I recently read a post by a British couple who moved from the south coast of England to Languedoc in France for their retirement. They started out by asking themselves why couldn’t we have done all this in England? Why did we have to move to France? The south of England has no shortage of beauty, they said. There was a place to grow vegetables, they said. Access to beaches and the New Forest nearby, but they retired to France. Why do people up stakes and change countries to retire?

Well, this made me think. Yes, you can have a garden and enjoy the scenery in your home country, but somehow you choose to move to another country. I love my state of Virginia. I had all I wanted there. But I didn’t have much adventure. Everything was normal, hum drum, expected. And the pace of life, even in retirement was not tranquil. There was little stimulation. The decision to move was more a wish for new horizons. New things to see and learn. A whole different language! And yes one can have almost the same things here as at home, if one would want. But suddenly, in new surroundings I was encouraged to try so many new things. Places to see and visit, foods to make and try, restaurants to discover.

I have been here 11.5 years, so now, most things are “normal” to me. But I remember the time when going to the grocery store was a major undertaking. Deciphering the labels, figuring out that all the meats are completely different cuts, remembering to weigh all your produce, figuring out that eggs aren’t refrigerated here and finding they are on a shelf, seeing the types of flour nothing like home, figuring out the Italian equivalent of baking powder and soda. Every. Single. Thing. Was completely different. Going to the post office 😳. Getting all the permits you need to be able to live here. Going to the doctor. The pharmacy. All of the things you take for granted in the U.S. are now huge adventures, or obstacles, depending on how you look at it.

Everyone is not cut out for a move to Italy. People need to adopt a different reality to adapt here. Really, it’s true. Most people have heard everything is slower in Italy but until you’re trying to get something done here you don’t really understand. They calculate their worth differently. It’s not money that makes you rich, it is friends, family, connections, favors owed. So completely different from the U.S. where the dollar is king and the bottom line, your worth. It takes a bit of getting used to. You cannot approach your builder and offer more money to hurry up the renovation. That won’t work. They just, don’t, care.

I read a lot of the Facebook groups for people who move to Italy. Digital Nomads, Elective Residency Visa holders, students, repatriating Italians… The reasons to move are different for us all. Many come because the cost of living is half of the U.S. (except in the big cities); some come because the quality of life is better; some come for the quality of the food, which is less processed and cleaner; some come for the slower pace. Some, recently, are moving to flee the political situation in the U.S. Some come because they are descendants of Italians who immigrated and they feel the pull to return to their roots. Whatever the reason, many of us choose to relocate.

I know why I “upped stakes” and moved to Italy. It was for the stimulation and adventures. Now we are getting older and slowing down but we still plan four or five big trips a year. And more short ones. We don’t do as much around our area as before, maybe because it is familiar now. Who knows! But we still enjoy the life here.