July 3, 2008, 11:33 pm

Home Ι About us Ι Contact Us

 

Featured properties

About Italy

More than any other country Italy attracts both heart and mind for its natural beauty, its culture (at least 50% of the worlds’ Fine Art heritage is in Italy), its food and wine. Since the 18th Century Italy has been a favourite British destination, but affordability has been seen as an obstacle for buying in Italy – yet a recent American Express survey found Italy to be the best value EU destination surveyed and nearly half the cost of Ireland.

Calabria

The southern most part of Italy is cheaper than the North due to the fact that it is largely undiscovered. With over 800km of coastline to choose from and at least 300 days of sunshine a year, you will fall in love with this land of breathtaking views. Whether it is rocky coastlines with natural grottos and caverns, huge rocks jutting from the sea, natural islands with castles just a swim away, or beaches with pebbles or sand that you are looking for, here you will find it.

Landscape

The Tyrrhenian and the Ionian Sea both kiss Calabria’s golden beaches and it is strategically right next door to beautiful Sicily (and its still active Mount Etna) and the Aeolian Islands that can be visited easily and cheaply by a ferry ride.

Calabria is mainly mountainous and because of the scarcity of the population (approximately 2 million) these are relatively untouched. The three main mountain ranges are: The Sila, high enough to house skiing resorts; The Serre, not so high but renowned for its healthy waters and the Carthusian Monastery and Aspromonte, full of torrents and fantastic views of Mount Etna & the Aeolian islands but relatively inaccessible due to its dense woods.

People

The people here have a welcoming attitude to all, especially foreigners and children. Pragmatic and tolerant they will go out of their way to explain to any new arrival, their community and the local network. Like their food, Calabrians are warm, friendly people with an open and welcoming disposition and you will soon make friends quickly and find them especially hospitable.

Food

What can we say about the food? Delicious! With its perfect all year round weather Calabria is an agricultural haven. Apart from a wide range of fruit and vegetables that are readily grown here, Calabria is known for a large number of local produce. Grapes (wine), figs, olives (extra virgin olive-oil), fish and seafood, fresh and cured meats, cheeses, almonds, citrus fruits, bergamots, liquorice and most famously of all, its red spicy peppers.

History and life today

Calabrian civilisation is linked most intimately to land and handicrafts, taking pleasure in simple things such as farming, the working of wood, ceramics, textiles, amongst others and these are still produced in the traditional way in many places.

Calabria is full of ancient ruins, art, churches, picturesque landscapes and villages still attached to their ancient and antique traditions. These come alive in village fiestas and sagras (street parties where local specialities are cooked and given away free of charge). The Calabrians love celebrations and almost all villages have their own religious feasts and festivals as well as special celebrations at Christmas and Easter periods.

Children will delight in this outdoor lifestyle and are welcome everywhere including restaurants, pubs and at other social events. The level of education is very good and virtually free, the National Health Service is as good as that in the UK and public transport is efficient and cheap.

Calabria was once part of the Magna Grecia but was later colonised by the Romans, Byzantines, French and Spanish. This makes of Calabria a mix of influences in its culture and architectural remains. The whole region is a wealth of art, architecture, castles, churches and monasteries. Famous Calabrians include Pythagorus (sculptor-Crotone), Cassiodorus (philosopher/historian/poitician-Squillace), Mattia Preti (painter-Taverna), Gianni Versace (designer-Reggio Calabria) and Corrado Alvaro (writer-San Luca) and Mimmo Rotella (painter-Catanzaro).

...with its activities…

Blessed with a beautiful coastline on the Mediterranean Sea, Calabria is a natural choice for water sports. Windsurfing, catamaran, kayaking, canoeing, yachting, snorkelling, scuba diving and deep sea fishing, are a few that can be mentioned.

Skiing and trekking are also popular in the central parts of Calabria in the Sila, where you can also bird watch, or spot wild deer, wild boar, bearded vulture, golden eagles, woodpeckers, jays wood pigeons, amphibians and reptiles.

With mild winters (average of 11-18 degree Celsius) and hot dry summers (28-30 degree Celsius) you will have plenty of time to enjoy them.

Ryainair flies directly from London Stanstead to Lamezia Terme, but you my also fly indirectly with Easy Jet to Rome, then from Rome to Lamezia Terme, Reggio Calabria or Crotone. Car hire is available from the airport. There are also the train stations at Lamezia Terme and Catanzaro Lido that have lines that connect you to the rest of Italy.