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Published: November 7th 2006
Golfers???
Had to stop and make sure that we were really seeing this.Our latest trip was to Matera in Basilicata. This is where the film "The Passion" was shot. It is about two and half hours southeast of Brindisi. We took the slow road once again and were richly rewarded. It was a pleasant morning drive. We arrived around noon at our B&B "Villa Paola." Very clean and hospitable; I highly recommend this place. The owners were very nice and helpful. The host turned out to be a skier and gave me some very useful information on ski areas that are closer to Brindisi than the ones further south in Calabria. There are two places that we want to go visit before the snow flies. One is close to the city of Potenza and the other is in the region of Abruzzo and is one of the biggest ski areas in central Italy. The one in Portenza will be our first choice to explore.
After checking into the B&B, we headed into Matera which was just uphill about 5 minutes away. We stopped at the tourist information office and bought a map and asked about a good restaurant for lunch. We ate at a ristorante "Il Borghese" that was superb. They had a
Just driving along...
When we see this water amusement park out in the middle of nowhere... gnocchi dish that was terrific. Bonus: They played jazz for background music and we heard two very good renditions of Cole Porter's "Everybody does It." The waiter was very friendly and we chatted about the place. They were very proud that the interior is all lined with tuffa stone. This is the principal rock of the area. This is what the place is famous for. People for centuries had lived in caves or dug into the hillside to fashion houses. It is now a World Heritage Place and is protected. It is very interesting. The only downer was that the temperature was bitterly cold. We expected that it would be brisk but not bitter. It was a sunny and windy day with temps in the high 40's. Yet, it was quite cold. We walked around for about 4 hours and visited the "Sassi" neighborhood. The word "Sassi" literally means "the stones."
Evidently this area was a place where monks came and established places of refuge for themselves. Eventually people lived in the caves and did so until the 1950's when the Italian government moved them out. There are still places where people have modernized the caves and have established B&Bs,
Cool mountaintop village
Don't know the name of it, but I bet there is at least one very good place to eat there. ristorantes, and businesses.
We went back that night and ate at a trattoria that was an old cave that had been expanded. The food was excellent and the rooms facinating to consider. I failed to take my camera with me and so I don't photos of it for you to see. They too played some excellent music. We had some very tasty lamb, grilled vegtables, and a very good bottle of regional wine.
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Judy and Stephen
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Freezing in Italy
I think I recognize Beth's jacket in the photo, and have some pictures of her shivering in it in Nothern Italy. Of course, we were all wearing the same clothes in most of those pictures!