by Helen | May 18, 2018 | Croatia, Italy, Travel
We’ve just said goodbye to our second set of friends who’ve been staying with us for a few days. Amanda and Steve had a few days in Italy first – they flew to Venice Marco Polo from Manchester and then spent a couple of days 30km north of Venice, in Treviso and then took the train to Trieste, where we picked them up. We can be in Trieste in 45 minutes so it’s a great place to meet visitors and it’s a great introduction to our new part of the world. Although we live in Istria, which is part of Croatia, it was, until not long ago (1947), a part of Italy – and it certainly still feels very Italian.
We left Trieste in baking sunshine and arrived in Istria under dark, threatening thunderclouds. Note to visitors – bring something waterproof!
We’ve become used to our weather now – we get torrential rain and insane storms, but give it a couple of hours and we can be back out on the sun-loungers. Amanda didn’t quite believe it when I told her this, as we left them to relax for a couple of hours, while we did a supermarket run. However, when we returned, where were they? On the sunbeds!
As we had a few trips out planned, we spent a leisurely Friday evening, catching up. We’re getting used to the quirkiness and eccentricities of our house now, but it’s always a real delight to hear what other people think. We’re used to our Well, now re-positioned outside the front door, but every now and then, it’s good to remember that this is such an unusual and beautiful feature. It’s also very lovely when people see familiar things around them, that they know from our West Didsbury home and so very quickly relax into their new surroundings. And, have a very comfy night’s sleep…
We want people who visit us to get an insight into where we now live. It’s such a beautiful part of the world and we want to share it. We also try to think about what each visitor would like to see or experience – some people love water parks, some lovely cycling trips, some love hilltop villages, some love cities, some love some or all of these, but we’ll always try and find out what you like so that you have the best experience possible.
Saturday saw us heading over to Rijeka, on the eastern side of the peninsula, a journey which cuts through the mountains, via the Učka Tunnel. We wanted to come to Rijeka to see the Stadion Kantrida. Until July 2015, Rijeka football club was based at Stadion Kantrida, their traditional home ground for over 60 years. With Kantrida now awaiting demolition and reconstruction, Rijeka have been based at the newly-built Stadion Rujevica, part of the new training centre and the club’s temporary home ground. Following the demolition of old Kantrida, a new, state of the art, 14,600 all-seater stadium will be built at the same location. And what a location! When we take people to see it, they are always a bit wowed…
Yes, that is The Adriatic, with Krk Island shimmering in the distance.
Next stop was Opatija, a beautiful resort, much loved by the Austro-Hungarian nobility and very different in architectural style to the more Venetian/Italian style of the Istrian side of the peninsula. As it was a whistle-stop tour, we just stopped for a drink in the grounds of a hotel where The Rat Pack would entertain. Sounds swish – which it is, but very inexpensive for a round of drinks, sipped whilst overlooking the sea. As a birthday was being celebrated, we felt that a perfect spot to do so, was in a gorgeous sea-front restaurant we’ve found in the little fishing port of Mošćenička Draga – and no, we can’t say it either. The beach is white pebbles and the sea the bluest of blue – and we were lucky to get a table overlooking the beach at the lovely Konoba Zijavica.
Next stop was a drive inland, to the medieval village of Gračišće. Miss the turn off for this village and you will miss something very special indeed. It’s a sleepy little village, where everything seems to move at a very slow pace – but is just one of the most picturesque places we’ve visited. Some of the houses date back to the early 1400s (dates inscribed on crooked stone lintels above tiny doorways) and the sense of history is palpable. The church sits high on a hill and the views of the Istrian countryside are jaw-dropping…
We don’t have a *local* restaurant or bar, in the sense that we used to in West Didsbury. Our local is about 4km from The House, but it is our local – because we are treated as such. We’re not treated as tourists any more. The owner greets us with “Hello, Neighbours” – we’re sure he’s actually forgotten our names, but we love it nevertherless and we want our visitors to experience it too. When we arrived, it was clear that it had been raining, very heavily too – although we’d had glorious sunshine on the east coast. In fact, the weather had been so extreme, one of the guys we know, whose English is very good, just said, “I have no words to describe it!” Well, the sun was shining now, so all was OK with the world and we were able to enjoy our sunset drinks in the warmth.
To illustrate how mad Istrian weather can be – and no wonder he had no words to describe it – we returned home to find carnage in the garden. Plants had been ravaged – the hostas which I was delighted had not been eaten by snails, looked as if a razor had been taken to the leaves. All due to a hailstorm – the pile of hailstones, which had obviously shot out of the gutter, being evidence of the ferocity of it all. And all while we basked in east side sun…
When we collect family or friends from Pula Airport, we can’t resist a quick detour into Pula. Anyone who hasn’t witnessed the spectacle of the ampitheatre is really blown away as it’s the only remaining Roman ampitheatre to have four side towers and with all three Roman architectural orders entirely preserved, and the best preserved ancient monument in Croatia.
Next stop was Rovinj – a must for anyone who comes to visit us. We enjoyed – and all agreed – the best lunch of freshly caught sea-bass. HUGE fish and just so, so tasty, in one of our favourite restaurants, Rio, right on the harbour. No photos of said fish, as we wolfed it down. However, if you’ve not seen photos of Rovinj or been before, here you go…
One of the best things about where we now live, is our proximity to other places, especially in northern Italy. Amanda and Steve were flying back from Venice and not having been before, wanted to spend a bit of time there – so we offered to take then there and stay overnight with them. What a hardship…
The drive across the SS14, the main route from Trieste to Turin if you want to avoid the madness of the A4 motorway, is stunning. The Veneto is really flat and you can see for miles and miles, way up to the snow peaked Dolomites. We were a bit concerned weather-wise as the rain had started, but as we approached Venice – and you always know you’re near as you can see the planes taking off from Marco Polo airport – the sun started to break through and that was it. Sunglasses back on!
Rather than walk from the car park – the one where you have to park and where you have to leave your keys on the dashboard – we thought that a water bus would be the most spectacular way for Amanda and Steve to see Venice for the first time. Nothing beats seeing it from the water. A water bus isn’t expensive – 30 euros for four of us and the journey lasts a good 40 minutes if you’re going right round to St Mark’s Square, as we were, because we’d found a great value apartment, not too far from this famous landmark.
Anyway, Venice – it just really speaks for itself…
We found new places to eat on this trip too – although we did try to eat at a favourite restaurant, Al Buso, which is directly under the Rialto Bridge. The location is amazing and we’ve had great food and service there before, the last time being during the Carnival, where we had very delicious pizzas. We’d eaten lots of fish and pasta over the last few days and all were in the mood for a pizza, so we reckoned this would be a good choice. Menus were presented and the waiter (who had served us before), told us about the daily fish specials. Unfortunately, on this occasion, his mood wasn’t as customer focused and when we asked for the pizza menu – and there definitely is one – he replied by telling us if we wanted pizza, we should go to St Mark’s Square. Given that we would have spent quite a lot of money – given its location, it’s not the cheapest option – we found his attitude to be rude and condescending and left. And I vowed that I would never set foot in there again, and would tell everyone to avoid it. So, if you do ever find yourself in Venice, please join my boycott of Al Buso, located at Centro Storico fondamenta del Buso No. 5338 – right under the Rialto Bridge. We found two very lovely places and would heartily recommend these – Osteria il Milion, where the Spaghetti con le Cipolle is literally to die for, and Ristorante Marco Polo on Salizzada San Lio, where got the pizzas we wanted, and very nice they were too.
So, there you go – a four day whistlestop tour of Istria and Venice.
Practicalities for Visiting
Our friends flew from Manchester to Marco Polo Venice, a flight of under two & half hours. We’ll always pick up visitors – unless you intend to come over and do lots of travelling, there’s no point in hiring a car, as we can always visit places with you. Or, we do have a Fiat Punto, a very sturdy & reliable car, which is insured for visitors to use. The only thing we’d advise you of, is that the house will seem, when you first visit, to be quite remote. However, as we – and everyone who has visited – quickly realise, Istria is a VERY small peninsula, and you very quickly get used to where we are in relation to other places, and pretty soon a 30 minute to the supermarket doesn’t seem that long at all. Especially when the road takes you through rolling hills and vineyards. Idyllic.
If you’re only travelling with hand luggage, we have stocks of suncream & mosquito sprays, so you don’t need to weigh yourself down. You’ll obviously have fresh towels and bedding & the washing machine/dryer/iron etc are all there at your disposal. Consider it a home from home.
by Helen | Apr 24, 2018 | Renovation
Given that work on the kitchen started way back in November, we did cut it a bit fine to greet our first guests last week. Admittedly, the scope of the project grew and grew, but we did think our friends would arrive and we’d still be kitchenless. Thankfully, this wasn’t the case and it was finally fitted the week before last. There’s still a lot to do – second coat of Farrow & Ball Hague Blue, window surrounds & cills to be finished, additional LED lights to be fitted, and the breakfast bar to be completed. Unfortunately, the fascia board that finishes it off, under the shelf, wasn’t delivered so has had to be re-ordered. We also made a bit of error with the washing machine. It was another case of “lost in translation” as we understood that our fairly new washing machine could just be integrated. Not so, so we need to get this sorted by buying a new one (again!) and having it fitted properly. No photos of this part of the kitchen until it’s all done though.
The installation was a remarkably swift process – everything delivered one day, and the next the fitter arrived, at 8am. He was gone by 3pm – and we had a kitchen! We finally had a working kitchen, with integrated appliances. And the best thing was, it had been so long since we’d sat down and planned it and ordered it, that seeing the various components that made it all up, was a bit of a surprise. We’d certainly forgotten quite how sleek and beautiful the tap was…
The walls are Farrow & Ball Hague Blue – our builder thinks we are mad – but they contrast so gorgeously with the concrete effect units and new floorboards. Under which is underfloor heating – not a frivolity, but a necessity, especially after the winter we’ve just endured. The newly exposed ceiling is also painted Hague Blue, but with new spotlights and exposed beams, we figured the room could take it. Also, every other room in the house is white, so we wanted a big contrast. And boy, do we have it. It’s the most luscious colour we’ve ever put on a wall.
Although it’s not the biggest kitchen in the world – we resisted the temptation to relocate it into The Well Room, which had been the original thinking – it’s bigger than anything we’ve had before, always having had teeny weeny kitchens. It’s been really well designed – we got great advice – and so have so much storage space now, as well as the very essential soft closing doors and drawers. The two new steps into the kitchen are under-lit with LED strips and look very beautiful, as do the matte black switches.
So, it’s now onto finishing it off and then getting on with The Well Room (the concrete table is in situ, but again needs to be finished) and the well is now outside, but the chamber needs to have the lighting installed and the reinforced glass cover made and installed. The stone walls will then be insulated and boarded out so that when painted white, we will have super smooth walls which will enable the house to retain heat in the winter. Boards are also being laid over the stone floor – although we’re again challenging our fab builder as what we want, isn’t a normal floor. (He loves us…).
The downstairs bathroom has been re-plumbed and a new floor laid. The underfloor heating is going down in here this week, then it’s the big tiling job. And then, the boxes housing a shower, a toilet, a sink, a cupboard etc can move out from behind the sofa as the bathroom will be ready to be installed. Then – the garden…
It is never ending!
by Helen | Apr 18, 2018 | Renovation
When we renovated our house in West Didsbury, in 2014, we knew that we wanted a concrete bench. A multi-purpose bench, where we could cook, eat, work and hang out. Our builder had not done one before, we’d not designed before, but between us, we did it…
And so when we moved lock, stock and barrel to Istria, we knew that somewhere, we’d reintroduce concrete. That “somewhere” was the Well Room. Once the actual well had been dismantled and re-located outside, the room was a whole lot bigger and we could definitely accommodate a dining table. As with all big renovation projects, budget is a big consideration, and we needed to keep an eye on our pennies. So, with a concrete mixer on site, and bags of concrete being fairly inexpensive, and a couple of builders who wanted to give it a go, we decided to once agian go for the industrial look.
We did toy with the idea of having the table looking as if it was floating, out from the wall. There would be sufficient strength in the structure, but as it would “float” almost over the exposed well chamber, we felt that this might freak people out and put them off their dinner. So, we decided to go down the more sensible route and have a support – even though the table wouldn’t need it, we felt it would look more safe.
Once the concrete had set and dried out thoroughly, the frame was removed, to reveal what was now very much like the vision we had had for our new table. Very simple, very industrial nothing fancy. Just perfect.
And with friends due to imminently arrive, we had our work cut out to get the rooms downstairs – kitchen, bathroom and well room – shipshape and ready for them. Although we still had the huge well chamber to deal with properly, a fixed block of wood and a cleverly positioned plant, ensured that we were adhering to all things health and safety. And, although the table still needed to be treated and varnished, we had no option other than to get it dressed and accessorised, so that at least we finally had somewhere – other than our knees – to eat.
by Helen | Apr 7, 2018 | Spain, Travel
Puerto Banus was built in May 1970 by José Banús, a local property developer, as a luxury marina and shopping complex. And, as we were staying in the area, we decided to check it out – depsite our reservations. And, my goodness, it was EVERYTHING we expected it to be. And more. It was totally over the top and ridiculously hideous, attracting everything that we dislike. The actual town is mostly pretty – but it’s around the harbour that it is just gross. The displays of wealth are totally over the top and everything just seemed designed to be flashy and to impress the kind of people who’d be impressed by flashy shows of extravagence. It was truly, truly awful. From the designer menswear boutique called “Billionaire”, to Jimmy Choo & D&G, to the tosser who screeched around the harbour, repeatedly, in a vile red sports car. Whilst it may well have been his, I do hope he was the kind of idiot who rented it out for a short timeframe for stupid amounts of money. I suspect it – and dearly hope – it was the latter. I still remember this ridiculous show pony, who is still presumably behaving like an A-grade idiot. The harbour is awful – rows and rows of super expensive yachts, sometimes dispensing the people on board. And strangely enough, often glamorous (plastic) young women and much older, highly unattractive men. Maybe they were their fathers, but I don’t think so…
Anyway, we beat a hasty retreat from the harbour and headed away from the throngs of people who just wanted to be seen. I’ve never disliked a place quite as much, and so glad that I can have a whale of a time, in places that are authentic, rough around the edges, unpolished and visited by more real, authentic people. Anyway, I’ve done it, can tick it off my list, and NEVER return.
But, just a short walk away from the super yachts and super rich, we found the real Puerto Banus. And the real people. Families walking together. People of all shapes and sizes. People who seemed to be very happy to be with friends and family, rather than preening like peacocks. From this part of the beach, we could still see the playground of the rich – but we were so relieved to be back in amongst “normal” people…
So, there you go. An awful place, which we will always avoid in the future. Definitely not for us…
by Helen | Apr 6, 2018 | Renovation
Most people, at some stage in their lives, will embark on a renovation project. Whether it’s doing up a corner in the living room or a full blown house rebuild, it will bring its stresses. We did it fairly recently in West Didsbury. What we thought would take a few weeks, took six months, all told. One idea leads to another job to another problem to another job. We have friends who have been doing their own renovation – they are professionals and in the trade – and they’ve been living the reno dream for nearly four years now. This makes our current one seem relatively short, BUT we’re doing it in a new house, abroad. And that in itself brings a whole host of new issues which we’ve had to get our heads around. Very quickly. So, if anyone else is mad enough to embark on something similar, here’s what we have discovered/learned, so far…
create a network of trusted people – quickly…
We initially thought we had our “team” of builders sorted when we moved, as we were going to use the guys who had worked with the previous owners, on the house. However a combination of factors including the fact we couldn’t really pin them down to a start date, presented us with a problem. But, the thing that we thought would present us with the biggest problem, was the language barrier. We had no common language beyond English/Croatian/Italian pleasantries and we knew this would be problematic when trying to explain/understand building technicalities. So, back to the drawing board.
A chance visit to a local interiors shop was the thing that clicked everything into place. We bought some beautiful outside lights and asked the owner if she knew of an electrician who could fit them at short notice. Yes, she did & an introduction was made. He spoke perfect English AND more importantly had worked on building projects for other foreigners in the area. This was actually quite an important factor – Croatian builders have a “style” of building. It’s obviously a very successful style, but it’s just not ours. It’s traditional but we wanted contemporary. And this is what our new guy could do. And through this encounter, and through the scope of work developing, we now have a trusted network people around us, including plasterers, plumbers, builders. All essential to a renovation project.
be patient
I am definitely not a patient person. I want everything done, now. But obviously, building work doesn’t quite work like that. And definitely not in Croatia. Our guys are not just working with us – they do other jobs too, and so you can’t really book them in for a specific period of time. Sometimes, they don’t show up when they say they will. Sometimes they show up when you don’t expect them – we’ve learned to not be surprised if they arrive on a Sunday morning. Sometimes they arrive then need to leave to go and get materials. This can be very frustrating, as I think it’s fairly easy to be organised and have a good idea of what you might need to do a job, but we’re getting used to this way of doing things. It’s not only in Spain where mañana, mañana is part of the national psyche…
agree on how payment will be made at the outset
Our guy from the chance encounter, when buying the lights, has become almost the Project Manager of our renovation. He has the contacts and the knowledge and the know-how and with him, we worked out payments right at the beginning. We agreed an hourly rate, rather than a project price which has worked to our advantage, as on the days when we have no-shows, we don’t pay. Hourly rates are also agreed for everyone he brings in. We pay him a little extra, because of the co-ordination/management side of things. And he is proving to be worth every kuna, especially as he can get better prices with builders’ merchants etc – as well as knowing where they are, AND being able to communicate everything with us in English.
accept that the project will grow
We knew from the outset that this would be quite a big renovation project. Although structurally sound, aesthetically there was a lot we wanted to do with the house (and the garden – another project all of its own!). We started with the kitchen as this was the room we felt needed most attention as it was going to be the one we’d be spending a lot of time in. But one thing leads to another, and before we knew it we were having the kitchen ripped out, woodburners installed (a complete necessity because winter can be surprisingly chilly here), an internal well carefully dismantled and reinstated outside, and a downstairs bathroom being completely taken apart and rebuilt. However, we worked with our builders on this and looked at what was feasible and sensible – eg getting all of the destruction done in one fell swoop. This has been a nightmare at times. At one point we had an open access to the internal well chamber, with a drop of nearly ten metres, slap bang in the middle of the floor. And it couldn’t be covered, as we had dehumidifiers down in the chamber to dry it out after it had been drained. We’ve had water pipes cut through, concrete mixers going, exposed windows just covered in flimsy plastic sheeting whilst it was snowing, heavy drilling inside the house, constant dirt and grime. BUT – it is now *almost* worth it, as we can see that things are starting to come together, slowly but surely. Remember though, mañana, mañana…
and continue to be patient…
This is the key, I think. There have been days when we could have cried at what we have perceived as the lack of progress. The mess. The dirt. The dust. Living out of boxes and not being able to find anything. Having no-shows from workers and trying not to kick off, because you bought into this way of doing things. Not really eating proper meals because the thought of having to cook in a building site is pretty awful, and anyway, you can’t find ingredients and utensils and crockery because they are all now stacked in boxes, behind the new bathroom which is all stacked up in the living room. Which is now your temporary kitchen. Wondering how many more times you will have take plates and cups and cutlery etc upstairs, to wash in the bath. But, we have learned – deep breaths. And if that doesn’t help, it is perfectly acceptable to open a bottle of wine at 3pm.
make friends with your builders
After all, they’re almost going to be living you. If they’ve done long days, or usually on a Friday, we leave beers for them. Although they don’t have the run of the house, we’ve told them to help themselves to coffee, cold drinks – we’re also trying to run a business in this reno mayhem, and so if we stopped every time we thought they might want a drink, we’d be interrupting our work. In return, we’ve had treats from them – olive oil from the next village, a bottle of grappa (with the instruction that we should take a swig with breakfast in order to get the benefit of it), insider knowledge about places to visit/eat at, that we would never have known as we’re not locals. They’ve come out & jump started our car when we stupidly left the lights on. And, a trip is being planned to go asparagus hunting.
And that takes me back to the first point I made – work on building a trusted network of people around you. They’ll most likely become your friends too, as you’ll be spending an awful lot of time with them!
by Helen | Mar 28, 2018 | Renovation
In the year that we have lived in The House, the small downstairs bathroom has gone through a number of changes. It’s not in the most ideal location, being right off The Well Room, which will eventually become another living/dining room. However, we know that we are lucky to have two bathrooms, especially with visitors coming and going, so getting rid of it wasn’t an option. We tarted it up as best as we could last year, but like most rooms in the house, layout didn’t seem to be a priority for the previous owners. The shower cubicle was tiny, with a tap attachment which scalded you whichever way you positioned yourself – and to escape it you were constantly banging in the horrible plastic tri-folding doors. The toilet was positioned right opposite the door – which hadn’t been fitted and hung properly, so didn’t properly close. Nothing quite as nice as the first thing you see being a toilet, when you come into the house.
The sink was of tiny proportions – more suited to a small cloakroom set up than a bathroom, so anything other than brushing your teeth was nigh on impossible. And then the terrazzo tiles. I know these can be expensive and I know the previous owners really liked them, but just not to our taste. A fawny kind of colour, that was neither here nor there, they covered the floor, shower cubicle and most of the walls. When we moved in, the walls hadn’t been painted, so this was our first job, and we have lived with it not being too bad for the best part of a year…
However, with work going on in the kitchen and the Well Room, we decided that the time was right to bite the bullet and try and get all of the mess over and done with at the same time. Famous last words!
So that there was no going back, we bought the new bathroom at the weekend and ripped out the shower frame so that the room was unusable and so that the work had to start. And start it has! The shower & toilet are out, the tiles have all been drilled off and the floor has been smashed up so that the new soil pipe etc can be installed. We’ve taken the opportunity to completely reconfigure the bathroom so that as a space, it just works better.
The new shower will now be positioned where the sink and toilet was, meaning a much bigger cubicle. The new toilet will be fitted where the shower used to be and the new sink opposite the door, which will now be a sliding door, fitted on the outside, meaning more space as it won’t be opening into the bathroom. This morning, it all looks an absolute mess – but out of mess and chaos we’re hoping something very beautiful will emerge.
And, yes, that is a toilet, sitting in The Well Room…
So, currently, apart from the living room, that’s all of downstairs in utter disarray. But hopefully it will mean that when our first visitors arrive mid-April, we’ll have a kitchen and bathroom to be proud of. We hope…
by Helen | Mar 26, 2018 | Lifestyle
When we lived back in Didsbury, we often used to eat out on a Sunday – and no Sunday lunch was ever really the same, such is the variety of restaurant types in the locality. Here in Istria, we have a lot of excellent restaurants near the house, but the closest are of the agristurismo variety. Whilst there are menu differences, what tends to dominate are truffles, cheese, pasta and meat. We have been longing for one of these restaurants to start serving up wood fired pizzas but it’s not going to happen as they are Istrian restaurants, not Italian.So, we are now delighted that yesterday we finally investigated Pizzeria Alto, located in the small town of Karojba, just outside the beautiful medieval hilltop town of Motovun. Nowhere here is really quite as convenient as it used to be in West Didsbury – although we do have four restaurants very close by, and two are are definitely in walking distance. This pizzeria is a 20 minute drive away, but we’re now used to this and when drives are as scenic as the ones we now do, it’s not a problem at all.
Alto is pretty basic and rustic and clearly a much loved place for locals – there was a steady stream of diners when we visited. It looks as if it’ll be very popular in the summer too, with additional outdoor seating and grassed areas for children. The menu isn’t massive, but there’s plenty of choice, especially if all you want is a pizza or an Italian style pasta dish. We had two medium pizzas which were delicious – thin crust, very generous portions of very fresh toppings and not overloaded with cheese. They were medium and looked enormous, but were just right because the crusts were nice and thin. Just like they should be…
Best thing of all though was the bill. As well as the pizzas we had a large beer and half a litre of very tasty local Istrian wine, and it came to 120 kunas. That’s £14.01! And, as much we liked a trip to Pizza Express (and will probably still do it on visits back home), it is a bit of a surprise that this whole meal came in less than one pizza, from PE…
by Helen | Mar 25, 2018 | Renovation
Oh, didn’t I just end the last renovation blog post on a bit of a high? Loving that the undercoating was about to start in the kitchen, meaning we could almost, but not quite, see the finishing line. Well, the undercoating did start, but we fell at the first hurdle…
Our house seems to be full of tins of paint. Some bought here, so in terms of the kind of paint, often incomprehensible Croatian or Slovenian. The kind of paint where we have to rely on the linguistic skills of people in the DIY store. We also have paint that we brought back from England after Christmas. You can’t buy Farrow & Ball here – the nearest stockist that I’ve found is in Treviso, so a bit of a trip for a tin of paint. However beautiful it is. So, we have tins of floor paint and paint for walls and undercoat, a lot of having been mixed here. Being a bit disorganised, we didn’t think to carefully label the paints as we went along, and so you can probably what’s coming next. Yes, the undercoat, which we gave to Misko, and which he kept saying was a bit unusual, turned out not to be the undercoat after all. And, the realisation slowly dawned on me…In the paint buying flurry back in England, we’d completely forgotten to buy undercoat for the walls, and so what was being rollered on the ceiling, was undercoat for the floor. That’s right – a lovely, silky undercoat, meant for wood or metal. The wise words of Misko – “This doesn’t look right, Helen…“
The next dawning realisation, was that he’d have to continue painting the ceiling with the wrong paint, so that at least it’d be wrong in a uniform kind of way. Then, let it dry, sand and start again. We gave Misko a very big beer…
One day on, and thankfully, the situation has been rectified. The right undercoat was bought and has now been applied, giving an idea of what our beautiful new kitchen might look like when the Farrow & Ball Hague Blue is finally applied.
While the kitchen is being finished, the next room renovation is beginning – the small bathroom which adjoins the Well Room. This is starting to be ripped out, in preparation for a complete renovation, which will involve re-configuring the layout we’ve inherited, so that the space is better used. It’s odd to think that our new bathroom is inside all of these boxes, ready & waiting…
Meanwhile, while the builders work, we’ve not been idle. With better weather and lighter evenings, the push to get the shutters finished has intensified. The Well Room is back to being a Shutter Hospital as we try and restore each one. It’s a very slow process, but we’re seeing progress as we start to get them back up.
by Helen | Mar 23, 2018 | Renovation
We think we are now on the final hurdle, kitchen renovation wise. It seems like we’ve been living forever without a decent working kitchen we can call our own – in fact, since we sold our house in West Didsbury, back in January 2017, we’ve been making do in the kitchen area. The one we inherited in this house was pretty awful and so we were glad to see the back of it, last October. But now that we’re halfway through March, we’re definitely ready to be cooking up a storm in a brand new space. The last renovation blog shows what we’ve been up to and where we are now.
It’s been really interesting to watch the plastering process going on. This hasn’t been a case of just doing one layer of plaster – oh no, it has been like watching a work of art developing, as fine layers are applied and skimmed and sanded, a number of times. And, then when we thought all looked perfect, a huge light was brought in and every inch of the plastered walls were illuminated so that every imperfection could be sanded away. I think we must have the smoothest walls in Croatia! A sealant has been applied and the next stage is the undercoating of the walls – and then the underfloor heating is installed before the new flooring is laid.
It’s great to finally be seeing the semblance of a room beginning to emerge. And you never know, we may actually have kitchen units and appliances fitted some day soon…
by Helen | Feb 13, 2018 | Lifestyle
Having lived in West Didsbury for a very long time, we certainly appreciate good restaurants. And now, having moved to Istria, and initially being a little concerned that we would have to forgo culinary delights, we are super impressed with what we’re finding on our doorstep.
We don’t have the choice we had back in England – we do short trips to the bigger Istrian towns or border hop into Slovenia or Italy if we crave more than the typical Istrian fare of pasta, mushrooms, truffles, stews etc, but we do have the quality. We’ve not seen a single chain restaurant in the whole of Istria – I’m struggling to think if I’ve seen even the ubiquitous McDonald’s. All restaurants are independent and certainly, where we are, usually family owned. As is the case with Agroturizam Nežić, in the village of Zrenj. You have to be in-the-know, to get a table here. You definitely won’t be in luck if you turn up Monday – Saturday, because it’s only open on a Sunday. However, this doesn’t deter carloads of Italians crossing two borders to come here every weekend. We see from our house, the weekly convoy of Italian licence plates, heading up towards the village – and we know exactly where they are going. Agroturizam Nežić.
We made a booking on Sunday as it had been a while since we’d been in – but the welcome from Paolo and Nadia was very, very warm. Don’t forget, we only arrived here last March, but they have become good friends, helping us out in lots of ways, most notably recommending Dennis who we bought our cars from. Good people, who greet you in in the Italian way, with effusive kisses.
There is a menu, but Paolo, who works front of house, whilst Nadia manages the kitchen, prefers to let you know what is available and seasonal. And, after all, he knows – so we went with his recommendations on Sunday. To begin, and the picture may not convey this too well, we had the most amazing melted Istrian cheese, coated in butter and then covered with black truffle shavings, with the most delicious warm, home-made bread, to mop it all up…
These black truffles are like nothing I have ever tasted before. They are an Istrian delicacy – in fact, Livade, about 5kms from us, is know as The Truffle Capital – and are astonishingly good. It’s difficult to describe the taste as it’s quite unusual but earthy, with a slightly sweet kick, is how I find them. We shared this starter – one each, and we’d have had to be rolled home, as it is very filling.
For the mains, I opted for home made tagliatelle and wild mushrooms with black truffles. Utterly, utterly delicious. The other main was a red wine infused goulash with homemade gnocchi. Again, delicious – but not as photogenic.
The two mains were very, very filling, especially as we’d also shared quite a heavy starter. But these Istrians like to feed you up, and on that note, we weren’t going to get away with no dessert. We weren’t even going to get away with *sharing* a dessert. Two portions of chocolate cake, then. And, like a lot of Istrian food, you get exactly what is described. No additional extras, like cream or ice-cream or any kind of a sauce. Apart from the grappa – which is brought to your table in the unlabelled bottle, because it is another product that the owners make themselves, and give away at the end of a meal. And boy, is it strong! It nearly blows your head off…
However, it’s not just the food that the Italians come here for, every Sunday. It’s also for Paolo and his accordian, which is another musical tradition in these parts. When the wind blows in the right direction, we can often hear the raucous grappa fuelled singing of Italian classics, but this Sunday we got see it and hear it up close and personal…
