It's the end of 2019. We have 2020 in front of us. This means we are almost 10 years in Italy now. Time to look back, and time to look forward. And maybe your first question is, did they finally start building their house?
Writing this update, we asked ourselves, where are we actually standing right now? As a family, with our 4 sons, we moved to Italy in 2010, bought this hilly Tuscan property of 23 hectares, started from zero without having a house, electricity and water. What were we thinking? Some call it brave, others stupid. Anyway, we did it.
Arrival on Sasso Corbo 11 July 2010
First schoolday 14 September 2010
Two years later, working through the Italian bureaucratic procedures, in 2012, our ‘agricampeggio’ Sasso Corbo was born. Exciting. Will the naturists find us? Will they like it? Will they tell others? The first guests came and mainly their first question was: “How did you find this???”
Opening with first guests 29 May 2012
Although more guests came than expected, 2012 can be considered as starting up, making errors, falling down and rising up, let’s say, learning. Up from 2013 we were on the map, fully booked in high season, trying to improve and making things better.
In the years after, struggling through puberty, we stabilized and we ended unexpectedly in the top 10 of best reviewed naturist camping sites worldwide (NFN). Thanks to you!
Though, time for the next step! Building our own house? Renovate the old one? Making a real swimming pool or a ‘biolago’? How nice is it to develop, to create, to have a goal, a horizon! But at the same time, what a battle to choose, to get the permissions and to invest. Too many options for too little money (you can spend it only once).
Instead of building our own house, we decided to create a new field ‘Campo Mare’ with a wide view to the Tyrrhenian Sea, adding some extra camping places and a few safari tents. Winter 2016/2017 was hard work and of course, when we opened again the 20th of April 2017, it was far from ready. Thanks to some help of friends and family, and thanks to the patience and understanding of the guests, we finished a few weeks later.
Building up the safari tents april 2017
Result a few weeks later
Will we be fully booked also now? Will the safari tents run? It did. We grow up.
Ok, well done, is it now time for the new house? Finally? All the permissions were there, we wrote a business plan to get it financed and we were more than ready. But not our bank. It took us five months to find another bank that was willing to help us.
Another year passed, and yes, after running the best season ever, the first of October 2019, we started building. Wow! Only bad weather can throw a spanner in the work. And it did. Ai. Ok, October was fine, dry, and ideal for digging, but than November came, with rain, rain and more rain. You might have seen it on the news. Anyway, the start is there.
And our kids? How are they doing? Cas, our youngest (12 years), is following the second year of the ‘media’ in Semproniano. He is our small ‘professor’ and plays football twice a week.
Sem (14 years) started the ‘Superiore’ at Sorano, a Liceo Linguistico (languages, well that is good for the camping!!) and he really likes the school and all his new friends.
Jorn (17 years) is in the 4th year of his Liceo Sociale at Arcidosso. In summer he made a trip to Boston and visited also Harvard.
And our oldest, Ruben (19 years), decided to quit school and start working. Guess where he’s working? At Imprese Edile Marcello Rossi, the firm that builds our house. So, Ruben is clear to us: be nice to me, because I build your house. Haha.
Ruben's first day at work!
For now, we want to thank you, because you visited our camping place, once, twice ore even more times. You supported and encouraged us. And therefore, you made it possible to go on, realizing our dreams and continuing building. What will be next, the old house, the new swimming pool? Work in progress, and time will learn.
We hope to meet again. And if you did not visit us yet, we hope to meet you and be your host. You’re all most welcome! For 2020 we wish you a happy and constructive year. That many of your dreams may come true!
Arrivederci!
Bas, Domenica, Ruben, Jorn, Sem & Cas
