From fairy tale to disappointment: what moving to Italy turned into

A British family who moved to the Italian region of Umbria faced deep disappointment due to bureaucracy, religious education in kindergarten, and the language barrier. After six months of living there, they decided to relocate to the United States.

A British family, consisting of a pregnant woman, her helicopter pilot husband, their three-year-old son, and their pets, moved to the Italian region of Umbria, on the border with Tuscany, in search of a better climate and quality of life. Their previous experience living in Iceland prompted them to seek warmth. They rented a farmhouse with land for 750 euros per month. At first, life seemed like a fairy tale: perfect weather, free kindergarten, and the hospitality of locals. However, reality quickly shattered the illusions. The main problems were exhausting bureaucracy, turning simple tasks into a quest, and religious education in kindergarten, where their son was forced to listen to two-hour Catholic sermons. The final straw was the language barrier: even intensive Italian courses did not help the woman, who is naturally shy about making acquaintances. The foreign language environment caused her a feeling of deep isolation and demoralization. The family decided to permanently move to the United States, realizing they could not live comfortably in any European country.