wishfulmom

My son is currently 4 1/2, and I am hoping to go to Italy for 3 months when he is around 7 or 8 ( I am open to suggestions on this). I have never been, and I do not think I will be there before this trip.We are from the US and I am picking Italy only because it seems beautiful, relaxed and warm. I am picking this age because I want him old enough to appreciate it, but young enough to pick up the language and culture change easily. I want him to have an experience he will never forget, hopefully pick up the language and have the time of our lives. I am in the very early stages, and would love some advice on how to go about this. From the bit of reading I have done, it doesn't appear that working will be an option (correct me if I am wrong), if not I would be willing to work as a nanny, shlep gelato, or use my business degree. I am looking to rent a place for a month and maybe try another city for another month? This is going to be done on a single-moms moderate budget. Open to all suggestions- optimum age of child at time of trip, locations, time of year, sites to help on this planning. Any advice would be appreciated immensely! Thank you in advance.

nytraveler

No - an american cannot work in Italy - unless you get a very special type of visa - usually sponsored by your employer.

As tourists you would be allowed to stay in Schengen (including Italy) for 90 days without getting a visa. Have you looked into the cost of renting apartments for a month in decent residential areas? (Not sure where you are from - but costs in europe may be much more expensive than you are used to at home.)

An 8 year old wold be agood age to do this - but what would you do about taking him out of school - you don't have a 3 month summer vacation do you? And woud you and your son be taking Italian lessons - you would need to find an appropriate facility to do this.

StCirq

This seems like a kind of crazy plan to me. Your son won't pick up the language in 90 days, which is the most you can stay without a special visa, to begin with. Are you planning to take your son out of school for this? Learning a language takes a lot more than 90 days, even if you're young and absorbent as a sponge.

You can't work in Italy without the appropriate papers. Do you have them?

Working as a nanny or some other "under the radar" profession isn't exactly cool; in fact, it's illegal.

This sounds like some kind of pipe dream. Not reality.

janisj

"<i>Working as a nanny or some other "under the radar" profession isn't exactly cool; in fact, it's illegal.</i>" . . . plus the little detail that few nannies have their own 8yo child along for the gig . . .

Why not just save up a lot of $$$ for the next 3.5 years and go for a month or two on your own dime?

Or -- you <i>could</i> maybe enroll in a college/language school yourself and perhaps qualify for a student visa. But you'd actually have to attend classes and child care would be an issue.

adrienne

<< I am picking Italy only because it seems beautiful, relaxed and warm >>

Italy is beautiful and relaxed if you're not in major cities but it is not warm 12 months a year. There are times when it is cold, damp,and rainy.

I would get a couple of guide books and start reading about Italy. Then choose the area you want to visit and rent an apartment in.

Have you considered that it may be difficult for you to be with your son for 3 months without a support group (friends, family) and without a job for diversion (I'm assuming that you work). And if you do have a job will you be able to take 3 months off and have a job to return to?

longhorn55

As a U.S. Foreign Service family, we lived overseas with our children when they were aged 6 - 14. They have very little memory of anything we saw or did until they were about 9 or 10 years old. I will often say, "Do you remember when we did X?" and their reply is "I don't know what you are talking about."

I hate to rain further on your parade, but a 7 or 8 year old child is not going to appreciate living in another country and he sure is not going to have an experience he will never forget (because he will never remember it in the first place.)

dutyfree

Seriously rethink this idea.
I don't think you realize how expensive Europe is with the converting US dollars to Euros or UK pounds.Italy is wonderful but bringing your child for 3 months without a support system (friends or family if you got sick ,etc.) doesn't seem doable.
Do you have insurance that is valid overseas because most US policies don't cover overseas travel?
If you don't work,what do you plan to do for 3 months with your son over there?You cannot travel or sightsee everyday.

I think that you will find that school districts in the US are not too pleased with pulling kids out of school for 3 months especially when those are important years with math,cursive writing,etc.Not to mention things like sports or music activities.
Why don't you vacation there with a friend for two weeks or take your son in the next year on a vacation there?Then make a realistic decision on what your next plan is? Good luck!

Sassafrass

I don't want to be discouraging because travel is so great for everybody, children included. However, your desire to give him an experience he will never forget, while laudable is not as likely as you might now think. We lived in Germany for three years, starting when my youngest was five. When we came back to the US, the oldest was almost 11. We took them to many countries. They learned German. They have memories, but they are not intense enough you could call them unforgetable. They have vague memories of Pisa and sailing little boats in Paris, but clear memories of bowling with friends in Frankfurt and wooden shoes in Holland.

Guess what I am trying to say is this. Take a trip if you can, but don't build up expectations that are too great for creating an "unforgetable" memory for your son. Counting on that "one big thing" can distract from everyday adventure and end up a disappointment. Do continue with your research and planning. Perhaps first time around though, take a smaller bite out of the travel apple. Consider only 10 days to two weeks to see how you and child do in a foreign environment.

pookymimi

I moved to this country from Chile when my Son was almost 6 and if I could go back I would never do it again. It was one of the hardest thing we had to do. My American husband was gone 6 months out of the year and I was alone most of the time with just my son for years.

Why would you put yourself in that position?

It will be the most isolating thing you can do for both of you without social support. Your son won't know the language, English is backwards from Latin languages, we conjugate differently, so it's hard to learn fast. My son didn't pick up the English for months and he had to be basically isolated while I was at work during the day.

I would go on vacation, but not to live when there is a language barrier and not a roof over our heads.

Sassafrass

Pookymimi, You are the voice of an experience that is similar to what I had when I first left the states to move to Germany. It is much tougher on the kids than adults sometimes realize. Even though there were some good things from it, the long term repercusions of disconnecting from Grandparents and other family was considerable and could never be made whole again. With many, many years retrospect, I loved the experience, but I feel the negative far out weighed the benefits for my children. A problem we had was that after three years, my kids were finally adjusted to Germany, then we picked up and moved back to the states, which by that time, felt like another foreign country to them, and the adjustments had to be made all over again. That was much worse than the first move. With e-mail, skype, etc. it is so much easier now, and the three months that the OP is considering is not several years, but your point about the difficulty and isolation is valid, even more so when it is a single parent. I sincerely hope you have been able to maintain close ties with your family in Chile and that you and your son are both doing well now.