The land of the permanent grey cloud!
We have been living in Kerry, Ireland for 5yrs. I think if we stay any longer we’ll start to get damp rot
Ireland is a beautiful country, but as I’ve heard said many times “If we could only tow it a few hundred kilometers south, off France somewhere, we’d all be much happier” The volume of rain is mind bogling, especially in the south west. Listening to the weather forecast on TV, they really have it off to a fine art, “light rain, with sunny spell, scattered showers with a chance of some sun, mist with low cloud, heavy showers for prolonged periods” add to that high winds and low temperatures and you have Ireland in a nutshell.
Our bellies were full after ploughing through yet another serve of Christmas dinner, for the third day running. Everyone was starting to go a little stir-crazy being locked up inside while the storm rages day after day. Rory’s new bike from Santa, hadn’t seen the light of day and he started to ask why it’s so sunny in Spain all the time (we’d been there for a weeks holiday and he was amazed that it didn’t rain).
A program came on the BBC, families seeking properties in Le Marche, Italy. As the presenters chatted away, Gavin and I were both taken with the scenery. Green rolling hills, high mountains and clear blue skies. It showed kids playing in the garden barefoot. Gavin looked at me, then towards the window(at the sheeting rain) and said “This is not normal”
It was while watching the show, that we started to discuss why we were living here and could we move there? So our quest for a sunnier climate began.
Google Earth makes couch travelling so easy. We spent the next few days looking at Le Marche, it’s towns & villages, cost of living etc. Then we spread our search to other areas, such as Cornwall(UK), Trieste(Italy) and Perignon(France). Our criteria being, a drier climate, good access and greenery.
I had been reading travel blogs for the past few months and the idea of travelling as a family was very appealing. We just needed a plan. Where, When and How was all TBC.