The main event of 2006 has been once again a house move. We left Rome in July 2006. For quite some time Daniela and me were planning on returning to the land where our parents are originally from, Piedmont, in the north next to the Alps. We bought an old 18th century Rectory 70 km from Turin (where the Winter Olympics were held). It is a nice house but it has been an awesome task to renovate. I stopped working at the end of 2005 so I dedicated my time, and I mean full time, to the restoration of this old house. For a while the place was in a mess. Work had started but our schedule was obviously not respected by the workers. I tell you it’s easier to implement a 5 year strategic plan for a multinational company then get the plumber to do his work on time. Anyways after much delay and obviously a monstrous overrun on the budget we finally moved in. The house is quite lovely, even though some work has yet to be done, and we feel really at home here in this small village quite a change from the busy chaotic city of Rome. We are also close to Daniela’s family which is a bonus ….most of the time. Because the house is quite big, Daniela has opened up a Bed & Breakfast activity as we have 4 extra spare bedrooms which we did not really know what to do with them. She has done a fantastic job with the rooms but she says there is still lots to do. Daniela seems to enjoy meeting the tourists that come and stay with us and most of the guests have become friends too!! Now in winter business is slow but she has quite a few of bookings for the spring already. People come here because there are really nice things to do. There are really fantastic restaurants, the wine is very good, and you can’t beet the prices, great value for money.
We will shortly have a web page for you to go and look at. Who knows, if you and your friends travel to Italy you might want to book a room here. Daniela is a great host and she sets up a fantastic breakfast with country fresh bread from the village baker shop, her own jams, and freshly baked cakes. The café espresso is rather strong too and will surely keep you going for the rest of the day as you go on your site seeing tours of the region.
As I mentioned I stopped working in September 2005 and decided (forced) to take a sabbatical year. After 10 years of sleeping in Boeing 747’s rather then my own bed at home, I needed a break and to understand what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. Furthermore, the job market was slow in Italy so our project to renovate the Rectory came at a good time to keep me busy. As I was chopping trees, digging holes, etc., etc., I was thinking what to do next and a few thoughts came to my mind: fly fishing, collect coins, play guitar, finally learn how to golf, travel, and ….. the list was endless. Unfortunately 2 things happened: the renovation bills started to come in (arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!) and Daniela thought that I was too “young” to retire and should not waste my time and deprive the business community of my great experience and professional skills. Basically Daniela, after having me present 7 days a week, wanted me out of the house as soon as possible!! Well, as always she was right and in September I started contacting the usual head hunter firms and my own network to go find a job.
After a number of interviews with different companies, I have decided to make a significant career change. On the 1st of February I will start working as a consultant with the Hudson Highland Group, an international executive search firm.
On the side, I also have started 2 business ventures with friends and former colleagues. One project involves a real estate company which has as its main mission the construction of apartments and villas close to the city of Milan. Several building sites have been opened and results are very encouraging. The other project is an idea I started defining while sweating in the hot Italian sun this summer renovating my house. This project is focused on opening Italian restaurants with a very particular positioning and food offering. There are 10 investors on board and a friend of mine will be leading the project. We are in the feasibility stage of the project and will keep you posted.
My favourite daughter Maria Sole is living and working in London. After getting her degree in Costume and Theatre Design she has been involved on different freelance projects and done very interesting work in England. She is now looking for a full time job possibly in related fields such as interior decoration / design markets. She has a fiancé and they have decided to live together. His name is Chris; he is Dutch and working in London doing his training and internship requirements for his engineering / architecture degree. They met while in Rome in high school and I believe the lad is serious about the relationship as he has asked me to convince Maria Sole to marry him. She says that she is an artist and that artists don’t marry. Mom is in desperation.
My favourite son Matteo Sergio is in Miami finishing his final year in Hotel Management at Florida International University. After completing his 3 year degree in Hospitality Management at Les Rochés in Switzerland, he wanted to get a full business degree form the United States. I was a little concerned when Matteo was selecting his University as he was paying much attention not only to the academic qualification of the various institutions but particularly he was most interested in statistics like boy-to-girl ratio and days of sunshine!!! The great news for me is that I will finish paying his tuition by the end of this summer so I will be rich again.
We are really quite proud of our Kids because whatever they will do in life they seem to have learnt the good from the bad and too me, that is a huge success story for us.
Well dear friends, I think I have rambled enough about the Cortese Family and it is time to end this letter. We miss you all very much and hope to see you all really soon. For the time being may 2007 be a very peaceful and prosperous year and if you have a few spare minutes drop us a line.
With all our love,
Roberto and Daniela
La Canonica
Via Provinciale, 20
12030 Pagno (CN)
Italy
Home tel.. +39-0175.76.333
Mobiles: +39-339.10.80.585 / +39-338.139.31.45
