Not far from Lecco, on a plateau formed by the delta of the Zerbo stream and dominated by the rocks of the Southern Grigna rises Abbadia Lariana.
Until a few centuries ago, the inhabitants of these lands lived mostly on subsistence agriculture, many of the areas now inhabited and built upon were mostly occupied by fields planted with wheat and corn, pastures, green areas and forests from which timber was obtained, where possible along the mountain slopes, terraces were created for the cultivation of vines, olive trees and vegetable gardens.
The barn, hayloft and upper floor dwelling constituted the most common pattern for farmsteads in those days.
This was also the case for our family, which has been involved in agriculture and pastoralism for generations, raising sheep cows and silkworms on behalf of the historic Setificio Monti silk factory, which today can be visited as the Silk Museum located in the center of Abbadia Lariana. It is in these places that we two siblings, Irene and Attilio, also grew up, playing chasing each other in the meadows, discovering with wonder the magic of the surrounding woods.
A simple life marked by the rhythm of the seasons, games in the snow in winter, helping parents take care of plants and the countryside on summer vacations. They say that those who had a childhood in contact with nature will love it even more when they grow up.
So it was for us: our passion for plants found outlet in the greenhouse and olive grove, now the farm’s core activities, but something was changing…
Over the years the management of the barn and animals had become for our parents, a heavy and nowadays unprofitable activity, from this situation came the idea of transforming the old barn with its dominant position into a farmhouse.
The barn has been renovated while retaining some of its most characteristic aspects and now houses modern apartments with panoramic views of the much-vaunted Lake Di Como.
…Nothing is created, nothing is destroyed but everything is transformed….
This is the philosophy that nature has taught us, giving us the strength and resourcefulness to enliven these places to make them accessible to anyone looking for a corner of peace and relaxation where the poetry of the lake can still be breathed: its landscapes suspended over the placid waters crowned by the blue mountains in the evening, the green meadows and the tranquil rosy skies.
