we "heart" Puglia!

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Hi all,

Today we arrived in lecce, our 3rd day in puglia, and what a 3 days they have been,as with the help of our amazing hosts in the b&b in castro, have soaked ourselves in local culture and way of life.
The last time we added anything on here it was our last day in catania, and we had a nice relaxing walk around the city, doing the sights that we had previously missed. inspired by the amazing picnic lunch we had on etna, we tried to replicate it for 2nd day, going to the market and picking up some olives, sun dried tommies cheese meats etc. after finding a bit of grass in the shade by a fountain to eat it, we then sat on a bench by the sea, and railway line (!), and finished off the last of the local wine , nero wine, made from a grape grown on the volcanic soil from etna, and the fell asleep in the sun. sadly, i woke up with very pink arms, and got a few glances for the next 3 days from locals. in late afternoon we started out journey to puglia, and over a period of 14 hours, got 3 trains, a ferry and a bus. when we arrived in poggiardo, as instructed, the fella who was due to pick us up for the b&b in castro wasnt there, and sadly we were in a town that had no buses, no taxies, and no internet, and of course his phone was switched off. so by 11am, kerry was getting a bit upset, and suprisingly, i was quite calm, ready to walk the 7km to castro from pogg. (ps thanks for ur help julie!) however, 2mins into our hike, our luck for the day changed for the better. a bloke around 60, standing on the street, as many italians of that age do, stopped us, having seen kerrys little sad face, and asked us what the prob was, and where we were going etc. after explaining the problem in broken italian, he kindly took us in his car to our bandb. he truly saved our speck. on arriving, all our grumpy feeling was gone, when we saw the place. we had seen pics before, so knew it was special, but it was amazing. it was a white stoned building, rustic, built on the side of the cliffside leading down to the med. the view was amazing, a perfect view from the terrace which u went on to from the open planning living/kitchen, which was modern but rustic. the room was lovely 2, and the young couple who ran it were so kind, apologetic about the mix up (he had gone to the trainstation, we were at the bus station), and invited us to the local festa in the nearby town to celebrate the 1st of may fest with them and their friends. the afternoon at the festa was possibly my fav. day of the trip so far. we were the only non-locals there, but everyone was welcoming. the only was i can drescribe it is that it was some kind of mini-glastobury, but in one field, full of fruit trees and wild rosemary, with a diff. band in every corner. there was a farm building in the middle, and an outdoor stone oven, in which roast pork and rosemary, tomato bread, and chicken was being cooked (and which we devoured!) and the wine flowed like water. all for 3 euros on the door, which our hosts insisting on paying. the music was all traditional folk stuff, and the women were all doing the traditional dance of the area, which translates as the tarantula dance, as it is believed to have begun when the women working in the fields were bitten by the spiders and went crazy! it was ace, a cross between a medieval banquet and some kind of hippie fest,with people from 8 months to 80 there. nancy and amadeo were ace, and with nancy unable to speak any english, we found ourslves at one point 10 mins into a convo. in italian! a great day after such a poor start.
the next day we woke up to as kerry excitedly described "the best breakie she has ever had". it was all home made stuff by nancy, made from stuff grown in the sloping gardens of the house. there were jams of plum and fig, and lemon curd from the lemon trees at the side of the house. she had made 2 amazing tarts one filled with the flowers of the courgette plant, a bit like spinach kerry recs. we did the local grotto caves in the morning, which were down at the bottom of the cliff, and then took a boat ride round the bay. in the afternoon, we went with nancy and amadeo to a little cove for a swim, which was a nice way of spending a very warm afternoon. in the evening, around 7, we went into the local town, castro, for a strole and to pick up a bottle of wine for tea, which amadeo kindly invited us to. after a little drink a few nibbles in the old town by the castle, we returned for wine and a different type of aperativo, popular with our hosts, a popular herb brought in from albania, which was very enjoyable. after a great squid and pea pasta, followed by mussels, made by amadeo, and an evening of extensive convo in italian (v. chuffed with ourselves!) we hit the hay.
this morning, our last morning in castro, we had another amazing breakie, and then hit the train for lecce. our new hostel is ace, great location, 2 mins from main piazza, in heart of the old town. had a nice lunch, and now im here. and there you go. i think that is all. hope all is well home,

love Alex xxx

Hello, thought i would take the chance to add a few, slightly more succinct, lines of my own.
Puglia is amazing, and after an awful start, i did have a little cry when i thought my only option was a 7km trek with that bloody backpack on, its more than made up for it.
The festival was great, although i stuck out like a sore thumb in a field full of hippies wearing my best skinny jeans and Lulu Guinnes sunglasses. Damn alex for making me leave my patchwork skirt at home, i knew it would be needed!
A few more things I'd like to add to Alex's account.
1: I told him to put suncream on in Catania and he didn't listen.
2: I have never said "breakie" in my life.
3: I even managed to make a joke in Italian, at Alex's expense of course!(she said because of my sunburn, i looked like a tomato, much to the amusement of nancy, amadeo and friends.)
4: Last but not least, an update on my feet. They are well and truly on the mend. On Wednesday my left ankle was twice its normal size and my foot was black, this was a low point. Since then has steadily improved and am now down to one blister, fading bruises and scabs. Also I have ankles again.

Think that'll do for now, you'll all be needing a nap after working your way through Alex's entry anyway!

Kerry xx

ps, one last word from me. glad to here u had a good hol aunty christine, glad dad is back on his feet, and hello grandma and grandad, the newest fans of the blog! also, thanks to the 7 people who let me know that leeds didnt get the points back. it didnt get any easier reading it each time! ah well, gives me an excuse to find a john smiths pub with sky tv in greece to watch the play offs! x

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