We have a New Renovation Project!

Yes, we do! We do have a new renovation project! In Pizzo! Again!

I don't know where to start, I don't even know how it happened. I was against it. We just had enjoyed our first summer in our palazzo - how could I look at another house?! It felt like I would betray our beloved baby! - Which sounds stupid of course, especially to men.

And it was men - my husband and Angelo, his father - who layed eyes on a new property. I looked at it once, I thought it was overpriced - and refused to discuss any further. The more they showed interest the more I was against it.

Of course we would not give up / sell our palazzo. We would realize a new project for a third party - for sale. Or at least for rent.

But you don't have to have studied economics to make a simple calculation: purchase price + project costs roughly = I declared the project for unmarketable. Full stop. End of story.

Well, well. You see, we have a project, the men won.

The truth is: Angelo NEEDS another project!

He loves to supervise these kind (and much bigger) projects. That was his job for decades. He enjoys
DIY flooring, painting, craftsmen work. However, since there is not much more to do in our home, Palazzo Pizzo, he got bored. Our visitors can testify that Angelo appeared every morning to just fix something. (Of course we are lucky and thankful for these quick fixes!)

But now, he gets a whole new construction site all for his own! Well, not now, really. The project has not started yet. We don't even have the layout finally defined or decided on the contructors. (But we already got a friendly letter from the lawyer of our neighbour who has never met us, warning us about any changes in general. Seems to be a popular way in Pizzo to greet new neighbours).

Anyway, after my first resistance to the project, I seem to slowly get into the mood for renovation again. It is strange though, to do it for a "third party". Meaning, I don't want to get involved emotionally too much, since this casa (no, no more palazzo) will not be ours to live in... does that make sense?

We are not professional interior designers (although we would love to), so I wonder how one feels when doing that job for a customer? How much passion and commitment do you put into a project? And how does it feel to leave the keyes for someone else? Any comments?

I guess, it depends on the customer, the briefing, the budget. Since our "customer" is a future, to be defined, customer, we have to do it the way WE like it, however with a closer eye on the budget.

Since our last visit to Pizzo this April, I am more curious about the new project. Last Sunday, I came across a book with a stunning Sicilian casa. I love these hand painted blue window cornici. Paint costs not much and Angelo enjoys painting... blue especially, remember?... I showed him these pages via skype the same evening. I think, he likes it. So here is my first idea for our new project:

"Casa Grotta" by William Brockschmidt in Modica, Sicily

Source: Designers Abroad  (also in my BookStore)

I will document the new project in my blog under the label Casa delle Grazie. So, here we go, the project has a name!

***

Follow Palazzo Pizzo's board Palazzo Pizzo NEW Project on Pinterest.

***

Arriving at Lamezia Airport and driving to Pizzo

Welcome to the International Airport of Lamezia Terme (SUF)!

 

When there is not much traffic, you can enjoy a short walk to the terminal :-)

 

When arriving from outside the EU you collect your luggage on the right hand side, where friendly customs officers await you to scan your bags. (One asked me to take him back to Bangkok due to lots of rain in Calabria in the last weeks.)

It always takes a bit of time to get your luggage, even just one plane has landed. Luggage from the EU will be delivered first.

 

If you  have not ordered pick-up service by a hotel or friends, you can catch a taxi outside the terminal. It costs around 35-40 Euro to the historic center of Pizzo. Pre-ordered service might cost more.

If you have rented a car, it is easy to find your way to Pizzo. It's direction south, Reggio Calabria. You can either take the highway which is free in the South of Italy (green sign) or follow the national road (blue sign). We always take the national road, and drive below the highway viaduct, following the signs to PIZZO (about 25km).

Watch out for goat crossing! This is country side!

A taxi driver might not know all the streets of Pizzo. Also some might be reluctant to drive through the narrow alleys. Our friends were dropped in Pizza last summer and had to pull their trolleys down the bumpy alleys to the doorsteps of our house.

Same here this April! Angelo dropped us at San Giorgio church, since our alley is under renovation and no cars can pass (since November 2012!).

That's why we packed light!

Home!

More about the pavement progress later.

Summer Feelings in a special April

from left: pranzo in piazza, castle and beach,  fruit scetch

This April, the weather in Pizzo is much more gentle than last year. When the sun is shining, and it has been shining every single day for the last ten days - it feels like summer!

We all agree, that for us it feels more special being in Pizzo in April, than in summer. 

There are only few tourists around. The Pizzitani are among themselves. Including us! We feel more like Pizzitani, inhabitants of Pizzo, now, in April, when socializing with the locals seems effortless.

People have time to talk. You don't wait two hours for a pizza (ok, that happened only once in August). And the piazza and gelati are even more enjoyable. 

The beaches are empty. You can sun bath and kids can dig holes all over the place. However, the sea is yet too cold for a swim. Even the weatherproof Brits would only bath their feet. 

This April was also special for us, since we had planned a lunch with family and friends for a belated celebration of our son's first communion. When we met in the church San Giorgio on that Sunday, an unexpected small and very special ceremony was organized for us.

Now, our stay is almost over. But no one wants to leave!! It was our best April ever!

We had not much to do in the house. Mission accomplished. Just "bonding" with the house and enjoying  :-)

It's always sad to say good-bye. But the comfort is that summer is near. And with it a very long summer holidays around the corner that we will spend in this Bel Paese!

As soon as I have a computer and Internet (not just a smart phone) available, I will post some more. For now, please visit us on Facebook for more pics.

Ciao e a presto!

---
PS: I merged the the above photo with the text again. Somehow when you upload a post via email, the text that you write before the photo will appear in the post behind the photo (as I like it), but the text behind the photo does not appear. When I tried to add the missing text, I accidentally deleted the photo. Apparently you can now add photos from your phone to your post via Google+. I downloaded the app, but did not manage. Also, I am a bit reluctant to too much Google services.

Pizzo in April

Pizzo in April. Here we go again. I need to pack light. I mean really light. We cannot reach our house by car. The streets around are STILL not done yet.

As reported before, the old historic center of Pizzo is under renovation. They started in November 2012 (!), I blogged about it here. The downturn of (the often praised) slow life.

I guess, we need to carry our suitcases from the piazza down the alley. We might not even be able to pull the trolleys. In case it is raining, it will be messy and slippery ...

Aaaah, what a contrast to our comfortable big city life in Asia! ;-)
I don't think I am spoiled, but I wouldn't mind to skip this "adventure".

I will keep you posted. Let's hope it is not raining upon our arrival.

photo courtesy of Pino Pitt, our architect (January 2013)

 

photo courtesy of Alfonso Salutato, our electrician (March 2013)

 

 

 

Looking forward to check out my self. Will keep you posted. Until soon.

 

Tanti saluti!

 

 

 

 

Update April 7, 2013:

 

I just found another photo from Angelo, my father-in-law, in my mail box. It says, that they started the laying of the old stones last friday. And our alley looks like this:

 

 

Looks good!



Painting Progress

I finished the third bird. These happy paintings make me quiet proud. That's why the "cock on orange" and the two brothers, "number I" and "number II" get their own blog post to show off a bit:

 

oil, acrylic and decoupage on canvas

(2013) 40 x 50 cm

 

 

oil and acrylic on canvas (2013) 40 x 50 cm

 

 

oil and acrylic on canvas (2013) 40 x 50 cm

My next project is already in the making. After I proofed myself that I can draw and paint, I am tying to get into the abstract painting, kind of Pop Art. Never thought it will be more difficult than "normal" painting. For the "normal" painting, like above, you need craftsmen skills. But for "abstract" art, you need more than that. You need the right "vision", and a feeling for composition and colour. Exciting to dive deeper!

If you like my paintings, you might want to check out my Flickr "ART GALLERY" - Thank you!