“New” old house!

After searching for more than 2 years for a new house I was about ready to give up. We’d travelled the country, mainly further north, and viewed so many possibilities that looked lovely online but hideous in real life. Then I spotted one online that looked more than interesting. The husband walked past the computer as I asked him to look, and said “too small” in passing. I only had up the first photo of the house, from the front, which looked a bit like a bungalow. However, when I made him look again and told him it had 6 bedrooms and 4 reception rooms, including a bodega, plus 2 courtyards and outbuildings and about three quarters of an acre of land, he managed a second look!

The rest is history. We went to view – it was about 150km from where we’d been living and was the most romantic looking place, over 100 years old with some add-on parts over the years, and with fabulous views of the mountains and pine trees.

We moved in during a very, very cold February and quickly discovered that the quaint little wooden shuttered windows were so draughty that the bitter wind whistled freely through every one of them. I think they might have been made by a 10 year old as a Primary School project. The first night we slept there Peter wore his ski suit and we had to put an actual rug on the bed as it was so cold!

When it rained – yes, it does rain in Spain – we quickly learned where the leaks were in the various roofs. At least we knew where to fix them!

The garden is going to take a bit of taming. Most of it is terraced and we need to make proper steps down to each level so I don’t hurl myself over by mistake and break my neck.

It’s a bit of a labour of love, this house, and will take a while to get it right. So far though, we’ve managed to have two upstairs terraces sealed, some damaged roof tiles replaced, and we’ve changed every window into new double-glazing-keep the cold-out fabulous ones! Happily they are still in keeping with the house, so not only do they do a great job at keeping out noise and wind, they look good too.

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