Exploring in the hills

Today was our last day in Abruzzo and we followed the advice of our host Lorenzo and visited Stiffe and the magnificent cave. Lorenzo has different itineraries written out to explore different areas. It was great to have the local knowledge of an area before we visited. The drive to Stiffe was scenic - I just cannot get over the size of the mountain ranges. Driving up and around them makes you feel quite small in comparison. We arrived in Stiffe after about an hour and found the cave quite easily. We met Hugo at the ticket counter and were in time for an 11:30 tour, as you can't enter the cave without a guide. Helmets on, we were ready to go!

Could Abruzzo be better than Tuscany?

This morning I woke and took a walk and left Katie to have a little snooze in, it is her birthday. I was able to enjoy the serenity and also explore the grounds and animals of the Agriturismo.

I was able to meet some of the locals like the donkey, goats and sheep.

Peeking into Pescara

This morning we woke in lovely Abruzzo, our newly adopted cats waiting for us at the front door for breakfast. We then headed into Pescara to meet Tony and Norma. Shannon has become a whizz at finding the good parks and had pre-programmed tom-tom to take us to the train station carpark. When we arrived it appeared full, so we followed the directions of the young African man who was waving at us wildly to an available park. He was clearly after a few euro and in this case, we were happy to oblige as he was quite helpful and rather friendly.

Head out on the highway. Bye, Bari

It was amazing to realise this morning that we had spent 6 nights in a castle as King and Queen of the town, Palo Del Colle.  Our room was truly something we don't think we will ever see again along with the bathroom and Mimmo's hospitality.

With more than 345KM to cover and almost 4 hours, we had a long day ahead of us (in European travel standards).  I had selected on the final destination for the Puglia region, Castle Del Monte.

Tiny towns, big personalities

This morning after breakfast, we headed to Altamura - 'the city of bread'. It is quite simply, famous for its' very specific bread that has been made there for hundreds of years. After our sampling of focaccia in Bitonto the other day, we were more than ready to eat some more delicious bread. We were not disappointed. We came across the oldest bakery in town, in operation since 1423. The baker and operators of the shop were clearly proud of their business. What was more impressive is that they were quite young and quite clearly working hard to maintain their family business. The room was tiny and hot and there were loaves baking in the oven. We decided to go with a slice of focaccia each and were not disappointed. One was topped simply with potatoes, rosemary and olive oil and the other with sundried tomatoes - delicious. 

Marvelous, Majestic, Mesmerising, its Matera

Matera is a place that is in Basilicata, southern Italy and was another reason for us coming to explore this area.

We started early and picked up Tony and Norma from Bari then headed inland and within about an hour we were parked and walking the streets of Matera.

Taking it easy

Today was one of those leisurely days, where we didn't really do a whole lot and it's just what we needed. In the rush of wanting to see important things when travelling, sometimes you can forget to relax. So, we spent the morning wandering the streets of the little town we're based in, experiencing their daily routines and enjoying a coffee in the piazza with the locals, watching the world go by.

Osteria - where home cooking can sometimes be better than home cooking

Have you ever been to an Osteria? Well if it is a good one, it is better than home cooking.

Not the Osteria mentioned in this blog, just a cool photo!

This afternoon for our late lunch (it was past 14:30) we went to Osteria Vini e Cucina in Bari. These places create very typical cuisine and there is normally no menu. From the front it was a typical place, with no menu on the window or door, so we stepped in and went down the 6 steps into a room with a vaulted ceiling. There would have been about 12 tables or so and about 30 people already inside, laughing, talking and having a good time.

Una Tavola per Due? - Asked Katie (a table for two)
Si, Si - Yes Yes said the man and gestured to the one closest to the door.

We sat down and he then walked away, within moments he was back with a fresh table cloth (green tartan), but no menu. 

He then continued with the following:
"I have Antipasto" (normally a selection of meat cheese and the like)

"I have Orecchieette, with Pomodoro" (a type of pasta and tomato sauce)

"I have meat, Pesche or Carne" (with seafood or meat)

To us this was a dream menu, he said "okay" We both said Si, Grazie (Yes, thank you)

He said Pesche or Carne (Fish or Meat)
We both replied Carne (meat)
Unsurpassed by our reply he asked Salsiccia or Bistecca (Katie was a little lost on this one but I knew what he was asking (Sausage or steak) but thankfully I did and provided a translation. We both opted for the sausage and in typical Osteria style, he said better you have sausage and you have steak, we agreed.

Next, he asked "you like vino?" we said yes and replied vino Rosso (red wine)

With the warm weather and the humidity back in town we also ordered a bottle of water, this is big here, almost everyone has bottled water at mealtime.

So from there, our meal was ordered.

We love these types of very simple conversations, in no way are we fluent within the language but without using almost any English we were able to order an Antipasti, pasta first course, meat second course and house red wine.

Within about 2 minutes the wine arrived followed by the antipasti, it was some slices of cheese with prosciutto and then another plate with incredible sun-dried tomatoes and grilled eggplant which were both drizzled in olive oil.

Savouring these dishes was hard to do as they were amazing, in fact, that would have been enough, but before we wiped the plates clean and our cutlery placed aside for the next dish, the plates were taken from us.

The pasta dish arrived, it was the pasta made locally and had a sweet and savoury tomato sauce, but the clincher for me as the (expected) basil that is normally on a dish like this was not present.  Old basil was replaced with...rocket leaves. Yes, the types you would normally have in a salad and just like basil leaves, they were slightly wilted due to the heat of the sauce. When combined with the sauce and pasta the spicy heat from the rocket leaves were like little explosions of energy and complimented the salty cheese on the pasta well.

Again we could have stopped there, of course, we couldn't and thankfully the portions were small so we could continue.

The plates were whisked away and in the meantime, we poured the red wine, this house wine was not at cellar temperature but was chilled and was a welcome refreshment in the warm weather.

In what felt like seconds the meat dish came out, the sausage about 15mm thick and coiled up around some skewers, and the steak thin like sandwich steak.  We both shared the meat dishes and were amazed by the succulent texture of the seak and flavours of the sausage. There was very little on the plate other than lettuce (like an iceberg) that was cut up in strips and dashed with olive oil.

Again without warning as soon as we were finished the plates were whisked away... oooh I almost forgot, Southern Italy CAN make bread.  Sorry for what I have said in the past but that was based on northern Italian bread which is normally made without salt.  The bread in this area is amazing.

Finally, we needed to turn away the waiter as he brought out the fruit dish of two giant slices of watermelon, he was ok with this but insisted we have two little desserts. They were a cross between a mini croissant and a sfogliatella (crispy dessert from Naples) they were piled with a lemon and vanilla custard and dusted passionately with icing sugar.

He also asked if we wanted a coffee to go with our dessert, it appeared it couldn't get any better but I thought let's push it and see if he can also make a great coffee. Of course, it was espresso and had the correct amount of crema on top. Was it great? Of course! This Osteria has been making great food, serving great wine and making great espresso since 1879.

The remainder of the afternoon we were able to catch up with Tony and Norma, relatives from London who have made the long journey to spend the next week with us. We walked the streets of Bari and we were able to see the ladies that make pasta that supplies the local restaurants.

We have also planned out the next couple of days adventures with Tony and Norma, coast, hills and all in between.

Astonishing small towns and the city.

We spent our first night in the castle and woke up still very full from dinner last night. Mimmo, our host, made us a reservation at a traditional hotel in town. Our watier suggested a menu and we went with it. The food did not stop coming. I think the chef may have been excited to have a couple of Australians in town. We enjoyed cheeses local to Puglia, cheesy balls in a pumpkin puree, bread that melted in the mouth and some 'interesting' olives. I am not a fan of olives, but Shannon loves them. These, however, had been boiled and were served hot. Not even Shannon could muster the energy to get through them. This place is known for its meat, so the meat, we did eat. We ordered the mixed grill which came out on a sizzling grill accompanied by a plate of roast potatoes that I could have eaten all night. I always try to replicate Italian roasted potatoes at home, but they're never quite the same. This was of course accompanied by wine and our waiter brought out a series of bottled liqueurs for us to try. One just about blew our heads off, which made the waiter laugh. He also seemed happy to practice his English skills on us. We woke up this morning still full but delighted by the view from our little balcony.

Tonight I will stay in a castle.

Alberobello, a bit of a tongue twister, and a name that may be unknown to you, but I'm sure you will recognise the photos of the homes.

Along with about 5000 tour groups, and 3.6 million tourists, we also took some time to explore this small town that has basically converted to an adult Disneyland.

Small town charm

If there is one thing we've learnt travelling through Southern Italy, it is that there is more character to be found in the small towns, over the big cities. Deciding we had seen all Lecce has to offer, we planned another day in the car, stopping in at smaller places. We hit the jackpot with our first stop, Nardo, a town we thought we would only spend about an hour in, but ended up staying for a number of hours.

We instantly felt welcomed in this tiny town and noticed the people were far more relaxed and receptive to visitors than Lecce. We found a tourist information centre and the lady was so helpful,

Simple things often aren't

There is something about planning a road trip and not knowing what could be there. This was the case this morning.  A lot can be gained by doing a search on Google Maps. The satellite coverage is amazing but one area I find lacking is its ability to fully show the terrain. I know it has terrain features but there is nothing (as yet) like actually being on the ground.

So planning today's drive we thought it would be flat all the way but in fact, had similarities to the Great Ocean Road.

Today was another hot and humid day, great for those who reside in South East Queensland, but for two that have just left the chills of Lethbridge in winter isn't.

Driving this area today I was amazed how quiet the roads were and I was only tailgated (badly) by one aggressive driver!

Going slow in Lecce

We've had some lovely warm days in Italy on this trip, none so warm as today in Lecce. After a very Italian style breakfast in our apartment, we sat outside on the terrace for a while to plan our day. At 8am it was already 23 degrees and as Shannon discovered via his weather app - humidity 94%. Oh, you can imagine the joy of instant sweat when you step outside! So we took it slow in the morning, first attending to our laundry at a laundromat close by. Unlike previous trips, we have not come across any issues trying to access the laundromat facilities this time! The operators we came across this morning were very helpful. We then headed back to our apartment via the supermarket to get some supplies for the next few days, including dinner for tonight. Because we stay in apartments, we split our dinners between enjoying restaurants and preparing basic meals like pasta, or cold meats and salad. We also knew we'd be hot and bothered and could do with some time in air-conditioned comfort.

Heading to the heel

Time to pack the bags again.

Today was a long (in European terms) drive, about 4 hours from Agriturismo Villa Vea was our next destination, Lecce.

For those of you playing along at home, think of Italy as a boot, and Lecce is almost at the bottom of the heel.

Once we left the hilly areas the roads began to smooth out a little, with some long stretches through the valleys and some climbs over the mountain ridges, we were never left for moments of boredom.

Also driving this distance allowed us to see the change from the "greener areas" to the very flat dry plains.

On route, we took a slight detour through Taranto Vehecio (old town).

Something special around every corner

As we have been so busy this year, a lot of time didn't go into planning this trip, as in previous years. This morning we didn't have a plan for the day, which as it seems, sometimes turns out to be a good thing. We asked one of our hosts, Andrew, for recommendations of things to see in the area. He suggested we check out Sanctuary di San Michele Arcangelo. It is a chapel that monks built into the side of a cave more than 400 years ago. We decided this was a very good start and set off for the small town it is situated in. We drove through the windy, narrow streets of the town and finally found what we were looking for. We stopped the car, realising that we couldn't drive any further and were stopped by a man in a red car. We soon realised he was trying to communicate with us about the chapel. With some hand gestures and the help of google translate, we realised he was telling us to come back after 4pm. We assured him we would return and stopped the car to take a walk. Monte Sant'Angelo is a picturesque town of narrow streets and inviting porticos.

Getting deeper into Southern Italy.

Last night we dined again at the Agriturismo and shared a table with some other guests Craig and Debbie from Pittsburg U.S.A.
The meals here are very localised normally consisting of a pasta dish and then the main meat dish. Dessert has been thus far icecream.  On the menu last night, was a local pasta similar to orecchiette but much smaller.  The pasta was made in house by Nonna. It had an olive oil sauce with porcini mushrooms. The meat dish consisted of homemade meatballs and some fried potatoes (chips).

It was a pleasure dining with the Pittsburgher's with much conversation, covering topics like cuisine, work, cars, politics /Trump, differences in culture and gun laws.

Southern Italy, impressive thus far.

When we arrived at Villa Vea yesterday afternoon, Andrew gave us a map and some brochures of the area. So this morning, we consulted the map to decide where to spend some time today and decided on Certosa di Padula, an ancient monastery about an hour from our Agriturismo. We started the day with a lovely breakfast prepared by Angela, including a cake she had just taken out of the oven. Breakfast in Italy is usually a coffee and pastry, but at the Agriturismo's, they go to some effort to prepare a lovely breakfast, and it was. We indulged in cheese, prosciutto and fresh tomatoes from the farm, yoghurt, pastry and fresh juice and coffee. We met some fellow guests, including Al from Arizona, USA, who loved a chat.

After our lovely breakfast, we consulted Tom-Tom and planned our route to the monastery.

They told me the roads would be bad

This morning I awoke with some apprehension and.... worry. Streets of Naples were calling and our rental car pickup was due.

Talking to other travellers they told me I was crazy about renting a car and driving in southern Italy. When we mentioned this to the tour guides Raphel and Noemi they both (separately) advised: "you're game".

Time to farewell Naples

After our lovely long evening with Noemi and Michel last night, we didn't get to bed until the wee hours of the morning. So it was a late start to the day today...well for me, Shannon was still wide awake at 6am. The benefit of this was catching the sunrise over Mt Vesuvius from our apartment window.

We didn't really have a plan for the day today, our last in Naples, but had to attend to things like laundry and packing up our things. We had breakfast at a little cafe just downstairs from our apartment, in true Italian fashion - cornetti and a cappuccino.

The best and worst events in 24 hours.

Well into the evening, it is now quarter to midnight, it has been a big eventful evening.

The day started by going to the pharmacy for an event that started on Tuesday, let's go back. 

Tuesday morning we left Lubeck Germany around 6am and then got to the Airport after a separate minor event, then got the plane to Naples some 2000KM and 2hr and thirty minutes later. It wasn't until Tuesday night when Katie asked "where is your insulin?" when re realised that three weeks worth of my Diabetes medication was mistakenly left in the apartment fridge in Lubeck.  

I was in a little trouble, with no way of getting the much-needed drugs from the fridge in Lubeck it was our first mission of Wednesday morning to go to the pharmacy and try to get some. Luckily I come prepared for most emergencies and this was one of them. I had my prescriptions. Travel tip #34 if you need medication, always carry your prescription, it helps.

So with them in hand, we were at the door as the pharmacy opened at 8am, and with some strange conversations, I was

Crazy, beautiful Naples...

What a day! It's 9pm and we've just sat down. We left Lubeck very early this morning, to arrive at Hamburg airport by 8 am, to catch our flight to Naples at 10am. Our timing was perfect and the flight to Naples only took around 2 hours 30 min. The flight with Eurowings (Lufthansa sister line) was very comfortable. Shannon got some great shots over Croatia and coming into Italy.

Let's talk about Dickmann's

After yesterdays success of visiting rural Northern Germany, we decided to get out the map and throw a few darts and explore some more.

Leaving via car toward the north and within only 10 km of Lubeck city, was our first stop, the very small fishing village of Gothmund and the old port. Driving into this area felt quite familiar to other suburban areas, large houses on large lots built after WW2, in fact, nothing spectacular, but as we got closer and closer to the river the road got narrower, to the point it was only one car wide.  I was able to find a park and then whipped out google maps to guide us down to the old port.

All things miniature

Today, it was all about Miniature Wonderland. In 2016, Shannon and I visited this spectacular place in Hamburg and vowed we would return. Today we did. Miniature Wonderland is just that. Over four floors of an old warehouse is a complete wonderland of miniatures...people, railway, cities and countries.

It is hard to describe this place well. Many of you will have seen a miniature railway before perhaps, but it's more than that. The producers have

More lovely Lubeck

With a first look at Lubeck yesterday, we decided to spend another day exploring this historical town. After catching up on some emails, banking and other online chores, we walked along the river to European Hansemuseum a museum dedicated to the city and how it was part of international trading for well over 800 years.

Lovely Lubeck

We woke in Lubeck this morning feeling rested and ready to explore. Shannon was starting to feel much better and decided he couldn't bear another day staring at four walls and needed to get out. First, we gave Linda and Julian a call. It was nice to check in with them and the beagles! Shannon had read about a resort-type town that the German's travel to for their summer holidays. We decided it would be a nice place to spend the morning and we weren't wrong. Travemunde is about 15 minutes drive from Lubeck. It's a port town, much like a Portarlington only much bigger. After successfully parking the car, we wandered into town, pausing for a pastry from a little bakery for breakfast. They're big on their bakeries in Germany and the goods are excellent.

Who needs an Autobahn

This morning we woke with the sunrise and packed our bags leaving our lovely apartment, which amazingly had many quirks.  Not one wall in the house was vertical, all lent one way or another, the floor sloped in all directions and was a different slope in each room. The floorboards were in some cases long slabs of timber, some as wide as 1 foot and they also appeared to bend as you walked across them.  It may sound terrible, but it wasn't, it was exactly what we were after and gave us a wonderful insight into life in current Germany and also that of hundreds of years ago.

We decided to avoid the Autobahns today as when on them, there isn't much that can be seen other than freeway signs whizzing by along with blurs of cars doing well over 160km/h.

It was going to take us a little longer to go the back roads, about an hour in total, but with the sat nav providing the guidance we knew we were on the right path.

Always order different meals

Yesterday afternoon I started to feel a little unwell in the stomach, hoping it wouldn't be too much I powered on and by the evening realised something I had eaten had not been as well prepared as we could hope. Without much detail, it required me to stay close to a toilet all day today.

Thankfully our number 1 travel rule was followed.  Never order the same meal.  This has saved us in the past and on this occasion from both getting a bug, unfortunately, I have drawn the short straw on both occasions.

So while I spent the day in our apartment I was able to learn, the tourist horse and cart goes past our window every 90 min and there is practically no traffic between 9:30 and 3pm.

For the remainder of today's blog, I will hand over to Katie...

High in the hills

Today we decided to take a train ride up into the Harz mountains. The Brocken is the highest peak of the Harz mountain range and of Northern Germany, with an elevation of 1141m. We walked from our accommodation to the main train station in Wernigerode this morning at 8 am to get the first train up to Brocken at 8:55. The train is a beautiful old steam train, with restored carriages. We were glad we had decided to get the first train of the day because although it was very busy, we were able to get a seat.

Bad Harzburg, Goslar and Harz Mountains

It was a day on the road and I started by planning a route that avoided the motorways and autobahns.  Not because the roads are hard to use, in fact, they are simpler than driving in the towns, but there is so much more that can be seen when driving through the towns rather than around them.

We left our accommodation around 9 am after having an in house breakfast we purchased previously. Kellogs Cornflakes and a cup of tea. It is small sacrifices like having a simple breakfast

Trains, castles and beer.

Guten Tag! After 30+ hours of travel, we have arrived in Wernigerode, Germany. We had great flights with Emirates. We landed in Hamburg slightly behind schedule, tired but excited to be here. We picked up our rental car at the Hamburg airport and then drove three and a half hours on the autobahn until we reached Wernigerode; quaint, pretty and full of character. The autobahn was quite the experience, with cars flying past us over at well 150kmh. Shannon handled the road amazingly well, for someone running on