The Tuscan Sun Shines
Finally, this apartment project is complete. The new bagno, bathroom, both works well and looks beautiful. In the zona notte, the night zone, the camere di letti, bedrooms, with their spring green walls and complementary bedspreads and wood furniture invite sleep and a pleasant awakening as the sun streams in through the big windows. In the zona giorno, day zone, the sofa in the soggiorno, or living room, is covered with a soft apricot, slightly darker than the walls and is complemented by the blue chairs and the warm oak wood furniture. Throughout, simple sheer curtains in ivory soften the edges. Pictures are hung and art objects placed in strategic locations. As I awake with the morning sun lighting the walls' beautiful colors or in the afternoon watch as the late sun sets aglow the gold and apricot walls and red tile roofs of the nearby buildings, or later, see the moon from the South window, ringed by fluffy clouds, I am satisfied, knowing that here in Tuscany, I have created, with the help of others, a tranquil place for working, relaxing and entertaining. 

During the process, my many faulty assumptions, beliefs and ignorance of many ways of Italy became all too obvious; however my vision remained intact and fortunately I could continue to work toward it, albeit with a different schedule and budget for completion. I was especially lucky to have had the help of Doris and Roberto, both of whom speak Italian and English for addressing the numerous challenges. If you don’t have friends to help who know Italian, though, I recommend hiring someone who does, to coordinate everything. And by sharing this experience with you, I hope to help you avoid some of the pitfalls of buying (and occupying) a home in Italy. 

As I indicated in the beginning, what kept me moving forward through all of the disappointments and frustrations was the vision of the completed project, which remained clear in my mind. This also helped me most of the time to maintain relative serenity and sanity. 

The process of making the apartment comfortable and pleasant required more time and money than I expected. Reflecting upon the process, I realized that it could have been much simpler and less stressful. I should have checked a lot of things first, how things are done here, who to trust, what things cost. 

There is one other very important lesson: the word domani, tomorrow, according to the dictionary, means in practice "sometime in the future whenever we get around to it." Had I checked all these things and still decided to proceed, I could not have anticipated every situation, but at least I would had a much more clear understanding of what to expect. As it was, once into the project, the sunk costs made the option of quitting too costly. 

Lessons Learned
Following is a summary list of the main lessons learned. Some of them probably seem obvious; they do now to me as well. 

1. In general, assumptions are not a good basis for buying property, especially in a foreign country. Examine everything, think about everything carefully. 

2. Learn as much as possible in advance about both the community and neighborhood and make sure they fit your criteria. 

3. Before making an offer, get concrete bids for work needed, but be aware that getting these bids could take a few weeks. 

4. Avoid doing business with crooks or bad people - but I am not sure how to know in advance. In any event, put something in the purchase contract to impose a penalty for failure to vacate or other important provisions. 

5. Obtain a long-term stay visa before coming to Italy to occupy your residence; check in advance as to days and times. 

6. When choosing what to bring, ship at the outset only things known to be needed and appropriate; selling things in Italy, will not be practical. And, if saving money is important, pack and wrap the things yourself that are not easily broken or damaged. 

7. When hiring people to do work, make sure they provide adequate references and that they are supervised, at least until you get to know them. And don't even think about immediately staying in the purchased home if work is needed. 

8. If internet services are essential for either personal or business use, satellite or other wireless service may be worth the additional cost. 

9. Obtain current information about the legal residency requirements and obtain professional help with negotiating them if necessary. 

10. Find a Grapevine, a Doris, a Roberto and a Gary. Without their help, I cannot imagine how I would have managed to settle in Italy. In this, I was extremely lucky. If no willing and able friends are available to assist, paid services are available and seem essential, especially if one lacks language fluency. 

11. Accept reality. Keep in mind that some, perhaps many, things will go wrong – probably more in Italy than in many other countries. After all, this is the land of la dolce vita, the good life, - which does not imply being rigid and workaholic. Everything will take much longer than you ever imagined. People will not want to say no so they will say yes when they don't mean it. They will often not keep appointments; be happy when they come on the day and time they have said. It is rare. Domani really means sometime later, not necessarily tomorrow. Realize that the bureaucracy is intense - in both the public and the private sector, which are quite similar (the private sector was, after all, once public sector). And, accept that things to buy are not easy to find. In the United States and elsewhere in Europe, everything is at our fingertips. Although many things are available here and many of them - such as bathroom fixtures, household appliances and kitchenware much more beautiful than I have seen elsewhere - they may be difficult to find or may never be found. Accept what is; look for another solution if the item is not available. 

12. Keep the vision clearly in mind while continuously evaluating the changing current reality, and when necessary, adjusting the actions. This is the most important key to staying focused and continuing to move toward your beautiful home in Tuscany. 

So, in conclusion, to make the process of buying and occupying a home in Tuscany as stress-free and pleasant as possible, be sure you have a clear vision of what you want. Then, before leaping, try to understand everything about the property and what it will cost to make the necessary changes. Question and verify everything independently; take what people say with a cup of salt -- as anywhere, some people will stretch the truth; no remedies are available for the results of lies and exaggerations. And finally, remember that any assumptions about how things are done based on experience in any other place probably do not apply in Italy. Most important of all, let go of having to have things a certain way; there will be tante sorpresse but they should be at least kept to a reasonable number so as to create and adjust with relative ease. To stay calma, take frequent breaks from the work and relax, enjoy the landscape, the music, the food and the wine and remember why Tuscany is your home of choice. Whatever the stress and strain as you go along, when the project is complete the pain will soon be forgotten and you will have a wonderful home in a wonderful place to enjoy for many years. 

So, in conclusion, to make the process of buying and occupying a home in Tuscany as stress-free and pleasant as possible, be sure you have a clear vision of what you want. Then, before leaping, try to understand everything about the property and what it will cost to make the necessary changes. Question and verify everything independently; take what people say with a cup of salt -- as anywhere, some people will stretch the truth; no remedies are available for the results of lies and exaggerations. And finally, remember that any assumptions about how things are done based on experience in any other place probably do not apply in Italy. Most important of all, let go of having to have things a certain way; there will be tante sorpresse but they should be at least kept to a reasonable number so as to create and adjust with relative ease. To stay calma, take frequent breaks from the work and relax, enjoy the landscape, the music, the food and the wine and remember why Tuscany is your home of choice. 

Whatever the stress and strain as you go along, when the project is complete the pain will soon be forgotten and you will have a wonderful home in a wonderful place to enjoy for many years.