Our first weeks & months in Italy

Having taken the plunge and bought our dream home in Italy it was time to move in.

Having moved house several times over the years, we were used to packing and then unpacking all our possessions into our new home.
But this time was special. We weren’t moving to the next assignment, the next job. This change was for us. Our dream move.
We were filled with excitement and that definitely helped as we entered a world of the unknown, a world of wonderful Italian bureaucracy.

We quickly registered our residency in the local ‘comune’ and set up our state health care.
That was all relatively quick and painless. Our car, on the other hand, was much more problematic.
Transferring it to Italian plates took 8 months in the end due to various administrative errors – but we got there in the end.

One of the most important conscious decisions we made in the first weeks, which really helped us to adapt quickly, was to immerse ourselves into our new life.
We frequently visited the local restaurants and bars, sampling the wonderful food and drink, supporting local businesses, and also trying to be visible in our new community,
We also frequently visited the beach – a luxury we never had when we lived in Germany and Poland. Any excuse just to pop to the beach – Out shopping? Let’s hit the beach for an hour. Need petrol? Let’s fill up on the way to the beach. Being just 15-20 minutes away by car is amazing and something we both treasure and take full advantage of.

We also started taking Italian classes with Babbel – we have their app and also bought a year’s subscription to Babbel Live classes. The classes really are wonderful and helped us quickly learn survival Italian – so I mean we quickly mastered ordering pizza, pasta and wine 🙂

As for our dog – little Pixie absolutely loves it here in Italy.
We once moved to Germany, concerned about how our teenage daughters would adapt, not giving a second thought to the impact on our little four-legged friend.
Two to four weeks later she was behaving really badly and simply didn’t like it in the new apartment. She doesn’t speak German – maybe that’s it.
Anyway, now in Italy, she loves nothing more than sitting in the garden seemingly admiring the amazing view (she’s half blind, so who knows what’s she’s really doing) and couldn’t be happier

All in all, the first weeks and months have been great and we must say that a key determinant of that were the Italians and others we met here.
We’ve always loved how friendly and welcoming the Italians are, but they really have gone beyond anything we could have hoped for.
We have loved Italy for years and are now falling deeper in love with it every week and month.
Viva La Dolce Vita!