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The final Part of Home Exchange from Hell ESCAPE FROM THE STALAG

August 30, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron Leave a Comment

From previous  posts………

Would you save your eggs in this fridge door?

Would you save your eggs in this fridge door?

some of the many wires just hanging around- these were in the kitchen

some of the many wires just hanging around- these were in the kitchen

Revolta had said on Saturday, before she disappeared, that she would come on Monday afternoon, and help us with a car.

She did not come on Monday.

She sent her cousin, who arrived on Monday evening (just as well we had not been sitting in all day, waiting all day for her to come). Her cousin arrived, with a can of DOG FOOD for the dog. What about us?????? No sign of Revolta, or any assistance with finding a car.

Just as well we had been resourceful. This is what we had done in the meantime………………………………..

Everything was closed in the area on Sunday, however we walked about a mile and found a local restaurant, which was setting up for a wedding celebration. We asked the owner if we could use his WiFi and thankfully he agreed so we sat outside in his garden for quite a few hours to get ourselves organized. After much internet surfing and exploring, and a few Skype phone calls, we organized car rental in Avellino until end of month. We double-checked and they did NOT require and international driver’s license. We could pick that car up on Monday morning.

We also contacted the owner of our next home exchange in Rocca di Mezzo and asked her if we could come earlier than planned. We dined later at that restaurant, before returning to spend another night in the house which we now referred to as the Stalag.

On Monday morning, we walked back to restaurant to call a taxi, but we had no luck as the restaurant gates were locked, and no-one seemed to be home.. When a restaurant worker arrived, he was lovely and drove us into the nearby village of Serino. Once there, we bought bus tickets to Avellino to pick up the car. As is common in Italy, there was a group of old men, sitting chatting, in the town square. They knew we were strangers and tried to help us. They showed us where the bus stop was, and found out the time of the bus for us.

Then Franco arrived. One of the old men introduced him to us. He is 52, has spent 20 years in Scotland, and a native of Serino. He wanted to befriend and help us. Yesssssss. OUR HERO.

He insisted on driving us to the industrial area of Avellino, and stayed with us while we pick up our rental car, to ensure we are not ripped off! We would never have been able to find the car hire location without him. Such a great fellow. He also insisted that he would take us to the airport in Naples on our last day in Italy, after going with us to Avellino and dropping off our rental car. He wanted to treat us to some good days sightseeing and eating, when we were around this district, and offered us a bed at his house. What a lovely man. Quite a Jack the lad, had two Scottish wives and now has two Scottish grandchildren.

Soap dish, so clean

Soap dish, so clean

cobwebs abound throughout the house

cobwebs abound throughout the house

He bought us many refreshments (refused our offers of payment) and again said he will drive us to Naples. What a lovely warm, friendly man. Definitely the hero of the hour!

We declined his offer of a bed, as we now had received an email reply from our next home exchange, informing us that is was OK to arrive early. The home was a second home, and no-one was living in it. What a relief. We reckoned we could put up with only sleeping in that horrible house for a couple of nights.

Once we had the rental car, we explored the area that day, driving to the Amalfi coast, visiting Positano opposite the Isle of Capri, and the amazing ruins of Pompeii, which had been buried under volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in Roman times.

We now had a car, a friend, and a house to go to. So, everything did work out well in the end.

We emailed Revolta, to tell her that we would be leaving her home exchange house, the next day. She stormed up to the house all guns blazing, late in the evening and told us to LEAVE immediately and go to a local hotel right away. Suddenly her English was much improved. She arrived with her daughter and the daughter’s boyfriend. We were sitting outside the house where it was less chilly than inside. The daughter and her boyfriend went into the house looking for things. We stayed very calm, as she ranted on and on, and we quietly told her we would leave the next day.

She told us that was IMPOSSIBLE, then she said that she would return the next day, in the evening, and that we must wait until the evening to leave, so she can come and check everything. Eventually, she left, after she realized that we would not leave that evening.

garden full of rubbish

garden full of rubbish

Early the following morning, we made our escape. We tidied and cleaned all that we used. It was now cleaner and tidier than when we arrived. We left the dirty sheets and towels in the bathroom, as the washing machine did not work.

We sent Revolta an email telling her that we had done this, and left the keys under a cardboard box on the verandah. We thanked her.

She emailed back immediately, saying she had our car number and intended to report us to the POLICE. We could not work out quite what for! Surely she did not think we would wish to steal anything from that disgusting house. Thank goodness that horrible saga was quickly over.

A few hours later, we arrived at our new apartment in the mountains in Rocca di Mezzo. It was beautifully clean everywhere. Welcome back to the real world. Hurrah!

Horse parade in Rocca di Mezzo

Horse parade in Rocca di Mezzo

Amazing pizza in Rocca di Mezzo

Amazing pizza in Rocca di Mezzo

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, globetrotting, hell, home exchange, Italy, stalag

Home Exchange From Hell Part 2 – Expectation vs Reality inside the Stalag!

August 7, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron Leave a Comment

From the last episode……….Here we were, stranded in the middle of nowhere. It was Saturday evening. All shops closed on Sundays, and no hope of seeing anyone until Monday afternoon! At least we had wine and hot water, we consoled each other, as Revolta and her family disappeared down the driveway………..

We decided to further explore this house, which was now filled with smoke from the belching fire. I have included some expectation vs reality photos.

  • dream bathroom

    dream bathroom

    slugs on the bathroom floor from the blocked drain

    slugs on the bathroom floor from the blocked drain

    Bathroom drains were blocked, SLUGS appeared on bathroom floor after our first shower which flooded the entire bathroom.

 

 

 

  • Only one lounge chair to sit on and that was very old.
  • Toilets ran with water all the time, unless water turned was off at the main. Not enough pressure to take a number 2. Toilet bowls very dirty.
  • Cooker antiquated on gas bottle, some rings did not work. Oven filthy and obviously not used for a long time, not game to try.
    a simple fridge would have been great

    a simple fridge would have been great

    Such a clean fridge!

    Such a clean fridge!

  • Fridge and freezer disgustingly filthy.
  • No microwave.
  • No toaster.
  • No kettle or hot jug.
  • Only one power point, which ran the fridge and stove.
  • No tea towels or oven mitts.
  • Bed hard, cold, extremely uncomfortable, very old mattress, dipped in the middle, only one bedroom light worked, dampness seemed to permeate from below.
  • Nothing in cupboards, just some very old bottles of alcohol and solidified salt and sugar.
    we were told there was a beautiful garden

    we were told there was a beautiful garden

    garden full of rubbish

    garden full of rubbish

  • Everything was covered in dust and filth.
  • None, other than essential, power points in house.
  • Heat was from fire. Not much firewood at all. All of our possessions and clothes (which we kept in our suitcases, as we never intended to stay, therefore did not unpack) now smelt of smoke, as the thick smoke from the fire permeated everything in the house.
  • It was warmer outside, than inside. All windows had shutters, and most of them did not work. Unable to open windows, and those that did open gave us lots of dead bugs.
    a modern front loader

    a modern front loader

    washing machine, probably just as well that the door would not open

    washing machine, probably just as well that the door would not open

  • House was very dark and dingy.
  • No telephone.
  • No internet.
  • No dishwasher.
  • No car, no bicycles.
  • Washing machine did not work. No drier.
  • Hardly any lights, in the house, worked. Lots of electrical wires were hanging around.
  • Power points which did work, pulled out scarily when we tried to use them. We had to hold them to the wall, in case they came away from the wall.
    lampshade we expected

    lampshade we expected

    bedroom light - one of the few lights which worked

    bedroom light – one of the few lights which worked

  • Dishes and glasses in the house were all dirty.
  • A dog was left with us????? Luckily it disappeared the first night.
  • Crowning glory – even the corkscrew was broken!
  • Even the television was nothing like the promised satellite TV. It was the oldest television we had ever seen with a remote whose batteries did not work and it had only two stations, both with very poor reception.
    a satellite TV

    a satellite TV

    TV in home exchange house from Hell.  Filthy, ancient, and with only bottom half of a screen.

    TV in home exchange house from Hell. Filthy, ancient, and with only bottom half of a screen.

    The most interesting thing about it, however, was that it only broadcast the bottom half of the screen. We tried to watch the news in Italian a couple of times and tried to guess which politicians lips (we only saw the bottom half of full faces) we were seeing, or who the legs belonged to in group shots. We reckon we worked out which were Angela Merkel’s legs compared to the others in the group – the others were all men!

Revolta had said on Saturday, before she disappeared, that she would come on Monday afternoon, and help us with a car.

She did not come on Monday.

She sent her cousin, who arrived on Monday evening (just as well we had not been sitting in all day, waiting all day for her to come). Her cousin arrived, with a can of DOG FOOD for the dog. What about us?????? No sign of Revolta, or any assistance with finding a car.

Just as well we had been resourceful. This is what we had done in the meantime………………………………..

The FINAL Part of Home Exchange from Hell (ESCAPE FROM THE STALAG ) will be posted later this month.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, globetrotting, hell, home exchange, Italy, luxury, vacation

HOME EXCHANGE FROM HELL

July 11, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron 17 Comments

Everything had started so very well. We had just spent two blissful months in home exchanges on the shores of the Aegean, initially in Turkey and latterly in Greece, on the idyllic island of Syros, where our panoramic views of the sea had to be seen, to be believed.

We took an early morning flight from Syros to Athens, which went to schedule. We passed quite a few hours in the airport. Athens airport has a museum upstairs which is really interesting and has lots of Greek artifacts and films and photos. Time went by quite quickly and then we flew to Naples. The flight was very smooth and easy. The trouble began after we landed at Naples airport….

Our Syros Greek Island home - white with blue trim of course!

Our Syros Greek Island home – white with blue trim of course! Such a contrast to our next experience – the house from hell.

No, actually, it had begun before then, but we did not see it as a problem. We had originally negotiated a home exchange in Sicily for two weeks however that exchange fell through, as they occasionally do. As I recommend to all exchangers, we had a reserve position in case a house swap does not materialize for any reason. We had been discussing the possibility of a home exchange in the mountains near Serino, in the Avellino area, in Italy, for some time and had contacted the owner before we left Australia, and finalized the exchange which was a backup to the one which fell through in Sicily. The house sounded so quaint; quite large with many bedrooms, nestled among the Chestnut trees in the cool mountain air, with all amenities including bicycles, washing machine, drier, fridge, freezer, internet, satellite TV and many more. It also included a car for exchange. When we were finalizing our arrival, the owner, an English language expert, let’s call her Revolta, to keep things anonymous, said that she could not exchange her car at this time of year. Although a little disappointed, we accepted this.

We therefore booked hire car through Rhino car hire, a UK based car hire company, who gave us a great deal, as they had done in previous bookings we had made with them. When we went to the local agent at Naples airport, “Sicily by Car”, we produced our booking number and Australian Driver’s Licence (as we usually do when we hire a car). They refused to give us a car because we did not have an international driver’s licence. Sicily by Car informed us that it is mandatory in Italy to have an international licence as well as a national one. We were devastated. The lady in the car hire company would not change her stance, saying that it was the law. We used to always carry an international licence when we travelled, however had decided in recent years not to bother, as nobody seemed to ever ask for one. International licences are usually cardboard paper documents, with a booth photograph, issued for a fee, by agencies such as the Automobile Association. What could we do? We had arranged that we would drive to the mountain cottage and meet Revolta there. We had Revolta’s telephone number. We could call her and ask her to talk with the lady who worked for the car hire company, maybe an arrangement of some sort could be worked out.   We asked to use the Wifi in the car hire office, which they allowed us to do.

Outside garage area

Outside garage area

picturesque garden

picturesque garden

We called Revolta, using Skype, and put her on the phone with the car hire lady. Sadly, no result. Revolta told us to catch a bus to Avellino and she would pick us up there.

After a bit of asking around, we bought bus tickets at the airport newsagents, and we set off for the bus stop. It was a good 15 minutes walk away, but we were unsure where it was, so we kept stopping to ask people, most of whom did not know where it was. Remember this was in Italy, and we speak very little Italian apart from spaghetti, cannelloni and lasagna!

Eventually, we found the bus stop, and felt comfortable it was the right one, after a few conversations and gesticulations with the people waiting at the bus stop. Eventually the bus came, and we loaded our suitcases in the back, and had a very comfortable bus drive to Avellino. Ah, things are OK again, after that slight hiccup. All we have to do is work out a way to hire a car, and all will be well for the next four weeks. We began to relax a lot on the bus.

Little did we know that there were many, many more troubles ahead…….

Once we arrived at the bus station in Avellino, we were looking out for Revolta, but could not find her anywhere. We were unsure where to go. We had no Italian phone card, and no Wifi to use Skype or VOIP services. What could we do?

washing machine, probably just as well that the door would not ope

washing machine, probably just as well that the door would not open

We asked a couple of people to call Revolta’s number for us. They called for us, but said that the number was not available, either it was engaged or switched off. The bus terminus seemed to empty. At one point, Michael asked the only person around the bus station, a girl who looked to me like a prostitute, or someone who had enjoyed a long night on the town, to call for us. On closer examination, her phone screen was totally smashed and she struggled to put in each number and did not succeed and eventually had to leave for her bus. Just our luck!

We decided to find a café, to see if we could get Wifi and call Revolta ourselves using Skype. The first café had no Wifi. The second had none either, but did have a man who was an interesting character. An elderly professor of Economics in Avellino called Jack, who also tried to call Revolta for us, unsuccessfully. We asked him it there was a place we could hire a car and he misunderstood us and offered to take his Fiat 500 home and pick up his large Lancia and drive us to Serino for E20. We agreed. He said he would return in 5 mins. We had a coffee, which are very tiny, expresso style, and then I decided to take off and find a shop to buy some wine because I reckoned whatever, we would want some wine that night.

some of the many wires just hanging around- these were in the kitchen

some of the many wires just hanging around- these were in the kitchen

cobwebs abound throughout the house

cobwebs abound throughout the house

Jack drove us to Serino. As we were driving along, a thought hit me. Here we were, accepting a lift from a stranger, just the sort of thing we had spent years telling our children NOT to do. We had only met this stranger that afternoon, we knew nothing about him. I settled, once I realized that I was in the back seat alone with two bottles of wine. If anything untoward happened I would use the glass bottles as weapons…..

Of course, he was not any kind of devil, he was a very helpful person. He kept calling Revolta’s number as we drove. No answer, no answer. Had she turned off her phone?

Eventually, as we were entering Serino, Revolta switched her phone on, and answered. Jack arranged a place for us all to meet. She met us in a small, two door car, driven by her daughter’s boyfriend. There were three of them in the car and there was obviously no possible way could we also have two additional people, plus luggage, so we had to make two trips. No reason was given for her having had her phone switched off. They were all very displeased that they had to make two trips. How inconvenient of us to have luggage on a four month vacation!

Things were not looking good. Out experience, until now, with home exchanges, has been that our hosts or their agents have always gone the extra mile, to assist us, if we encountered any problems or issues. We have done that, too, for guests who have stayed in our home. Always going out of our way to be extra helpful.

Revolta just did not seem helpful at all. She was an angry lady and seemed to struggle with English, although was supposed to be an expert. She informed us she was only doing home exchanges, for her daughter, who wanted to travel. I suspect that this was her first home exchange.

Then they drove us, one at a time, to the idyllic country cottage in the mountains. When I was awaiting my turn to ride, I bought one or two groceries in a nearby shop. The drive there looked promising, the house was about 20 minutes outside of Serino. There were locked iron gates at the end of a driveway, and the cottage was at the end of the driveway. There were no views, as the trees in the garden obstructed all views. The first things we saw were the gardens, and the garage area, all full of ROTTEN GARBAGE and absolutely FILTHY. Oh my goodness, what had we come to?

Inside was worse, we could not believe our eyes. I don’t believe anyone had lived in this house for many years. It was FREEZING, and damp and filthy throughout. There were WIRES hanging out of the walls and COBWEBS on every wall. There was a PLASTIC table inside, and a few, old, wooden, dining chairs and ONE small, old, dirty lounge chair.

bedroom light - one of the few lights which worked

bedroom light – one of the few lights which worked

We remarked on how cold it was. Revolta said she had brought a gift for us. She rummaged in her bag and majestically presented us with a bottle of pink alcohol fluid, to squirt on a fire. (Normally, in home exchanges, we leave gifts like wine and cheese and pasta and milk and butter, this is the first, and I hope only, time that we have been presented with a pink plastic bottle of fire lighting fluid!)

There was a bundle of old newspapers and a few old tree branches so we lit a fire in the hearth. No sooner was it lit, than smoke began to beltch throughout the room and the house. We thought that the flue was closed, but there was none. It became obvious, that the chimney was blocked, because it had not been swept. The smoke was belching into the house, instead of going up the chimney. We asked about it, but were told that this was normal. My eyes were streaming, and the smoke throughout the house was thick and pungent.

Freezer seal, I thought at first that it was supposed to be black - silly me

Freezer seal, I thought at first that it was supposed to be black – silly me

Of course, we realized that we could not stay here, in this house of FILTH. We showed our displeasure and stated that we would probably not stay here, and could Revolta help us to hire a car. She said she could, her husband could arrange it for E500 per week. We explained that we could hire one on the internet, for less than E500 for a MONTH. She was displeased, and did not believe us. She said she and her daughter and boyfriend would have to go now and leave us. She said that nothing could be done until Monday, as it was now Saturday evening and everything is closed on Sunday. She said that she would return on Monday afternoon and help us. Until then, she said we would be OK, and left us with a parting surprise, a dog appeared which she put a bowl of water and food out for, and said it would be company for us. She and her family then disappeared.

So here we were, a 20-MINUTE DRIVE from the nearest town. NO car, no bicycles, no internet, no telephone, no satellite TV, in fact, of all the amenities the house was advertised as having, all we could make work was the hot water.

Here we were, stranded in the middle of nowhere. It was Saturday evening. All shops closed on Sundays and no hope of seeing anyone until Monday afternoon! At least we had wine and hot water, we consoled each other, as Revolta and her family disappeared down the driveway………..

Such a clean fridge!

Such a clean fridge!

Would you save your eggs in this fridge door?

Would you save your eggs in this fridge door?

The second part of this, will be blogged in a few weeks, when among other things I will tell you of our experiences in the house toilet, shower and with the television.  Yes, the horrors did not stop here.

……In the meantime, Au Revoir from our lovely apartment overlooking the Mediterranean, in the heat of the Cote D’Azur, on the French Riviera, more about my adventures shortly.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, globetrotting, hell, home exchange, Italy, luzury, vacation

Goodbye Italy —- Hello Italy!

July 4, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron 2 Comments

A few things, I wanted to finally mention about Italy, which travellers may wish to know:

  1. Most places close for the afternoons when people have a sleep. Many shops open again in the early evenings.
  2. There seems to be an obsession, everywhere, with giving out receipts, even for coffee or ice cream. One will be hand written, if there is not electronic one available, and there is definite insistence that a receipt is taken.
  3. Do not even try to book a restaurant for dinner before 8pm. Many do not open until 9pm. This can come as a shock, to those of us used to thinking about going to bed, after the early evening news on TV.

Our last few days living in our exchange home in the Italian village of Rocca di Mezzo were quite exciting. On Saturday, there was a vintage car rally, which was quite wonderful to watch and totally enthralled Michael. Classic Morgan at car rally in the villageThere were vintage cars of all shapes and colours.

On Sunday, there was a huge horse parade, which came through town, which was very enjoyable to watch too.

Horse parade in Rocca di Mezzo

Horse parade in Rocca di Mezzo

We then spent a night in Serino, where we had dinner with a lovely couple (Franko – who had helped us make our escape from the house from hell a few weeks before). We had dinner and stayed at the O’Carpino which is beautiful location just outside town. The food was amazing and the rooms very comfortable. I can highly recommend it if you are in the area. www.ristorantecarpino.it

We spent another night in Naples, before flying out early morning to Nice on the Cote D’Azure, France. We stayed at Hotel Clinton, near the airport. For a quick one night airport stopover it ticked all the boxes www.hotelclinton.it although I doubt very much if a US President would have stayed there!

We like our exchange home in Nice very much and we can see the Mediterranean from the balcony of our apartment here.

We have discovered that we can drive for 30 minutes from our apartment in Nice, to the northern French border with Italy. We drove back to Italy on Friday, to the markets in Ventimigglia. There is everything you can imagine in the markets there, including fresh fruit and vegetables at Italian prices rather than the more expensive French ones.

So, it was goodbye to southern Italy and hello again to northern Italy. Changing languages from French to Italian and vice versa has been challenging, and we often say grazie when we should say merci, or bonjour instead of buongiomo. Well, at least we make an effort!

The Cote D’Azure is home to some famous towns and buildings, some of which we have already seen, but many of which we will spend time visiting in more detail over the next few weeks. Monte Carlo, Monaco, Antibes, Cannes to name only a few. The weather is very hot and I feel like Princess Grace (Kelly) as we drive on the windy seaside mountain roads.

TV in home exchange house from Hell.  Filthy, ancient, and with only bottom half of a screen.

TV in home exchange house from Hell. Filthy, ancient, and with only bottom half of a screen.

My next blog will be about the home exchange from Hell. Here is a very short excerpt………………..”even the television was nothing like the promised satellite TV. It was the oldest television we have ever seen with a remote whose batteries did not work and it had only two stations, both with very poor reception. The most interesting thing about it, however, was that it only broadcast the bottom half of the screen. We tried to watch the news in Italian a couple of times and tried to guess which politicians lips (we only saw the bottom half of full faces) we were seeing, or who the legs belonged to in group shots. We reckon we worked out which were Angela Merkel’s legs compared to the others in the group – the others were all men!”…………………………..more of this blog next time.

Bye for now, from a heatwave in the south of France,

Ainslie

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, budget, Europe, free, globetrotting, home exchange, house swap, Italy, luxury, Rocca di Mezzo, staycation, trip, vacation

Lingering Impressions of Italy……

June 27, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron Leave a Comment

our favourite avenue in our local village

our favourite avenue in our local village

narrow streets and steps

narrow streets and steps

Our time in Italy is coming to an end. We drive tomorrow to Serina, about three hours away, then fly from Naples to France on Tuesday. We have had a wonderful month here.

What are our lasting and lingering impressions of this country?

  • Numerous small villages perched high on the sides of mountaintops, all with either castles or churches at their peak.
Typical Italian village perched on side of hill with church or castle on top

Typical Italian village perched on side of hill with church or castle on top

  • Rome, built on seven hills, with its historic Roman architecture and home to the Vatican.
  • Pasta in many more varieties than I have ever heard of, and many impossible to pronounce, but delicious to eat.
  • Wood-fired, home-made pizzas with every imaginable pizza topping, even chocolate topping (choice of dark or milk chocolate) for dessert.
  • Sweet, creamy homemade gelato (ice cream), in almost every café, in an enormous range of flavours, with cream on top.
  • People gesticulating wildly while talking.
Hey diddle diddle, the cow jumped??

Hey diddle diddle, the cow jumped??

old stairs and narow street in Italian village

old stairs and narow street in Italian village

  • Large groups of men in village squares during the day, and families and children in the early evenings, enjoying socializing with one another.
  • The need, or maybe not the need, for a Codice Fiscal for a phone SIM card – we were warned we would need one, but in any event did not.
  • The need, or maybe not, for an International Driver’s Licence – we were not warned we would need one, and did, then didn’t.
  • People mostly live in apartments, very few in houses.
  • The tradition, generally, of pasta for lunch or as a dinner starter, and pizza or meat for dinner, we confused restaurants by our crazy orders.
  • Servito or Risparmio – in fuel stations, you can choose to either go in self service lanes, or in be-served lanes, where you pay more for the service, but have your windscreens washed, and no hassles over how to work the credit card machines.
  • When ordering a drink, being given platefuls of complimentary antipasto or pastries with coffee.
Nearby 13th century monastery

Nearby 13th century monastery

  • A very relaxing, laid back lifestyle, particularly in the villages.
  • Friendly, helpful people, especially in the villages outside of the big cities.
  • An abundance of historical artifacts, castles and buildings to wander through and enjoy.

    Italian courtyard

    Italian courtyard

backstreets

backstreets

very old steets and stairways in Italian village

very old steets and stairways in Italian village

Our time in Italy has been relaxed and we are leaving in the knowledge that we will definitely return one day. We can even look back and laugh now, at the first four days, when we experienced the Home Exchange from Hell. More about that in July….

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, home exchange, Italy, Rocca di Mezzo, travel, vacation

Pizza, Pasta and Castles in the Air

June 22, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron Leave a Comment

The 15th April seems a long time ago, yet the time has just flown so quickly, since we left Brisbane.  Turkey and Greece were wonderful with villas on the Aegean, andAll roads do seemingly lead to Rome now we are in our final week here in our two bedroomed, quiet, clean apartment in the mountains in the village of Rocca di Mezzo in the Abruzzo region of Italy. We love meandering down to the village square in the early evenings, and joining in with the locals, in sitting around the square, and chatting as the sun begins to set.  Most Italians live in apartments or condos, and most take a stroll to the square in the early evenings.  The children and infants join in, running around with their friends or the older children on bicycles or playing football.

Photo on left depicts what we always thought

– all roads seemingly lead to Rome!

 

Sometimes, after our sit in the square, we visit one of the local bars, and have a pre dinner drink.  They offer complimentary substantial snacks when we buy a drink here.  No, not just peanuts, but antipasto and tapas, all thrown in for free. free snacks with drinks

                                                                                                                Just order a drink and the

                                                                                                                 antipastos come for free!

 

This week, we sampled a few more local restaurants, and thoroughly enjoyed the Italian food.  We were told by locals, that generally, but not always, people have pasta for lunch, and pizza or meat for dinner.  We have been mixing them all up.  The portion sizes here are huge, with people invariably ordering an entire pizza to eat.  At home, a few slices suffice.  The flavours and mixtures are delicious. The best pasta we found is in the Campacavalla restaurant.  Bookings are preferred on 338.3232941.  We also tried the local speciality dish of Arrosticini which is lamb skewers accompanied by the red wine of the regions Montepulciano D’abruzzo in the tiny restaurant of Ristorante Antichi Sapori  0862.917360 here, which only opens on weekends, at this time of year.  These restaurants become extremely busy after 9pm.  They do not open until 8pm.  We wonder where all the local people come from, in this tiny village.  Many have to be turned away because they have not booked.

We visited a well restored castle in the nearby town of Celano.  It had an amazing museum inside with lots of restored wooden figures, sculptures, carvings and artefacts from pre Roman and middle age times.

Celano castle

Ancient wooden images in museum within Celano castle

We also visited the nearby towns of L’Aquila, which is still under a lot of reconstruction, after the devastating earthquake of 6 years ago; and the town of Pescara which is on the Adriatic Sea.

The most exciting part of our week was catching up with Michael’s son, Wes, and his wife, in Naples.  They had been on a short break in Positano and the Isle of Capri, and we caught up for dinner, before they flew to their home in Los Angeles.  We all went to the home of what is supposed to be the best pizzas in all of Italy, Pizzeria La Notizea info@pizzarialonotizia.com, and we were not disappointed. We all stayed at the Hotel Domitiana in Naples, which is a three star hotel I can highly recommend.  www.hoteldomitana.com   It is simple, but clean, and very reasonably priced, with free wifi, and a tasty breakfast thrown it. We went to some retail outlets on the outskirts of Naples on our way back and I found a lovely genuine Italian leather handbag.

By the way, a few have asked when is it coming – my blog about the Home Exchange from Hell – I will publish it here sometime in July.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, castle, Celano, globetrotting, home exchanges, Italy, pasta, pizza, Rocca di Mezzo

How is Rome like Ikea?

June 14, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron Leave a Comment

St Peter's Bascilica Rome, magnificent, hugeWe left Australia on 15 April, since then we have been in a number of home exchanges in Turkey, Greece and Italy. We are currently staying in the village of Rocca di Mezzo in Italy. We are about one and half hours drive from Rome. The easiest way to avoid the city traffic when visiting the city, is to drive to the outskirts of Rome, which we do. We park at Tubertina Station and take the metro into Rome. Metro rides in Rome are certainly unusual. We have found ourselves squashed in like sardines. They pack as many people in, as will fit into the carriages. We are careful with our belongings, as we have heard tales of pickpockets.

magnificent columns in St Peter's Square, Rome

We spent a day in and around the Vatican City, and St Peter’s Square, and St Peter’s Basilica. The enormity of St Peter’s Square and Basilica has to be seen to be believed. It is frequently televised however only when actually standing there can you appreciate the size. The Swiss guards who guard the Holy City are really Swiss Nationals.

Swiss guards guarding Vatican City

After queuing for about an hour to enter the Basilica, we were informed that we were lucky, as one hour is considered a short queue. It felt very long in the hot sun, but the wait was worthwhile, to see the amazing interior, with so many religious artifacts.

We then visited the many museums within the Vatican. There were beautiful wall hangings and tapestries; statues dating back to Roman times and beyond; paintings by all the famous names like Da Vinci; and of course the very famous Sistine Chapel with its magnificent ceiling and wall masterpieces. We were surprised to be able to relax by wandering around the gardens inside the Vatican too. They were neatly trimmed and planted.

One thing that I found very strange was that I fSome of the beautiful gardens within the Vatican museum complexelt I was being herded through, similar to the Ikea experience. We seemed unable to select where we wanted to go, instead being on a particular route that would not allow us to omit passing through any of the huge museum rooms. I am sure there were short cuts to the Sistine Chapel at the end of the route, but neither I, nor others I spoke to, could find one. We were continually told to follow the one direction by the guards. It truly felt like an Ikea experience!

We were happy to return safely to our little village and go to our local pizzeria to eat their amazing local food. If you are in Rome it is worth making the journey to visiting this little restaurant hidden amongst the pine trees. It is called Baita Deipini and bookings can be made at baita.deibini@virgilio.it.

Ainslie eating in local Pines pizzeria

Prices here are so very reasonable. For example in Rome two coffees cost E6. In Rocca Di Mezzo, and in other nearby villages, two coffees cost E2. My advice is if you are eating out, go outside the city!

By the way, after years of excellent home exchanges we finally discovered the Home Exchange from Hell!  No, not where we are staying now, but a home we spent only a few days in.  One of the questions I am always asked, is what my worst experience has been.  Until this trip, it has been an impossible question to answer, as all the homes we have exchanged with met or surpassed our expectations.  Sometime in July, I will reveal the House from Hell!  Stay tuned…….

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Ainslie, Europe, home exchange, Italy, metro, pizza, Rocca di Mezzo, Rome, trip, vacation

Viva Italia! Cherry Festival in Raiano

June 7, 2015 By Ainslie Waldron Leave a Comment

We are now in the women in parade cherry jugs on headsmiddle of this 4 month European vacation, where we are staying for free in home exchange houses.

We are presently living in a quaint village called Rocca Di Mezza, in the mountains, about one hour’s drive from Rome. It is quite stunning here, and the fresh mountain air is making us sleep so very well. Like most Italians, we are living in an apartment or condo, with two bedrooms. It is neat, clean and comfortable, and has all of the amenities we need. On this trip, we were in villas in Turkey, and on the island of Syros in Greece, so this is not quite so spacious, but the surrounding scenery and local village people are wonderful.

Today, we drove to the nearby village of Raiano, which is 40 mins away, through the mountains. The villagers were celebrating their Cherry Festival.children in paradeWas terrific. Lots of men, women and children, even the tiniest toddlers, dressed in bright, colorful local costumes and national dresses in the parade, dancing and singing and playing instruments. There was entertainment in the town square after the parade.

We bought some cherries at E3.50 per kilo, and some local fresh whole truffles (cherry vendorstartufi) for E2.50. We have just eaten some truffles with dinner and I can vouch for the taste. Absolutely to die for! If you are ever in these parts, I bought them from Azienda Agricola Damiani Gabriele, Via Aldo Moro 35 67021.

When we left, it looked like the festivities would go on well into the night, as there were lots of illuminations of cherries in the town square, which would be brightly lit. As we had to negotiate very windy mountain roads, we decided reluctantly to return home before dark.

This is one of the great things about home exchanges,donkey boywe tend to visit many out of the way places that we would not normally even know about. Then we end up at festivities, such as the one we were at today, which was all local people, no tourists except us. No overpriced and over crowded tourist events, or events put on just for tourists. Today, like so many we spend while home exchanging, we were welcomed into a local village by local people, as they celebrated their annual festival. as they do every year. We feel so privileged on days like today!mother and daughter leaving home to attend the parade

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: cherry, festival, home exchange, Italy, Raiano, vacation

About Ainslie

About Ainslie

Ainslie Waldron is an Australia-based businesswoman, travel writer, and blogger at MyPlaceforYours.com.

Now semi-retired, she continues the global travel that characterized her career but with an interesting twist: she has mastered the art of Home Exchanges, the hottest new trend in travel.

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