Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Dreams - Houses and Gardens in Santa Marinella

Took these on the way to the train today.


I'm dreaming of renting this villa.

It's close to the bottom of the Via di Fiori, near shops and the beach, but off the Via Aurelia, so not too noisy or dangerous for pussy cats.


I have changed my walk home route and I stop nearly every day for a minute or so and gaze into the little green world, dreaming...

It was rented for a short time last summer, but has stood empty all winter. No doubt the rent is far beyond what I can afford.


Olive and orange trees, and two mature palms that show no signs of being infested with the dreaded weevils.


No one has looked after it all winter, which is a blessing, since the Italian idea of looking after a place is to get rid of every green thing in sight. The gorgeous ground cover is Oxalis, and it flowers in great gouts of yellow blossoms from December through to March.


The name on the plaque to the right is "Laura". A laura is a place where hermits live.
Appropos, I thought.

Carciofi

What artichokes look like when they're growing.


A typical, old fashioned Italian country house and garden, right next to the sea.


Posh villa, but in a terrible location. Right on the horrible Via Aurelia. Probably quite a come-down in the neighbourhood since the time it was built.






Street scene in Santa Mar.

On the train...

Italians wear just the weirdest stuff...and it was 15 degrees today.


Unforgettable Trenitalia. And this was one of the more graffiti-free cars.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your posting and comments and life site news, etc.


I am wondering whether or not you know of an easy list to find for properties to rent in S. Marinella to foreigners. I am from the United States and may need to stay in Rome to finish a theology degree for three to four months and have heard from several people to consider staying in S. Marinella.

HJMW said...

I'm looking for a potential room mate with whom to begin looking for a villa.

It's part of my clever plan. I have to stay in the place I am now until May, then I'm going to try to get an extension on a month-to-month basis to last into October, which is when the market gets juicy.

I have an established relationship with the local Agencia, though it costs money to work through them. By law, they have to charge both the renter and the landlord, and I think it's about 3.5 % of the monthly rent.

Still, they're quite good and have been very helpful.

I'm not really interested in another appartamento, though. Looking more at a villa, which would not be so central to the train station. Where I am now is about 1/2 hour walk, which is a bit too far for me.

Send me an email and we'll chat. Maybe we can work something out.

H

Anonymous said...

So, what's the rent?

Hilary Jane Margaret White said...

Leave your name, "Anonymous," and we'll talk about how to read attentively:

"with whom to begin looking for a villa."