Again, good weather and under the weather has delayed my reporting. Things continue beautiful, but Polley was not feeling so great yesterday. However, we did manage a glass or two of vino, but otherwise stayed inside.
Last Wednesday we took another motor trip. We reacquainted ourselves with our little “Smart Car,” and headed north to a number of small towns just west of Bari.
I had purchased a driving map of Puglia and mapped out our route. Looked very straight forward. That should have been my first clue.
As we headed north to our first stop, the town of Martina Franca, the road appeared to absolutely straight. That was before reached the town of San Donaci. On the map it appeared that we simply slipped quietly in and out of this little village. Ah, but far otherwise! We twisted and turned in that town, following one sign and then another, only to have each disappear after a turn or two. There were street detours, roads under repair, even a truck stuck in the road. Finally, through dumb luck and 25 minutes time, we found our way out of the wee urban maze and continued on. Two villages later, it happened again. This time, however, I was smart and stopped the first person I saw walking along. In my best Italian I asked, “Dov’é la via a Martina Franca.” He, in his best English, said, “two blocks down and take a left!” We were on our way again!
Martina Franca is a charming 18th century town with a number of large piazze. Here Polley is standing at main gate, the Arco di Sant’Antonio.
The sun was shining and our fortunate parking karma continued and we found a place to tuck in our little car. We wandered about and found a little café on the main square.
One of the specialties of Martina France is a dried meat called “Capocollo.” It is a cured cut of pork taken from the muscle of the pig, between the head (capo) and the shoulder (collo). We ordered a sandwich of capocollo with pomodori (tomatoes) and mozzarella. It is delicious. Capocollo is quite salty, but is very tender and not a bit stringy. We later stopped at a salamuria to order a bit more to take back to Lecce.
We wander about a bit, taking in the Basilica di San Martino
And generally enjoying the architecture of the town.
After about an hour and a half, we were back in the car, headed for Alberobello. This town is the center of the Zona dei Trulli. Trullis are these little Hobit-like houses that dot the countryside of this area. It has become a real tourist draw and there are now more than 1500 of these trulli homes, B & Bs, bars and shops.
The town was very quiet as we arrived during siesta, but I did get a chance to photograph these Trullis at a museum in the center of town.
The original and oldest of them all have dry-stone roofs as this one does.
Others that have built in this century use mortar.
As you can see in this photo, they tend, as birds of feather, flock together.
They are everywhere.
From our place in the main piazza, we also saw the twin towers of the Cathedral and the last bit of Trulli madness:
it is a trulli-shaped church, topped by a trulli dome.
From there we drive past the town of Locorotondo, said to be one of the most beautiful towns in all of Italy. From across the valley, it sits on a hillside and appears to be a white version of the “Emerald City.”
Closer up, it is just as impressive
Finally, based on our driving adventures coming north, we were concerned about how long it would take us to get home, so we quickly stopped in the fascinating, but sleepy (still siesta) town of Cisternino. This hillside town has a large number of vaulted alleyways that connect one street to another, giving it a kind of Kasbah feeling. I think we might have got the full effect if shops has been open. It also had a nice view of the whole valley.
We did enjoy a glass of wine there at a table next to some American bycycleers. It was very funny to listen to them chatter about the ride they were going to take. They argued back and forth about this route and that route and how long it would take. I swear they could have done the trip in the time they talked about!
It did remind us that as we move later and later into May, we are beginning to hear more and more American dialects. For April, there was almost nothing. Not true anymore. It certainly appears for us, that it must be time to move on.
Naturally, because we left plenty of time to get home, we sailed through all the towns and villages without a hitch. Apparently that straight road indicated on the map is only for those going south. Home by 7 p.m, but very tired. Travel days are hard, regardless of the number of wrong turns you make. Makes me wonder what three days on the road will be like, which will be the challenge for next week.
That’s it for now, more soon.
Ed and Polley
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