Anticipation

A sense of anticipation is palpable in our household at the moment as our day for departure to Italy is just a couple of days away.

Judy has packed and ready for her Italian adventure, me not so much!

I’m excited about returning to Italy after my longest break for two decades due to Covid.  My last visit was in October 2019 and so looking forward to soaking it all in.

But in terms of packing… well, I guess I will get around to it at some point in the next couple of days.  I’m not so fussed about what I’m going to pack per see.

What I know about Italy is that everyone is well dressed so I know that I’ll have to ensure that I have a wardrobe on hand to be commensurate with my counterparts.

Definitely a great blazer, pocket squares are a must, comfortable leather shoes and a range of linen shirts should help mitigate any fashion faux paus…

So what else am I paying attention to as we lead up to our flights.

I use the TripIt app on my phone to ensure each and every booking is accounted for and that I can access them at a moment’s notice.

It’s the perfect travel companion, other than my beautiful wife Judy that is.

We booked out trip to Italy in June last year as something to look forward to and now it’s finally here.  As you know I’m constantly looking to travel and experience new countries, cities and cultures.

I think I’m most excited for Italy as this is Judy’s first time and I want to make sure that it is a memorable experience.

So without over booking ourselves I’ve been endeavouring to ensure we have a range of places to see and activities to experience without being too much.

Easier said than done in such a diverse and beautiful country like Italy.

All I know is that every day there will be time for wine and gelato… and not necessarily in that order!

The question of finding a place in Italy has also been a part of recent conversations at home as well.

The anticipation of spending more time in Italy continues to itch away in the back of my mind…  I know that when we’re there this visit we will be checking out areas and regions that suit our tastes.

As you know that we I decided to move back to Australia in 2020, if it weren’t for the pandemic I may very well of ended up in Italy.

Without the complications of Covid our story could have been far different.

Perhaps, we’d be doing the reverse and looking for a holiday place in Australia versus the other way around.

The reality of Italy is that you’re looking at houses that in many cases need a lot of work, or that are potentially in earthquake zones so it’s important to not just take a house on it’s face value.

Sure, there are lots of villages that are selling 1Euro houses, but you’ll need to read all of the fine print and then weigh it up against the laws governing foreign ownership and time allowed to be spent in the country if you’re not a naturalized Italian.

Unfortunatley, its a bit of a minefield if you’re not a fluent speaker.

We’re leaning more toward just spending more time there, but without the headaches of home ownership.  Long term rental opportunities gives you a chance to experience lots of different regions and not have to worry about leaving your place unattended.

The anticipation of visiting and spending time there gets me excited, and hopefully after our visit Judy as well.

Clearly, the tricky part is figuring out the balance cos I still have a list of places I want to explore.

Leading up to Covid I had three trips planned.

The first was to France to undertake a WWI battlefield tour to see where my grandfather fought.  Unfortunately, I was just a couple of weeks away when the pandemic hit and everything closed down and became unaccessible.

Also no refunds on any of the pre-paid tours, accomodation or local travel which really sucked…

The second was to Botswana and Zambia to spend time experiencing first hand the beauty of the region while hopefully seeing some of the wild animals.

Lastly, my final trip of 2020 was to hike the Pantagonia trail in Chile.

The best laid plans have yet to come to fruition… yet!

Who knows where the next year or two will take us but they are still very much on my list.  Plus we’ll need to visit New York to see Judy’s parents, London to visit Sam and Chicago to visit Zach.

Plus, we’ve already booked out Christmas trip for this year to Singapore and Hong Kong.

Fitting all of these trips and adventures in will be fun but a tad tricky.

I truly love the anticaption of travelling and exploring the world so join us on our adventures.

Until next week when I report from Rome.

Ciao!