August 2010

We arrived for our family summer holiday at the beginning of August, just 2 weeks after our last visit.

With Natalie sunning herself in Tenerife on a 'girls holiday' we were joined by Loz and Mimi, friends of Ben and Rachael respectively.

Despite leaving on a Friday evening we couldn't have timed it worse and picked the busiest Saturday of the year to travel through France!

A tortuous 18 hour drive from Calais covering a massive 980 miles in all including an extra 140 in an effort to avoid the jams.

We finally arrived in the late afternoon after a quick shop at the CONAD supermarket in Vallecrosia. The journey over, I was interested to see how Andrea and Lorenzo had progressed with the West wall. I wasn't disappointed with the progress!

The 2.4m high stone wall now extending 20 metres up the track. What a difference from before, with the whole of the untidy bank behind now hidden.

Before:

After:

During the time we were there I met with Federico Allavena to discuss our soft landscaping options. The main talking point involved the question of whether the lawn element is created using turf or grass seed. It didn't take me long to decide that since we are near the season end and under less pressure to complete, that the cheaper 'seed' option is the most likely way forward.

The next job though is to have a couple of olive trees moved, the stump you can see in the picture above removed and some earth moved to shape the slope to the lower wall and back-fill the new walls. After that our plumber will install the irrigation system before tons of top soil are delivered to the site and an area adjacent to the patio is prepared before seeding.

Once the area to be grassed is down, the slope to the wall will be planted in a fashion typical of the area.

We're getting there...

July 2010 - an end in sight!

If you had asked me back in February 2006 (when I first saw the land) whether I would have embarked on this project if I knew it would take over four years I would probably, honestly, have answered 'no'.

But here we are, in July 2010, four years and five months on and I have no regrets.

Mimi and I have just returned from a four day 'break' having driven yet another load of stuff out to Villa Benara including a dinner table and 6 matching chairs; a 'Zaida' rug (that I finally bought after two years looking at it in Fenwick's; a refurbished ornate cast iron table with polished glass top; assorted ceramic bowls and plates; more books; dvd's etc.....

After an interminable delay to further, necessary, wall building work caused by the quarry source for 'Ventimiglia' stone running dry, work resumed in the middle of June to join the 'east' wall to the wall surrounding the pool; build steps to the pool and start the west wall up the track.
We arrived late morning on the 14th July having driven through the night. We partially unloaded the car and inspected the work done.

• East wall, complete.
  
• Steps to the pool, complete.
  
• West wall, good progress.

In addition, all of the earth behind the east wall had been landscaped; the earth within the walled area levelled and most of the vegetation removed.

This picture shows the east wall complete and the corner of the steps.

I had ordered the railing for the pool edge in mid June and we had been told that it would be fitted whilst we were there.

Despite clear instructions over the style/design a mis-communication ensued and the railing is not quite how we intended it to be!

Nevertheless, the quality of the work is excellent and we are getting used to the result!

Here are the railings installed and the steps to the pool.

We are back at the beginning of August by which time the west wall should be finished, the irrigation in and maybe even the turf will have been laid.

Villa Benara

Okay, where are we now?

January 2010

The Villa is finished and furnished.

There are some minor electrics to be completed relating to the remote switches for the lights in and around the pool area.

The only other signifcant works to be done is hard landscaping in the form of the building of some walls to the east of the Villa, steps to the pool and a large wall to the west of the villa adjacent to the track. Once built these will 'frame' the area for soft landscaping at which point we can start planting.

We are hopeful that the hard landscaping will be finished by the spring.

Here are some photos of the interior and exterior.

South Eastern aspect of the villa:


The lounge from the kitchen:

The kitchen from the lounge:

The sunken bath in the en-suite:

Master bedroom:

Mimi on steps down from master bedroom:

Lounge from entrance:

Villa, pool and walling:

Pool from Villa:

Pool from lower wall: