The Simple Life- Italy and Portugal
The Simple Life- Italy
Not long after my first child was born, I was lucky enough to spend nearly a year living in beautiful Italy for what we remember as ‘la dolce a vita,’ the sweet life. I can’t remember a time in my life quite like it. I remember feeling so truly content, being swept away in all of Italy’s beauty and sweet life. How could I not love a time living in the moment, all about beauty, food, family, friends and love. All that Italy is and more. There is just something about it.
I can’t explain it and if you haven't been you just have to trust me and feel it for yourself.
One day I was sitting outside in the garden of our rented country house writing an email to my friends. It was a restored stone house that had a beautiful garden, it was like something dreams are made of, well my dreams. All I could see was the forest around us with butterflies and bees flying around the lavender. All I could hear was the loud song of the cicadas, reminding me of beautiful past summers. This moment in time was pure bliss.
We lived in this part of Italy for a month perched on the top of a mountain in a village called Vergemoli, a population of around 150 people.
I was with my beautiful in laws and I remember we used to sit outside in the blow-up pool with my baby boy and eat fresh peaches and cherries. We made fresh scones (one of my favourite treats) and sat outside eating them with jam and cream. It was a quiet time but a perfect time.
We were very lucky in this little village as we got to know the locals, who were all as friendly as they were quirky. The highlight was being invited to the yearly festival in the village for a party.
They set the village centre up with tables and chairs and a few decorations for the celebration. The party included live music, a pig on the spit, delicious homemade pasta, lots of wine and of course dancing. Italian style! All of the village locals went to the party from the pharmacist, the local baker, the old lady, and the very friendly man. Everyone was having a good time until the early hours of the morning including us.
Many of the kind locals would invite us into their little homes for drinks, tea, and even birthday parties. We got to know all their stories and funny ways, who went with whom and who used to be married to who. There was never a dull moment, just a little Italian village, full of colour and characters. We would walk to the local store, open only a few hours a day, on certain days for some of our supplies. We imagined we would head out all the time in the car to the other areas and shops but we didn’t. We just loved the experience and ‘la dolce vita’ (sweet life) and the simple things life offered us.
I never imagined I would enjoy the simple life, being such a busy and social person, but I truly did. I thought I would be out every day, going to the cities and villages nearby exploring. But instead, I was very happy and content to just enjoy this simple life.
One of the funniest parts of our time in Vergemoli was the scorpions, they apparently come to this area in August. They were harmless but initially pretty scary for this not so brave little Aussie girl. Don’t let this put you off this area as If I can live with them anyone can. They became like harmless insects and I stopped counting after we discovered them all over the property and even in my shower cap.
Towards the end of our time in Vergemoli, we had a tour of the village by locals. They showed us all the properties for sale in the hope of us buying something. We fell in love with the place and the views from the mountaintops however I don’t think I could live their full time. I loved the month we had there and I would love to go back on holiday one day. If I was to own a place in Italy (a dream for one day!!) I would choose somewhere else but that doesn’t take away from our magical time we shared there. Memories of our time will stay with us forever and that’s what life is all about, making sweet, wonderful memories. So go and try ‘la dolce a vita’, you won’t be disappointed.
The simple life- Portugal
We had another experience when my little boy Marlow was nearly 2 years old and I was pregnant with our second baby. We spent a month visiting my mother and father in law, staying in a tiny old village called Villa Nova in Portugal. It made Vergemoli in Italy look like the big smoke. On the first impression, the village almost looked desolate or even derelict in parts but it was so warm and full of love when you got inside the local's hearts.
It was quite hot there at the time and barren with nothing much to it but a small church and some bins. Once we spent a few days there we could see the love and the characters that made it their home and it was far from desolate. The local baker would drive through beeping daily with fresh bread to deliver. We found out he was a tango dancer by night and you could tell by his young, fit body. (I can just imagine a movie being written about this man and the village with the expat lady falling in love with the dancer by night). Think Under the Tuscan Sun- only the Portuguese version.
Back to the village- fruits, vegetables and fish were also delivered to your door weekly. Most of the people living in the village were over eighty or even ninety for that matter; the oldest was in her hundreds. I don’t think any of them had many teeth but they had the most beautiful smiles and hearts you had ever seen.
We got to know a lovely English speaking lady who took us into her home for chats about the village gossip and all the history. We met another beautiful lady who had lived in her house for a long time and in the past was a local teacher. She was full of character and she invited us into her house for meals and drinks, she was never shy of a story for us. Her English was excellent although she was as local as they come.
One lady who was widowed loved my little son and would kiss him each day when we walked past to take his nappies to the bin. She had no English but we managed to communicate with the universal language of love, gestures and smiles. She reminded me how beautiful life really is, watching the interaction of an innocent child and an ageing lady was very special to witness.
The lady that looked after our house and garden for the owners was so warm and with not a word of English, she would smile with her whole face and bring gifts of food each week from her garden. Such a simple, generous gestures we will never forget.
Some days we would visit the church or take a walk around the little village streets. My lovely mother in law and I would take lemons from one of the lemon trees nearby (sticking them down our tops to hide them). Maybe God forgave us for that as it was so much fun with our little Marlow, he loved it. There were plenty of lemons so we didn’t feel too guilty. Some days we went looking for other fruit and found apples, oranges, and blackberries.
One little old lady would walk past us daily with her heard of sheep. We would watch her take them all through the cobbled streets of the small village listening to their bells ring as they walked past. Once she got to know us we soon had some homemade cheese delivered fresh from her dairy right in the village. We also had huge bags of pears given to us to make tarts or whatever we fancied.
The man next door was wealthy and building a house and he invited us to use his pool and garden so we often took advantage of the offer and used it.
So few people and all so generous and kind, they made the whole experience wonderful. I don’t see this generosity or kindness in my everyday life in Australia.
We played ball on the cobbled street and blew bubbles. It was a simple life; it was a beautiful time and one my family and I will never forget. So different from the sometimes-materialistic life we normally live. I never imagined living the simple life would appeal to me. I lead such a busy, full life and now after living this very simple life in Portugal, I am certain it is good for us all and our soul. In the simplicity there is so much life, with so much to see, do and learn. These memories and experiences so full of love will last a lifetime for us all and worth so much more than materialistic things.
We explored the area by car and went to villages near and far for the day and overnight. Make sure you eat where the locals eat and try some of the famous dishes. Especially the Pastéis de Nata, warm Portuguese custard tarts. You can email me for some of the villages we explored and the restaurants we ate at while there in Villa Nova.
You can read about our French experiences that we had last year as a family, that the children still talk about it. See the blog post Love a little Simple Life -French Country living.
