Until we visited for the first time, the basement was a complete unknown quantity. When we got there we were greeted by years’ worth of junk and neglect. The floor was (we think) very compacted earth. The walls were crumbling. It has 2 generations of old kitchen cabinets and a collection of old tools, paint, rubbish and other “stuff” that was neither use nor ornament.
Antonio the builder went in and handled the lot. We were back in the UK by the time work started so just left him to crack on. He completely emptied it, leveled the floor as best he could, tiled it all and repaired the walls.
Now we just have to decide what to do with it. It’s not completely weather-proof in as much as it has an opening for a window but there is no actual window. The door has been left with the original (We liked it!). To start with, we thought we’d just use at for storage. But it’s too good for that. As I type this, we’ve not seen it in real life since the work has been done so we have a few ideas. It’ll probably end up as a summer lounge with some comfy chairs and bits to turn it into a cooler place to sit if it’s too hot upstairs. Watch this space!