Cascina Grassi

It's not so secret that Stefan and I talk about, as a long term goal, refurbishing and living in a place, maybe in Italy, that's a retreat center for workshops, artists, etc. Well, his sister-in-law Bettina recently stayed in this one opened by a German couple with the same idea. It's in the Piedmont, an area renowned for its wine and food. You can rent small apartments or the whole place (up to 20 people). I'm not sure, but I bet if you rent the whole place it's pretty darned affordable -- plus it has a big kitchen so she said her group cooked big communal meals every night. With kids, they were well over 20 people and all fit. A good time was reportedly had by all!