The Renovation of the Facade goes on and on and on

Some might wonder about the progress of the renovation work.
Is the house livable yet?
No!
We have not continued with the interior.
They are still working on the front facade - since a couple of months... on hourly rate... (please don't comment on this).

Here, part of the photo documentation sent via mail from Italy over the last couple of weeks:

Repair of the 'stones look'.

Renovation of the window frames including new window sills.

Balcony beam reconstruction (first, they were too short like shown here in the pic).

Water access (forgot why here)

New stone plates will be added.

* * *
I will be visiting the site tomorrow.
However, I will not have Internet access for a couple of days.
Happy holidays!
Until soon.

"Cool Travel Guide" about Calabria

Remember the travel writer team that was looking for an accommodation in Calabria with Internet access? Lara and her partner Thierry have been travelling across Calabria end of May and early June to research, write and photograph this Southern Italian region for a new English guidebook.

Although the guidebook is not published yet, I have some of Lara's thoughts about Calabria ... because she is blogging about her travel writing at Cool Travel Guide.


She has "10 Reasons to travel to Calabria" to read in part I and part II.

Pizzo is one of them!
And other than in the usual travel guide books were everything is seen from the bright side, Lara writes in her travel blog also about the other side of the story.

Here Lara's description "Pizzo: with elegant palazzi perched precariously on steep cliffs overlooking the ocean and a charming old town that's a tiny tangle of pastel-painted houses, narrow lanes and steep stairs reminiscent of Positano. Unfortunately, tourists outnumber the locals at the gelateria tables on the main piazza, and one too many shops have given over to tacky souvenirs, however, wander the pretty backstreets where life goes on as ever and you'll smell the mouthwatering aromas of lunch being cooked and find women hanging out washing over their balconies."

Her comment about Pizzo make me remember, that Pizzo has some potential for improvements. Different from her comment (above). And I am looking forward to my next trip to Pizzo (soon!) to meet some old and new friends, some Pizzitani, who think alike. I will try to keep you posted!

During the weeks Lara and her partner have spent crisscrossing Calabria to research the new guidebook they were relieved to find the southern Italian region to be such terrific value. They consider Calabria: Europe's best value destination

And here is the link to all of her posts about Calabria

At the moment, Lara and Thierry are still in Italy, right now in Milano, to further research and write for a travel guide book about Northern Italy. She has posted some interesting observations about Italians as well, here and here!

Calabrian Textiles by Bossio

Last February I discovered a shop at the airport in Lamezia, that was selling beautiful textiles from local craft men.

I was fascinated from a white cotton bed cover with a simple red but decorative local embroidery pattern. I liked the shop and started to talk to the sales woman. She gave me a business card from the textile producer with a website address.

Some business men passed by, well dressed in dark suites, on their way back to Rome. One stopped at the shop and said to his colleague: "Look, this is what I used to have in my child's room. This is typical embroidery from my area. My Mamma used to have a lot of these...."

I was impressed. Although I used to come since several years to Calabria, I never saw them promoting local textiles. Of course local products are promoted, like local ceramics and above all local specialities like pepperoncini (chili), Vecchio Amaro del Capo (a herbal liquor that is served straight from the freezer), tuna, onions from Tropea, tartuffo ice cream from Pizzo etc.

Back home I thought I have lost the business card of the shop and all google researches never brought me back the factory name. Only a couple of weeks ago, in a side pocket of my trolley, I discovered the name card and now, I can present the name:

BOSSIO, fabbrica tessile
in Via P. Mancini, 3 - 87060 Calopezzati (CS)
(near Sibari)
www.fabbricatessilebossio.it

I wish I would have taken a photograph from the beautiful bed cover, because the website is not very professional. The pictures are too small and not very attractive. It looks a bit old fashioned (I guess it is) - but this need to be changed!

I think the shop at the airport, that presents some of the textiles is a good step forward. I wish I could be a little helper.

In the meanwhile I will post some of the pictures I have chosen from BOSSIO.