Courtesy of Callie Riemann
My husband and I became interested in the 1-euro housing schemes in Italy last year but were concerned about investing time and money into a house in a village that was dying out.
We are in our early 30s and had read online that the catch to these 1-euro homes was that they're usually falling apart and located in towns that are basically desolate retirement homes with little to no businesses.
We were coming from Hamburg, Germany, which has a population of 2 million and were nervous about what life would be like and being lonely in one of these small Italian towns.
However, after visiting some properties in one of these towns, we decided to take the risk, and it was worth it.
In the end, we avoided the 1-euro homes and bought a farmhouse for 29,000 euros, about $30,400, instead. Our worries about being lonely in a run-down town quickly disappeared after we arrived.
Courtesy of Callie Riemann
We moved to Sant'Elia a Pianisi, a village with about 1,500 residents in southern Italy.
When we arrived in August, there were festivals every day and night. There were parades, concerts, festivals with free food and drinks, sword fighting, and fire-breathing shows.
It felt surreal, moving to this tiny town in the middle of nowhere Italy, yet hearing English and German everywhere we went.
Courtesy of Callie Riemann
Sitting at the local Irish pub, we were surrounded by older US Americans who had left during a diaspora between the '40s and '70s, when many Italians ended up in the US or Germany for work.
Now, as they age, many have returned to their hometown to enjoy retirement. Their relatives also come to visit and explore their heritage.
Many still have family homes here in the village and donate money to keep the village running well while they're away. This contributes to lovely projects, including handicap-inclusive playgrounds, parks, and holy places.
In August, we also met a lot of young people who have left the town for university or better work opportunities. Many expressed a longing to return to Sant'Elia and hope that the increase in remote work availability will allow them to come back sooner rather than later.
Courtesy of Callie Riemann
We were afraid Sant'Elia would be a ghost town after August. To be honest, it did become much quieter, but not as much as we had anticipated.
There are still parades every month. The three restaurants are quieter but still full on Saturday nights with live music and sometimes karaoke.
When hanging my laundry outside on the clothesline, I hear children screeching and giggling. There are families, both young and old, and they are all so kind and warm.
Most people in town gather at an outdoor market once a week, which offers fresh cheeses, vegetables, fruits, plants, and new and used clothing and shoes.
We can buy these items any day of the week at the multiple little grocery stores, bakeries, butchers, and clothing stores in town, but the market also offers the opportunity to socialize with other residents.
Courtesy of Callie Riemann
My husband and I are learning Italian, but neither of us would say we speak it yet. That doesn't stop the townspeople from wanting us to feel welcome.
We use what little broken Italian we know, and they accommodate with their own broken English and German.
When the language barrier becomes too tough, we resort to hand gestures or a quick game of charades to get our point across.
Words aren't always necessary, though.
Many of our new neighbors have given us presents, from squashes and pomegranates to homemade cheeses and olive oil.
We feel very welcome and are happy to be part of this community.
If we want more action and entertainment, we don't have to go far.
The nearest city, Campobasso, has a population of about 47,500 and is a half-hour drive away.
One downside is the drive itself. It's a windy one through the mountains with a lot of sharp turns and steep hills. Almost all of our friends we've driven through it wanted to throw up by the end.
Campobasso, though, offers a beautiful historical center, shopping malls, nightclubs, movie theaters, markets, museums, and cultural events.
Even without Campobasso, there is never a dull moment. I recently joined an expat Facebook Group for the region where people post daily about coming wine and food festivals, parades, and musical performances in their towns.
Sant'Elia is a small town in a small region of Italy, but we have found everything we could have ever wanted from this community.
