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Published: October 15th 2018
Puglia 2018
This is our 8
th trip to Puglia and Calabria since 2008 and 3 visits before that . If you are reading this blog with plans to visit either area, I would suggest that you check my blog entries of 2015 and 2014, where I give detailed a
ddresses, phone numbers and GPS locations for all of the places that we have stayed at. There are also entries dating back to 2009 that include different b&bs as well as the regions of
Basilicata and Abruzzo. My blog contains the following titles as well.
Calabria, Puglia & Basilicata (2008)
Puglia & Abruzzo (2010)
Calabria & Puglia (2012)
Calabria & Puglia 2013
Calabria & Puglia 2014
Calabria & Puglia 2015
Puglia (Apulia) & Calabria 2016
Puglia 2017
Puglia - Apulia 2018 (this one)
Sunday September 16, 2018 We drove to our hotel in Toronto, and as we were emptying the car, my wife, Carol said: “where is my other suitcase?” WHOOPS!!! I/we had left a suitcase at the bottom of the steps outside our garage! Long story as to how/why. It contained all of Carol's personal hygiene, cosmetics, medications etc. We had no time to find a drugstore before our flight!
The flight left at 9:30 pm so as in the past it was an all-nighter. This year we flew Alitalia again. The 4-hour wait in Amsterdam with KLM at 2am, last year, was tougher than the 90 minutes at Rome airport. At Toronto airport, Alitalia could not PRINT our ticket for the connection in Rome. “Oh just go to connecting flights at Rome airport and they will print you one” was the comment. The 90 minutes in Rome gives us barely enough time to make our connection (a very long walk.) Anyway, we were lucky in “finding” the Alitalia connecting flights counter (transiti) and getting our ticket. Monday September 17 There are 4 airports in the south that we fly in/out. This year we returned to the small airport in Lamezia Terme, which we know best of all. We went with AutoEurope again for car rental (with Hertz.) They gave us a Renault Clio diesel wagon. Large car but the trunk space was small and held only two suitcases.
We managed to get around the city of Catanzaro with only one slight error. Usually, this is the most confusing part of our trip. This year we were going to depend solely on Google offline maps on our phones/tablet. In the past, we have used a GPS. As an aside I HIGHLY recommend Google offline maps for your phone/tablet. We used them exclusively this time and found them to be accurate and extremely helpful with only one error!! Since all the places that we will visit on this trip have been written up in GREAT DETAIL on previous trips (2014-2015 etc) I won't give detailed descriptions of the places or the people. At AGRITURISMO CASA DI BOTRO in Botricello, we were welcomed by our friend Giovanni, who is also the waiter. We went for a short walk and then had dinner in the dining room and got caught up with our good friend and owner Luigi Colucci. This is our only stop in Calabria before we arrive in Puglia. Tuesday September 18 At breakfast, we were really pleased to see another friend, Magdalena (Mags) who serves breakfast. By the way, all 3 of our friends speak English.
Luigi helped us find a store in town where Carol was able to purchase a lot of her missing items. By coincidence, the store owners daughter had been raised in Pennsylvania and was able to help Carol get what she needed. Besides coming to see our friends, the other reason we come to Casa di botro is their beach. Beautiful white sandy private beach, 10 minutes away. They provide beach umbrella, lawn chairs and picnic cooler. Most years we have had the beach to ourselves since we have been here in early October. This year we counted SEVEN beach umbrellas!! And the beach is only accessible to people staying at Casa di botro. It was a perfect sunny 30'C day. We met and chatted with a German couple. Once again we had dinner at the agriturismo. Wednesday September 19 A very warm and humid day so we returned to the beach. This time only 3 umbrellas! Met a lady who was born in Albania but lives in Switzerland. For supper, we went to one of our two favorite pizza places (TONY PIZZA) and picked up 5 different large slices. Carol is not feeling well. A sore throat and maybe a cold coming.
Thursday September 20 The 3 days that we have been here the temperature has been 29-31' C and very humid. After breakfast Mags brought her baby, Taddeo, to meet us! Took some pics of Luigi and said goodbye to everyone. Stopped at a grocery store to stock up on a few things. Then stopped again in the town of CARITAS where I have used a bank machine for past 10 years or more! There are faster ways to get to Puglia but we always drive along the Ionian Coast (SS 16/ E90). It is very scenic. The plan had been to drive to another one of our favorite places (Masseria Torre di Albidona) near Trebisacce for one night to break up the long drive to our next place, I had checked two days before, online and there was a vacancy, so I did not bother to reserve. We have stayed here about 5 times and usually, we are the only ones there. Well, what a shock to find out that there was NO vacancy at all! And nothing nearby.
We love this place as it has the best view of all the places we stay at and has over 100 hectares of orchards. But .... I always have a backup plan!! The plan this time was to drive another 160 km and arrive a day earlier at our next spot and hope that they had a room (but if not, I knew of many other places in the area) We stopped at the Q8 gas station in Sibari where they have a Tavola Caldo (cafeteria) for a brief lunch. So our next 5 days are at B&B Antica Aia in the village of Casalini in the Itria Valley. If there was only one place that we could stay at in southern Italy, Antica Aia would be it. Apparently, this is our 8th straight year. We were met by Franco and Elvira and their kids Andrea and Martina. They really are like “family” to us. We were able to get our favorite room again this year. Accommodations at Antica Aia are in “trulli” (stone, cone shaped) building found only in this area. Carol still not feeling well so rather than going to a restaurant we took a quick drive in to “La Piazetta” our other favorite place to get good pizza (and only 5 Euros!)
Friday September 21 Always a varied and plentiful breakfast that we enjoy at a table outside our room. Carol still not feeling well so I went for a 5 km walk around the village. By now I think I know the town almost as well as locals! Stopped at the post office ABM machine. This evening we were invited to dinner with the family. They do this every year. Tonight was different as this was the first time that we have been treated to a barbecue in Italy. Andrea (17) and Martina (11) are now mature enough that they easily join in with the adults. Andrea is the only one who speaks a bit of English and he has improved dramatically even since last year. Before dinner, we handed out small gifts to everyone! Saturday September 22 After breakfast, we drove the 3 km to the local olive oil factory (Il Frantolio di D'Amico Pietro. Contrada Tesoro, 25 Cisternino www.ilfrantolio.it) where Carol has been buying bottles of organic olive every year to bring back home to friends.
Returned to the Post Office ABM, since this is the only one that one accepts both of our bank cards. By the way, most of the places that we stay at are small and therefore usually only take cash) In the afternoon I went for another 5 km walk along the back roads. I was on part of a “nature cycling” route and saw many cyclists. Stopped and “visited” with two donkeys that have been in the same enclosure for years. Don't know if they remember me or not but I always find some nice fresh green grass to feed them! Weather continues to be in the 29-31'C range but our accommodations are on a slight hill and there is always a nice breeze. As well the pool is about 15 steps from our front door! For supper, we went to our favorite restaurant in Puglia called LA LOCANDA. We eat at least twice here, every year and the staff remembers us. We always order ONE antipasto (with 8 dishes) and share it! When we got back we had a 1 1/2 hour chat under the stars with our daughter, who lives in Montreal.
Sunday September 23, 2018 Carol was feeling better so we went for the same walk that I took yesterday but in reverse! Very peaceful, tranquil, scenic roads with virtually no traffic. Just olive trees everywhere with the occasional fig, almond and walnut tree. I always end up stuffing myself with plump, sweet, warm, juicy figs right off the trees. Spent afternoon poolside (they have a really nice hammock between two olive trees.) Gave Andrea and Martina some more gifts. For dinner, we went back to La Piazetta and this time got two pizzas! They are so good! Monday September 24 After breakfast, we took a 6 km walk along the backroads. There are so many roads that twist and curl that even tho we have walked on most of them before, we still take a cell phone with google maps. It would be VERY EASY to get lost. None of the roads have names and none are on a grid system!! We offered to translate one of the English language “rules sheets” in the Trullo. Most of the English was okay, but there were some minor and a few major errors (Carol and I were both teachers!!)
Since our first year here when I went for a jog and came back with a few almonds and walnuts that I found, the kids have been keeping a bowl on our table filled. Today Elvira took me next door to an empty property and a huge walnut tree. So I filled my pockets, then she told me that they had purchased this property! It will likely go to the kids in the future. Later in the afternoon, Martina came back with a huge basket of walnuts and almonds. I took as much as I could deal with (had to crack them open!!) For dinner we returned to La Locanda, but this time for a pasta dinner. Made more phone calls back home. Later Andrea and Martina dropped in to say goodbye since they would be leaving for school before we leave tomorrow. For years we have invited the family to visit us in Canada but they are either busy with the b&b or they kid are in school. Until 3 years ago Andrea did not like English but last two years he has taken a real interest. So this time we put the offer to him. He is only 17 but a perfect time to come to Canada for a visit and improve his English. It would cost him nothing but the flight!!
Tuesday September 25, 2018 Franco and Elvira gave us a bottle of olive oil and a bottle of wine. I guess Andrea talked to them last night, because, the parents now seem more amenable to letting him come, even on his own! Maybe next spring. We hope! Drove through OSTUNI and along the Adriatic Highway (SS 379) towards Brindisi where we stopped off to view Masseria Incantalupi (more on this near the end of this blog) From the highs of 30'C, last night it dropped to 19-21'C and very strong winds. Made good time driving around LECCE and towards GALLIPOLI where we turned off for the village of FELLINE. B&B Dolce Felline is run by our good friend Olga Pantovic. As usual, she had a bottle of water in the fridge a plate of fruit (all from her garden) on the table. We were invited for a coffee and sweets.
Since it felt cold and we felt tired we decided to just eat from the food we had with us. The strong “Salento Winds” continued to blow all night and at times were very noisy. The high today was around 18'C and with the strong winds. That is a drop of more than 10'C from the previous week. Wednesday
September 26 Winds continued to blow so that going to Carol's favorite
beach was out of the question! Olga and Carol went to the next village (Alliste) where Carol bought more items to replenish her forgotten suitcase. Her cold is getting better, but she decided to rest in the afternoon so I took a 5 km walk around the village. Olga invited us for dinner tonight, so we did not have to go out! Thursday
September 27 The winds have died down a bit but high tempt is only 21'C which is a very comfortable temperature but the ocean continues to be rough. We drove to Marina di Pescoluse (12 minutes away.) We have returned here every year since we first
came to Puglia and it is Carol's favorite
beach. We walked around the beach and along the very expansive boardwalk and stopped off at THE STORK, our favorite
location for gelato. We then decided to drive to Santa Maria di Leuca (on the tip of the peninsula
) It is a touristy town but during the offseason
, there are only a few people and there are two awesome locations for great views. On the way, we came across a sign that our coastal road was blocked 7 km ahead (and Santa Maria was 8 km ahead!!) They showed a detour which I knew would really be long so I decided to keep driving anyway to see if the road really was blocked! (typical male reaction right!?) Sure enough
, 7 km ahead just before a traffic circle the road was blocked! But since we have stayed in this area a few
times, I saw a road 50 metres before the blocked area that I was sure would take me around the blockade. So up the hill, then back down, and we came out on the other side of the traffic circle! I felt like a real LOCAL! As we have done umpteen times we walked around the cliffs where the Adriatic, Ionian and Mediterranean Seas meet in Santa Maria di Leuca. Also used another familiar bank machine.
We got back to Olga's in the afternoon and had a rest. For dinner
, we treated Olga at a restaurant owned by her niece Marta (same as last year) Friday
September 28 Took lots of photos and said goodbye
to Olga for another year. We
took the express route to Santa Maria di Leuca then turned north along the Adriatic highway. This route is slower and longer but much more scenic and some might say “hair-raising
” as the road climbs and descends along switchbacks
. Made familiar stops at Ponte Ciolo and a few other scenic spots as well as at ALIMINI BEACH (my favorite
) outside of OTRANTO. We
arrived at TENUTA DONNAGIULA at 2:30. The Owner
is Ada with her husband Salvatore and daughter Giulia. Salvatore was there to greet us and provided a snack and wine! Our accommodation here is one of 3 bungalows with a bedroom and kitchen/dining room, surrounded by fruit and olive trees. It is a rural setting but the village of CURSI is less than 1 km away.
We rested until 5pm then drove the 1 km to the EUROSPIN supermarket for groceries. Since we have a full kitchen it is so nice to get up when we want (and make our own coffee) and not have to wait until 8pm to go for dinner.
At 9pm there was a power failure. At first
, we used our cell phones to get around, then we found candles. A little later Salvatore
brought over an LED flashlight. Power restored around midnight. Saturday
September 29 We had a “real breakfast” of cereal (brought from home) with milk and good old Canadian coffee At 11:30 we arrived at the village of Borgagne (about 15 km away) to visit with my good friend Gaetano Innocenzio, the barber. We met many years ago and really hit it off. Every year I save a haircut for him and also take him a small gift. He has a CANADIAN calendar on his wall and this year I gave him a “Canada” baseball
cap! He always offers us a coffee. Years ago we used to stay at a Masseria outside this town. Our next stop was 10 km away at Torre San Andrea. Spectacular cliffside scenery. With the winds still blowing the waves were crashing into the rocks so a swim was impossible. About 4 km further along the coast is TORRE DELL”ORSO, likely our most visited beach and one that both Carol and I both like. Being a Saturday, even though the ocean was rough the beach was somewhat busy. We avoided the beach but instead had a gelato and coffee at DENTONI restaurant which overlooks the beach.
On our way home
, we made a slight detour to TENUTA KYRIOS to see if our friends Amalia or Federica were
around. The Tenuta was locked up. We spent many years at their other Masseria in nearby Borgagne. Back home we went for a long walk along the olive tree lined backroads. Had supper at home and later Ada and Giulia brought over some sweets and gave us some ideas on a tour for Sunday. Sunday
September 30 Our first two years in Puglia we toured towns, castles, markets etc. Ever since
our hosts always think that we are bored hanging around their place and try to suggest places to go and see. We gently decline and tell them that what we really enjoy is the peace, tranquillity and friends at our accommodations.
Well, last night they recommended this botanical garden, and it was only 12 minutes away. Checked it out on the internet
and it looked interesting. We were pleasantly surprised. Over 35 hectares of gardens. Divided into 10 separate gardens (roses, African
, desert, North America, European, Italian, herbs etc) and a zoo. It was well worth the 7E each to visit LACUTURA
(www.lacutura.it GPS N40 06 658 E 018 22 506) located near the village of GIUGGIANELLO. Got back for a nice homemade
lunch and relaxing in the shade. We had dinner with Ada's family and her sister Anna, husband Luca and daughter Gloria. Last year Anna had asked if I knew of any way
that her daughter could come to Canada to improve her English. I checked with friends back home and the Rotary exchange program sounded like the best. Just before we left for Italy, I had made contact with an exchange student in our town who is from Sicily. I gave Anna his email so that she can find out more. GREAT DINNER!
Monday
October 1, 2018 After breakfast,
we returned to Torre Dell'Orso, parked and walked along the cliff to GROTTO DELLA POESIA. See my blog from
last year, or google it or better still check out YOUTUBE for this amazing place. Spent a few hours on the beach and in the water and then headed back and tried to eat up most of our leftover
food. For supper
, Ada had given us a large plate of pasta from last night. We heated it up and enjoyed it along with some sweets that she brought over! After supper
, we went over to visit again and pay. This is likely the best bargain in accommodations on our trip. For 55 Euros we get a bedroom, dining room, kitchen with appliances and pots, dishes etc. And a very peaceful, tranquil location. A real bargain!! Tuesday
October 2 We said goodbye to Giulia and chatted with a Dutch couple who had checked in yesterday. Got caught in a small shower as we were going around LECCE. Arrived at MASSARIA INCANTALUPI (www.incantalupi.it info@incantalupi.it tel 0831 555 990) Last few years we have used Hotel Minerva which is about 12 minutes from the airport. Every year I like to try out 1 new place so this year it was to be this Masseria about 23 minutes from the airport.
The place is very large with a huge central courtyard surrounded by 4 walls which contain rooms. The rooms all open into the courtyard. Centuries ago, this was their way of defending against attacks. A
Maseria is
a “fortified farm”. And in Puglia there are many of them. They make their own olive oil and wine. They have a dining room but it is a “fixed menu” of 35 Euros each ($55Cdn), we have to tell them a day ahead, and it could possibly be a seafood menu (Carol has some allergies.) And last week we were told that if there are not enough guests, they might not serve dinner. So we came prepared with a bit of food for our own dinner. Spent some time by their pool. They have at least 3 dogs and
a boxer, Maya, took a liking to me and followed me everywhere. We became good friends! Went for a walk along their driveway which is lined with huge cactus plants and is just under a kilometre long!
Unlike at Tenuta DonnaGiulia, this was our most expensive room of the night. But we splurged for one of their largest rooms which included two floors
with three beds, a jacuzzi, living
room and dining room. The day before we fly out we like to spread out our suitcases and repack, reorganize things. This year we had about 8 bottles of olive oil that we had to pack!! Wendesday
October 3, 2018. We had asked for an early breakfast. It was buffet style and very good with lots of choices. Whether we return to this place ...... Well it is totally isolated (good) quiet (good) fixe dinner
menu (bad), the only person we had contact with was not that friendly (bad) and it is expensive (bad) Took us about 22 minutes to get to Brindisi airport (Aeroporto di Salento) with only one wrong turn in Brindisi. We returned the rental car without a problem (hopefully.) By the way, diesel at self-serve was between 1.50-1.60 Euros per litre. Full service was up to 17 cents more per litre! We spent about 80 Euros on fuel (at full service) and drove approximately 1000 km
Since last year the waiting/departure areas at the airport have either been refurbished or are new. Very bright and colourful. Flight to Rome lasts about 50 minutes where we had about 2 1/2 hours to shop and look around before boarding at 3:15 for Toronto. Got a nice surprise when we checked in at our hotel in Toronto. We are Rewards Club members and they gave us a free upgrade to a King two room suite! Nice way to spend our first night back
More photos below .......
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