A month in Italy!
- sharinazaaijer
- Jul 11
- 5 min read
Today exactly one month ago, I arrived in Italy, and the time has flown by! I boarded the train to Italy on June 11th, shedding a few tears, of course, but also really excited to embark on this new adventure. The journey was anything but smooth, but I knew that Cris, the cats, and my new little home were waiting for me at the end of it. That made it all a lot more bearable!
When I arrived, the place was a total mess, so the first priority was making it cozy! Even though we’re moving again in September... So soon? We’re lucky enough that a slightly larger apartment downstairs is becoming available and it even has its own balcony! This means quite a few things are still packed in boxes, but we’re making the best of the situation, and it’s actually become quite a cozy space! The place we’re in now is definitely dated as well the furniture and all. The unit downstairs has been renovated and has newer furniture. It is Italy, after all, so it’s still a bit of "old junk" haha, but just being able to roll over in bed without the whole thing shifting makes me a much happier person! The water heater is another issue; we have one downstairs too, but it’s likely newer and more energy-efficient. Still, managing hot water will always be a bit of a challenge. If you suddenly decide to take a shower, you can, but you’ll be enjoying a cold one ;). Of course, knowing we’re moving in September makes all of this a lot easier to deal with!
Another thing to get used to is how incredibly slow the process of getting things sorted out is... though, luckily, we’ve had a few strokes of good luck along the way ;). We arranged the internet on June 23rd, and an electrician was scheduled to come and install it on July 9th (so it’s not just a case of having a modem sent to you). We got a call saying he could come by June 29th, because another appointment had been cancelled, awesome! But then we were told the internet wouldn't actually work until July 9th, since that was the original date. We thought, "What nonsense—why come earlier then?" but fortunately that turned out not to be entirely true, so we actually had internet starting July 1st!
Cris has been working on getting the Italian license plates for his car since April; the document that needed to be sent off was due to arrive on June 29th, followed by a three-week wait for the plates. However, since businesses here are closed for most of August due to the holidays, there was a strong chance the process would drag on until September. As it turns out, the document arrived this week, so we’re hoping to get the license plates before the holidays start! Fingers crossed we’ll have the car back in August!
Without a car is doable, but riding the motor scooter for long distances does give me a bit of a backache—plus, you just can't carry as much. My family is arriving tomorrow, so we’ll need to make a double trip to the supermarket to ensure we have enough supplies for the first evening. A car is certainly not an unnecessary luxury, especially since it would allow me to start using the motor scooter. That really opens up my world a bit more; doing it by bike just isn't doable (a trip to the supermarket taking an hour and a half is a bit much for me).
That said, I’m actually incredibly busy, haha. I can’t quite put my finger on exactly *what* keeps me so occupied, but every day is full, which is a good thing, because I’m certainly never bored! So, how do I fill my days right now? Lots of yoga, mountain biking, dancing, working in the garden, working on SHAre Italy, organizing documents, learning Italian, and—of course—the usual cleaning chores and cooking delicious meals with all the wonderful local produce! There’s truly more than enough to keep me busy!
Still sorting things out? Well, unfortunately, yes...
It started with the codice fiscale. For that, we drove to Sondrio, a good half-hour drive away. It was by appointment only, so I booked one for the following week. I went back a week later, only to spend a grand total of five minutes inside! Did I seriously have to wait a week for that?!
In the meantime, I tried to register at the local address, but that required a codice fiscale and a bank account, yet opening a bank account required having an address. After receiving the codice fiscale, I gave it another shot, but suddenly I needed health insurance... I applied for health insurance. Before getting sent from pillar to post again, we decided to first look into my business and what needed to be arranged. We kept planning to call the accountant the next day, but it kept getting postponed. Finally, we got through and received some great information! Since it’s an accountant Cris trusts, I’ll be heading to Milan soon to register my business. After that, the best approach is to apply for a bank account—so I can get a combined personal and business account—and then try registering the address again. So, for now, I’m still technically homeless on paper ;).
You can probably imagine how much time all this takes!
And, of course, we have to get to know the area in between! I’m settling into the village a bit more, and we’re trying out lots of nice little restaurants. My cousin has visited too, and we were able to discover some new things together. It’s always more fun together than alone!
We aren't even at a very high altitude, yet it already feels like we’re truly in the mountains! What I find particularly fun is that we sometimes head to spots higher up the mountain, and on the way back, we can turn off the scooter since we just coast down—it saves on fuel and emissions!
My parents, brother, and his girlfriend are visiting this coming week, and I’m really looking forward to it! I’ll enjoy this week before really getting down to business. I want to look into starting a small 'hobby' venture (here, you can run a business tax-free and without formal registration up to a certain income limit), find a riding stable where I might be able to help out for a few hours, and perhaps pick up a shift or two at a restaurant, because I really miss waiting tables!
It’s been a busy month, and things won't be slowing down anytime soon; naturally, I’ll keep you posted on everything that happens, share tips and tricks for anyone wanting to move to Italy, and of course, tell you all about the fun experiences I’m having here!
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