# Retiring to Ofena



## maisie21

Hi
My husband and I are planning to re-locate to Abruzzo next year, hopefully towards the end of April.
We bought our house, as a renovation project, in Ofena in 2007 and had originally planned to move this year. However, our house was damaged in the earthquake and we are still waiting to receive authorisation from the authorities to start the repairs.
Regardless of whether the work has started by April next year we still plan to make the move then even if it means taking a caravan across with us to sleep in.
We have a garden of over 600sq.m which is full of olive trees, vines and fig trees to we will have plenty of work to keep us occupied until we can start on the house again.
If anyone has any constructive advice to offer it would be gratefully welcomed.
Judy


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## pudd 2

maisie21 said:


> Hi
> My husband and I are planning to re-locate to Abruzzo next year, hopefully towards the end of April.
> We bought our house, as a renovation project, in Ofena in 2007 and had originally planned to move this year. However, our house was damaged in the earthquake and we are still waiting to receive authorisation from the authorities to start the repairs.
> Regardless of whether the work has started by April next year we still plan to make the move then even if it means taking a caravan across with us to sleep in.
> We have a garden of over 600sq.m which is full of olive trees, vines and fig trees to we will have plenty of work to keep us occupied until we can start on the house again.
> If anyone has any constructive advice to offer it would be gratefully welcomed.
> Judy


go for it you only live once we did and we have not looked back we have had bad times and good times but dont regret any thing . Perhaps by moving over it might just move things on .I am helping an english man renovate his house in Capistrano perhaps we whill meet some time good luck


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## maisie21

pudd 2 said:


> go for it you only live once we did and we have not looked back we have had bad times and good times but dont regret any thing . Perhaps by moving over it might just move things on .I am helping an english man renovate his house in Capistrano perhaps we whill meet some time good luck


Hi Pleased to hear that you have no regrets.
We have heard from one of our Architects and she is hoping to have some more information for us this week.
It would be great if we could meet up some time,where do you live?
Judy


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## pudd 2

maisie21 said:


> Hi Pleased to hear that you have no regrets.
> We have heard from one of our Architects and she is hoping to have some more information for us this week.
> It would be great if we could meet up some time,where do you live?
> Judy


hi judy that would be nice we live in pretoro and the whife dosent se many englih here


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## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi
> My husband and I are planning to re-locate to Abruzzo next year, hopefully towards the end of April.
> We bought our house, as a renovation project, in Ofena in 2007 and had originally planned to move this year. However, our house was damaged in the earthquake and we are still waiting to receive authorisation from the authorities to start the repairs.
> Regardless of whether the work has started by April next year we still plan to make the move then even if it means taking a caravan across with us to sleep in.
> We have a garden of over 600sq.m which is full of olive trees, vines and fig trees to we will have plenty of work to keep us occupied until we can start on the house again.
> If anyone has any constructive advice to offer it would be gratefully welcomed.
> Judy


Judy, you are back !!!! good work. I missed the thread. I see Barry has done something too. Something about an Ofena group??? all sounds good. 

Still planning to be in Ofena end Oct ?Nov looking forward to it. 
Are you there soon too? 

Haven't heard from Gianni in a while. Hope he got his project started. My eldest daughter plans to marry here in Aus at home in the garden, I've been gardening madly. She is having a sunflower theme. Hope everyone finds your new thread,
I miss the news and info. 

I am trying to get some stairs built to my garden soon, but the metal man wanted to build something sensible but soulless. I need to find a nice metal plate, galvanized maybe, that doesn't look too industrial, that will cope with the weather snow etc, not rust. Otherwise I might give up and price wood.

Any ideas for something suitable for a metre wide balcony, with stairs a small landing and another three steps. Not a yucky boxy grill. Flat plate with holes maybe ?


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## italy

*navelli*



flawed said:


> Judy, you are back !!!! good work. I missed the thread. I see Barry has done something too. Something about an Ofena group??? all sounds good.
> 
> Still planning to be in Ofena end Oct ?Nov looking forward to it.
> Are you there soon too?
> 
> Haven't heard from Gianni in a while. Hope he got his project started. My eldest daughter plans to marry here in Aus at home in the garden, I've been gardening madly. She is having a sunflower theme. Hope everyone finds your new thread,
> I miss the news and info.
> 
> I am trying to get some stairs built to my garden soon, but the metal man wanted to build something sensible but soulless. I need to find a nice metal plate, galvanized maybe, that doesn't look too industrial, that will cope with the weather snow etc, not rust. Otherwise I might give up and price wood.
> 
> Any ideas for something suitable for a metre wide balcony, with stairs a small landing and another three steps. Not a yucky boxy grill. Flat plate with holes maybe ?


read in the paper the other day that several families that returned to property that had been declared uninhabitable were evicted the other day.. by the carbineri... so be careful about staying in a place if its been declared structurally unsound after the quake... i believe these people have also been fined as well..

seismic activity in the province of L'Aquila is still common, the area around rieti has seen panic evacuations once more as their strength grows and people are understandably nervous that lived through the last one... centre of L'Aquila has once more been closed to the public


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## ilonaandbill

*going to Alghero in Sardinia*



pudd 2 said:


> go for it you only live once we did and we have not looked back we have had bad times and good times but dont regret any thing . Perhaps by moving over it might just move things on .I am helping an english man renovate his house in Capistrano perhaps we whill meet some time good luck


I agree with PUD2, you only live once. My husband and I are planning to visit Alghero in Sardinia this Christmas. We are planning to rent a furnished place for a week or so. Does anyone have any advice on markets being open during the holiday, and anything else we need to prepare for? We are flying in from the US.
Our first visit to Italy together. I know a few words only.
Any advice is greatly appreciated. We are near retirement age in great health.


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## Celyn

Hi Judy
I haven't been on the site for ages but it was good to see your name amongst the posts. Sorry to hear you still haven't been able to do anything to your house but it sounds as though you are still determined to make the move when you retire. Good luck with everything. 
We have since bought a little place high in the mountains north of Lucca in the Garfagnana area, due to sign the final bits and bobs in November - all very exciting. We would still love to make a visit to Abruzzo so maybe one day will manage to see Ofena and the surrounding area.
All the best
Jan


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## Barry

flawed said:


> Judy, you are back !!!! good work. I missed the thread. I see Barry has done something too. Something about an Ofena group??? all sounds good.
> 
> Still planning to be in Ofena end Oct ?Nov looking forward to it.
> Are you there soon too?
> 
> Haven't heard from Gianni in a while. Hope he got his project started. My eldest daughter plans to marry here in Aus at home in the garden, I've been gardening madly. She is having a sunflower theme. Hope everyone finds your new thread,
> I miss the news and info.
> 
> I am trying to get some stairs built to my garden soon, but the metal man wanted to build something sensible but soulless. I need to find a nice metal plate, galvanized maybe, that doesn't look too industrial, that will cope with the weather snow etc, not rust. Otherwise I might give up and price wood.
> 
> Any ideas for something suitable for a metre wide balcony, with stairs a small landing and another three steps. Not a yucky boxy grill. Flat plate with holes maybe ?


Ron Celli from Florida is planning on being in Carrufo for november to make sure his father's house is repaired correctly if you need someone new to talk to.
Gianni's project was approved but haven't heard if they released any money yet.
There are some tentative plans for a bunch of Ofenese, Carrufese and Villa's from Canada and the US to have a picnic in the villages in 2011 instead of in Vancouver.


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## flawed

Barry said:


> Ron Celli from Florida is planning on being in Carrufo for november to make sure his father's house is repaired correctly if you need someone new to talk to.
> Gianni's project was approved but haven't heard if they released any money yet.
> There are some tentative plans for a bunch of Ofenese, Carrufese and Villa's from Canada and the US to have a picnic in the villages in 2011 instead of in Vancouver.


Hi Barry, I finally booked our tickets. we will be in Ofena 24th Oct to 3rd Nov
Happy to meet new people. Rod's sister and her husband are coming to stay with us should be fun. 

Rod can't wait to get back to Ofena.... He is trying to get a job back in Dubai... that much closer ! I won't be back until it warms up . Trying to get to the Chelsea flower show 2011. So May/June


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## Barry

I thought you didn't have heat in the house? Will be a bit on the cool side by the end of October.
I can't get away from work this fall so it dosen't look like we can come this year. If things change I will try and fly out for a week or 2 on my own.


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## flawed

Barry said:


> I thought you didn't have heat in the house? Will be a bit on the cool side by the end of October.
> I can't get away from work this fall so it dosen't look like we can come this year. If things change I will try and fly out for a week or 2 on my own.



hmmm not my call on the timing. i would have made it beginning sept. donna and steve have booked a 6 week european junket doing visit with us last unfortunately. last year we had three awesome weeks so fingers crossed. we have two gas and one kero heater, lots of doonas . hope the rain keeps away. if it's two depressing we will go somewhere for a while. olive picking time isn't it?

hope you get a chance to come out. tried to talk Pam into coming while we are there. will be doing plenty of eating and drinking..We downed a few Gianni 2009's when we there last . looking forward to Gianni 2010.

we are hoping Rod gets the job in dubai.... roll on renovtions yeah....

italy calling you.......come visit !


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## bunty16

maisie21 said:


> Hi
> My husband and I are planning to re-locate to Abruzzo next year, hopefully towards the end of April.
> We bought our house, as a renovation project, in Ofena in 2007 and had originally planned to move this year. However, our house was damaged in the earthquake and we are still waiting to receive authorisation from the authorities to start the repairs.
> Regardless of whether the work has started by April next year we still plan to make the move then even if it means taking a caravan across with us to sleep in.
> We have a garden of over 600sq.m which is full of olive trees, vines and fig trees to we will have plenty of work to keep us occupied until we can start on the house again.
> If anyone has any constructive advice to offer it would be gratefully welcomed.
> Judy


Hope all goes well with you, just check with local commune or civil defense if parking near to your damaged house, however, worth a risk as you can drive back to uk, but I am sure if you are told to leave a neighbour may let you park on their land, I say this as someone could take it into their head to be spiteful, so make friends with the locals.


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## italy

bunty16 said:


> Hope all goes well with you, just check with local commune or civil defense if parking near to your damaged house, however, worth a risk as you can drive back to uk, but I am sure if you are told to leave a neighbour may let you park on their land, I say this as someone could take it into their head to be spiteful, so make friends with the locals.


good advice.. very often people are unaware of rules here and do things not thinking that they might be either breaking rules or upsetting someone.... 
often you will find neighbors that get you into trouble because they cannot communicate to you that you are doing something wrong in their opinion so they report you

the comune should always be your first port of call if not sure and it really is worth while understanding the system here in that sense, there is an almost limitless amount of rules regarding everything that you do here but if cleared by the comune then they are the powers that protect you from over concerned neighbors


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## maisie21

flawed said:


> Judy, you are back !!!! good work. I missed the thread. I see Barry has done something too. Something about an Ofena group??? all sounds good.
> 
> Still planning to be in Ofena end Oct ?Nov looking forward to it.
> Are you there soon too?
> 
> Haven't heard from Gianni in a while. Hope he got his project started. My eldest daughter plans to marry here in Aus at home in the garden, I've been gardening madly. She is having a sunflower theme. Hope everyone finds your new thread,
> I miss the news and info.
> 
> I am trying to get some stairs built to my garden soon, but the metal man wanted to build something sensible but soulless. I need to find a nice metal plate, galvanized maybe, that doesn't look too industrial, that will cope with the weather snow etc, not rust. Otherwise I might give up and price wood.
> 
> Any ideas for something suitable for a metre wide balcony, with stairs a small landing and another three steps. Not a yucky boxy grill. Flat plate with holes maybe ?


Hi Lynda
Good to hear from you again.
We are not going out to Ofena until March next year, we are not allowed to stay at the house and although there is plenty of work to do in the garden as soon as we leave it just returns to its Jungle state again.
We have had some good news today from our Architect. The Comune have now agreed to let us go ahead, independantly of our neighbours ,with the repairs to the property. The architect has up until December 31st to re submit the new plans and then we have to wait for the Comune to give us permission to start the work.
We will now be moving in October next year, rather than April, although we are still prepared to take a caravan across if we have to. We are also now considering taking my car across because we will not be allowed to buy a car in Italy until we have been granted residency, so it would prove very expensive if we had to rent a car for several months.
Hope tha wedding went well and that you have a good time in Italy.
Judy.


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## maisie21

italy said:


> read in the paper the other day that several families that returned to property that had been declared uninhabitable were evicted the other day.. by the carbineri... so be careful about staying in a place if its been declared structurally unsound after the quake... i believe these people have also been fined as well..
> 
> seismic activity in the province of L'Aquila is still common, the area around rieti has seen panic evacuations once more as their strength grows and people are understandably nervous that lived through the last one... centre of L'Aquila has once more been closed to the public


Hi
We are not going to try and stay in the house, we will probably stay in a B&B the next time that we visit.
I don't fancy having to deal with the authorities, especially as my knowledge of the Italian language would not cope with it.
Judy.


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## maisie21

Celyn said:


> Hi Judy
> I haven't been on the site for ages but it was good to see your name amongst the posts. Sorry to hear you still haven't been able to do anything to your house but it sounds as though you are still determined to make the move when you retire. Good luck with everything.
> We have since bought a little place high in the mountains north of Lucca in the Garfagnana area, due to sign the final bits and bobs in November - all very exciting. We would still love to make a visit to Abruzzo so maybe one day will manage to see Ofena and the surrounding area.
> All the best
> Jan


Hi Jan
Congratulations on thepurchase of your new house.
Are you planning to live there permanently?
We have had some good news about our house, although it is still slow going, we are trying to be patient.
We have now delayed our move from April to October and will definitely go then regardless of the state of the house.
It will certainly be a challenge.
Good luck in November.
Judy.


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## maisie21

bunty16 said:


> Hope all goes well with you, just check with local commune or civil defense if parking near to your damaged house, however, worth a risk as you can drive back to uk, but I am sure if you are told to leave a neighbour may let you park on their land, I say this as someone could take it into their head to be spiteful, so make friends with the locals.


Hi
We have already had permission to park a caravan, if we need to, from the Comune. As for the neighbours we have already made friend with the ones that live by our house and had coffee with them. Everytime that we visit they ask us when we are going there for good. They are lovely people always try to help us if we need it.
Judy.


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## italy

re residency... you do not actually have to be living in your house to do the residency, just the comune.. if you do have permission for a caravan you can be resident at the address of the caravan.. if not you can stay at any other address in the comune and claim residency on that.. make sure its in the comune your house is in as it simplifies matters.. that way you will be at least able to buy a car... 

new legislation re keeping non italian registered vehicles here, not changing driving licences in the sense that its a recognition of your licence in italy which then means you have to follow the national rules re renewals etc... have all been tightened up and you see police and carbineri stopping vehicles much more often these days after the new road traffic laws.. which also include more severe drink driving penalties and restrictions on young people driving..

the vehicle laws regarding non italian vehicles are aimed mainly at people from eastern europe driving vehicles here ... but any foreign plated car is at risk.. and if you are staying here for any long period its still the case that you have to register your presence in the comune.. with the police...

its a sort of funny rule that most people seem to ignore.. but many of you will have noticed that if you stay at an Italian owned accommodation facility they take your passport.. this is then registered with the local carbineri so that records of all movements within Italy are maintained... its from the era of the internal terrorist problems of the past and maintained still... and applies to everyone that visits or stays in Italy


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## maisie21

italy said:


> re residency... you do not actually have to be living in your house to do the residency, just the comune.. if you do have permission for a caravan you can be resident at the address of the caravan.. if not you can stay at any other address in the comune and claim residency on that.. make sure its in the comune your house is in as it simplifies matters.. that way you will be at least able to buy a car...
> 
> new legislation re keeping non italian registered vehicles here, not changing driving licences in the sense that its a recognition of your licence in italy which then means you have to follow the national rules re renewals etc... have all been tightened up and you see police and carbineri stopping vehicles much more often these days after the new road traffic laws.. which also include more severe drink driving penalties and restrictions on young people driving..
> 
> the vehicle laws regarding non italian vehicles are aimed mainly at people from eastern europe driving vehicles here ... but any foreign plated car is at risk.. and if you are staying here for any long period its still the case that you have to register your presence in the comune.. with the police...
> 
> its a sort of funny rule that most people seem to ignore.. but many of you will have noticed that if you stay at an Italian owned accommodation facility they take your passport.. this is then registered with the local carbineri so that records of all movements within Italy are maintained... its from the era of the internal terrorist problems of the past and maintained still... and applies to everyone that visits or stays in Italy


Hi
We have witnessed motorists being stopped numerous times when we have been over in Italy which is why I always keep the necessary documents with me at all times. As I don't drink alcohol, that is not an issue for me which means that my husband always has his taxi home.
I can understand why they take all of these precautions and it is something that I readily support.
Judy.


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## maisie21

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> Good to hear from you again.
> We are not going out to Ofena until March next year, we are not allowed to stay at the house and although there is plenty of work to do in the garden as soon as we leave it just returns to its Jungle state again.
> We have had some good news today from our Architect. The Comune have now agreed to let us go ahead, independantly of our neighbours ,with the repairs to the property. The architect has up until December 31st to re submit the new plans and then we have to wait for the Comune to give us permission to start the work.
> We will now be moving in October next year, rather than April, although we are still prepared to take a caravan across if we have to. We are also now considering taking my car across because we will not be allowed to buy a car in Italy until we have been granted residency, so it would prove very expensive if we had to rent a car for several months.
> Hope tha wedding went well and that you have a good time in Italy.
> Judy.


Hi again Lynda

Has Barry set up another thread or is it an expats group in Carrufo?
Judy.


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## juliet1

maisie21 said:


> Hi Pleased to hear that you have no regrets.
> We have heard from one of our Architects and she is hoping to have some more information for us this week.
> It would be great if we could meet up some time,where do you live?
> Judy


Hi Judy

Great to see everyone still on the forum. we have now bitten the bullet and got a lawyer to act on our behalf. Sick if being fobbed off by the Comune. There was a meeting last Thursday to discuss the plans for our area of the town and as a) we couldn't go and b) we wouldn't understand most of what was going on - it just seemed the most sensible thing to do. We have at least found out that the repair work for all the properties in our street will be carried out in one go at no cost to us and an architect has been appointed by the Comune. The only thing we don't know is when! And as we all know, this is the million euro question.

Julie x


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## pugwashington

flawed said:


> Hi Barry, I finally booked our tickets. we will be in Ofena 24th Oct to 3rd Nov
> Happy to meet new people. Rod's sister and her husband are coming to stay with us should be fun.
> 
> Rod can't wait to get back to Ofena.... He is trying to get a job back in Dubai... that much closer ! I won't be back until it warms up . Trying to get to the Chelsea flower show 2011. So May/June


Lucky you.......We have decided to stay away from the house now - maybe go and stay with Gianni for B&B - just heard from the architect that they are about ready to put a project in and that theoretically I am classed as an Ofena resident. Practically I just have my fingers crossed!!!

Gianni has the builders in and his place should be ready by Christmas with a bit of luck.

Would you be interested in renting your place out for a week? We Would take good care of it. No offence, no problem if not. Tony might be out for a week on his own.
Pam


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## maisie21

juliet1 said:


> Hi Judy
> 
> Great to see everyone still on the forum. we have now bitten the bullet and got a lawyer to act on our behalf. Sick if being fobbed off by the Comune. There was a meeting last Thursday to discuss the plans for our area of the town and as a) we couldn't go and b) we wouldn't understand most of what was going on - it just seemed the most sensible thing to do. We have at least found out that the repair work for all the properties in our street will be carried out in one go at no cost to us and an architect has been appointed by the Comune. The only thing we don't know is when! And as we all know, this is the million euro question.
> 
> Julie x


Hi Julie
Good to hear from you again.
I understand your frustration with the Comune. We have now got two architects working on our project and our new Architect, Christina, has said that it is like dealing with nursery children when she tries to get our original architect, Alessandro and the Comune to communicate with each other properly.
We have now been told that our work can go ahead independently of our neighbours so we have got to wait for the plans to be submitted and passed so that the work can start. We have been told that we will get 80% towards the cost of the repairs.
John and I are going out again in March as we need to go to the Comune to see about applying for residency and the plan is then to move there permanently next October(even if we have to take a caravan across to sleep in).We will be putting our house in England up for sale in the new Year and will mov einto rented accomodation over here if we sell before October.
Judy.


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## josephdemeyer

*ofena*



maisie21 said:


> Hi
> My husband and I are planning to re-locate to Abruzzo next year, hopefully towards the end of April.
> We bought our house, as a renovation project, in Ofena in 2007 and had originally planned to move this year. However, our house was damaged in the earthquake and we are still waiting to receive authorisation from the authorities to start the repairs.
> Regardless of whether the work has started by April next year we still plan to make the move then even if it means taking a caravan across with us to sleep in.
> We have a garden of over 600sq.m which is full of olive trees, vines and fig trees to we will have plenty of work to keep us occupied until we can start on the house again.
> If anyone has any constructive advice to offer it would be gratefully welcomed.
> Judy


Hello Judy: My wife Vee and I just acquired a house in Ofena too! We are staying there -again- the next four weeks. Very sorry to read that your house got damaged. We met some very good Ofena people; and am sure they would want to extend their help too. So let's stay in touch! Joseph and Vee DeMeyer


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## Barry

josephdemeyer said:


> Hello Judy: My wife Vee and I just acquired a house in Ofena too! We are staying there -again- the next four weeks. Very sorry to read that your house got damaged. We met some very good Ofena people; and am sure they would want to extend their help too. So let's stay in touch! Joseph and Vee DeMeyer


You must have central heat! Are you using natural gas? Wondering on the cost. We've been told it is 800 euro to put a meter in and that it is very expensive to use but no one has given us any figures. The gas line is stubbed off just below our electric meter so hooking it up shouldn't be a problem.
Speaking of electricity we still haven't had a bill since the earthquake.

Barry


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## maisie21

Barry said:


> You must have central heat! Are you using natural gas? Wondering on the cost. We've been told it is 800 euro to put a meter in and that it is very expensive to use but no one has given us any figures. The gas line is stubbed off just below our electric meter so hooking it up shouldn't be a problem.
> Speaking of electricity we still haven't had a bill since the earthquake.
> 
> Barry


Hi Barry
We had our gas meter installed two years ago and it cost 550 Euros(the pipework was already in place like yours)
As the mains gas lines have only been installed over the past few years to the village they are trying to re coup some of the cost by charging a higher than normal rate for the meter.
We still have still not received a utility bill but I believe that the gas and electric companies are going to start billing people shortly.
Judy.


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## maisie21

josephdemeyer said:


> Hello Judy: My wife Vee and I just acquired a house in Ofena too! We are staying there -again- the next four weeks. Very sorry to read that your house got damaged. We met some very good Ofena people; and am sure they would want to extend their help too. So let's stay in touch! Joseph and Vee DeMeyer


Hi Joseph and Vee
Lovely to hear from you.
We are planning to go out to Ofena in March as we need to get some details sorted out with the Comune prior to our final move next October.
Our Architects are meeting with the Comune again tomorrow to discuss our plans and once they have been sent to us to sign and returned they will be finally submitted.
We have also got some lovely neighbours who are really helpful as my Italian is still pretty poor, but improving.
I would certainly like to keep in touch.
Judy.


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## josephdemeyer

*heating...*



Barry said:


> You must have central heat! Are you using natural gas? Wondering on the cost. We've been told it is 800 euro to put a meter in and that it is very expensive to use but no one has given us any figures. The gas line is stubbed off just below our electric meter so hooking it up shouldn't be a problem.
> Speaking of electricity we still haven't had a bill since the earthquake.
> 
> Barry


Hello Barry!...no we do not have gas..and this is our first stay in the -colder-season (maybe we are a little naif in believing Ofena will live up to its name...). We have the same gas line situation as you; and have looked into the options. It all depends on how LONG and WHEN you are staying in the house...Vee and are not not full timers ..so therefor no gas line yet (installation of central heating is quite expensive; but ultimately the best option when you stay all year round; forget those wood stoves: still too cumbersome and messy).
This time we will first try a couple of individual mobile gas heaters; one for each room; if necessary rolling them around a little... If you see us in the bar uptown, you know its not working....


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## Barry

josephdemeyer said:


> Hello Barry!...no we do not have gas..and this is our first stay in the -colder-season (maybe we are a little naif in believing Ofena will live up to its name...). We have the same gas line situation as you; and have looked into the options. It all depends on how LONG and WHEN you are staying in the house...Vee and are not not full timers ..so therefor no gas line yet (installation of central heating is quite expensive; but ultimately the best option when you stay all year round; forget those wood stoves: still too cumbersome and messy).
> This time we will first try a couple of individual mobile gas heaters; one for each room; if necessary rolling them around a little... If you see us in the bar uptown, you know its not working....


We have 3 kerosene heaters plus an electric one and staying in late October we were using them all. Mind you our fireplace is useless, it only works if the window is open which kind of defeats the purpose! Everyone seems to get by with one of those high efficiency wood stoves which I think will be the way we go. My wife wants to come for christmas one year so we will need to do something.


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## josephdemeyer

Barry said:


> We have 3 kerosene heaters plus an electric one and staying in late October we were using them all. Mind you our fireplace is useless, it only works if the window is open which kind of defeats the purpose! Everyone seems to get by with one of those high efficiency wood stoves which I think will be the way we go. My wife wants to come for christmas one year so we will need to do something.


Yeah....we hear that about those woodstoves also (and you can smell them too!). The problem in our house is that we have several rooms and floors, all separated by very thick walls and floors....so if you do not have one of those stoves that also feeds a central heating system (i.e.. radiators in practically every room) the heat from a "central" woodstove (or for that matter a fireplace) is not going to warm you up that much and soon....Also: even when you install a central heating woodstove, the cumbersomeness (schlepping bags of wood pellets; cleaning out the ash...and depositing it), if not also the environmental hazards (this is here in the US a real issue: neighbors complain of smell and carbo MONO oxide emissions!!!) as well as depleting the already rare wood supply in Europe (no wonder the wooden plank prices are so high there, in comparison to my US Home depot) we certainly will go with gas. There are still tremendous gas reservoirs under the Mediterranean sea; with the new extraction techniques (admittedly not advisable in earthquake prone Abruzzo....) the price of gas will be relatively low...and it is the cleanest energy source.
We are looking forward to meeting you all soon!! Joseph and Vee


----------



## pudd 2

hi we have gas central heating mains gas it is verry expensive we pay 780 eros for 2 months in the winter i dont call that cheap . the new kid on the block is a wood pelet boiler which uses wood from substable soarses . i am a carpenter here and pay about 4 times the price of joinery timber that i payed in the UK


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## pugwashington

josephdemeyer said:


> Yeah....we hear that about those woodstoves also (and you can smell them too!). The problem in our house is that we have several rooms and floors, all separated by very thick walls and floors....so if you do not have one of those stoves that also feeds a central heating system (i.e.. radiators in practically every room) the heat from a "central" woodstove (or for that matter a fireplace) is not going to warm you up that much and soon....Also: even when you install a central heating woodstove, the cumbersomeness (schlepping bags of wood pellets; cleaning out the ash...and depositing it), if not also the environmental hazards (this is here in the US a real issue: neighbors complain of smell and carbo MONO oxide emissions!!!) as well as depleting the already rare wood supply in Europe (no wonder the wooden plank prices are so high there, in comparison to my US Home depot) we certainly will go with gas. There are still tremendous gas reservoirs under the Mediterranean sea; with the new extraction techniques (admittedly not advisable in earthquake prone Abruzzo....) the price of gas will be relatively low...and it is the cleanest energy source.
> We are looking forward to meeting you all soon!! Joseph and Vee


Having talked to some of the quake survivors from L'Aquila - I wouldnt want gas in my house - a friend of a friend tore his fingers to the bone and didnt notice in his attempts getting out before the gas killed him. People in ofena dont worry about smell from log burners. The wood comes in the most part from either pruning their trees or I believe there is a special part of the woods above Ofena which is set aside just for the purpose of getting firewood - each village having its own area.

Several people have pellet stoves and there is a move to buy in bulk to cut down on the costs. They are not cheap though.

We were thinking of using a combination of log stoves with back boilers and system developed in Sweden/japan of air echange heaters - to be efficient they need cold outdoor temperatures and either big radiators or underfloor heating. With solar panels from the sun to harvest electricity and off set the costs.

I would like to be as self sufficient as possible when it comes to fuel. When you are on a pension - fuel hikes can mean real financial harship and I would rather invest in solar panels/wind energy - heat exchangers etc now when I am earing than worry in my old age.


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## italy

before heat the first thing to consider is how you retain it.. ie pouring heat into a building which does not keep it inside is an expensive option for anyone..

so make sure you buy the best double glazing and insulate the roof.. entrances and exits.. should have good sealing doors.. ok many of you will have to compromise these efforts because of costs ..however do as much as you can.. 

the other point is that if it is an old building then if you seal it as described above you will have damp problems.... so make sure to have air vents drilled and allow some controlled circulation.. damp is a real problem that makes a place feel far colder in any case and destroys so much with mold...

we have had mains gas.. wood fires and pellets..

mains gas is a disaster... leaving aside safety issues in the L'Aquila area.. huge monthly cost before you even use it.. so a very bad idea for holiday homes and as mentioned above costs are too high to leave it on... even worse if your house does not retain heat... so you never feel warm in any case..

wood fires... the best are the enclosed types..you can get inserts for a fireplace which stops all the heat going up the chimney.. many of these have simple fan systems which allow hot air to be blown into a room or rooms .. providing you have a good place to store wood and a good supplier they are a cheap option and provide a quick fix...

i would suggest that you have a stainless steel sleeve fitted as a chimney too.. in fact it will be insisted upon often to aid draw so no smoke inside.. they also keep the ash behind a closed door and so a bit cleaner..wood burns slower although an avaergae amount of wood that is consumed here in teramo for winter is around 60 quintales.. thats 60 x 100 kgs... sorry not sure what that is in lbs... but 6 tonnes of wood.. cost if split and dry.. you need dry.. around 10-15 euro a quintale .. you can get them delivered by pallet loads of 1 tonne split and dry cost about 140 euro ... 

more elaborate fires also have a back boiler system which warms water as well and can service radiators... however to maintain a good amount of heat to make it function to a reasonable level you might well need to add more to your wood costs.. 

in fact most people that use wood as a source of heating aside from just having a cheerful look and a warm, front room have their own supplies of wood... otherwise it just costs too much

Pellets ... there are stand alone versions which sit in a room ..blow hot air and can heat water and radiators... however they are ok for small places.. a 15 kg bag costs from 3.00 euro to 5.00 euro.. and will last between 1 and 2 days.. advantages,...no ash virtually... clean.. easy to transport and store.. disadvantages... they have fans which are noisy if in a room... a room sized simple one costs around 600 - 700 euro and you need to have an outside wall for the chimney... or an old fireplace..

my choice of heating is the pellet fired boiler.... expensive.. 3000 euro... serves hot water and radiators.. they have huge hoppers to hold pellets so will run for a week without any bother ...you buy pellets in bulk or any other bio mass material they burn it all... 

with a liquid gas tank buried in the garden for summer use.. via its own boiler.. i believe that is the best traditional system... for a well insulated and efficient home... however Offena has a much lower average winter temp than teramo where we live.. so am sure my figures will be a bit on the low side ..but i should think the systems will still be good and maybe even more benefit...

solar vacuum tubes for water heating are virtually useless.. cost against gain is not worth looking at... very expensive to install..

electric photo voltaic systems.. now if you have the capital and have the right sort of outside space with loans and systems that allow you to connect into the main grid are about the best option of alternative energy... and should after 15 years break even .. so hat you have zero cost energy after that..


----------



## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> Good to hear from you again.
> We are not going out to Ofena until March next year, we are not allowed to stay at the house and although there is plenty of work to do in the garden as soon as we leave it just returns to its Jungle state again.
> We have had some good news today from our Architect. The Comune have now agreed to let us go ahead, independantly of our neighbours ,with the repairs to the property. The architect has up until December 31st to re submit the new plans and then we have to wait for the Comune to give us permission to start the work.
> We will now be moving in October next year, rather than April, although we are still prepared to take a caravan across if we have to. We are also now considering taking my car across because we will not be allowed to buy a car in Italy until we have been granted residency, so it would prove very expensive if we had to rent a car for several months.
> Hope tha wedding went well and that you have a good time in Italy.
> Judy.


Hi Judy, 

We are back. The weather was fair in Italy, some lovely days but some cold and rainy too. It was so hard to get the washing dry ! It was lovely to have Rods Sister and her husband stay. We showed them around a bit, to Capestrano, the lake, Bussi Popoli and Sulmona as well as a trip to LAquila and a night in Pescara. 
Rod got bronchial pneumonia though, a week in to our holiday and was very sick. in the end we had to go to Popoli hospital. They were very good, the service was faultless, so much better than here in Aus. They put him on a drip, ran a whole heap of tests and gave him an antibiotic injection. Next day he went back for another one, and he wasn't feeling too bad, but the drive to Rome and journey through the airport did him in and he was very unwell again by the time we got to Dubai. We ended up staying a week while he had more tests and rested.
Thankfully he is much better now. 
Apps wedding isn't until the 27th of Dec. I have been gardening every day to have things ship shape. I tried to grow her some sunflowers but they are a dismal failure ! 
Giannis project is under way, and we enjoyed a tour of the house. The builders have really strengthened everything, it is going really well. They had the roof off and were doing reinforcements. It had a cost of around 150,000. Gianni and Mira are looking forward to being back in their home in the new year. Gianni was pressing his grapes for this years vintage while we were there which was fun. Im so glad your project is finally going ahead. As soon as you get your funding you will be underway too. It has been such a huge setback for you. 

Sounds like a good idea to get your car over there. Rod's job in Dubai didn't come off, so we are still a long way from moving over. i might have a go next year at doing my residency depending on what happens here at home. Hard to be so far away from each other for so long. 
Still hoping to catch up with you one day! Lynda


----------



## flawed

Barry said:


> You must have central heat! Are you using natural gas? Wondering on the cost. We've been told it is 800 euro to put a meter in and that it is very expensive to use but no one has given us any figures. The gas line is stubbed off just below our electric meter so hooking it up shouldn't be a problem.
> Speaking of electricity we still haven't had a bill since the earthquake.
> 
> Barry


Hey Barry, It was a bit cold in Ofena, The snow came on the mountains above while we were there. During the day not too bad, I have determined not to go back when it's is cold next time though ! 

We really like our deodorized kero heater in the kitchen. It kicks into gear quickly to warm the kitchen is thermostatically controlled and warms the kitchen easily. We are also running two of the portable gas heaters on wheels and they are great. They take a 20 -25 Euro bottle which last well. You turn them off at the bottle so safe too in earthquake. 

Must admit I am rethinking putting the gas on considering how expensive it is to install and run. 

Sorry didn't see your friend while we were there. Busy with relo's and then Rod got sick so we were laying low. Hoping to get out next year for a while.


----------



## flawed

Pam , I can't find your post. When was Tony thinking of going? Rod wasn't keen to let the place as our dodgy toilet has gotten worse. We can't turn the water off to it because the plumber didn't oput the tap in we asked for. The new cistern is leaking and so does the pipework to the bowl, so there is constantly water on the floor.It is a real nuisance and I wanted to rip it all out and redo it next time we are there. Upstairs toilet ok but can't turn water off anywhere except kitchen so then no supply to rear of house. Maybe I could get Gianni to get the plumber there? 

email me to let me know what you are up to anyway , Lyn


----------



## Barry

flawed said:


> Hey Barry, It was a bit cold in Ofena, The snow came on the mountains above while we were there. During the day not too bad, I have determined not to go back when it's is cold next time though !
> 
> We really like our deodorized kero heater in the kitchen. It kicks into gear quickly to warm the kitchen is thermostatically controlled and warms the kitchen easily. We are also running two of the portable gas heaters on wheels and they are great. They take a 20 -25 Euro bottle which last well. You turn them off at the bottle so safe too in earthquake.
> 
> Must admit I am rethinking putting the gas on considering how expensive it is to install and run.
> 
> Sorry didn't see your friend while we were there. Busy with relo's and then Rod got sick so we were laying low. Hoping to get out next year for a while.


We bought one of those heaters a couple of years ago and they are good but expensive. I think we will get a couple more as they are electronically controlled so other than filling the tank every couple of days don't need any maintenance.


----------



## pugwashington

flawed said:


> Pam , I can't find your post. When was Tony thinking of going? Rod wasn't keen to let the place as our dodgy toilet has gotten worse. We can't turn the water off to it because the plumber didn't oput the tap in we asked for. The new cistern is leaking and so does the pipework to the bowl, so there is constantly water on the floor.It is a real nuisance and I wanted to rip it all out and redo it next time we are there. Upstairs toilet ok but can't turn water off anywhere except kitchen so then no supply to rear of house. Maybe I could get Gianni to get the plumber there?
> 
> email me to let me know what you are up to anyway , Lyn


No Worries - we decided to go up north and visit my grandchildren. Good luck on getting the water fixed. How was ofena - sick as a parrot at not being able to go. Seems that the architect is going to get a project submitted - just waiting to see what they are going to do. might be able to get it done by spring she says - so might be able to go next summer - will try to get bathrooms done at same time as hopefully will get sensible price for the work if they are getting a big project out of it....
Love to hear from you
Pam


----------



## maisie21

flawed said:


> Hi Judy,
> 
> We are back. The weather was fair in Italy, some lovely days but some cold and rainy too. It was so hard to get the washing dry ! It was lovely to have Rods Sister and her husband stay. We showed them around a bit, to Capestrano, the lake, Bussi Popoli and Sulmona as well as a trip to LAquila and a night in Pescara.
> Rod got bronchial pneumonia though, a week in to our holiday and was very sick. in the end we had to go to Popoli hospital. They were very good, the service was faultless, so much better than here in Aus. They put him on a drip, ran a whole heap of tests and gave him an antibiotic injection. Next day he went back for another one, and he wasn't feeling too bad, but the drive to Rome and journey through the airport did him in and he was very unwell again by the time we got to Dubai. We ended up staying a week while he had more tests and rested.
> Thankfully he is much better now.
> Apps wedding isn't until the 27th of Dec. I have been gardening every day to have things ship shape. I tried to grow her some sunflowers but they are a dismal failure !
> Giannis project is under way, and we enjoyed a tour of the house. The builders have really strengthened everything, it is going really well. They had the roof off and were doing reinforcements. It had a cost of around 150,000. Gianni and Mira are looking forward to being back in their home in the new year. Gianni was pressing his grapes for this years vintage while we were there which was fun. Im so glad your project is finally going ahead. As soon as you get your funding you will be underway too. It has been such a huge setback for you.
> 
> Sounds like a good idea to get your car over there. Rod's job in Dubai didn't come off, so we are still a long way from moving over. i might have a go next year at doing my residency depending on what happens here at home. Hard to be so far away from each other for so long.
> Still hoping to catch up with you one day! Lynda


Hi Lynda
Hope that you a lovely Christmas.

So sorry to hear that Rob has been so poorly, it makes it much worse when you are away from home doesn't it?We have got so many flu viruses flying around here at the moment, which is stretching our hospitals to capacity. 
I hope that the wedding went to plan and that everyone had a wonderful day.
Our plans have finally been submitted to the Comune, they are predicting that it will take up to six months to complete the work.
We are going over in March to meet with the Architects again and also go to the Comune to see how our application is progressing and also to start the residency process.
We went and chose our kitchen and appliances last week at one of our local stores. They will keep it for us for the next few months and then all I have to do is to arrange delivery of it to our removals firm. The move is starting to feel very real now. 
John has notified his employers of when he intends to retire so we have just got to hope that we can get some work started on the house otherwise it will be a caravan for the winter.
Happy New Year to you all.


----------



## pudd 2

*hi*



maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> Hope that you a lovely Christmas.
> hi maise when you are over in march come and se us
> So sorry to hear that Rob has been so poorly, it makes it much worse when you are away from home doesn't it?We have got so many flu viruses flying around here at the moment, which is stretching our hospitals to capacity.
> I hope that the wedding went to plan and that everyone had a wonderful day.
> Our plans have finally been submitted to the Comune, they are predicting that it will take up to six months to complete the work.
> We are going over in March to meet with the Architects again and also go to the Comune to see how our application is progressing and also to start the residency process.
> We went and chose our kitchen and appliances last week at one of our local stores. They will keep it for us for the next few months and then all I have to do is to arrange delivery of it to our removals firm. The move is starting to feel very real now.
> John has notified his employers of when he intends to retire so we have just got to hope that we can get some work started on the house otherwise it will be a caravan for the winter.
> Happy New Year to you all.


hi maise come and se us when you are over we live in pretoro about an hour from you and have a friend who is repairing a house in capiststano and i am over seing the job for him we have spoken on the phone iam the retired carpenter roy and we maid the big move like you are going to and if you need any advise we whill be pleased to help best we can roy christine


----------



## maisie21

pudd 2 said:


> hi maise come and se us when you are over we live in pretoro about an hour from you and have a friend who is repairing a house in capiststano and i am over seing the job for him we have spoken on the phone iam the retired carpenter roy and we maid the big move like you are going to and if you need any advise we whill be pleased to help best we can roy christine


Hi Roy
I seem to recall that we have exchanged messages on the Abruzzolutely forum in the past.
Many thanks for your offer, I will bear that in mind.
We are coming over in March to meet with our Architect and the comune engineer to discuss the repairs to our house.
Happy New Year.
Judy.


----------



## maisie21

Happy New Year.
Wishing you all a safe and happy 2011.
Judy and John.


----------



## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> Hope that you a lovely Christmas.
> 
> So sorry to hear that Rob has been so poorly, it makes it much worse when you are away from home doesn't it?We have got so many flu viruses flying around here at the moment, which is stretching our hospitals to capacity.
> I hope that the wedding went to plan and that everyone had a wonderful day.
> Our plans have finally been submitted to the Comune, they are predicting that it will take up to six months to complete the work.
> We are going over in March to meet with the Architects again and also go to the Comune to see how our application is progressing and also to start the residency process.
> We went and chose our kitchen and appliances last week at one of our local stores. They will keep it for us for the next few months and then all I have to do is to arrange delivery of it to our removals firm. The move is starting to feel very real now.
> John has notified his employers of when he intends to retire so we have just got to hope that we can get some work started on the house otherwise it will be a caravan for the winter.
> Happy New Year to you all.


HI Judy, lovely to hear from you I was reading it out to my husband and when I said that your husband had given notice of when he wanted to retire, he laughed and said how cool is that ! I'm sure he wishes that it was him, he dreams of retiring there all the time. As you say it is all starting to feel very real now, you must be feeling so excited. It has been such a long process since the earthquake, but the possiblity of everything being put right became real for us when we saw the extensive repairs underway at Gianni's house. So exciting, hopefully not a caravan for you in winter ! The wedding went really well, my daughter and her new husband were so happy. I will send you a message with a link to the photos, shesaid she wan'ted a family party at home, it was mosty family and unconventional with balloons and sunflowers but just what she wanted. They are honeymooning in Melbourne now. Well good health and our best wishes for the New Year. Love Lyn


----------



## Barry

*Gianni*

Gianni phoned this morning and He and Mira are back in their house. All the interior repairs complete and just some exterior work for the spring. He says it was a major ordeal keeping the contractor on the job and working and they need to go to Cuba for some rest and relaxation.


----------



## flawed

Barry said:


> Gianni phoned this morning and He and Mira are back in their house. All the interior repairs complete and just some exterior work for the spring. He says it was a major ordeal keeping the contractor on the job and working and they need to go to Cuba for some rest and relaxation.


Thanks for the news Barry, I am glad to hear they are back in their home. It has been a very unsettling 18months I'm sure, as they have lived in a tent, in their cantina, in a rental house in Carufo, in the old lady's house near the bar and the second rental in Carufo. That can't have been good for either of them. There have been so many reinforcements added that they will have to feel safe in their home again.
Hope they both get to Cuba this time. Last time our settlement prevented Gianni from going with Mira so fingers crossed they get to escape the cold and head to Cuba !


----------



## GrahamOfena

Hi Guys and Girls, not been on much and glad to see a new thread started with all the regulars still around, i'm going back to Ofena on March 31st for a week, can't wait, i miss it and always get the urge to stay there, things in the UK are getting gradually worse and quality of life is slowly eroding, I am definately looking at Italy as a longer term option, hope to see anyone who is about, keep the thread going!

Graham.


----------



## Barry

GrahamOfena said:


> Hi Guys and Girls, not been on much and glad to see a new thread started with all the regulars still around, i'm going back to Ofena on March 31st for a week, can't wait, i miss it and always get the urge to stay there, things in the UK are getting gradually worse and quality of life is slowly eroding, I am definately looking at Italy as a longer term option, hope to see anyone who is about, keep the thread going!
> 
> Graham.


Bruce is suppose to be going in March to furnish his house. Don't know if he's booked his flight yet.


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## GrahamOfena

Cheers for the info Barry, I'm at no. 13( lucky for some) Nicola Moscardelli, anyone passing just knock


----------



## josephdemeyer

*ofena*



GrahamOfena said:


> Cheers for the info Barry, I'm at no. 13( lucky for some) Nicola Moscardelli, anyone passing just knock


Looks like Vee is staying in Ofena around same time. Time to meet! though we are still very busy installing....


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## Barry

*Enel*

I still haven't had a bill since the earthquake. Anyone know whats going on?


----------



## maisie21

GrahamOfena said:


> Hi Guys and Girls, not been on much and glad to see a new thread started with all the regulars still around, i'm going back to Ofena on March 31st for a week, can't wait, i miss it and always get the urge to stay there, things in the UK are getting gradually worse and quality of life is slowly eroding, I am definately looking at Italy as a longer term option, hope to see anyone who is about, keep the thread going!
> 
> Graham.


Hi Graham
Looks like we will miss seeing you again as we are going to Ofena 6th-13th March. We are hoping to meet with the architects, comune and builder to discuss the repairs to our house. At the moment we plan to move there permanently in October(provided that we can sell our house in the UK) so we are hoping to get a better idea of what is happening. We are also going to see about starting our application for residency.
I must remember to pack some warm clothes as it has been snowing quite a lot there. 
Perhaps we will get a chance to meet up in the near future. Enjoy your trip.
Judy.


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> I still haven't had a bill since the earthquake. Anyone know whats going on?


Hi Barry
We have had a statement from ENEL but as we are still classed as non resident due to the earthquake there is nothing to pay.
Judy


----------



## Barry

Ours goes straight to our bank so haven't seen anything!


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> Ours goes straight to our bank so haven't seen anything!


This is the first time that we have had this sort of statement, I will see if I can find anything out when I go next week.


----------



## Barry

maisie21 said:


> This is the first time that we have had this sort of statement, I will see if I can find anything out when I go next week.


We've used it for at least 3 months which usually runs about 40 euro/month plus there normal charges. I would prefer to be paying it normally rather than get a big bill sometime in the future.


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## Barry

*via Sotto La Fonte*

Anyone recall seeing this? We thing it's just west of where via della Fontana splits in 3. Maryann's grandfather is still listed on the title for a building there.


----------



## juliet1

Barry said:


> I still haven't had a bill since the earthquake. Anyone know whats going on?


Hi Barry
We had the first ENEL bill (since the earthquake) about a month ago.


----------



## maisie21

*Just Back from Ofena*

Hi everyone.

We have just spent a very productive week in cold Abruzzo(apparently they haven't known it to be this cold in Pescara for a long time).
Although it snowed on out first day in Ofena, it was only flurries, they haven't had much snow at all there.

We met with our Architects(we have got two at the moment because our original Architect has not been doing his work properly and we are hoping that he will pass all of the work over to our new architect - it doesn't help his case when he is asking for 27.000Euros to manage the project!!!) and the engineer at the Comune to discuss the repairs to our house. The plans have finally been submitted and we should know within the next 6-8 weeks whether we can go ahead and get the builders started. Unfortunately we have to got to find more money to put towards the repairs, at the moment our contribution is about 35.000 Euros. As my husband said, it would be cheaper to knock the hosue down and rebuild it.
Before that though, we have been told that we will need to go back over to open a new bank account which will allow the Comune to deposit regular payments and whatever they deposit we put in 20%. Probably to stop the builders or the claimants running off with the money.
I did notice on the news that the Mayor of L'Aquila is being investigated for the lack of progress with the rebuild and rehousing in the city especially as so much money was raised with concerts at the time(which the media highlighted) so it will be interesting to see what happens there.
We had a gas bill waiting for us when we got to the house 15.15 Euro but that was the only one.
Judy


----------



## Barry

Hi Judy,

That sounds silly. What are they going to do for that kind of money? Tell Rita to give you the 140,000 and you could buy that big place beside Gianni!

Property, House, Land for sale


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> Hi Judy,
> 
> That sounds silly. What are they going to do for that kind of money? Tell Rita to give you the 140,000 and you could buy that big place beside Gianni!
> 
> Property, House, Land for sale


Hi Barry
They are taking the roof off, putting a concrete collar on and metal ties front to back.
They have also got to demolish two internal walls and then replace them re-do the gas,plumbing and electrics which were all done a couple of years ago due to new laws that have been passed recently. Replace windows, put in internal stairs, skim the walls and lots of other bits but even so it does not add up to what they are predicting.
As I said the Architects fees are stupid, but our new architect has said that the Comune will take one look at his fee request and probably cut it in half. The silly man had also put in a quote for a 'video door bell'!!!!! :confused2:which has now been taken off.
Judy.


----------



## Barry

Hope you get quick approval. From what Gianni told me it was a full time job keeping the contractor working on his house so it's lucky you are moving over.


----------



## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Barry
> They are taking the roof off, putting a concrete collar on and metal ties front to back.
> They have also got to demolish two internal walls and then replace them re-do the gas,plumbing and electrics which were all done a couple of years ago due to new laws that have been passed recently. Replace windows, put in internal stairs, skim the walls and lots of other bits but even so it does not add up to what they are predicting.
> As I said the Architects fees are stupid, but our new architect has said that the Comune will take one look at his fee request and probably cut it in half. The silly man had also put in a quote for a 'video door bell'!!!!! :confused2:which has now been taken off.
> Judy.


Hi Judy, Glad to hear you are moving forward with your repairs. Why do you have to redo gas plumbing and electrical??? Gianni had to resubmit his project to trim the cost before the commune would pas it too. I really hope you have more luck with the new architect. We were hoping to go in April, but I think it will be end May or mid June now....... such a long way from Australia! I am hanging out to do some work in the garden and to finish clearing the rubbish out of the courtyard. 

It will be October before you know it!

good luck with everything. Lynda


----------



## maisie21

flawed said:


> Hi Judy, Glad to hear you are moving forward with your repairs. Why do you have to redo gas plumbing and electrical??? Gianni had to resubmit his project to trim the cost before the commune would pas it too. I really hope you have more luck with the new architect. We were hoping to go in April, but I think it will be end May or mid June now....... such a long way from Australia! I am hanging out to do some work in the garden and to finish clearing the rubbish out of the courtyard.
> 
> It will be October before you know it!
> 
> good luck with everything. Lynda


Hi Lynda
Lovely to hear from you again.
Apparently there have been some new laws passed recently which means that any work currently in progress and not previously signed off have to be re done. I am hoping that when the Comune slice the architects fees that he will pass the whole project over to our new architect, she has already broached the subject to him.
We will have to go across again, either in May/June to open the new bank account(provided that the Comune give us the permission to start the repairs) but it will only be for a few days.It is a long way for you to travel, I don't envy you.
We did a lot of work in the garden and cleared some space in the barn so that our furniture can go in there until the house is done.
We are just keeping our fingers crossed now that our house here will sell.We reduced the price again yesterday, so hopefully somebody will want it. John is desperate to finish work and move but unless the house sells we will have to delay the move yet again.
I hope that your trip goes okay. Where are you staying?
Judy.


----------



## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> Lovely to hear from you again.
> Apparently there have been some new laws passed recently which means that any work currently in progress and not previously signed off have to be re done. I am hoping that when the Comune slice the architects fees that he will pass the whole project over to our new architect, she has already broached the subject to him.
> We will have to go across again, either in May/June to open the new bank account(provided that the Comune give us the permission to start the repairs) but it will only be for a few days.It is a long way for you to travel, I don't envy you.
> We did a lot of work in the garden and cleared some space in the barn so that our furniture can go in there until the house is done.
> We are just keeping our fingers crossed now that our house here will sell.We reduced the price again yesterday, so hopefully somebody will want it. John is desperate to finish work and move but unless the house sells we will have to delay the move yet again.
> I hope that your trip goes okay. Where are you staying?
> 
> 
> 
> Judy.


I don't see why they can't just inspect the current installations instead of redoing everything. It seems wasteful. but anyway, once it is done you won't have to worry about anything ! 
We would like to sell too, but our place is currently valued at less than it was in 2005. Pretty frustrating. I guess you are the same if you are having to drop the price. again. We are just sitting pat at the moment, trying to get rid of excess so it is possible to list. Sometimes I wonder if the market will ever recover. Commercial property is difficult. If we had known how hard it would be we would never have sold our house. Our place in Ofena is pretty comfortable now, so we will stay there, but we will have to get the plumber back to fix the leaky cistern. 

We can't afford to do any more work at the moment, but there is still a lot of rubbish in the courtyard to get rid of. Once we get a level we can think about fixing the stairs. We haven't trimmed the trees yet either, on the terraces, but I guess that will have to wait until later in the year. 

I was planning to get to the chelsea flower show this year in May then come to Ofena, but I'm not sure now. My daughter finishes her contract in Dubai soon and she wants to enlist our help getting things home. 

keep us posted. I will be cheering for you when you make your move! 

Lynda


----------



## pugwashington

*Hi*



maisie21 said:


> Hi everyone.
> 
> We have just spent a very productive week in cold Abruzzo(apparently they haven't known it to be this cold in Pescara for a long time).
> Although it snowed on out first day in Ofena, it was only flurries, they haven't had much snow at all there.
> 
> We met with our Architects(we have got two at the moment because our original Architect has not been doing his work properly and we are hoping that he will pass all of the work over to our new architect - it doesn't help his case when he is asking for 27.000Euros to manage the project!!!) and the engineer at the Comune to discuss the repairs to our house. The plans have finally been submitted and we should know within the next 6-8 weeks whether we can go ahead and get the builders started. Unfortunately we have to got to find more money to put towards the repairs, at the moment our contribution is about 35.000 Euros. As my husband said, it would be cheaper to knock the hosue down and rebuild it.
> Before that though, we have been told that we will need to go back over to open a new bank account which will allow the Comune to deposit regular payments and whatever they deposit we put in 20%. Probably to stop the builders or the claimants running off with the money.
> I did notice on the news that the Mayor of L'Aquila is being investigated for the lack of progress with the rebuild and rehousing in the city especially as so much money was raised with concerts at the time(which the media highlighted) so it will be interesting to see what happens there.
> We had a gas bill waiting for us when we got to the house 15.15 Euro but that was the only one.
> Judy


Hi Judy
glad you are making some progress, it is all very frustrating isnt it? I have been waiting for over a year now to get a project put together and submitted - still waiting - I dont even know what they are planning on doing - it seems that they have had to wait ages to get the rules out - the aggregate has different categories of damage - even just determining if it was an aggregate seems to have taken months- My neigbour is incredibly arrogant - but rich and loves his mother home - thats good as he doesnt mind spending the money he needs to. But I have to have his choice of architect - his cousin - actually I think she will be OK at getting the work in - I am just not convinced she acts on my behalf - same with the engineer when it comes to putting in the request for work needed.

But have decided not to get stressed about it - whatever gets done gets done and the rest we will have to sort out ourselves. 


I was wondering how you are planning on getting your furniture etc over to Italy and if there might be a possibility of sharing the transport with you? We need to ship out a couple of Sofas, a canoe some bikes and a couple of other bits and pieces. Like you we are in the process of selling our home - we want to buy a one bed flat in Town centre to keep a toe hold in the UK. Soon as that is done and we are moved - and as soon as project is finished i think we will be out there to live.

Pam


----------



## maisie21

pugwashington said:


> Hi Judy
> glad you are making some progress, it is all very frustrating isnt it? I have been waiting for over a year now to get a project put together and submitted - still waiting - I dont even know what they are planning on doing - it seems that they have had to wait ages to get the rules out - the aggregate has different categories of damage - even just determining if it was an aggregate seems to have taken months- My neigbour is incredibly arrogant - but rich and loves his mother home - thats good as he doesnt mind spending the money he needs to. But I have to have his choice of architect - his cousin - actually I think she will be OK at getting the work in - I am just not convinced she acts on my behalf - same with the engineer when it comes to putting in the request for work needed.
> 
> But have decided not to get stressed about it - whatever gets done gets done and the rest we will have to sort out ourselves.
> 
> 
> I was wondering how you are planning on getting your furniture etc over to Italy and if there might be a possibility of sharing the transport with you? We need to ship out a couple of Sofas, a canoe some bikes and a couple of other bits and pieces. Like you we are in the process of selling our home - we want to buy a one bed flat in Town centre to keep a toe hold in the UK. Soon as that is done and we are moved - and as soon as project is finished i think we will be out there to live.
> 
> Pam


Hi Pam
Sorry to hear that you are having much the same trouble as us with the house.
We wouldn't be this far ahead with our project if we did not have Christina working on our behalf, she has been like a terrier nipping at Alessandro's heals even though he has no regard for her because she is a woman and us because we are English. Luckily not every body is like him.We are hoping that as soon as the Comune throw out his ridiculous request for his fees that he will pass the whole project over to Christina. At the moment we are paying two architects!!!
Our house is still classed as an 'E' damage wise. We are hoping to hear something in the next couple of weeks.
Still trying to sell our house, we have reduced the price in the hope that we will get a buyer but if it doesn't sell we will have to delay the move, yet again and John is desperate to finish work. We won't be keeping a property over here, if we decide to come back we might just rent somewhere close to where my son lives, but John feels that we will be staying in Italy.
We are using Pickfords removal company,, they gave us the best deal, they are not cheap but they will also store our furniture for us if we have to delay the move and as we have already ordered our kitchen and appliances they will be delivered straight to Pickfords depot and put in a container for us.
Judy.


----------



## pugwashington

maisie21 said:


> Hi Pam
> Sorry to hear that you are having much the same trouble as us with the house.
> We wouldn't be this far ahead with our project if we did not have Christina working on our behalf, she has been like a terrier nipping at Alessandro's heals even though he has no regard for her because she is a woman and us because we are English. Luckily not every body is like him.We are hoping that as soon as the Comune throw out his ridiculous request for his fees that he will pass the whole project over to Christina. At the moment we are paying two architects!!!
> Our house is still classed as an 'E' damage wise. We are hoping to hear something in the next couple of weeks.
> Still trying to sell our house, we have reduced the price in the hope that we will get a buyer but if it doesn't sell we will have to delay the move, yet again and John is desperate to finish work. We won't be keeping a property over here, if we decide to come back we might just rent somewhere close to where my son lives, but John feels that we will be staying in Italy.
> We are using Pickfords removal company,, they gave us the best deal, they are not cheap but they will also store our furniture for us if we have to delay the move and as we have already ordered our kitchen and appliances they will be delivered straight to Pickfords depot and put in a container for us.
> Judy.


How much do Pickfords charge? We will probably need to do the same. I could try Costa the Truck he got my stuff back from Greece via Italy but the problem with him is would be delivery.

We want a one bedroomed flat in centre of town as it would enable us to get some equity out and be a hassle free rental with a good return on any investment. We think we should be able to get 2-300 a month out of the deal anyway which will help towards living in Ofena or just plane fares back to UK to visit relatives. Thats plan A anyway.

Lets hope we make it out there soon.
Pam


----------



## italy

lots of news on about the events of two years ago yesterday and it does seem that they are moving onto the more heavily damaged e class properties now.. well thats what they said.. the region says the funds are in place and its up to the comunes to spend the money by approving projects..

re fees here.. architects are allowed to charge around the 15-18 % of the project cost as their fee.. which covers a lot more than just the planning in general..the insurances and the direction of works .. 

re works and what can be done and how.. if you look back the problem.. the main problem with the buildings in L'Aquila as a province was that the comunes and province refused to accept the national standard class 1 seismic rating on buildings and building work..because it was obviously going to make the place less attractive..so they rated themselves down in that sense .. and the consequence was the collapse of a vast number of properties.. what this means is that now the region has accepted in full its classifications via the national laws on seismic classes of areas.. so L'Aquila in pretty well the whole province and all comunes are zoned at the highest level

what does this mean.. it means that should there be an earthquake .. and its not really a question of if but when ..then property and people will be safe.. and basically a house will be unsaleable in that area unless it conforms to all regs when you arrive at the point of contract exchange.. the notary will make anyone buying very aware that if they do buy without all current legislative building regs in place that they are taking a risk which he would suggest they do not take.. so selling will be difficult without things in place.. well almost impossible.. 

new rules on acts of sale not only have financial and tax regulations within the final act that have to be declared but also building conformity regulations from services( eg gas ,water and electric) and do they conform, but also a realm of new laws on the efficiency of the property ( ie.. thermal efficiency and a rating thats a bit like say a fridge or oven.. its energy consumption rating)... which all projects and restorations now have to conform to ..

so many of you will be caught up in this and to my mind the only solution is to sit tight and accept the slow process if you can.. it will happen but it will take time.. and first home owners will get priority

sorry to intrude .. but if you understand the system maybe it will help you a bit.. but these rules are being changed nationally .. as houses are sold or built here they are all subject to the new rules .. i see many people rushing into buying property because its a bargain.. but its also best to investigate carefully what is and is not a bargain.. 

in Abruzzo the only province which has no class 1 seismic comunes is the province of Teramo.. everyone now knows about the province of L'Aquila so no caution needs to be taken.. but its funny how quite sellers of property in Pescara province and Chieti keep about the large number of comunes classed as zone 1 in these areas.. 

many of the more popular choices because they are marketed so widely as cheap bargains are in comunes with the same risk as L'Aquila.. places such as Casoli,palombaro and civitella MR ... manopello in pescara.. in fact if you read back through history.. caloi was destroyed in a quake in 1933 along with damage to several surrounding comunes..but as it was in the time of mussolini it was kept pretty quite.. 

so its a regional change that has been implemented via national laws.. and finally Abruzzo has accepted all its seismic ratings .. well all italian regions have bene pushed to by the l'aquila disaster which makes everyone safer so its good.. but also means places zoned as 1 not only have the problems of new works and restorations having to conform to new energy efficiency regulations.. an added cost.. but in zone 1 areas updated and better seismic regulations which this time will be enforced..which will add up to doubling the cost of restorations in these areas as against places with lower ratings...


----------



## pugwashington

italy said:


> lots of news on about the events of two years ago yesterday and it does seem that they are moving onto the more heavily damaged e class properties now.. well thats what they said.. the region says the funds are in place and its up to the comunes to spend the money by approving projects..
> 
> re fees here.. architects are allowed to charge around the 15-18 % of the project cost as their fee.. which covers a lot more than just the planning in general..the insurances and the direction of works ..
> 
> re works and what can be done and how.. if you look back the problem.. the main problem with the buildings in L'Aquila as a province was that the comunes and province refused to accept the national standard class 1 seismic rating on buildings and building work..because it was obviously going to make the place less attractive..so they rated themselves down in that sense .. and the consequence was the collapse of a vast number of properties.. what this means is that now the region has accepted in full its classifications via the national laws on seismic classes of areas.. so L'Aquila in pretty well the whole province and all comunes are zoned at the highest level
> 
> what does this mean.. it means that should there be an earthquake .. and its not really a question of if but when ..then property and people will be safe.. and basically a house will be unsaleable in that area unless it conforms to all regs when you arrive at the point of contract exchange.. the notary will make anyone buying very aware that if they do buy without all current legislative building regs in place that they are taking a risk which he would suggest they do not take.. so selling will be difficult without things in place.. well almost impossible..
> 
> new rules on acts of sale not only have financial and tax regulations within the final act that have to be declared but also building conformity regulations from services( eg gas ,water and electric) and do they conform, but also a realm of new laws on the efficiency of the property ( ie.. thermal efficiency and a rating thats a bit like say a fridge or oven.. its energy consumption rating)... which all projects and restorations now have to conform to ..
> 
> so many of you will be caught up in this and to my mind the only solution is to sit tight and accept the slow process if you can.. it will happen but it will take time.. and first home owners will get priority
> 
> sorry to intrude .. but if you understand the system maybe it will help you a bit.. but these rules are being changed nationally .. as houses are sold or built here they are all subject to the new rules .. i see many people rushing into buying property because its a bargain.. but its also best to investigate carefully what is and is not a bargain..
> 
> in Abruzzo the only province which has no class 1 seismic comunes is the province of Teramo.. everyone now knows about the province of L'Aquila so no caution needs to be taken.. but its funny how quite sellers of property in Pescara province and Chieti keep about the large number of comunes classed as zone 1 in these areas..
> 
> many of the more popular choices because they are marketed so widely as cheap bargains are in comunes with the same risk as L'Aquila.. places such as Casoli,palombaro and civitella MR ... manopello in pescara.. in fact if you read back through history.. caloi was destroyed in a quake in 1933 along with damage to several surrounding comunes..but as it was in the time of mussolini it was kept pretty quite..
> 
> so its a regional change that has been implemented via national laws.. and finally Abruzzo has accepted all its seismic ratings .. well all italian regions have bene pushed to by the l'aquila disaster which makes everyone safer so its good.. but also means places zoned as 1 not only have the problems of new works and restorations having to conform to new energy efficiency regulations.. an added cost.. but in zone 1 areas updated and better seismic regulations which this time will be enforced..which will add up to doubling the cost of restorations in these areas as against places with lower ratings...


About time - I am amased that they got away with it for so long. Well perhaps not when I think back to attitudeds still present today - 'well it survived one quake it has to be strong - I dont need to worry about it'. When I first bought my house the first thing I wanted to get done was work for earthquake measures - everyone told me I was nuts. Alas i had only just bought it before the quake struck so never did get the work done. Now I have to wait until all the work is finished and hope that at the end I will have a safe house. I am very glad they finally have all the regulations in place - now nobody can argue or prevaricate. 

What is the situation with the toxic waste in Bussi? Are they still going top drill for gas when a big earthquake is predicted in the next few years in that area? Is anyone in Sulmona preparing the houses for it as that is the area it is predicted for next?

Pam


----------



## maisie21

italy said:


> lots of news on about the events of two years ago yesterday and it does seem that they are moving onto the more heavily damaged e class properties now.. well thats what they said.. the region says the funds are in place and its up to the comunes to spend the money by approving projects..
> 
> re fees here.. architects are allowed to charge around the 15-18 % of the project cost as their fee.. which covers a lot more than just the planning in general..the insurances and the direction of works ..
> 
> re works and what can be done and how.. if you look back the problem.. the main problem with the buildings in L'Aquila as a province was that the comunes and province refused to accept the national standard class 1 seismic rating on buildings and building work..because it was obviously going to make the place less attractive..so they rated themselves down in that sense .. and the consequence was the collapse of a vast number of properties.. what this means is that now the region has accepted in full its classifications via the national laws on seismic classes of areas.. so L'Aquila in pretty well the whole province and all comunes are zoned at the highest level
> 
> what does this mean.. it means that should there be an earthquake .. and its not really a question of if but when ..then property and people will be safe.. and basically a house will be unsaleable in that area unless it conforms to all regs when you arrive at the point of contract exchange.. the notary will make anyone buying very aware that if they do buy without all current legislative building regs in place that they are taking a risk which he would suggest they do not take.. so selling will be difficult without things in place.. well almost impossible..
> 
> new rules on acts of sale not only have financial and tax regulations within the final act that have to be declared but also building conformity regulations from services( eg gas ,water and electric) and do they conform, but also a realm of new laws on the efficiency of the property ( ie.. thermal efficiency and a rating thats a bit like say a fridge or oven.. its energy consumption rating)... which all projects and restorations now have to conform to ..
> 
> so many of you will be caught up in this and to my mind the only solution is to sit tight and accept the slow process if you can.. it will happen but it will take time.. and first home owners will get priority
> 
> sorry to intrude .. but if you understand the system maybe it will help you a bit.. but these rules are being changed nationally .. as houses are sold or built here they are all subject to the new rules .. i see many people rushing into buying property because its a bargain.. but its also best to investigate carefully what is and is not a bargain..
> 
> in Abruzzo the only province which has no class 1 seismic comunes is the province of Teramo.. everyone now knows about the province of L'Aquila so no caution needs to be taken.. but its funny how quite sellers of property in Pescara province and Chieti keep about the large number of comunes classed as zone 1 in these areas..
> 
> many of the more popular choices because they are marketed so widely as cheap bargains are in comunes with the same risk as L'Aquila.. places such as Casoli,palombaro and civitella MR ... manopello in pescara.. in fact if you read back through history.. caloi was destroyed in a quake in 1933 along with damage to several surrounding comunes..but as it was in the time of mussolini it was kept pretty quite..
> 
> so its a regional change that has been implemented via national laws.. and finally Abruzzo has accepted all its seismic ratings .. well all italian regions have bene pushed to by the l'aquila disaster which makes everyone safer so its good.. but also means places zoned as 1 not only have the problems of new works and restorations having to conform to new energy efficiency regulations.. an added cost.. but in zone 1 areas updated and better seismic regulations which this time will be enforced..which will add up to doubling the cost of restorations in these areas as against places with lower ratings...


Pleased to har that the funds are in place as our house is a category'E'.
However our original architect is trying to claim over 25% of the total cost of the repairs.Out of a projected cost of 104.000Euro he has put his fees down as 27.000Euros. We have been reliably informed that the Comune will slice a good portion of his fees off as well as some of the riduculous things he has put in the plans. Our new architect has a good set of builders working for her and with all of safety measures that they will be putting into our house we will be happy to live there.
Judy.


----------



## maisie21

pugwashington said:


> How much do Pickfords charge? We will probably need to do the same. I could try Costa the Truck he got my stuff back from Greece via Italy but the problem with him is would be delivery.
> 
> We want a one bedroomed flat in centre of town as it would enable us to get some equity out and be a hassle free rental with a good return on any investment. We think we should be able to get 2-300 a month out of the deal anyway which will help towards living in Ofena or just plane fares back to UK to visit relatives. Thats plan A anyway.
> 
> Lets hope we make it out there soon.
> Pam


Hi Pam
At the moment our quote from Pickfords is for £7.000, but that includes a houseful of furniture, a new kitchen with appliances,large shed and greenhouse. Plus they will do absolutely everything for us. A bit pricey I know but they offere the best deal.
Judy


----------



## flawed

We have got tickets !

I misseed the Chelsea flower show again this year, just couldn't afford to kick around over there, but we are leaving the 19th of June, staying in Bangkok 2 nights arriving Rome 22nd June. We leave the first of July at this stage. 

I have been so excited since I finally booked. I was trolling the net for weeks looking for deals, trying to get the money together. July is so expensive ! The weather is great there now, I'm hoping we can enjoy some moderate sunny weather, and hopefully the poppies will still be around. The first time we went to Abruzzo was early June and the red and gold flower carpet was stunning. 

Anyone around Ofena 22nd June to 1st April ? 
I don't have a big agenda this time, give the place a good clean, put the new shelves together,get the leaky cistern replaced, get rid of some more rubbish in the courtyard... maybe drive to Puglia, as I still want to see the Trulli. 

Hey Pam, are you and Tony coming over ? I read there were some cheap fares......

Can't wait can't wait....


----------



## pugwashington

flawed said:


> We have got tickets !
> 
> I misseed the Chelsea flower show again this year, just couldn't afford to kick around over there, but we are leaving the 19th of June, staying in Bangkok 2 nights arriving Rome 22nd June. We leave the first of July at this stage.
> 
> I have been so excited since I finally booked. I was trolling the net for weeks looking for deals, trying to get the money together. July is so expensive ! The weather is great there now, I'm hoping we can enjoy some moderate sunny weather, and hopefully the poppies will still be around. The first time we went to Abruzzo was early June and the red and gold flower carpet was stunning.
> 
> Anyone around Ofena 22nd June to 1st April ?
> I don't have a big agenda this time, give the place a good clean, put the new shelves together,get the leaky cistern replaced, get rid of some more rubbish in the courtyard... maybe drive to Puglia, as I still want to see the Trulli.
> 
> Hey Pam, are you and Tony coming over ? I read there were some cheap fares......
> 
> Can't wait can't wait....


Lucky you.....we are still waiting for news on our project - dont even know if it has been submitted - planning on driving over maybe august and will see how it lies re staying in house - otherwise we will camp.....have a good time... Pam


----------



## maisie21

flawed said:


> We have got tickets !
> 
> I misseed the Chelsea flower show again this year, just couldn't afford to kick around over there, but we are leaving the 19th of June, staying in Bangkok 2 nights arriving Rome 22nd June. We leave the first of July at this stage.
> 
> I have been so excited since I finally booked. I was trolling the net for weeks looking for deals, trying to get the money together. July is so expensive ! The weather is great there now, I'm hoping we can enjoy some moderate sunny weather, and hopefully the poppies will still be around. The first time we went to Abruzzo was early June and the red and gold flower carpet was stunning.
> 
> Anyone around Ofena 22nd June to 1st April ?
> I don't have a big agenda this time, give the place a good clean, put the new shelves together,get the leaky cistern replaced, get rid of some more rubbish in the courtyard... maybe drive to Puglia, as I still want to see the Trulli.
> 
> Hey Pam, are you and Tony coming over ? I read there were some cheap fares......
> 
> Can't wait can't wait....


Hi Lynda
Pleased to see that you have got your flights booked. It is the same over here with the cost of the flights in July/August, the airlines take advantage of the school holidays and put the prices up.
We are still waiting to hear about our house, we had planned to make a flying visit in June to set up the new bank account but as we have still not heard anything we are stuck in limbo and if we have to go out then we will have to pay over the odds for a flight.
John should have been finishing work in October but it looks like we will have to delay it yet again, it is so frustrating.
Have a good trip.
Judy.lane:


----------



## flawed

pugwashington said:


> Lucky you.....we are still waiting for news on our project - dont even know if it has been submitted - planning on driving over maybe august and will see how it lies re staying in house - otherwise we will camp.....have a good time... Pam


Hi Pam, 

that's a shame I thought you brits got such cheap fares you could pop over any time ha ha ha 

Gosh you are so lucky you can drive there. I would so love to live in Europe, so many places to see ! When we finally do get there we will do some travelling around. 

I suppose the recent eruption is causing some grief again with airlines too.

Will miss you in Ofena !


----------



## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> Pleased to see that you have got your flights booked. It is the same over here with the cost of the flights in July/August, the airlines take advantage of the school holidays and put the prices up.
> We are still waiting to hear about our house, we had planned to make a flying visit in June to set up the new bank account but as we have still not heard anything we are stuck in limbo and if we have to go out then we will have to pay over the odds for a flight.
> John should have been finishing work in October but it looks like we will have to delay it yet again, it is so frustrating.
> Have a good trip.
> Judy.lane:


Hi Judy, You and Pam are still doing it tough. it must be so frustrating having your house declared uninhabitable, and with things moving so slowly at the commune. I guess until the project is approved you dare not commit to moving until you know what it is going to cost. Also sorry your deadline is pushed back again, but at least you might avoid winter ! 

You could just spoil yourself and come for some sun, since you are not making the move in October, he he 

I will get to meet you one day.... 

Best wishes Lynda


----------



## Barry

flawed said:


> Hi Judy, You and Pam are still doing it tough. it must be so frustrating having your house declared uninhabitable, and with things moving so slowly at the commune. I guess until the project is approved you dare not commit to moving until you know what it is going to cost. Also sorry your deadline is pushed back again, but at least you might avoid winter !
> 
> You could just spoil yourself and come for some sun, since you are not making the move in October, he he
> 
> I will get to meet you one day....
> 
> Best wishes Lynda


Hi Lnda,
Gil & Guy are planning to be there the end of June.


----------



## flawed

Barry said:


> Hi Lnda,
> Gil & Guy are planning to be there the end of June.


thanks for that Barry, Have you managed to get to Ofena this year?

or are you planning to go later in the year? Is your place all sorted out now? Your brother stayed there and did some painting last year didn't he. 

Gil and guy are the people with a house in the wall that got damage. Their street was damaged wasn't it? I'm glad they are still connected to the area. I think they trip around a bit and enjoy the lifestyle.

They were so unhappy the day I met them, just had bad news about their place. 
Such a shame.


----------



## Barry

Not yet but hoping for september.


----------



## flawed

Weather is great here in Italy, We are lucky Gianni said he had 15 days straight of rain just before we came. We stayed in Pescara last night as Elle's friend took the train from Paris to Pescara yesterday. We head back today.Gianni having no luck with his builders, the scaffold is still all around his place. Seems the company hasn't paid it's workers entitlements. The job is being investigated and gianni is stuck in the middle. 
We bouht some of his oil again, and some yummy fig jam. 
No sign of Gill and Guy. 
We went to Puglia for a night, to Alberabello, such an interesting place. Stayed in a trulli house. It was good to see a new area. Stopped for a wander around the bari old town on the way back. I could definately spend some more time there. 

Hope you guys enjoy your next visit too


----------



## maisie21

flawed said:


> Weather is great here in Italy, We are lucky Gianni said he had 15 days straight of rain just before we came. We stayed in Pescara last night as Elle's friend took the train from Paris to Pescara yesterday. We head back today.Gianni having no luck with his builders, the scaffold is still all around his place. Seems the company hasn't paid it's workers entitlements. The job is being investigated and gianni is stuck in the middle.
> We bouht some of his oil again, and some yummy fig jam.
> No sign of Gill and Guy.
> We went to Puglia for a night, to Alberabello, such an interesting place. Stayed in a trulli house. It was good to see a new area. Stopped for a wander around the bari old town on the way back. I could definately spend some more time there.
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy your next visit too


Hi Lynda
Pleased to hear that you had a good time in Italy.
I can really empathise with Gianni as we are getting nowhere at all with our architect. He was supposed to meet with the new one that we have now got working for us but once again he did not turn up for the meeting and will not answer his calls. He is so arrogant and obviously does not like English people and female architects. I wish that we could afford to get rid of him and start again but it would just be too costly. It seems that we will not be moving to Italy this year after all so we will have to put all of our new purchses into storage.
I am not sure when we will be going over next certainly not in August or September as my parents are coming over from Spain and then we go on holiday.
Judy.


----------



## flawed

Hi Judy, 

I'm back in Australia now. That was a crazy flying visit ! 

We were pleased to see Lorenzo had made a new door for the back room. It was in the kitchen when we got there. Gianni hadn't told us it was there. It was a nice surprise. 

We were only at the house for 6 days, so didn't get much done. Rod put some gauze in the kitchen above the door, and managed to stop our toilet cistern from leaking.
We screwed together one of the shelves we purchased for the mill, and tried to fit a new door lock. 

So sorry to here things are not going well for you. 
I don't really understand why you can not finish with the first architect ? You hoped he would bow out. You must be incredibly frustrated. 
Our neighbour who does not speak any italian wanted us to sign something to say we had no interest in his property so that he could go ahead with his repairs. 
God I hope he hasn't been waiting all this time to catch us to get it signed. How awful! 
It was an interesting conversation, he was waving his hands around and Rod thought he was talking about the trees out the back ! I laughed and laughed when I found out what it was about. It was certainly a reminder to get on to our language lessons! Luckily he found someone to explain what he wanted. 

We had some great meals at the bar, we have discovered that Stephania, does great vegetable antipasto. Yum ! 
The girls found the card for horseriding with Julie (English woman) in Capestrano up at the bar, and took a sunset ride in the valley. It was a highlight of their trip.

I am worried we are about to open a can of worms with our place. I was worried that we hadn't paid any taxes, it was ok the first year because of the earthquake, but this year I thought we should find out what we need to do. Gianni said that we needed to get someone to assess what portion of our property is being occupied for tax I just hope that they don't tell us that it is uninhabitable. 
We have only wired the first level and upstairs is running on extension cords. 
Our bathroom is VERY ordinary and needs a paint at the least.

I just hope that we don't end up like you and Pam, unable to stay in our place !

Fingers crossed things all turn out for us all ! 

Lynda


----------



## Barry

flawed said:


> Hi Judy,
> 
> I'm back in Australia now. That was a crazy flying visit !
> 
> We were pleased to see Lorenzo had made a new door for the back room. It was in the kitchen when we got there. Gianni hadn't told us it was there. It was a nice surprise.
> 
> We were only at the house for 6 days, so didn't get much done. Rod put some gauze in the kitchen above the door, and managed to stop our toilet cistern from leaking.
> We screwed together one of the shelves we purchased for the mill, and tried to fit a new door lock.
> 
> So sorry to here things are not going well for you.
> I don't really understand why you can not finish with the first architect ? You hoped he would bow out. You must be incredibly frustrated.
> Our neighbour who does not speak any italian wanted us to sign something to say we had no interest in his property so that he could go ahead with his repairs.
> God I hope he hasn't been waiting all this time to catch us to get it signed. How awful!
> It was an interesting conversation, he was waving his hands around and Rod thought he was talking about the trees out the back ! I laughed and laughed when I found out what it was about. It was certainly a reminder to get on to our language lessons! Luckily he found someone to explain what he wanted.
> 
> We had some great meals at the bar, we have discovered that Stephania, does great vegetable antipasto. Yum !
> The girls found the card for horseriding with Julie (English woman) in Capestrano up at the bar, and took a sunset ride in the valley. It was a highlight of their trip.
> 
> I am worried we are about to open a can of worms with our place. I was worried that we hadn't paid any taxes, it was ok the first year because of the earthquake, but this year I thought we should find out what we need to do. Gianni said that we needed to get someone to assess what portion of our property is being occupied for tax I just hope that they don't tell us that it is uninhabitable.
> We have only wired the first level and upstairs is running on extension cords.
> Our bathroom is VERY ordinary and needs a paint at the least.
> 
> I just hope that we don't end up like you and Pam, unable to stay in our place !
> 
> Fingers crossed things all turn out for us all !
> 
> Lynda


Sounds like you had fun! We haven't paid any taxes either (I don't think but Gianni does it for us so I'am not sure). Mind you we are category E so we probably don't have to pay.
There dosen't appear to be any rhyme or reason on some the decisions about the earthquake damage. Bruce has had his house rebuilt since the earthquake and they classified it E in Febuary right after it was complete! I'am now thinking I'll have to remove our chimney to keep them happy. Once something is on paper it is hard to change and the chimney was their reason for us being category E.
We are having the worst year ever here in Calgary. Cold and rain so we want to get to our house in Italy!


----------



## flawed

Barry said:


> Sounds like you had fun! We haven't paid any taxes either (I don't think but Gianni does it for us so I'am not sure). Mind you we are category E so we probably don't have to pay.
> There dosen't appear to be any rhyme or reason on some the decisions about the earthquake damage. Bruce has had his house rebuilt since the earthquake and they classified it E in Febuary right after it was complete! I'am now thinking I'll have to remove our chimney to keep them happy. Once something is on paper it is hard to change and the chimney was their reason for us being category E.
> We are having the worst year ever here in Calgary. Cold and rain so we want to get to our house in Italy!


OMG Barry you are scaring me, you know we didn't let them in to our place after the earthquake and just paid to fix the roof ourselves. You give me little hope with the way things work there if they can classify Bruce's place E after a complete rebuild ! 
It is bizarre, Judy said she had to redo new work as well, that is completely mad. 
I want to do the right thing and contribute to the community via taxes, but I am in horror of being told we can't stay in our house. We are no longer in the position to just pay and have everything done. 
It is 8 months since our last visit. we are still slowly getting things done, but we had such bad experiences having plumbing and electrical done while we are not there we are not prepared to let them go unsupervised anyway. 

Rod would like to find work back overseas, anywhere is closer than Australia. 
Sorry to here you are having such a rough winter, still it must give you a warm glow , just thinking about the home you own in sunny Italy ! 
I'll send you a link to my pics..... awesome weather ! 

Lynda


----------



## maisie21

Hi everyone.

Hope that you are all okay.
We are still waiting to get our project plans for the repairs passed by the Comune!!!
Will, however definitely be moving there in March next year even if we have to rent our house out in England until it is sold. Have already got our new kitchen and appliances in store with the removal company.
We are going to Ofena on the 19thlane: for a few days to see if we can get something sorted out with the repairs although we are obviously getting to the wrong time of year to start building works.
Judy.


----------



## Barry

maisie21 said:


> Hi everyone.
> 
> Hope that you are all okay.
> We are still waiting to get our project plans for the repairs passed by the Comune!!!
> Will, however definitely be moving there in March next year even if we have to rent our house out in England until it is sold. Have already got our new kitchen and appliances in store with the removal company.
> We are going to Ofena on the 19thlane: for a few days to see if we can get something sorted out with the repairs although we are obviously getting to the wrong time of year to start building works.
> Judy.


I've exchanged a few emails with our comune about what we have to do to get our designation changed, but it is a waste of time. Can't get a straight answer out of them so I will remove the chimney and put a new one on and see what they say.
It looks like a few more years at least before they get a handle on the repairs. You can harvest your olives and make your wine while you are there!

Barry


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> I've exchanged a few emails with our comune about what we have to do to get our designation changed, but it is a waste of time. Can't get a straight answer out of them so I will remove the chimney and put a new one on and see what they say.
> It looks like a few more years at least before they get a handle on the repairs. You can harvest your olives and make your wine while you are there!
> 
> Barry


Everything is so frustrating isn't it. I have started sending angry texts to our original architect because he arranges meetings and then doesn't turn up so we are getting nowhere fast. He does respond when I start getting stroppy but our new architect cannot sort anything out because of his delays.This is why we are hoping that we can sort something out when we go over.
I don't know what our olive trees will be like as we haven't been over since March.
All we need now is for them to say that they will no longer fund part of the cost because of the cut backs.
Judy.


----------



## Barry

*Taxes*

Just saw a note on the pro loco site that taxes are starting again in January. Back taxes are to be paid over 120 months with no interest. They haven't answered my question that if they class our house as uninhabitable then we don't owe or pay any taxes.


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> Just saw a note on the pro loco site that taxes are starting again in January. Back taxes are to be paid over 120 months with no interest. They haven't answered my question that if they class our house as uninhabitable then we don't owe or pay any taxes.


I totally agree but considering the state of the Italian finances at the moment I think that they will probably try and claw as much money back as they can, even from the homes that were uninhabitable.


----------



## flawed

hi everyone,

I've just been checking to see what I've missed on the thread. I haven't been on since last july, and not much there. We are going to Ofena 7th of April to the 20th. We are sd looking forward to being there. 

thanks Barry for the update on taxes. 
I'll have to chase that up when we are there. 
everything is so different since the 
gfc and earthquake for everyone. Gianni tells me his house is still unfinished. 

I haven't heard from Pam in ages, and Judy are you still making the move in March. ? I might finally get to meet you !

My first port of call will be Lorenzo to pay him for the very nice new door. 
We are still no closer to moving, but both Rod and I have been studying some beginners Italian. I am keen to get on and learn so I can to Maria across the road. 

It will be nice to know what we are doing over there eventually, as it is hard when you have to rely on other people to know what is going on. 

Hope everyone is happy and well and still dreaming of Ofena. Gosh but it's cold there right now. Brrrrrr hope April is warmer. 

Our best wishes to you all Lynda and Rod Groch


----------



## Barry

Over 1 meter of snow in Carrufo so far. Seems the plow bypast the village and no one can get out!


----------



## maisie21

flawed said:


> hi everyone,
> 
> I've just been checking to see what I've missed on the thread. I haven't been on since last july, and not much there. We are going to Ofena 7th of April to the 20th. We are sd looking forward to being there.
> 
> thanks Barry for the update on taxes.
> I'll have to chase that up when we are there.
> everything is so different since the
> gfc and earthquake for everyone. Gianni tells me his house is still unfinished.
> 
> I haven't heard from Pam in ages, and Judy are you still making the move in March. ? I might finally get to meet you !
> 
> My first port of call will be Lorenzo to pay him for the very nice new door.
> We are still no closer to moving, but both Rod and I have been studying some beginners Italian. I am keen to get on and learn so I can to Maria across the road.
> 
> It will be nice to know what we are doing over there eventually, as it is hard when you have to rely on other people to know what is going on.
> 
> Hope everyone is happy and well and still dreaming of Ofena. Gosh but it's cold there right now. Brrrrrr hope April is warmer.
> 
> Our best wishes to you all Lynda and Rod Groch


Hi Lynda
It was good to hear from you again.
We are no further forward with our planned move so we have had to delay it yet again, hopefully the end of may.One of the architects was away for the whole of January and did not arrive back in Pescara until 4th Feb.
We still don't know whether the plans have been passed and John is getting really fed up with having to put back his reitement date. Was it Lorenzo Battistelli that did your door? He did some internal ones for us and I may be asking him to do the external ones as well but it depends on what we are getting done with the repairs project.
It is cold here also, it will be minus 10c on Wednesday night.
Judy.


----------



## Michael Boni

*Abruzzo*



maisie21 said:


> Hi
> My husband and I are planning to re-locate to Abruzzo next year, hopefully towards the end of April.
> We bought our house, as a renovation project, in Ofena in 2007 and had originally planned to move this year. However, our house was damaged in the earthquake and we are still waiting to receive authorisation from the authorities to start the repairs.
> Regardless of whether the work has started by April next year we still plan to make the move then even if it means taking a caravan across with us to sleep in.
> We have a garden of over 600sq.m which is full of olive trees, vines and fig trees to we will have plenty of work to keep us occupied until we can start on the house again.
> If anyone has any constructive advice to offer it would be gratefully welcomed.
> Judy


Hi Judy

Our names are Michael and Palma and we currently live in Florida in the U.S. Where do you folks live? I retired in December from the construction business and my wife and I plan was always to purchase a place in Italy and stay there for six months at a time and six months back here in the U.S.

Is the place you purchased in Abruzzo near the main town or out in the country? How was the buying process in Abruzzo and how long did it take? We want to go to Italy this summer for six weeks to look around in Abruzzo where my father's family is all from and also go to Calabria where my mother's family was all from. We are planning on renting a place for one year so we can really take the time to look araound in Abruzzo and Calabria for the specific area for a home we really want to purchase there.

Why did you pick Abruzzo to purchase a home? You bought a home that needs remodeled. Is it liveable at this point of time? Are you getting a contractor to help you or are you planning on doing all the renovations yourselves?

Are you getting a extended Visa to stay longer then the three months you can stay in Italy with a Passport? Are you planning on getting Italian Citizenship so you all can stay there full time.

I hope you don't mind all the questions we have asked you. We are just trying to learn all we can at this point of time about Abruzzo. If you don't mind responding back to all our questions,we would really appreciate it.


Thanks

Michael and Palma


----------



## pudd 2

hi if you want to speak to some one who has been her 9 years and and been though every thing pick up a phone and ring me you have our detales we live in pretoro . I dont understand why nobody speaks to any one these days , yes its good to share on the forum but the amount of qurys you have would take for ever , ring me and il ring you back as we hav free calls to lanld lines in canada and america ROY f sorry this directed to michael and palma


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## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> It was good to hear from you again.
> We are no further forward with our planned move so we have had to delay it yet again, hopefully the end of may.One of the architects was away for the whole of January and did not arrive back in Pescara until 4th Feb.
> We still don't know whether the plans have been passed and John is getting really fed up with having to put back his reitement date. Was it Lorenzo Battistelli that did your door? He did some internal ones for us and I may be asking him to do the external ones as well but it depends on what we are getting done with the repairs project.
> It is cold here also, it will be minus 10c on Wednesday night.
> Judy.


Hi Judy, sorry to hear you have put your date back again. Winter will be over soon, aren't you tempted to just up and go ? 
Yes Lorenzo from down near the hardware store. He does nice work. We had an old plywood door which he has remade in solid pine with a new frame. 
I think like a lot of people he has no interest in old things and he did a shocking repair on my old lourve doors but his new work is faultless. 

The weather there is terrible, hard for us to imagine in Australia. It rarely goes negative anywhere here. 
Hope you have some good news soon. Lynda


----------



## Barry

Over a meter of snow in Carrufo!


----------



## maisie21

Michael Boni said:


> Hi Judy
> 
> Our names are Michael and Palma and we currently live in Florida in the U.S. Where do you folks live? I retired in December from the construction business and my wife and I plan was always to purchase a place in Italy and stay there for six months at a time and six months back here in the U.S.
> 
> Is the place you purchased in Abruzzo near the main town or out in the country? How was the buying process in Abruzzo and how long did it take? We want to go to Italy this summer for six weeks to look around in Abruzzo where my father's family is all from and also go to Calabria where my mother's family was all from. We are planning on renting a place for one year so we can really take the time to look araound in Abruzzo and Calabria for the specific area for a home we really want to purchase there.
> 
> Why did you pick Abruzzo to purchase a home? You bought a home that needs remodeled. Is it liveable at this point of time? Are you getting a contractor to help you or are you planning on doing all the renovations yourselves?
> 
> Are you getting a extended Visa to stay longer then the three months you can stay in Italy with a Passport? Are you planning on getting Italian Citizenship so you all can stay there full time.
> 
> I hope you don't mind all the questions we have asked you. We are just trying to learn all we can at this point of time about Abruzzo. If you don't mind responding back to all our questions,we would really appreciate it.
> 
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Michael and Palma


Hi
We are still currently living in the UK.
We bought our house in 2007 and planned to move to Abruzzo in 2010 but the earthquake damaged our house and we have been waiting since then for the repair project to be passed by the local comune. I have already retired but my husband John is still waiting until we get a confirmation form Italy that the work can go ahead.
Our house is in a village(Ofena) in the Gran Sasso national park, the nearest small town is about two miles away and we are about 40 minutes from the airport and Pescara beach.
We had bought the house and signed the contracts in less than two months using the House around Italy agency.
We had initially planned to do most of the renovations ourselves but because it has now been damaged we have to have authorised builders to repair the damage and then we will carry on doing it ourselves. We have used local tradesmen for things like new doors and windows.
We will be re-locating to Italy and will apply for residency. Some of our furniture is already in storage and we will, if necessary, buy a caravan and live in that for a while until the repairs are completed.
Good luck with your planned trip to Italy and I hope that you find what you are looking for.
Judy.lane:


----------



## pudd 2

maisy iam sorry your dream has been so hard and slow . due to all the bad drawbacks eathquakes property prices and market failer in the uk . we have been here 9 years and had set backs but these have been man made , but now we are happy , so keep on with your dream roy


----------



## flawed

Barry said:


> Over a meter of snow in Carrufo!


Hey Barry, 

over a metre of snow, 

I can't imagine what that would be like to live in day to day. 

We have been there in December, but it wasn't below zero. Ofena gets snow, but it doesn't stay around like it does in Carrufo, Villa, and above. 

We used 40 euro in gas staying warm though in a week !

Those gas heaters on wheels that take a big bottle really pump out the heat, though. We also 
have the deodorized kero one with electric ignition in the kitchen though. It is quick and easy. It doesn't heat the two rooms though like the gas ones.

It is certainly an area of contrasts though, always amazed to come in on a warm sunny day and see snow covered peaks all around. May and June are wonderful , but I just couldn't wait to get back over ! Are you heading over any time soon ?


----------



## maisie21

flawed said:


> Hey Barry,
> 
> over a metre of snow,
> 
> I can't imagine what that would be like to live in day to day.
> 
> We have been there in December, but it wasn't below zero. Ofena gets snow, but it doesn't stay around like it does in Carrufo, Villa, and above.
> 
> We used 40 euro in gas staying warm though in a week !
> 
> Those gas heaters on wheels that take a big bottle really pump out the heat, though. We also
> have the deodorized kero one with electric ignition in the kitchen though. It is quick and easy. It doesn't heat the two rooms though like the gas ones.
> 
> It is certainly an area of contrasts though, always amazed to come in on a warm sunny day and see snow covered peaks all around. May and June are wonderful , but I just couldn't wait to get back over ! Are you heading over any time soon ?


Hi Lynda
Apparently Ofena has also been cut off by the snow this year. The comune has been closed for over a week because nobody can get to it.
This is the first year,since we bought the house in 2007, that we haven't been to Ofena in February, it is a good thing that we decided not to go this year. Previous years, we have worn 't' shirts because it has been warm for us.There has also been over a foot of snow in Pescara, which is unheard of!!!:smow:
Judy


----------



## flawed

thanks for the update judy, certainly an extraordinary winter !


----------



## Barry

flawed said:


> Hey Barry,
> 
> over a metre of snow,
> 
> I can't imagine what that would be like to live in day to day.
> 
> We have been there in December, but it wasn't below zero. Ofena gets snow, but it doesn't stay around like it does in Carrufo, Villa, and above.
> 
> We used 40 euro in gas staying warm though in a week !
> 
> Those gas heaters on wheels that take a big bottle really pump out the heat, though. We also
> have the deodorized kero one with electric ignition in the kitchen though. It is quick and easy. It doesn't heat the two rooms though like the gas ones.
> 
> It is certainly an area of contrasts though, always amazed to come in on a warm sunny day and see snow covered peaks all around. May and June are wonderful , but I just couldn't wait to get back over ! Are you heading over any time soon ?


We have 3 kerosene heaters plus an electric one and they work down to about 0. Haven't tried them in really cold weather but Gianni gives me a rough time if we keep the temperature in the house more than +15. Anne says she has to wear 3 sweaters even in their house and she is still cold!


----------



## flawed

Barry said:


> We have 3 kerosene heaters plus an electric one and they work down to about 0. Haven't tried them in really cold weather but Gianni gives me a rough time if we keep the temperature in the house more than +15. Anne says she has to wear 3 sweaters even in their house and she is still cold!


Layers eh? 

My mum gave me a big coat, I think that might be the go ! I took it over last trip. Funny we have left a few jackets there !


----------



## Ben.Barrett

*L'Aquila*

Hi my name is Ben Barrett I'm 24 and from Leicester, I came across your post about moving to Abruzzo. I live in L'Aquila and I'm looking for work in the region, just wondered if you have any tips or advice about where I could look. I hope everything is ok with your house there must have been lots of problems after the earthquake, Anyway thanks for your time and all the best. Ben.


----------



## maisie21

Ben.Barrett said:


> Hi my name is Ben Barrett I'm 24 and from Leicester, I came across your post about moving to Abruzzo. I live in L'Aquila and I'm looking for work in the region, just wondered if you have any tips or advice about where I could look. I hope everything is ok with your house there must have been lots of problems after the earthquake, Anyway thanks for your time and all the best. Ben.


Hi Ben
It is lovely to hear from you. 
All I can suggest is that you ask at your lcal Comune or try contacting companies such as Houses arund Italy who have got agents that speak excellent English(if your Italian is not too good) they may know of someone who can offer work but it all depends on what type of work you are after.
We are still waiting to hear news about our house, we have had to delay our move to Italy once again because we are still waiting for the repair project to be passed by the engineer at the Comune.
Good luck with your job search.
Judy.:welcome:


----------



## italy

*looking for work*

there could be some hope on the horizon because basically in Italy its been a closed shop with work if found being underpaid and short term

new laws should be in action before the end of this month .. being set up by the new government.. what it will mean is that some of the sharper practices like insisting you are registered for vat and paying your own expenses whilst in reality being employed are to be stopped .. this is very common practice in places like language schools and estate agencies .. it will all take a while to get sorted but it does seem that Italy at long last will not only be part of the EU in fact but in spirit too... employment might well be easier to find and more open soon.. good luck


----------



## maisie21

*Ready to move*

Hi
Hope that everyone is okay as this forum seems to have been very quiet lately.
Well it looks as if we have found a buyer for our house in the UK so we are heading to Ofena the first week of September with a caravan and we will live in that until the repairs on our house are completed. Unfortunately, they haven't even started yet. Our useless architect hasn't done anything constructive for months so we are going regardless, and if I have to go up to the Comune every day, I will.
Hopefully, we will get to meet some of you when you come over for a visit.
Interesting and exciting times ahead.
Judy.:cheer2:


----------



## Barry

*September*



maisie21 said:


> Hi
> Hope that everyone is okay as this forum seems to have been very quiet lately.
> Well it looks as if we have found a buyer for our house in the UK so we are heading to Ofena the first week of September with a caravan and we will live in that until the repairs on our house are completed. Unfortunately, they haven't even started yet. Our useless architect hasn't done anything constructive for months so we are going regardless, and if I have to go up to the Comune every day, I will.
> Hopefully, we will get to meet some of you when you come over for a visit.
> Interesting and exciting times ahead.
> Judy.:cheer2:


That's great Judy,

Are you going to be there in time for the picnic?
Is your caravan insulated and heated? 


Barry


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> That's great Judy,
> 
> Are you going to be there in time for the picnic?
> Is your caravan insulated and heated?
> 
> 
> Barry


Hi Barry
What picnic?
Yes, the caravan has got a heater and the windows are double glazed so we should be okay during the winter. If it gets too cold we will have to stay in bed all day but we are trying to cover all eventualities. At least this way I can keep going up to the Comune to pester them.Judy


----------



## Barry

*Picnic*



maisie21 said:


> Hi Barry
> What picnic?
> Yes, the caravan has got a heater and the windows are double glazed so we should be okay during the winter. If it gets too cold we will have to stay in bed all day but we are trying to cover all eventualities. At least this way I can keep going up to the Comune to pester them.Judy


Homecoming Picnic in Abruzzo | An Abruzzo Descendant Picnic in Abruzzo

September 14,15 &16. Over 100 people coming from North America so far.


----------



## maisie21

Barry said:


> Homecoming Picnic in Abruzzo | An Abruzzo Descendant Picnic in Abruzzo
> 
> September 14,15 &16. Over 100 people coming from North America so far.


Yes, we will be there then. We will be arriving about the 7th September.:clap2:


----------



## flawed

Hi judy , hi barry, 

I booked again about a week ago. We are flying into barcrlona for a few days then heading to ofena around the 11th of oct to the 19th. It is never long enough though. Such a long way fron australia we always lose so many days traveling. We will miss your picnic barry which is a shame. It is a fantastic thing you are planning. I can't believe you have 100 people coming ! I hope you plans are finally falling into place judy and that being their will make things start happening. we finally got an electricity bill from enil and it was huge. Gianni took the readings and came to laquila with us to sort it out. Turns out they had overestimated and it ended up only 345.00 euros. We tried to see someone at the commune about the taxes but he wasnt there. Will try again this visit. Lorenzo made us a new front door i am nervous as im hoping it is balanced and to scale. it has internal shutters so we can light the stairs. I hope i havent made a mistake doing it in timber. maybe i can finally meet you judy this trip  we havent done much to the place but we hope to do some more clearing in the courtyard. So much rubbish there. When i find the bottom ill be able to think about the stairs !


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## maisie21

flawed said:


> Hi judy , hi barry,
> 
> I booked again about a week ago. We are flying into barcrlona for a few days then heading to ofena around the 11th of oct to the 19th. It is never long enough though. Such a long way fron australia we always lose so many days traveling. We will miss your picnic barry which is a shame. It is a fantastic thing you are planning. I can't believe you have 100 people coming ! I hope you plans are finally falling into place judy and that being their will make things start happening. we finally got an electricity bill from enil and it was huge. Gianni took the readings and came to laquila with us to sort it out. Turns out they had overestimated and it ended up only 345.00 euros. We tried to see someone at the commune about the taxes but he wasnt there. Will try again this visit. Lorenzo made us a new front door i am nervous as im hoping it is balanced and to scale. it has internal shutters so we can light the stairs. I hope i havent made a mistake doing it in timber. maybe i can finally meet you judy this trip  we havent done much to the place but we hope to do some more clearing in the courtyard. So much rubbish there. When i find the bottom ill be able to think about the stairs !


Hi Lynda
It will be lovely to meet up with you. We will definitely be there then as we should be arriving about the 7th/8th September.
There is still no good news about the repairs on our house. We are getting really fed up about it.
We are also hoping to have new wood framed doors made for our house as well(once the repairs have been completed) I think they look much nicer and will let the light in.
Have a safe journey and we will see you in October.:clap2:
Judy.


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## flawed

maisie21 said:


> Hi Lynda
> It will be lovely to meet up with you. We will definitely be there then as we should be arriving about the 7th/8th September.
> There is still no good news about the repairs on our house. We are getting really fed up about it.
> We are also hoping to have new wood framed doors made for our house as well(once the repairs have been completed) I think they look much nicer and will let the light in.
> Have a safe journey and we will see you in October.:clap2:
> Judy.


Hi judy not long now. How is the weather there ? Lloks like it is still nice. We arrive late on the 10th. Looking forward to catching up. Lynda


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