Just the short version I think.
We did a lot of driving around and looking at different areas round Lucca and further afield. Some were too remote, some too touristy, some too expensive and some too ugly.
We came back to Lucca in the evenings and developed a stronger and stronger feeling that we would be happiest in Lucca itself – just outside the walls. We viewed a fair few properties in Lucca. Our budget looked like it would only stretch to a flat with very little outside space (if any). Many flats seemed to be above a lower floor that was given over to storage. Some had converted that floor to living space, but those rooms were always height restricted and we are tall. Still, we were becoming more and more convinced that we would come back to Lucca the following year and continue looking for somewhere in the city. We felt very much at home in Lucca and it has so much to offer.
Then, about three weeks in to our trip, we went to look at a large old farm house about 20 minutes drive out of Lucca and everything changed.