Beautiful stone house, high in the medieval mountain village of Roccacasale

About Mark Clark

Hi, my name is Mark, I'm 48 years old and I have lived in England all my life until I moved here to Abruzzo in April 2013. I have always loved to travel and love the outdoors, especially walking and trekking and this is what inspired me to buy a property and set it up as a holiday let and guest house. I am well educated and have a degree in Economics from York University but I have never really used this. I couldn't get a job when I graduated and so found myself working in kitchens most of my life. I started as a dish washer and worked my way up to Chef. I live in a separate suite at the property and so will be available to cook a BBQ once a week if required and pizza's one evening when I have finished building the wood-fired pizza oven outside the house. I look forward to meeting you

Mark Clark purchased this House in 2007

Why Mark Clark chose

I bought a house in Roccacasale in particular because two friends had already bought properties here and made connections with local builders and people necessary for the renovations. I bought this house in particular because I could see that it would be beautiful when restored but mostly because when I walked out onto the 2nd floor balcony and saw the view I went weak at the knees. I had to have it. I had been in Italy for 8 hours for the first time in my life and I agreed to buy it there and then. It took four and a half years of hard work to get the restoration finished and a little longer for the interior and the garden but now it is ready for guests. Roccacasale is perfect for me, it has the peace and tranquillity of a mountain village but is close to larger towns and transport links.

What makes this House unique

The most amazing thing about the property is the view. From the ground floor it is fantastic but from the second floor balconies you get the view that made me buy and this is breathtaking. You can see out above the house and trees and you can see the whole of the Peligna Valley to the right and left surrounded by mountains. 20km long and 10km wide it is a vast beautiful valley with pretty villages dotted along its length. Stunning. Then when you go up another floor to the terrace it gets even better. 360 degrees of mountain views with the village dropping away beneath you so steeply it is almost like being perched on a cliff. In addition to this the house is perfectly positioned for exploring the 3 national parks in the region, and the regional park. I can't wait to share it with people.