Mibel Aguilar and Bill Farrugia, North Warrandyte, Melbourne Australia
We wanted to highlight our wonderful owners Mibel and Bill, who recently increased their interest portfolio at Vagli so that they can spend more time at the Hamlet and invite family and friends to join them too.
Our first stay at Borgo di Vagli was a Discovery Visit 3 months after seeing a notice in an Italian property newsletter. From the moment we picked up the car in Florence, the excitement built about visiting the beautiful hamlet that seemed too good to be true. But as anyone who has visited knows so well, the gorgeous 700-year-old beautifully restored cosy stone residences and the dreamlike surroundings were totally overwhelming – we had found our Tuscan paradise.
While it was very easy to make the decision to become an owner (and I would have loved to own 10 x 1/10ths), we weren’t sure how practical it might be to visit often enough to make full use of our share living 24 hours away in Australia!!!
So we became proud owners of a 1/15th interest (which gave us 14 planned vacation days a year plus unlimited space available vacations) of a one-bedroom residence category. However, after about 15 months (and two more stays) we decided to increase our share to a 1/10th interest (which gave us 28 planned vacation days a year plus unlimited space available vacations), not only to spend more time at our Home in Tuscany but to also allow us to invite family and friends to join us. The larger interest gives us that flexibility and we are looking forward to our first extended family visit later this year.
And now, two years on, physically I live over here, but I constantly daydream about being over there. I have collected every book about living and travelling in Tuscany and even several crime novels set in Tuscany. I pore over maps of Tuscany, Umbria, Le Marche and Abruzzo, planning several years holidays in advance – and then extend the horizons to different other regions of Italy and France and family visits back to Spain and Belgium.
Looking back at various holiday destinations, my warmest memories (apart from family catch-ups) are where we stayed for an extended time and got to know the locals and felt like we were part of the community. The Borgo di Vagli owners and staff are a very special community and they all make our home in Tuscany a very special place.
Phil Doran described it perfectly in his book “The Reluctant Tuscan” (what is the opposite of reluctant??, that’s me). From the moment you land or when the Frecciarossa crosses into the region, “Tuscany begins to work its magic. Its alluring charms and inexhaustible natural beauty seduce you and if you are not careful, you find yourself feeling happy for absolutely no reason at all”. Actually, you can never tell which of the million reasons has weaved its magic on you!
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