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Published: September 29th 2013
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Today was our day off from cooking (and Silvestro's day off from us!) and field trip to the town of Otranto on the Adriatic coast. We had time to do a little shopping before meeting Giorgio (in charge of administration and hospitality at the school) at the cafe. Then we headed the market for a few supplies before heading over to the school to prepare our picnic from our favorite leftovers of the last few days (think meatloaf and sausages). With the arrival of our van and driver, we were off. About 40 minutes later we were on the eastern most point of Italy, the harbor of Otranto on the Adriatic Sea.
New Otranto is a modern, otherwise nondescript European beach town, but it's blessed with 2 long crescents of sandy beach. Since it is currently the off season, there were only a few locals sunning themselves on the rocks, including the woman Giorgio refers to as "the luggage lady" (same color and texture as a leather suitcase). They made room for us, and after a glance around at our neighbors, we decided we no longer felt particularly shy about donning our relatively modest swimsuits. Most of us swam in
the refreshing and clear water and enjoyed our sandwiches and drinks. After a leisurely meal, we headed over to the old town, which is a United Nations World Heritage Site. Giorgio gave us a little tour and explained the history of the area, which boasts the earliest human occupation in Italy. It has a long history of being invaded and occupied by many cultures and countries due to its strategic location and port. We visited the Cathedral which was the site of a Turkish massacre of half the town in 1480, whose skulls are on display in one of the side chapels. But the cathedral is better known for its 12th century mosaic floor (800 square meters) depicting the Tree of Life, and includes symbols and depictions from mythology, history, science and astrology.
Before heading back to Lecce, we stopped for the best gelato we've had this trip, and maybe ever, in Italy. We were on our own for dinner, so went for a bit lighter fare and had pizza at the recommended La Torre Di Merlino Restaurant. We found ourselves seated next to the rest of our group, and had a chance to compare notes on our experience
at cooking school so far. We turned in relatively early in anticipation of our last day, which we've heard is a very full and late one.
Dave: GOOD THING-- Eating a ginormous meatloaf sandwich on the shores of the Adriatic. BAD THING-- A little too much togetherness with some folks (relatives not included).
Sandy: GOOD THING-- Going to Otranto and swimming in the Adriatic. BAD THING-- Starting to worry about the rental car logistics.
Sharon: GOOD THING-- Oltranto's medieval old town and eating lunch on the shore with the local characters. Oh yeah--and the gelato!! BAD THING-- Dave stressing about about car pick up tomorrow, even though he won't admit it here.
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