Mary provided us a reason to celebrate!!! Her birthday was today (May 12th – apologies for the blog delay) and it needed to be as special as she is. That takes a little doing in Italia, but we had a fun time with it!

No photos of this (with good reason) but we started by accompanying a YouTube version of the Italian happy birthday song! Fun, but rude awakening for Mary!

Tanti Augeri A Te!

It’s sung to our music and if I can figure out how to embed it in this blog I’ll do that later!

Then little surprises (which she tolerated with grace and seeming pleasure) as we bumped through the day.

Dinner at a local osteria with the fun of engaging our young server in the surprise of candles!

I probably had more fun with this than Mary. But it’s a gift to celebrate a birthday with new experiences and places. And for me to let her know she’s a grand traveling partner!

This was a nice little treat to ourselves and a quiet, slower pace (without a car we could only enjoy strolls on the property and nearby teeny village). A little luxury in one’s life is a good thing and Caverna Etnea gave us that.

And then the food!! Exquisite and beautifully presented. The hospitality was warm and traditionally formal, all delivered with smiles and evocative descriptions of the fare and wine!

A lovely dinner finish to a nice stay. We can recommend Caverna Etnea!

Breakfast and off with Domenico, our driver, who brought us local oranges and lemons …….. the lemons were so large I was mixing them up with 🍊. Fun part of the trip!

We left Lecce and Puglia behind for Sicily – just as we became adept at getting about the city without too much guessing. Lecce and the Salento province cities were well worth the visit. We really enjoyed our hosts!

But now we are on to Sicily! And a couple days at Caverna Etnea on the north slope of Mt. Etna – the one you hear about on the news now and again. Domenico brought us from Catania to Etnea with little highlights, pointing out Taormina (Beth was there with a cruise some years ago) and the orange and lemon trees full of fruit. We’ve been pretty city bound, so we’ll relax a little here.

Our room holds some of the features of the “palmenti ” or old stone building used to crush and store grapes out of which it is carved. This is a vineyard with history.

A dinner wine tasting (with a dose of confusion caused undoubtedly by my lack of language and customs) was an extended affair. Italians all seem to know the benefits of drawing out the pleasure of wines and food. We walked back to our room through the vineyards – 75 year old vines being studied for their resistance to the grape phylloxera ( I think). The volcanic soils are supposed to create wonderful wines. And we found them pretty palatable🍷

Buona Notte

We’ve been to the tip of the heel today and enjoyed views of the blue Adriatic Sea from our tour van. Vinyards, olive trees and cacti in abundance in the rocky hillsides. We started the day in rain – but with Leccese caffe (Beth) and local pastries to start, we’re happy.

We found the cathedral in Galatina to soar in its magnificent interior. A Franciscan chiesa, it distinguishes itself from many Catholic cathedrals with the intensity of color on the inside. We were impressed. And now understand the difference between Baroque and Romanesque church architectural styles.

The mosaics of Otranto’s cathedral used a large tree of life motif to tell its story.

And the sun began to show itself against the Adriatic.

Though I didn’t try photos from the van interior, the scenery from Otranto to Leuca was a Mediterranean highlight on a winding coastal road.

Gallipoli showed its Greek influence in many ways. The sea breeze was balmy and we just enjoyed a city walkabout.

Home and ventured a culinary first – cavallo. To save you a trip to Google Translate, that’s horse meat – in our case in either pasta al forno or eggplant parmigiana. Actually quite tasty, if subtle. Any meal topped with niccola and fig gelato is fine by me!

The old town of Lecce has been a good jumble of churches, winding lanes and learning. Buona notte 😴

We’ve arrived to the walled ancient city of Lecce on a sunny day via private driver, train, taxi and schlepping our bags some ourselves. At B&B Centro Storico, Mary had arranged an early check in (she actually accomplished this at every location so far!!!). First, animated Nora got us and our luggage up several floors using a “luggage lift” then to the roof top patio to await owner Filipino and his welcome and recommendations. We are very lucky to have their hospitality! It’s a 15th century building, well restored for guests.

In the last two days we’ve explored and strolled through the streets of this historic center with Fillipo’s encouragement to “get lost a little”. Not at all difficult to do! But somehow a wonderful way to wile away the days. We’ve found the Duomo, the Anditeatro Roman (for blood sports), the Teatro Greco Roman (tragedies and comedies for the rich), the Castello, Villa Communale (park), eight or more of the 29 chiesa’s (churches) inside the walls and Baldo’s! The latter required a return visit – if you guessed gelateria, you’d have nailed it!

We found an art installation in the convent cum Teatro Greco Roman complex. Eclectic.

The convent is now the Teatro Greco Roman. It leaves you feeling the dichotomies in human nature that create theater and gladiatorial “sports”. There was a lot of helpful regional history in this complex, but I liked the art the best.

We conquered Trentitalia and caught the train to nearby Locorotondo- one of the white cities. It is sited on a hill with surrounding vineyards and countryside, much of it agrarian.

The viewpoint city parco.

And of course a wonderful lunch – Mary found a delightful regionale white wine in the land of reds!

L’Aratro for dinner – quite the lovely presentation and service, topped only by the flamboyantly attired owner (tablecloth apron and hat)! We haven’t missed a chance to taste the local wines with dinner! It’ll be ‘arrivederci Alberobello’ tomorrow as we move on to Lecce. Puglia has been a good choice.

This was a charming two night stay in the land of the trulli! Originally rural, mostly agricultural landscapes had small dwellings made of stone and rock. They feel hobbitesque and were a delight!

Mary booked us in a multi room trulli (trullo singular) in the commune of Alberobello that was a warren of shops, restaurants and inns.

Late lunch with wonderful tagliere (cutting boards) and aperol spritz have allowed us to relax. We had a nice little patio to enjoy before venturing for our evening meal.

We love Alberobello!

A very long, full day but excellent tour with Francesco Luciano of the ancient, longest continuously lived in commune of Matera and nearby Altamura. To answer the question my title must prompt, these two cities have the distinction in recent years of closing two new McDonalds franchises in their communities!!! They are McDonald’s free! Both have reputations to protect regarding their long-standing traditions of bread making and one of the franchises actually opened next door to them. The citizens supported the local businesses and McD’s closed – love this storyline as much as I abhor the export of our fast food/chain restaurants!

Altamura, a walled city with a long history of different ruling class periods, was brought back to life by an Italian born, German emperor after going dormant (presumably because of a war – no real records exist). Frederick II created a new city that flourished.

On to Matera – which was fascinating. The caves of this city have been inhabited for 9,000 years and the setting (no longer residences) is a UNESCO site. Sited on a ravine, cave dwellings were built one upon another to house large families and their livestock. They farmed nearby. There are rock churches, remarkable water catchment systems that created small neighborhoods that were mutually supportive groups. In the mid-20th century conditions were impoverished and unhygienic enough to prompt the government to evacuate the inhabitants to nearby homes. If I remember right, child mortality was roughly 30%. UNESCO recognition was eventually gained. It was a fascinating lesson.

We returned to Bari with new appreciation for the city thanks to Francesco who is enthusiastic about his town.

It was a long but trouble-free travel day! No hitches on our three flight/airport journey to Bari – our entree to the Puglia region or the heel of the boot. Our luggage arrived with us (even Mary’s) without needing to employ our Air Tags! And we’ve found friendly, helpful Italians along the way.

Bari is a port city. Much less touristed than other spots in the country by report. We’re staying in the old, historical neighborhood which is quaint, comfortable and includes the marina, charming piazza’s and great examples of mixed use design that just happened through the years. Think laundry hanging above the cozy lanes from piazza to piazza co-existing with restaurants and al fresco dining. We had a blue sky greeting from Bari that turned into a short thunderstorm (precipitating a welcomed nap). We think tomorrow will be dry.

So far wine and great food has won out over gelato!!!!! Not sure what’s wrong with us! Mary, our tour guide for Puglia found La Cecchina with wonderful sea bream and starters. Ah, the tiramisu ending was heavenly!!

Tomorrow we take off for Puglia – the heel of the Italian boot. Mary, Beth and I are adventuring to parts of Italy hitherto not explored!! This will include Sicily, long on my list. We’ll be enjoying good wine, Mediterranean cuisine and dawdling in the small cities of Italy’s countryside – with a large dose of laughter and bonhomie. We leave at o’dark hundred to be early for our plane and meet Mary. So I’d better try to close my eyes. Buona notte!