Get a castle! They're really cheap at the moment. They'll cost you about the same as a decent villa in a big city, involve a bit more driving and maintenance, but then you have a castle which can become your family home, with grounds, and probably designed by an architect who really knew what he was doing. Beats yet another modernist, out of place horror on a cliff that will probably collapse in 20 years...

I recommend http://www.patrice-besse.com/ which seems to have the best line-up and to know what they are doing.