About Us

 “How do you feel about moving to Italy?”

- that’s how it began and I didn’t know Italy at all but I’ll give anything a try. I think it was shortly after a memorable week in Venice during October 2005 that the all important question was asked.  So in the Summer of 2006 we did a whistle stop tour visiting, Trentino, Lombardia, Emilia Romagna,  Liguria, Toscana, Umbria, Lazio, and Campania. Not, you will notice,

Le Marche. However, I was hooked, well and truly.  The weather, the people, the food, the wine, the scenery etc., etc.  So plans were made and we thought we would begin to look for a retirement place to settle in 2010, (please take note of this date for later).  Being sensible people we reckoned we should look at our future dwelling place during the worst time of the year so thought early in the year would be good for our first house-hunting trip. I’m not sure who made the decision to visit Le Marche, we probably discussed it but I don’t think it could have been my idea as I had never heard of it before, but as I mentioned above, I’ll give anything a try. So flights booked, agents contacted and property visits lined up, we flew from Stansted to Ancona on a wet and windy day in February 2007.

I have to admit now that it was love at first sight.  I know its seems romantic and not very ‘cool’ but as soon as we were driving down the A14 I can honestly say I felt at home, could it have been something to do with the sunshine and blue skies? We left the autostrada at Loreto and drove across country to the old university town of Macerata. How exciting it all was! Within 48 hours we had made up our minds that Le Marche was the place for us and we threw ourselves into the hunt for ‘the perfect property’ visiting about five houses a day, very interesting visits some of them were, but that’s another story!

Our agent introduced us to the town of Petritoli in the south of the region and then we really were captured.  

So having decided on Le Marche and on Petritoli we then had to decide on a property.  I wanted a farmhouse, he wanted a townhouse, I wanted a big kitchen, he wanted a big studio, I wanted a view of the sea, he wanted a view of the mountains, we both wanted a pool.  We never argued though because we don’t.  We just both said what we would like and the agent looked from one to the other...... bemused.... I think the word is, then she found us a townhouse and a farmhouse! From the townhouse in Petritoli we can see our farmhouse and from the second floor windows of the townhouse you can see the sea from one and the mountains from the other! We have everything we want and in one of the most beautiful regions of Italy……….Le Marche.

Remember the plan? Retiring in 2010? Well, we couldn’t wait so we brought it forward to 2008 - best decision we ever made!