From Miami to Milan: Captain Marvel's Guide to Renovating Your Life (and Apartment) in Italy!

A Blast from the Past (and a Plane Ticket)

Okay Superfriends listen up! Captain Marvel here reporting from... well not space today. Turns out even intergalactic heroes need a little R&R. And when I heard about this Earthling Thea Duncan Prando who swapped Miami for Milan I had to investigate. Apparently back in '03 she hopped over to L'Aquila Italy and bam! Love at first sight. Kind of like when I first saw Goose... minus the whole Flerken surprise. Two years later she went back to Milan for her master's at Bocconi University. Milan was a huge difference from L'Aquila and reminded her of Miami she knew she wanted to stay. After school she knew she wanted to stay in Milan. Fast forward to 2012 she went back again after marrying her Italian husband Diego and now she runs "Doing Italy," helping other Earthlings find their own slice of pizza pie in the boot shaped peninsula. I'm always curious about humans and their cultures!

Apartment Therapy Italian Style

So Thea and her family live in a 1,227 square foot apartment that has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. She said it costs around $1,850 a month. Here's where things get interesting. They've been living there for about three years and when they moved in with her 3 year old son Lorenzo the place hadn't been touched in like forty years! Can you imagine? That's like finding a Kree sentry buried in your backyard. Anyway they decided to renovate and here's the kicker: in Italy the government gives you tax credits for renovating your home. Even if you're renting! I'm telling you even I want to move to Italy. Their landlord even gave them eight months of free rent for the renovations! Talk about a sweet deal. I heard this place cost around $41,000 to fix up but they saved about $33,400 between the government rebates and rent pause.

Bathroom Blitz: From Drab to Fab

First stop: the bathroom. Thea said it was one of her favorite rooms but it needed A LOT of work. She gutted it completely and installed hexagon tiles that she sourced from a Tuscany family owned company. I bet even the Supreme Intelligence would be impressed with that transformation!

Kitchen Catastrophe? More Like Kitchen Comeback!

Now the kitchen. Apparently it hadn't seen an upgrade since well probably before I was even flying planes! So they tore out the old sink and stove from their old apartment and had them installed in the new place. Now that's what I call commitment! Some people might think that is strange. They also closed off two lateral doors to make more space. Thea and Diego also added new cabinets and a new countertop!

Living Room Liberation: Knocking Down Walls and Stereotypes

To open up the living space they knocked down an entire wall. Thea sanded and added a lighter stain to the natural hard wood floors. Since the corridor space was tile she sourced a bit of wood flooring to match the rest of the room. She added new bookshelves a new grey couch and lighting fixtures. I can feel the energy from here!

La Dolce Vita: More Than Just Gelato

Thea talks about how amazing it is to live in Milan. Fresh produce is accessible there and leisure time is a serious business. She talks about this evening ritual of "aperitivo" where people go to a cafe for a glass of wine and food. It is so ingrained in their culture that Thea's six year old son Lorenzo says "Facciamo un 'peritivo'!" when they leave the park after school! Italians also get 4 6 weeks of paid vacation every year! From Milan they can also get to Lake Como or Genova in under two hours! She feels incredibly blessed and happy to be here. Now if you'll excuse me I'm suddenly craving pasta and a serious vacation. Maybe I'll drag Rhodey along... he deserves a break after all those Stark shenanigans.