Mum and Dads House

October 01, 2012

Mum and Dads House

Last updated 14 March 2015 - this post was originally posted to promote the sale of the property, this property is no longer available .

This is the beautiful house my parents lived in for 10 years, in the Spanish region of Galicia.

The front aspect of Lavandeira

My parents moved out to Spain in Spring 2003, my mum was born in La Coruna on the Galician coast and left to come to England when she was in her teens. My dad was curious about Spanish living and so they decided to take 10 years out from Britain to experience life the Spanish way.

The origins of the house are quite old, it used to be a wash house, hence the name "Lavandeira". 11 years ago when mum and dad came across the house it was a definite renovation project, but it has been lovingly restored into a beautiful 3 bedroomed stone built country home.

Lavandeira is only a few minutes walk from the town with a school, health centre, dentist and chemist, bakers, butchers and greengrocers, general and hardware stores, a couple of banks, a petrol station and car repairs garage and several bars and restaurants.on the edge of the town of Ferreira de Pantón. There is an open air swimming pool at Ferreira.

Nearby there is a spa and golf centre http://www.aguassantas.es/

The nearest large town is Monforte de Lemos, with a good range of shops, coffee bars and restaurants. It's historic castle is now a Parador. The town has a municipal swimming pool, an attractive park with play areas for the children and an outdoor gym for the more mature residents. The River Cabe runs through it.

The nearest city is Ourense, about a 30 minute drive, with it's famous thermal hot springs. About an hour away is the walled city of Lugo.

The nearest airport is at Santiago de Compostela, about a 90 minute drive. If you live in the UK, Ryan Air operate them from Stansted.

Lavandeira is set in a rural barrio of just seven houses, close to the grounds of the local convent. Expect to hear the sounds of the countryside along with the bells of the convent. You may also see hoopoes, stork, black squirrels, there has also been the occasional sighting of a wild boar or a civet. Over the roof tops you get distant mountain views. The barrio is serviced by a small road which only leads to the houses.

The house and gardens are gated to maintain privacy.

The entrance to Lavandeira, with it's front terrace and patio

The house itself is of mainly stone construction, the kitchen is brick built and stone faced to be in keeping with the older parts of the house. It is furnished with hardwood doors and windows, all the windows have interior hardwood security shutters. The kitchen and shower room floors are laid to tile and the rest of the house has polished hardwood floors. In addition to the log burner in the living room, the house has full gas central heating with a radiator in each room. The house is serviced by a mains water supply, telephone and broadband ADSL connection. It has an ecological septic tank.

The kitchen

The balcony can be accessed from the kitchen,
the living room and bedroom 3

Through the main door there is an entrance hall leading to the kitchen/diner (3.25 x 4.25m). It's fitted with units fronted with bespoke solid wood doors. There are granite work tops and fitted appliances - a stainless steel gas hob with extractor fan, an electric oven, half-sized dishwasher and fridge-freezer. A half-glazed door at the far side of the room leads on to the covered balcony, where a grape vine runs along the front of the house.

The large lounge, looking towards the wood burning fire,
behind you is a dining area and access to the balcony

There is a large lounge (5.65 x 4.8 m), with a vaulted wood ceiling, varnished hardwood floor. Three of the walls are solid stone and there are half glazed doors leading out onto the balcony. The room is heated by a cast iron Hergom log burner on a stone plinth.

The shower room is equipped with w.c., washbasin and shower cubicle with extractor fan.

The house has 3 bedrooms. Bedroom 3 (2.25 x 2.75m) is a good sized single room, with half glazed hardwood doors onto the balcony.

Bedroom 3 currently has a single bed, a chest of drawers
and a desk and is used as a guest room/office

Bedroom 2 (2.8 x 3.9m) is a double with vaulted ceiling, fitted wardrobes and hardwood doors leading out onto the patio/terrace and garden.

Bedroom 2, to the left are fitted wardrobes

Bedroom 2 - Access to the terrace and patio

Bedroom 1 (2.8 x 4.9m) is another double, with vaulted ceiling and a window looking out over nearby woods.

Bedroom 1 - a light and airy room
with a window overlooking the woods

Below the main living accommodation there is a utility room with a Roca combination gas boiler/water heater. There is plumbing for a washing machine and sockets for appliances.

Utility room

There is also a large cellar/storeroom and a wine bodega, with the right permissions these rooms could be converted to form additional living space if required.

The Bodega, with wine making equipment

Outside there is a detached stone building approximately 26 square meters currently used as a walled courtyard for barbecues and outdoor dining, but again with the correct permissions this could be converted into a guest room or studio.

The patio and lawn

There is a small lawned garden with flower borders. Again there are a variety of fruit trees. There is a patio area with pot plants and shrubs, partly covered by a grape vine and a terrace which leads to a fruit and vegetable garden.