Forbidden Villa

The villa, itself, can be seen in a secondary photograph taken from the road above it.

Once, a modest sign gave the name of this rose-red villa in the Tuscan hills. Now, this elaborate marker has taken its place and with it, the welcome once known. Note the sign which proclaims it to be private and not to enter. Even if you did enter there is a new, monster gate to prevent any further intrusion. The closed-in nature of the villa now reminds me of the Confucian saying,"He who has treasures, fears thieves."

We first went to an outdoor dinner at this villa. I felt I had entered another world or, at the very least, was in a Hollywood movie about how the other half in Italy lived. Huge citronella torches shot flames into the air from the walls. The flickering light flattered the guests gathered under the ancient evergreen oak which is clearly visible from this picture:
VILLA A wooden table was built around the huge trunk of the tree and a great variety of food was placed upon it. We met one American and one Irish expat women but the rest of the guests were local. They were almost all a part of the "music crowd," people who could be seen at almost every concert held in the area.

The villa was owned at the time by a couple from a distinguished Italian family. From June to August they moved out of the villa and into the secondary building seen in the added photo. The weekly rental was in the mind-boggling thousands of pounds/dollars per week. They moved back in August and played host to their grown children and grand children. There was a standard rectangular swimming pool made eye-popping by a view of the rugged Apuan alps, a view not seen from the villa, itself.

Eventually, the owners decided they were too old to make daily trips down the mountain. They sold the villa and moved to a splendid top floor apartment in town. The new owners are from Holland. It is said, by cleaning and gardening help who live outwith the villa grounds, that improvements have been made although the reports are rather sniffy and disapproving. The owners are part of a family that once owned a UK clothing chain, C&A.

The open feeling and the friendliness of the former owners is gone. The new ones are never seen, apart from their large cars on the narrow roads. They never attend local events. They are not unusual in this. Other foreigners who have bought houses in the area are equally reclusive and stand-offish. None ever becomes part of the community. It is very sad.