.  The flower covered balcony is part of it. The piazza side entry is below it. Last fall we rented the apartment above it with the big balcony.  

  

This is the back door entry above from a quiet street and from this entrance you could just push your bikes in with no stairs. The apartment is all on one level. Two bedrooms and another small room which is currently used as a wardrobe but we could imagine it being the bike bedroom. This is the Roman gate which the apartment is looking at.  

The downside is that it is on a very happening piazza. There are bars and restaurants that are open to the wee hours so we would have to have a basket of earplugs for our guests.  It does have air conditioning so at least you can shut windows. Anyway we have three more to look at on Thursday so we will see. 

Lots of wandering. Jim had to step over this cat to look at a for sale sign. It didn’t even bother to open its eyes. 

  

Yes, house hunting is thirsty work!

 

 

We have managed to get some nice rides in between appointments.   

  

Bevagna is always a great town to visit. 

  

Back in Spello post ride taking on some refreshments. 

So in summary the house hunting has been interesting.  It isn’t very efficient compared to the same at home but we have been treated with nothing but kindness.  The language barrier has been a small challenge too.  None of the now four agents we are working with speaks English and my Italian is lacking as far as real estate grammar goes but I am learning a bit.  Another surprise was going to a bank to open an account.  You want to have an Italian bank account to buy a house as well as for establishing on line payments for utilities.  We went to the bank fully expecting to immediately be able to set up an account.  No they made us an appointment for three days later!  They only work like three days a week. I don’t believe there is any chance of work burnout in Italy!