When Tommaso arrived to check us out this morning, he was,
as usual, bearing gifts – pastries and more of his mother’s fresh ricotta. We could spend our remaining weeks here
working our way through his generosity!
We spent the bulk of the day in northern Puglia, exploring
the beautiful Gargano Promontory. This is
the spur of the Italian boot, a forested area that ranges high above the
Adriatic coast. Much of the interior of
the peninsula is a national park, but we stuck pretty much to the coast. The road twisted and turned up and down the
promontory and the views of the turquoise water were spectacular. In some stretches, pale cliffs ended in long,
sandy beaches, while other areas were forested right to the shore. The beautifully situated towns of Vieste and
Peschici have lovely old towns and extensive beach accommodations, ranging from
large camping areas, lidos (controlled access beaches with umbrellas and
lounges for day-trippers) to rental cottages and apartments and high-end
resorts. The beach areas were deserted
at this time of the year, but we enjoyed the towns, especially a wander through
the winding old streets of Peschici. The
shoreline was dotted with trabucchi,
elaborate wooden platforms and riggings specially constructed to catch
mullet. Still in use today, they were
developed centuries ago and have received protected cultural status in the
region.
The Gargano is spectacularly beautiful, reminiscent of
California’s Big Sur, and we were happy to have a chance to drive its coastline
before hoards of summer vacationers arrive.
Tonight’s destination brought us out of Puglia to Ascoli
Piceno, in the region of Le Marche. We
are staying in an apartment along one of the town’s two rivers, and steps from
the Roman bridge leading to the old town.
We’re here for just one night, so we took the opportunity to walk a bit
in the old town as we went to and from dinner there. It’s a gorgeous place, and we’re looking
forward to seeing more of it tomorrow morning before we head for Tuscany.
Some random Puglia notes:
Agriculture is king – Olive groves (many containing old,
thick-trunked trees) and vineyards (some with various types of covering
carefully affixed, row after row) were everywhere and, in the northern part of
the region, wheat fields joined the mix.
Another kind of farm as taken hold, too – Solar panels are a
common sight, with huge clusters of them everywhere.
Medieval towers – They’re everywhere, too, especially
dotting the coastlines.
Stones, stones, stones – We’ve already noted the walls that
run for miles along every route, but there are also huge piles of stones with
trees growing out of them in the middle of fields. Mulch?!?
Asparagus hunters – This is the season for new, wild
asparagus and we often saw people along the roadside with a handful of the long
and thin stalks, and looking for more.
Wildflowers abound – especially beautiful are the masses of
yellow flowers that fill the green grass areas in many of the olive
groves. Their color just says, “Spring!”
And, of course, the trulli – Our days in Puglia have taught
us that they house real people, wonderful and hospitable people, not hobbits or
gnomes at all!
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