When I last reported, we had left Otranto on the Adriatic coast and were headed along the highway south towards Santa Maria di Leuca, the very bottom of the heel of the boot; the place where the Ionian and Adriatic Seas flow together.
It is a glorious drive as you pass through a number of small resort towns and pass dozens of medieval watchtowers.
In one little village we caught this kind of B & B plus restaurant.
The water here is some of the bluest we have seen outside of Tahiti. Crystal clear and very inviting.
However, the air was still a bit nippy for a dip in the sea.
I did stop on a number of occasions to capture the dramatic coastline.
Also caught the poppies that are now flooding the fields
Most of the little towns were very quiet and it was hard to imagine that in another month they will be bursting at the seams, mostly with Italians looking to beat the inland sun.
When we finally hit the very tip of the heel, we stopped for lunch. There were very few options, so we chose a little family fun trattoria that was right on the water.
Looking in one direction we could see the lighthouse
and in the other just more of the sea line. We had a wonderful lunch, featuring a seafood salad, mostly octopus, mussels and shrimp, and an order of delicious mussels that were cooked in paprika pepper and water. Wonderfully flavorful!
As we sat and enjoyed the sea, seafood and sun, Polley planned out return trip.
Never being one to take the same way twice, we decided to take the inland route back to Otranto and then explore the coast north of there as we headed back to Lecce.
While about half of the trip north of Otranto heads inland, through groves and groves of olive trees, eventually, we did swing out to the coast for some of the most dramatic shoreline of the day.
As we were headed up to San Cataldo, a beach town about 5 miles directly east of Lecce, we came upon these dramatic cliffs that appeared to have dozens of caves.
The tide ran in and out of these rock formations. We were then drawn out into some walked out into fields just beyond the cliffs. There was this strange statue of a classical figure.
While the area was referred to as the Grotto of Basilene, there was no indication as to who it was or why it was there.
However, just beyond the statue, was a huge underwater pool.
It was crystal clear and a kind of blue-green. You could see the tides roll into the pool and drift away again. It was stunning.
After exploring for a good half hour, Polley and I jumped back in our Smart little car and travelled on up to San Cataldo, again passing small coastal towns and beautiful sandy beaches.
San Cataldo was a town I had originally envisioned up going to on a number of occasions. The weather has not been as inviting as we might have wished, but also there is very little there. It is mostly uninspired, cement holiday apartments. Again, as the season has not quite arrived, it was a ghost town. I did want to stop, however, so Polley and I could plot our strategy of returning the car to the rental agency. The car rental place is located in the very heart of the historic section of town and Lecce is a warren of tiny little one-way streets. However, we carefully plotted the route and headed into town.
The distance was only 5 miles. An hour and a half later, we delivered the car. From what I understand, Lecce is preparing to host some G-8 economic summit in the near future. They have torn up and are in the process of repaving half the town. We went round and round trying to find streets going the right direction, that were open, that would take us to a very specific way into old town. It was a disaster and we soon felt there was no way to get there from here. We went around, doubled back, and got stuck in one traffic jam after another. As I walk the town every morning, I felt I was pretty familiar with the options. But each time, we were stymied by another street closure. Things were closed that had been open that morning. At last, as we went around the town for a fourth or fifth time, and I was nearly ready to just park the car and call the agency and tell them to come and get it, a previously closed main thoroughfare opened up. With that, we were to our destination in 5 minutes. The toll upon us, however, lasted fully two days! In some ways the traffic mess reminded us of home, as Portland seems to do all street maintenance at the same time. Perhaps, Lecce is a kind of sister-city in that way.
Anyway, it was a grand trip and the weather cooperated and really does seem to be changing. We have had clear and increasingly warm days all this week. Our plan is to head north and do some exploring next Wednesday, heading more inland to some very unique cities. Stayed tuned and best to all.
Ed and Polley
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