So, last weekend saw us returning to Rovinj to watch the World Cup Final. We’ve stayed in Rovinj a few times since we arrived in Istria and although The Adriatic Hotel is our favourite place to stay, we just can’t justify the prices in high season. But, it gives us an opportunity to explore and […]
Since we returned from Rovinj last Sunday, this week has largely been a week of heads down and getting on with work. We’re very lucky that we can continue our business from here, and so shouldn’t really complain when we are in front of a computer screen, when it’s hot outside. Luckily, we’ve also had […]
We thought we knew Rovinj, in Istria pretty well as it’s now one of our go-to places when we need some sea air and a bit of comfort away from an on-going house renovation. We decided to stay somewhere different this time, and chanced upon the very stylish and boutiquey Casa Amando, run by two […]
This is going to be an experiment, so bear with me. I’m trying to document what we get up to on our travels and on our new adventure in Istria but sometimes I’m aware that I can’t do a blog about everything we do. However, I do want to have a record – you never […]
We’re loving making the interior of the very traditional Istrian stone house we have bought, much more cool and contemporary, and it’s no secret I’ve been very influenced by this image of a Greek house and these colours, on Pinterest. All of the rooms are now predominantly white, the exception being the gorgeous Hague […]
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 […]
Spring has arrived, and like the garden which is blossoming, things really seem to be happening renovation wise. The kitchen is fitted – but like everything in Croatia, progress is slow, so we are still waiting for final snags to be dealt with. The downstairs bathroom has been ripped out, the plumbing has been done, […]
Spring has arrived and that means – hurrah! – our first visitors have arrived. We welcomed two very old (as in long-standing!) friends last week. We’ve had many experiences with them – they were our neighbours in West Didsbury, we went to their wedding in Greece and have shared many parties and late, late nights […]
We know what bad weather is like. We know what winter is like. We’re from Manchester. But, winter just gone has been something else. We’re used to dismal grey clouds, that hang over you for days/weeks on end. Rain that seems as if it will never stop. Fleeting snow – then the return of the […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]