Villa Oleandro

Villa Oleandro was abandoned many years ago; we are still trying to discover her history.

She was owned by so many people that they threw away the key and left the doors wide open.  The house was used by any passer-by or animal for shelter and was pillaged by all and sundry.

The once impressive front door was hanging off its hinges, the stone mullion door surrounds were long gone though strangely the pedestal stones were still in place.  Most of the flagstone floors had been ripped up and carted away along with nearly all the staircase stone treads and the internal doors and windows were beyond saving.  There was no water, electricity or sewerage.  She was a shell. 

When we had a look inside we were astounded and excited by the original beauty of the house.  Every room had a vaulted ceiling, including the stable, most of them 4 meters high and the wide two-flight staircase had a semi-circular vaulted ceiling with a cross-vault at the first landing.  Magnificent.

But we were also taken aback by the devastation; trees had taken hold in the roof along with a lot of other vegetation.  Rainwater was getting in everywhere, plaster was falling off the walls, debris littered the floors and cracks were beginning to show in the upper floors.  Our builder assured us that these were superficial though in the same breath he told us that the house was on its last legs and that a couple of bad winters would see it off.

We eventually traced the 10 owners and finally managed to buy the house 12 months, almost to the day, after first seeing it.  We then spent some 2 years restoring, renovating and extending.  The hyperlinks above show a small amount of the work carried out.

In addition we connected to the electricity grid, drilled a well, constructed a water storage tank and managed to get a telephone connected.

Villa Oleandro sits on rock and is fronted by a 300 sqm terrace with traditional pillars that support a pergola of newly planted vines.  The terrace is bordered by an impressive 4 meter wall.  Stairs descend to a further terrace, which in turn steps down to another larger terrace.   Here, on this lowest terrace, we would like to construct a swimming pool, but for the moment bureaucrats will not allow.

The lifestyle here is almost unique in the Gargano, for nearly everyone lives in town.  We are surrounded by olive groves and woods owned by people who live in Vico del Gargano.  Houses dot  the countryside, but they have long been abandoned and most are in a sad state of disrepair if not dereliction.