It didn’t all start with Frances Mayes. Yes, her 1996 blockbuster Under the Tuscan Sun made owning a house in the Italian countryside seem like nirvana with better food. But mankind has sought Italy’s rolling green hills, vast meadows and sunny skies ever since the Ancient Roman aristocracy built villas in the Alban Hills outside Rome. 

The idea of rural Italy has passed through the minds of anyone who is overworked, under-loved and out of breath. For those blessed to visit, love for this country sometimes turns dreams into plans. For Gretchen, 75, and Peter Bloom, 79, and for Beth Blosser, 59, and Stefano Carta, 58, their dreams have become reality. I know. I’m standing in the middle of that dream. I’m in the spacious living room — I think. Wait, maybe it’s the sun room.