What is it like sending your kids to local school in France and Italy – part 2 Our move from Northern France to Italy in 2014 was mainly driven by Anita’s job as export manager for AD Fashion, a family owned clothing producing company based in Torino. She had been working for them remotely for […]
Let’s discover the 8 officially prettiest inland villages in western Liguria! Inland, away from the luscious sea side, western Liguria, i.e. the part between Genova and the border with France is a varied and relatively wild land of vineyards, olive groves, lemon trees and forests. It is a mountain landscape dotted with medieval towns and […]
Sending your kids to local school in France and Italy – part 1 We moved to the Aosta Valley in Italy with our two boys, Olly who was then aged 11 and Marty aged 18 months in September 2014 from a small village in the Pas de Calais, France called Inxent. Inxent is located 10 […]
Discover the charming and lesser known ski villages in the Aosta Valley! As well as the main ski resorts of Courmayeur, La Thuile, Pila, Cervinia, Champoluc and Gressoney, the Aosta Valley is full of other charming little ski villages and stations. Most have only two or three chairlifts and a handful of pistes but they […]
Let’s discover together the Italian Carnival – Carnevale traditions and events in North Italy ! What is Carnival and when is it celebrated Carnival in Italy is a Catholic and Christian celebration but in reality it has very distant origins going back to ancient Greece and the Roman world. The word Carnevale is an Italian […]
The job of a school group ski instructor… In the winter of 2018/19 I did the BASI level 1&2 ski instructor course with Interski in Pila, Aosta Valley. Having somehow or another managed to pass the course I have so far done 4 week’s paid work with Interski as an instructor, looking after school groups […]
Continuing on from our article where we mention our Best hikes in the Aosta Valley with young children and a pushchair, we would now like to share with you our favourites within the Gran Paradiso National Park. Apart from the magnificent views and unspoilt landscapes, the Gran Paradiso is also the place to go to […]
Great family hikes in the Aosta Valley that you can do with young children or with a pushchair When we moved to the Aosta Valley in 2014 our younger son Marty was just 18 months old. Being in the Alps after living all our life in cities or the flat countryside of southern England, the […]
Let’s discover some of the magnificent castles of the Aosta Valley. Italy’s smallest Region has over 130 castles and stately residences dating from the Middle Ages, through the Renaissance and up to the early 1900s. Almost all of them can be visited and some also host museum collections. Driving along the valley at night with […]
Although the Aosta Valley is the smallest region in Italy it has many hidden gems and places to discover. Here we show you 12 places that should be on your hit-list when you come to the Aosta Valley! La Grotta di Ghiaccio – Matterhorn Ice Palace, Cervinia, Valtournenche One of the most popular and well […]
What is a UNESCO World Heritage Site? A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, scientific or other form of significance. There are currently 1,121 such sites worldwide. UNESCO sites in Italy & Lombardia […]
As part of a new series of interviews and features coming from the other parts of Italy: North East, Central and Southern & Islands, we are very excited to be able to take a first Good Life Italy look at the gorgeous and refined region of Umbria through the eyes of David and Chrissie Lang. […]
Introducing LiguriaHomes Casamare We are delighted to say that Matteo Scandolera, the charming and approachable Director of LiguriaHomes Casamare has agreed to help us with our Goodlife Property project. Matteo will be sharing with us some of the fabulous properties that he has for sale in Western Liguria, one of our favourite places. Matteo’s agency, […]
Introducing Agenzia San Grato – Pila’s No. 1 estate agent We are delighted that Agenzia San Grato has kindly agreed to help us with our Goodlife Property project. Agenzia San Grato is THE estate agent for the lovely little Aosta Valley ski resort of Pila. They are the only agent with a shop in the […]
Thanks to Richard Noble, owner and manager of Villa Ribota guesthouse in the Langhe for this topical guest blog…. Undeniably a good question, especially when you consider all the political manoeuvring that’s going on… but I want to focus on the dreaded Coronavirus for now. At the beginning of the pandemic, almost a year ago […]
Travelling is difficult at the moment. But we can still immerse ourselves in the extraordinary beauty of Italy through watching films at home. So let’s take a cinematic journey through Italy with this great collection of light-hearted comedies, romances and even some action movies. Eat, Pray, Love (2010) Julia Roberts falls in love not […]
Vespa & Lambretta – the Italian scooter twins Vespa and Lambretta, the iconic Italian born scooters that helped to shape the post-war world are not quite twins, as they were born a year apart. In 1947 and 1948 respectively. But they share the same DNA. A revolutionary design initially commissioned by industrialist, Signore Ferdinando Innocenti, […]
Bagna càuda: authentic Italian recipe for anchovy lovers The first time we tried this dish was on New Year’s Eve when our friends Christian and Olympia prepared it. We curiously following the process while sipping some prosecco. Italians would typically bagna cauda during the autumn and winter month and it is often on the table […]
Nutella Nests: authentic Italian recipe for Nutella lovers This delicious Nutella recipe is quick and easy to make and perfect as a lunchbox treat and for Easter! History of Nutella Nutella was born in the Piemonte region of Italy after the World War II, when cocoa imports were disrupted and unreliable. Pietro Ferrero, who was […]
Carnevale Chiacchiere: authentic recipe for this Italian dessert Like most events in Italy, Carnevale has its own special dessert! During the period of Carnevale there is no celebration without some type of fried crisp dessert and the most popular one is called Chiacchiere (gossip). In English you might know it as “Angel Wings”, which is a […]
Now that we have produced a few articles and got the Good Life Italy site up and running I thought I would do a little summary of what we have discovered so far about the four regions that make up our region of North West Italy. Namely La Valle d’Aosta, Piemonte, Liguria and Lombardia. We […]
World famous and wonderful Lake Garda is located half way between Milan and Venice in the north of Italy. Its huge! Lake Garda is the largest of the Italian Lakes in terms of its surface area (370km/sq). 51km long and 16km wide at its widest point, the southern end. It is so big it belongs […]
An interview with Tom Durham – skier, mountain biker and entrepreneur, who lives with his wife Lorna and daughter Sadie in the lovely village of Gressan in the Aosta Valley Tom, thanks so much for agreeing to share your story with us. What brought you guys from Scotland out here to the Aosta Valley There […]
Although it’s not yet official, everyone we speak to locally seems resigned to the fact that the Italian ski resorts might now remain closed for the rest of the season. As is the case all over Europe at the moment, the rules in the Aosta Valley and in the rest of Italy are changing almost […]
On past Collins family ski holidays in Austria the standard treat was always a hot chocolate with rum and whipped cream. In France, it was just a hot chocolate – couldn’t afford the rum. Or the whipped cream. Here in Italy it’s a Bombardino. To make one, the barman fills a little metal jug with […]
A great dessert for using up the left over panettone As panettone keeps for quite a long time and is only available at Christmas we tend to stock up on this delicious cake. And there are several ways to use up a panettone other than just eating it plain. The other day we used one […]
What is it like sending your kids to local school in France and Italy – part 2 Our move from Northern France to Italy in 2014 was mainly driven by Anita’s job as export manager for AD Fashion, a family owned clothing producing company based in Torino. She had been working for them remotely for […]
Sending your kids to local school in France and Italy – part 1 We moved to the Aosta Valley in Italy with our two boys, Olly who was then aged 11 and Marty aged 18 months in September 2014 from a small village in the Pas de Calais, France called Inxent. Inxent is located 10 […]
Thanks to Richard Noble, owner and manager of Villa Ribota guesthouse in the Langhe for this topical guest blog…. Undeniably a good question, especially when you consider all the political manoeuvring that’s going on… but I want to focus on the dreaded Coronavirus for now. At the beginning of the pandemic, almost a year ago […]
The job of a school group ski instructor… In the winter of 2018/19 I did the BASI level 1&2 ski instructor course with Interski in Pila, Aosta Valley. Having somehow or another managed to pass the course I have so far done 4 week’s paid work with Interski as an instructor, looking after school groups […]
Although it’s not yet official, everyone we speak to locally seems resigned to the fact that the Italian ski resorts might now remain closed for the rest of the season. As is the case all over Europe at the moment, the rules in the Aosta Valley and in the rest of Italy are changing almost […]
It was the best euro 2,000 I ever spent and the wisest decision I ever made when I bought our burgundy red, 10 KW Ravelli wood pellet stufa back in 2014, when we moved into our apartment in Gressan. Sitting there reassuringly in the corner of the living room, next to the tele. He […]
Everyone deserves a little luxury and pampering in life, a little break from all the rushing around. The thermal spa at Pré Saint Didier, in its beautiful Alpine surroundings close to Courmayeur in the Aosta Valley, is just the perfect place for it. I have to admit that before I discovered Pre Saint Didier I […]
Skiing doesn’t have to be all downhill I have never been a skiing virtuoso. I am more than a little bit afraid of speed and I haven’t really had proper lessons. At least not from anyone who actually knows what they are talking about (sorry Ian). My skiing motto is “relax and enjoy the view”. […]