-For many Brits, renovating a property in Europe is a lifelong dream.

-I think we need to rebuild this.

100%.

-But some have bigger dreams than others.

-This is crazy.

-Even I would think twice about having a go at this.

-Because scattered around Europe are thousands of villages, hamlets, and historical settlements lying abandoned... -These houses should be preserved, the history in them.

-...on the brink of being lost forever.

-The future is about making sure that this continues.

-In this series, we meet a brand-new batch of village owners... -Glasses at the ready.

-...and return to some familiar faces as they set about rebuilding history.

-You think you know what needs to be done, and then you don't know a tenth of what needs to be done.

-They'll discover ancient mysteries... -Got a big cavern here, and then we've got a tunnel over there.

-...as they turn their crumbling ruins into amazing homes and businesses.

-We have really made this place come alive again.

-But will it be a smooth ride... -And that's how you wreck a house.

-...or will their dreams come tumbling down... -[ Groans ] -Crack a smile.

You can do it.

-...as they restore the past to build their future.

-We bought a village.

-We bought a village.

-[ Laughs ] ♪♪ -Today, our village saviors face some of their biggest challenges yet... -That's it.

Here we go.

-Ooh!

-Yeah, don't do that.

-Don't want to do that.

-...as removing a roof at a crumbling French hamlet proves to be high risk.

-Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

-Hold on there.

Hold on.

-Can an events business at an Italian village cope with an ever-increasing guest list?

-He told me he's had 83 acceptances.

I don't know how you get 83 acceptances from 50 invites.

-And a family feel the financial strain of trying to resurrect a ghost village.

-We'll have to use our savings to -- -To survive until end of March next year.

♪♪ ♪♪ -It often feels like the ghost villages of Europe have a mind of their own.

They are unpredictable and often fight back when people try to tame them.

The lost village of La Buslière in France is a prime example.

Once a thriving community supporting many families who would farm its land, make cider in the old apple press, and bake bread in the communal bakery... the village, like many others, lost its sense of purpose.

♪♪ That's until Paul and Yip's love affair with La Buslière began.

And through sheer hard work and determination, they're slowly winning the battle to bring it back to life.

♪♪ -So, for us, this isn't just a building project at all.

You know, this is our home.

-We feel very privileged to be putting our hearts and souls into this.

And we feel very lucky to be part of, hopefully, this place's history.

you know, in the decades to come.

-It's now February 2023, and though Paul and Yip had plans to focus on creating a holiday business, it seems La Buslière has other ideas.

The roof of the old bakery, which they hoped to turn into a café baking pizzas is in a bad way.

So the boys have had to change their plans to save the roof from collapse.

-But I thought that we'd get all the nasty tiles and rotten wood stripped off so if they're looking at anything, it'll be new wood and new -- You know, they'll know -- -At least it will look presentable and nice.

-Yeah.

-And with the winter weather starting to clear up... -There's no time like the present.

-...they can finally inspect the timber.

-Oh, dear, rotten.

They're rotten.

Get them all off, start again, and then we know, hopefully, that the roof will be good for a few more years yet.

-They're determined to do as much of the work as possible to save La Buslière, but this job is certainly one of the most precarious.

-And remember, that's rotten.

I wouldn't be on that.

-Right.

-Just take that off of there.

This has now been deemed too dangerous.

-By our health-and-safety officer.

-By our health-and-safety officer.

-But the upside of a rotten roof is the speed which it can come down.

♪♪ And as the roof is removed... the daylight shines a light on what's left of the beautiful brickwork of the bakery walls and bread oven, which was built 200 years ago using just limestone blocks and mud.

And the intricate construction of the oven is quite a work of art.

-This is going to look stunning, this is.

It really is.

I'm very excited about this.

It's my most favorite building on this whole thing, this is.

-But as each wooden plank is removed, the ridge beam across the top of the building gets less and less secure.

-Gently do this top, yeah?

Hang on.

Very gently.

-There we go.

There we go.

-Yeah?

♪♪ That's it.

There we go.

-Ooh!

-Yeah, don't do that.

-Don't want to do that.

-As they reach the final few chevrons, Paul can see the roof is becoming unstable, so secures the ladder to the wall.

-Famous last words.

-I'll put my legs through it, like that.

There you go.

♪♪ -You're gonna need that.

Ooh!

Yeah, don't do that.

-Like that?

-Yep.

-Alright, just the last one now.

That's it.

You got it.

♪♪ ♪♪ Ooh!

Okay.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

Hold on, yeah?

Hold on.

Hold on.

-That was a bit silly, that was.

-All in one piece.

Is everyone present?

-Everyone's present and correct.

-Rebuilding an ancient village involves many risks, but, thankfully, securing the ladder on the wall saved Yip from falling.

And now they just need to get the ridge beam and get down to safe ground.

♪♪ Across in Portugal is another lost village where work on the buildings is beginning to take place.

At Chumbaria, 98 miles north of Lisbon, village saviors Sarah and Steve are fighting to bring it back to life after falling for its charms three years ago.

♪♪ -We were building up to the day when we were going to come to deal with the notary exchange, and Sarah said, "I'm just having a little bit of a wobble.

I'm sure it's fine.

But are we doing the right thing?

Do you think it's the right place for us?"

And I said, "Well, why don't we just drop by again tomorrow."

So, we got here, and I said, "So, come on, honestly," and she said, "Yeah, of course it's the right thing to be doing."

It's beautiful here.

It's so lovely.

We wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

Did you?

Would you?

-I'd like you to be somewhere else sometimes.

[ Laughs ] -It's now January 2023, and work has finally begun on the old barn, which, 50 years ago, was used as a hayloft and to store feed for the animals in the village.

Although most of the buildings in Chumbaria will become holiday lets, this building will be Sarah and Steve's home.

-Bom dia.

Bom dia.

-This is like the first official, official day.

-Although, you can never get too excited, because you don't know if they're going to be here tomorrow.

-And it is going to rain all next week.

So, again, there will be another delay, I would imagine.

But it is really exciting, even for me.

I'm quite excited.

-You know, they're cracking on with it, which is great, isn't it?

-It's bloody brilliant.

-Music to our ears, isn't it?

-It's fantastic.

-True to their principles, the couple are making sure that their renovations retain all the charm of the old buildings.

-Yes, it might cost a little bit more, but the value for us is in the way they look with style.

We think they're beautiful, and the village would change entirely if we put up a great, big concrete house somewhere.

-Can't believe that they can just do it so quickly.

-The positive changes around the village are testament to Steve and Sarah's determination to overcome whatever challenges life throws at them.

But they're about to face their biggest battle yet.

♪♪ -Gonna talk about it?

Go on and get it off your chest, as it were.

♪♪ -Um...

I kind of feel like I need to say it, because I don't know what's going to happen, but when we got the license granted, I got diagnosed with breast cancer.

So we've had three months of tests and all sorts of things.

So it's been a very difficult three months.

And it really would be lovely to be really optimistic about the future.

But I've got to have surgery and radiotherapy, and that's very imminent in the next few weeks.

Um, so -- -And then we can get back on with being.

-And then we can get back on with being enthusiastic and happy.

-Yeah.

-You know, you move to a different country and it's idyllic and you love it and it's a lovely way of life, but life is life, and you've still got challenges to face behind the scenes.

♪♪ -Coming up, is a fledgling events business as a restored ghost village about to take off?

-This is a start-up, because only now we started to get the elements -- all the elements together.

-And a trulli village in Italy gets some guests.

-I'm expecting to see a scene of devastation.

[ Laughs ] I've seen Ivano's building before.

♪♪ ♪♪ -The abandoned settlements of Europe vary greatly, from clusters of crumbling farm cottages to forgotten fortified villages to decaying Grand Manoir.

But, arguably, none are as unique or eye-catching as the little pockets of trulli you'll find dotted across Puglia in Italy.

Built around the turn of the 18th century, although beautiful, these dwellings were basic, so when people began to crave the luxuries of modern life, these small communities dissipated, and the buildings were left to crumble.

100 kilometers south of Bari lies one such settlement -- Cotogni.

Once a bustling farming community, it's now in the hands of Tracey and Ivano, who want to save the crumbling homes to create a holiday village, breathing life back into this site once more.

♪♪ -It has got so much history, and, you know, we love the way they are.

-To bring it back would be amazing.

-We know what we want to do.

We know what we can do.

And we'll definitely make a success of it once we have it built.

That is for sure.

But we need to get it built.

[ Laughs ] -It's early March, and Ivano and Tracey are expecting some important visitors to their tiny trulli village.

-So, my dad and my stepmom are coming today.

-Yes!

-And they've not been here before, so we've sent them a few photos, haven't we?

But they've not really got an idea.

-Yeah, they have no idea of what we got here and the mess.

Especially now.

-The mess more than anything.

-It's a mess.

-Yeah.

-More than anything.

But it's getting there, slowly.

-And they both work for a building company, so... -Yeah, they will be scrutinizing the work.

-They've been waiting for specialist builders, as they have to be UNESCO-registered to work on the trulli, due to their historical significance.

But, thankfully, their elusive builders have been back on-site to attend to a few jobs in their home before their relatives arrive.

-This week, we've been pestering the builders to come and put electricity in the bathroom and the lights and to put doors on, really, haven't we?

-The came the day before yesterday to put the doors and the lights.

-Yeah.

-So it's good.

-So at least that's done.

-Yeah.

-After a five-hour trip, Lynn and Alan are about to get their first glimpse of Cotogni.

-I'm expecting to see a scene of devastation.

[ Laughs ] I've seen Ivano's building before.

[ Laughs ] But it'll be alright, though.

-Despite the lack of progress, Ivano and Tracey are hoping that Lynn and Alan will be charmed by the trulli, just like they were.

-It's almost finished.

There's not much work to do in here, is there?

The floor is lovely.

-And Alan's keen to learn about the ancient building's history.

-So, who lived in here originally, then?

-The owners.

-Right.

-One of the owners' brother was born here, in here.

-Oh.

-Yeah.

-In 19-- What was it?

40... -1942, I think he said.

-Oh, '47, I think.

-How old are they?

-1700.

-Yeah.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-So, under, they used to press the grapes in there, and there is a hole down there.

The juice used to go in there.

-As the trulli were cool and dry, they provided excellent storage for produce from the land.

And while people lived on the upper floors, the cellars underneath were used to store food and oils.

Although the trulli's history is fascinating, Alan and Lynn need to use their imagination as to what they may look like when finished.

But the main house is a different story.

-Oh, this is very civilized.

[ Both laugh ] -This is very nice, isn't it?

-This is much better.

-Yes.

Thank you.

-This is spectacular.

I had no idea you were going to be able to do something like this.

-Breathing life back into this ancient settlement has been quite the battle.

And although Tracey and Ivano's work here is far from done, Alan and Lynn are "trulli" impressed.

-They said that there was 80 olive trees.

And how many acres of land is it?

8 acres?

-I don't know.

-And all the trullis in this to do.

Never would they be able to achieve that in a sensible time scale before they run out of money.

-But... -I think they will.

-...we were wrong.

-No, I think -- I always thought they'd do it, yeah.

-And they have done it.

-Yeah.

-And it seems like they'll be able to finish it off and they'll be financially viable.

♪♪ -Nearly 300 miles away, in the region of Lazio, is a shining example of what a ghost village can become after years of hard work.

Years ago, the settlement of I Ciacca had a population of around 70... before its residents gradually left for work on foreign shores.

By the 1970s, it had been completely abandoned.

It looked unlikely the village would survive, until Scottish lawyer Cesidio di Ciacca, whose own ancestors once lived here, brought it back to life.

-You're living in the middle of a country, countryside, where people have lived comfortably, maybe not rich, but always lived with enough to eat and enough to sleep well at night for hundreds and hundreds of years.

That must mean something.

-Although the village has been saved, keeping it alive is a never-ending battle.

So to help with its survival this year, Cesidio and his family are trying to turn I Ciacca into a thriving events business.

♪♪ It's April 2023 and another busy day for Cesidio as he works tirelessly to regenerate I Ciacca.

Cesidio wants to raise the profile of the village and promote it as a tourist hot spot.

He's attracting visitors from far and wide who are desperate to hear the village's story.

And today, he has another group of holidaymakers on a surprise visit.

And it's an ideal opportunity to promote the latest project about to get under way in I Ciacca.

-This was a vegetable garden 100 years ago, but became like this.

So we've cleaned it, and we're now going to plant fruit trees, all varieties of fruit trees, around which we will plant grapes, because that's the way it was done once upon a time.

-The new orchard will be reminiscent of the plantation here in the village's heyday, where each family had an individual plot growing an array of fruit and veg.

There'll be an official opening of the orchard next month, and it will hopefully bring more business to the village.

And visitors will be able to come and pick their own fruit.

After a tour of the historic village, it's time to let the impromptu guests taste some wine made right here.

-I'm sorry I didn't prepare any of this and it's all a bit unprepared.

I got the advantage, you see?

I'm going to try every glass to make -- Not every glass, every bottle.

-And it seems the guests are won over by both the wine and the story of I Ciacca.

-Well, I think, first of all, it's commendable job.

And you clearly have a love for the area, like ourselves, a connection to the area, and it's lovely to see.

It's almost intoxicating.

Nearly as intoxicating as the wine.

-It's been quite the day for Cesidio, and it's about to get even better.

Local priest and Cesidio's good friend Father Edna has just called in.

He's turning 50 next month and wants his party at the village.

-One day, want to stay with all my friends.

-Right.

So, that's the Thursday.

But what we could do -- and maybe this is enough -- is... -With 50 guests, Father Edna's will be one of the biggest parties to be held in I Ciacca yet.

So Cesidio needs to make sure it's a success.

But signs that I Ciacca's future is safe are looking good.

-Although we have been preparing this for 10 years and working this for 10 years, the truth of the matter is that this is a start-up, because only now we started to get the elements -- all the elements together.

And we're still, in my opinion, like two or three, but we've got the elements together that allow us to do things like this.

♪♪ -Coming up, will Yip make it to safe ground?

-We're not out of the woods yet.

-This one's hanging out.

-You alright?

-Yep.

-And there's finally progress at Sarah and Steve's Portuguese village.

-This is now a monumental day for us.

It really is.

-But can their 150-year-old building take the strain?

-What's going to happen if they pour it and all the walls just collapse?

-We'll have to start again.

-Geez.

♪♪ -In Chumbaria, it's now February, and they've made some positive steps forward with Sarah's treatment.

-The week before last, I had my surgery for breast cancer, and they successfully removed the tumor.

It was pretty horrible and I'm still in a lot of pain and still waiting on test results, which will determine the next round of treatment.

-The couple's resilience has been thoroughly put to the test since they bought this abandoned 7-acre village.

But today, they're finally heading in the right direction, and work on the village is moving at pace.

-So, there's a little hallway there, bathroom there, bedroom through there.

Yeah, it'd be nice.

And then up the steps to the mezzanine.

It is great to see it's starting to come to life, because this was a huge, dingy old barn, wasn't it?

-Yeah, it was vile.

-And it's already starting to look like something.

-Sarah and Steve's plan is to turn most of their properties into eco-friendly holiday accommodation.

But first, they're converting this old barn into their home, which eventually will have a bedroom downstairs and a kitchen diner upstairs on a newly made mezzanine floor.

So, after today, it won't be long until they have a roof over their heads.

-Today is a massive day for this building, isn't it?

-Yep.

Today, the cement truck comes and the concrete gets poured on the ring beams, and that secures all the walls.

And then the roofs can... -The roofs, yeah.

-...start to go on, which will be quite exciting.

-But when you're dealing with a 150-year-old building that was constructed by just stacking stones gathered from the fields, repairing and rebuilding it is never going to be straightforward.

♪♪ -If you look at the walls, there are cracks through them everywhere, and if you put additional pressure on them with a new roof, it's going to push the walls outwards.

So this secures -- The ring beam holds the top secure.

They can put as much weight on there, because that's pushing outwards and it won't push the walls away.

-And then what's going to happen if they pour it and all the walls just collapse.

-We'll have to start again.

-Geez.

-And that's not their only worry.

-But we'd better get out of their way.

-These narrow roads in Chumbaria were built for an ancient agricultural farm, not to accommodate 21st century industrial vehicles, and Sarah and Steve are concerned they might struggle to actually get their concrete into their village.

-It's not just how narrow it is.

It's like this whole village is crumbling.

And I started -- -Slowly.

-I started to pressure-wash the walls here, and you can see that, actually, they're not really held together by much.

So the -- -Hope, mostly.

-So I'm also a bit concerned that wall might fall down, because it's not very secure.

-And, as it turns out... -Yeah, here we go.

See him squeeze through the gap.

-...it's not just one truck that needs to negotiate the narrow street.

-Look -- there's three of them.

That looks like it's about to take down the whole village.

Oh, my God, it's so narrow.

-If Steve and Sarah have any chance of completing the renovation of the old barn, all the vehicles must make it through.

-It's been a very, very long time coming, but this is now a monumental day for us.

It really is.

If you'd said to me 20 years ago, I'd be so excited that a load of cement, I would never have believed you.

♪♪ -With only millimeters to spare, all the trucks make it through, and they have all the concrete they need to successfully complete the ring beams on Sarah and Steve's new home.

In their fight to resurrect their lost village, Steve and Sarah have suffered more than their fair share of setbacks, so today is certainly a small victory in the battle to save the lost village of Chumbaria.

-It's very exciting to see it all happening.

Yeah, it's great to see the ring beam going in, because then the next thing is we'll have a roof, and that'll be when it really starts to look like something.

-It is a celebratory day.

-One step forward?

-One step forward.

♪♪ -Back in La Buslière, after a dicey moment whilst removing the bakery roof, Paul is trying to safely get Yip and the ridge beam to solid ground.

-We're not out of the woods yet.

-Whoa, whoa!

-Don't you get in this thing.

You need to be out of the cross section.

Go that side, yeah?

-This one's hanging out there.

You alright?

-Yeah, brilliant.

I should hold that.

-Well done.

Well done.

-Well, we never expected to dismantle that bit today, so that's been really helpful.

-That was a bit hairy, that was.

-I feel very hirsute now.

-Thankfully, Yip and the centuries-old building are still standing.

But after the close shave with the ridge beam, Paul is now going to take a less-risky approach to remove the remaining wood.

-I'm going to take the dig around to the other side of the bread oven and hopefully try and take those crossbeams down with it.

'Cause I think they're quite heavy to be mucking around on the ladder with those.

-Though Paul has plenty of love for the original building practices and tools, sometimes, a bit of modern engineering is necessary, but when it comes to another crossbeam, even Paul's digger might be overstretched.

-I'm going to try for that center one now.

I'm not sure it's going to reach, but have a go.

♪♪ ♪♪ Oh.

[ Laughs ] That's a shame.

-But the digger can't reach, so they have no choice but to shift it themselves.

But moving a heavy beam at height is a tough ask.

-See if you can come down your end like, you know, a couple of stones or something.

-Oh, whoa!

Well, I'm gonna come down a bit, as well.

I need to hold on to these bricks.

-We don't want to cause any crumbling with this wall, but I appreciate -- 'Cause, really, we're stuck now.

We've got to do something with this.

-Yeah.

-With no going back, Paul is hoping that by getting nearer, he can propel the wood far enough away from the wall.

-Be careful.

There's only one of you.

You've got the grace of a swan, haven't you?

-Oh.

Not bad, that.

-[ Laughs ] Are you confident you can lift and throw, yeah?

-Right.

Okay.

-After three or on three?

-On three.

-Okay.

-One, two, three... -Brilliant.

Well done.

-Well done.

-And with a similar approach to the other side... -After three.

-One, two, three... Well done, everyone.

-...with all the structural beams removed, although completing the rebuild of the bakery is still a long way off, restoring ghost villages is painstaking, and today is still a big step forward.

-Very successful day.

-Yeah.

-And a good push forward.

You know, we can size it all up now, see what's got to be done with the stonework.

sort all that out, get the new roof back on.

-Yeah.

-Coming up, Tracey and Ivano struggle to get their rebuild out of the starting blocks.

-Well, the workers, uh, they're not here, as you can see.

-It's another demanded money.

-And I Ciacca gears up for its biggest event yet.

-Who sings?

-I will sing.

-You sing.

-But will they be singing in the rain?

-We've had a bit of a scare this afternoon.

We had thunder and a little bit of, I mean, a little threatening rain.

♪♪ -At I Ciacca, it's May and a very busy day for Cesidio's village.

-[ Speaks Italian ] -Not only are they hosting their good friend and local priest Father Edna's 50th birthday party, they're also planting a new orchard in collaboration with the local authorities.

Both events are integral to making their village a sustainable and profitable business, and Selina is already feeling the pressure.

-As usual, exasperated with Cesidio, because he always has so many visions that all happen at the same time.

Our life here is just so hectic.

-So the whole family have a challenging day ahead, and juggling their workload is made more difficult by Father Edna's birthday-party guest list, which miraculously keeps getting longer.

-He told me, on Sunday, that he's had 83 acceptances.

I don't know how you get 83 acceptances from 50 invites.

So the plan at the moment is, we've set up inside for 82, 83, but it's very tight.

And if we can get good weather at all, we'll do it out here, because it's much, much more pleasant.

-And as Father Edna arrives, Cesidio shows him the planned outdoor venue if the weather remains on their side.

-We'll celebrate mass here.

-Yes.

-Right, so -- -Beautiful.

-And we'll get as many seats out as we can.

If the weather is bad, we'll do it in the cantina.

-Okay.

-The same way if the weather is bad at night and you want to play the music.

So, how many in the band?

-Six.

-Six.

And who sings?

-I will sing.

-You sing.

-So, what's your favorite song?

Your favorite song is "My Way."

-"My Way."

-While Father Edna limbers up for his celebrations.

Cesidio, Selina, and Giovanni need to join another -- the official opening of their new orchard in collaboration with a government-funded environmental initiative.

-So, today, some of the group, the presidents, and all the bosses of the association have come down to inaugurate this new collaboration that Cesidio and I have arranged with them.

And we are going to help them by allowing groups who are subscribed to this association to come three or four or five times a year and have a day in the countryside, mostly people from towns and cities, who don't really see real countryside.

-They're planting a variety of fruit trees similar to what would have been grown here by Cesidio's ancestors in the 1800s, when I Ciacca was a model of sustainability.

-This was a series of garden plots, orti.

Every family having their bit.

We've put it all back together again, thanks to those who agreed to sell it to me, and now again, it can become useful, because before, divided like that, it was impossible.

-With 10 of the 100 trees planted... -Grazie.

Grazie mille.

-...the inauguration appears to have been a success, and the orchard will guarantee a much-needed stream of visitors to I Ciacca.

Back in the village, it's now a hive of activity as they prepare for Father Edna's party.

Cesidio and Selina need to make sure the celebrations go smoothly.

And it's not just the lost villages of Europe that can be unpredictable.

The weather can, too.

[ Thunder rumbles ] -We've had a bit of a scare this afternoon.

We had thunder and a little bit of, I mean, a little threatening rain.

But now the sun has come out, and Don Edna's family have arrived.

And, yes, it's all go.

-With all guests present, Father Edna is beginning his celebrations with mass, as today is also his 25th anniversary of being ordained.

He wanted to carry out the mass at I Ciacca, as the village has a history rich in the Catholic faith.

And although I Ciacca didn't have its own chapel, its residents would have regularly visited the local churches in the next village of Picinisco.

-Oh, it went really well and it's a real blessing to have mass here after so many years.

-[ Speaking Italian ] -And as the evening celebrations begin, due to Selina and Cesidio's careful planning, everything runs like clockwork.

And Cesidio couldn't be happier to see the village full of life again.

-These are blessings that come along our their life.

You can't plan them.

You can't buy them.

You've got to take them when they arrive and say "thank God."

-And as the sun begins to set on a wonderful day at I Ciacca, it's time for Father Edna and Cesidio to take to the stage.

Cesidio's dream of keeping his village alive is slowly coming to fruition.

He may still have a huge challenge ahead of him, but for tonight, it's time to celebrate a successful day in I Ciacca.

[ Applause ] Whereas many of our village saviors are finally making progress restoring their villages, building work at Ivano and Tracey's trulli has stalled.

-Well, the workers, uh, they're not here, as you can see.

-It's another demanded money.

-Yeah, demanded money.

Tomorrow, tomorrow.

And they haven't been yesterday.

Today, the solar people -- -The solar guy is sick, apparently.

-Apparently sick.

-But as Tracey's dad, Alan, and stepmom, Lynn, are still visiting, they do have some bodies to set to work.

-With Me and Alan, we're going to prune a couple of olive trees.

Alan is an expert on climbing the ladder, apparently.

-No, he doesn't.

He doesn't like heights.

-He doesn't like heights.

-[ Laughs ] -Traditionally, the olive-rich land supported the families who once lived in the trulli, and now Ivano and Tracey are hoping the trees will provide homegrown food for their guests when the trullis are eventually open for business.

-Okay.

Oh, my God, it's so high.

-No.

I can do that bit if you don't like heights.

-You're joking.

-I can.

-Ivano is a chef by trade, but, like all our saviors, he's having to adapt and learn new skills to make sure his village survives.

-It's pretty high up there, Alan.

-It's not.

-We're about 7 meters high.

-But father-in-law Alan has a few tips to help him improve his tree-felling technique.

-Ivano.

-Uh-huh?

-If you'd done what I'd asked you to do... You see, you cut the top and the underneath, and then it splits quite nicely in the middle.

-It is very uncomfortable, though.

-It's very uncomfortable watching you do that.

-Oh, do you want to cut that one?

-I don't mind.

-So, Alan heads up the tree to show him how it's done... -The one on your right.

Yeah, the big branch on your right when you get up there.

The ladder is not going to go anywhere, so...

The one -- Yeah.

It's the one above, Alan.

The one on the top, yeah?

Al?

-Yeah?

The one above that one.

-...but discovers it's not as easy as it looks.

-That's the one.

Oh.

Okay.

-Two hours later, they have just the one tree in their 5-acre grove pruned.

It looks better now.

It will look better eventually.

I mean, it's good for it.

-But with 119 trees still to go, there's still a long road ahead to bring their farming land back to what it once was.

-Let's go!

-It's now April, and there's been a little bit of progress at Cotogni.

The solar panels are up, albeit not connected, patio built, and the plaster has been stripped from one of the trulli.

There's still a lot to do until the trulli are finished, but today, Ivano and Tracey have made the journey to Alberobello.

This pretty town has the highest concentration and some of the best-preserved examples of trulli.

-We've come to Alberobello to have a look at the trullis to get some ideas of kind of, like, how we want to do the planting around the trullis and -- -The lighting.

-The lighting.

And kind of, like, just get some ideas, really.

-This unique town is home to over 1,500 trulli.

These buildings are remarkable examples of cobbled drystone construction.

-Luna, if you could walk -- -See, like this.

See how they've done that around?

-Yeah, I like that.

-The whitewashed walls of the trulli are built directly onto limestone bedrock.

-Because it's with the window.

-I know.

I don't know.

-And their roofs often bear mythological or religious markings, whose purpose is to ward off evil or bad luck.

In the early 1900s, the trulli here were protected through designation as heritage monuments.

And after an afternoon exploring this stunning town, Ivano and Tracey are feeling "trulli" inspired.

-There is a lot, obviously, a lot of different things, but, like, I like using the stones, the rock to, you know, create ledges on the outside.

We probably want to do one of the drawing that we put on the trulli.

-And also, the windows.

There's a window up there.

There's a window up there.

And there's a window inside the trulli so it's not too dark.

You want natural light, natural airflow.

-It is like a fairyland, you know?

I mean, at night is beautiful.

It's lovely in the day.

By night, it's even better.

-Seeing what their trulli village can become was just what the couple needed, as, since buying Cotogni eight months ago, like many other village projects, it's been unpredictable and they've faced lots of challenges.

-Well, we expect to open, even partially, by end of this month, which is in a couple of days.

So, obviously, it's not -- -By the end of June.

-By the end of June.

Obviously, it's not going to happen, because nothing is ready there.

The plan never changed -- -Well, it changed by nearly a year of delay, so we'll have to use our savings to -- -To survive until end of March next year.

-They might not be ready to open for business this year, but they've created a beautiful home for themselves.

But when you're saving a village, you have to be patient.

And after the adventure they've already been on, Ivano and Tracey are determined and ready to enter the second phase of their journey.

-We definitely feel at home here.

We go in town, we come back to car, we can't wait to come back here, because it just -- I don't like being away from it.

-If the supermarkets delivered, we'd never leave.

-We would never -- Yeah.

Definitely gonna, you know, bring it back to life and carry on for hopefully so many more years.

♪♪ -Next time, Steve and Sarah reach some major milestones.

-A house with a roof.

-A house with a roof.

It's changed a bit, hasn't it?

-We are happy and we've waited so long, and there is progress.

-I Ciacca opens its streets to a big event, but will it be a wash-out?

-It's always fun being fancy, and the last plan is that people get wet.

-And after months of work, Paul and Yip's business get started.

-It's just miles away.

It's just gonna be a bit embarrassing, when they turn up and we haven't done it.

-But what can we do?

We've just got to work in the solution, haven't we?

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪