After a quiet evening we are up early for a swim. The tiny inlet and beach at Canale del Ciolo is famous throughout Italy and often shown on tourist advertisments. Itโs about 10 kilometres north of Capo, but the guide warns there is no parking, hence the scooter.
Looking down from the road bridge above the inlet. There are a number of sea caves or grottos as they call them here to explore.
When we first arrived there were 20 people here, within the hour there are 120 with more arriving every minute, so itโs time to go.
The scooter back to the Hymer we do the usual services before heading out the drive, turning north on the SP358. The Lonely Planet states the drive from Santa Maria del Leuca to Otranto is the most scenic in Puglia. So we will find out.
Every turn provides sweeping views of the coastline.
Lots of nice homes overlooking the Adriatic Sea.
Many of the larger hotels or public buildings have a Arabic feel.
Growing rocks seems to be the only successful farming activity.
We pass several small fortress or outposts of Greek and Roman origin.
We eventually turned for Lecce, then pass around the port city of Brindisi before we turn for the hill-top town of Ostuni.
Ostuni, Puglia, Italy
Ostuni finally comes into view. The is a sosta just below the town, so we find a spot and go for a walk.
Just up from the sosta we find the Church of Carmine, circa 1615. It does stand out as most of Ostuni is whitewashed.
The shadows are lengthening and the people are coming out.
The centrepiece of the piazza in Ostuni, shame about the truck. It was taking down the festival ornaments.
Also in the piazza, some Roman ruins.
Just hanging out in the piazza on a warm summer evening.
We walk along to the Church di San Vito Martire. Cannot be another wedding ?
The streets are clogged with German limousines. Nice !
Continuing our walk up the hill we finally find a church without a wedding, baptism or funeral underway. The Basilica Santa Maria. Circa 1450.
The choir and high alter. By the look of the flowers there was a wedding earlier in the day.
The ceilings main fresco depicting Jesus giving the money lenders and traders the move along from the temple is beautiful.
We wander the lanes and old city gates before we start our walk back down the hill.
Stopping at a viewing point the Adriatic Sea in the distance. The valley is full of olive trees, their tops cut flat.
Walking down the hill to the sosta, can you spot the Hymer hidden in the trees.
We have a drink and dinner watching our sosta (come carpark) become a fighting pit of Italians behaving badly as they argue, yell and sound their horns over parking spaces. Just on dark we have an opportunity to reverse out and escape (luckily we hadnโt paid the โฌ10 overnight parking fee). We travel on the 10 kilometres to Cisternino where there is a free sosta with a hundred empty places. That was our day…
Date: 2nd August 2018 Travelled: 146 kilometres from Piazza Armerina to Pozzallo, both in Sicily. Visited: Driving the Baroque Towns (Lonely Planet, […]
Date: 12-13th August 2018 Travelled: Valletta, Malta to Pozzallo, Sicily by ferry, then 57 kilometres from Pozzallo to Syracuse Visited: Noto, Syracuse […]
