We left our wonderful Naples apartment about 8:30 and took a
cab to pick up our rental car in the port area of the city. Tom had intentionally chosen the location
because of its proximity to the Autostrada.
Our very limited previous experience driving a rental car out of Naples
a few years ago provided a valuable lesson on that score and things worked well
for us this morning. Our car is a Fiat
minivan, very nice, and we’re hoping that its size will not present a problem
on the tight streets of many Italian cities.
This morning, we drove across the boot (at about ankle
level) to Bari on the Adriatic Coast, and then south to our destination,
Martina Franca in the region of Puglia.
The day was sunny, and we crossed mountain passes and through pretty
rural areas, whose fields and vegetation displayed early spring colors. As we neared Martina Franca, the countryside
was marked by miles of stone walls and we began to see the characteristic
buildings of the area. The trulli are stone buildings, some of them
round, but all topped with conical stone roofs, and they look as if gnomes or
fairies live in them.
Before meeting our hosts in town, we had a chance to wander
through some of Martina Franca, a lovely town full of white-washed buildings
with wrought iron balconies, and beautiful doors, narrow winding streets,
arches, churches, and spacious piazzas.
We’re staying in a large (three bedroom!) trullo with a
gated entry and courtyard about two miles out of town. After unpacking our
things, we headed back into Martina Franca, stopping in one church where a Good
Friday liturgy was in progress. It was
standing room only and we could hear the hymns from blocks away!
We wandered a bit more through the historic center, stopping
for a look at some frescoed rooms in the Ducal Palace, before returning to our
trullo and putting together a meal of fresh pasta, tomato sauce and fresh
ricotta, made by our host’s mother.
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