Like many others before us, and probably after us, we first want to share that Casseta Zanca left a profound impression on us. It's a place that moves you, and changes something in you.
We didn't get to meet Julia and Richard in person, but Lucia, our guide, was lovely, greeting us at the port and climbing all the way up, sharing her stories and experiences of living there. She was available for all our questions, and helped our stay to go super smoothly (for example by booking a restaurant when we couldn't do it ourselves).
Casseta Zanca is a magical place, but it takes some work to get there! Be prepared to climb up many many steps, and not the neatest ones, with some incredible views on the way up and down. We didn't have walking sticks, and looking back, we regretted not taking them - but we did walk a lot every day.
It was important for us to swim every day at the sea, so if it's something you're considering to do, remember that whatever distance you go down, you also need to climb back up :) We actually ended up preferring another route to the shortest one shown by Lucia, simply due to a different terrain - so we would encourage everyone to explore different paths, and not necessarily take the straightest line. That's part of the journey.
Once at the beach, though, the water is incredible - transparent, with beautiful and varied fishes to observe, and also shallow water for people who prefer to meditate in front of the sea.
The (inside) house itself is quite small - but you have everything you need, and with the external kitchen and shower/toilet and the patio with the garden, it's actually vast. We loved the style of the house, the materials it's made from, and the cooking utensils provided there, including the lovely cooking books - it's a house with a soul. And we very happy to meet the cutest cat, though she doesn't live in the house, she easily became our friend.
When we first booked, we were a bit surprised with the length of the house-manual, with all the things that you need to do like recycling the water/taking out the crumbs every day/etc. But once we were there, everything made perfect sense and helped us to realize how unaccustomed we were to spare natural resources.
We felt a call to wake up and see the sunrise, even though we're not really early birds. All in all, we feel very grateful for having experienced that, and cannot wait for the next time. This time for longer!