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.

I really wanted to go back to Roscigno Vecchia, to take some photos and absorb the atmosphere of the place as it really is something special. Giuseppe was there again, this time sitting out in the sunshine watching the few tourists who were around. He smiled and said, 'Australia!', remembering us from the other day. We wandered around stopping to take plenty of photographs and picturing what life may have been like in this little village. With a little imagination, we could see washing hung out of windows, children playing in the street and Nonno's resting in the piazza.

We decided to go back to our accommodation to have lunch and a rest. So we stopped at the local supermarket and picked up some 'Italian lunch supplies'. By this I mean, sliced prosciutto, some soft cheese, fresh rolls, buffalo mozzarella and fresh tomatoes. This made for a lovely lunch on our balcony. We called home to our parents and caught up on the latest. We had a couple of hours until we needed to be out, so I decided it was a good opportunity to test out the pool. I had a lovely dip, with a view of the mountains in the distance. We headed out to see the chapel, parking our car some distance away and walking the rest. Bernardo met us at the top of the hill, at the chapel entrance. It was truly a spectacular sight. Over 400 years ago, monks built a beautiful chapel in a cave. It was cool inside and were surprised to see statues and altars kept intact for so many years. Bernardo pointed out some interesting things, without a word of English, but patiently repeating words and using hand gestures, so we could understand.

It was quite a special place and we were grateful to Bernardo for opening it up especially for us to visit. We bid farewell and started the trek back to the car. Because the walk to the cave was mostly downhill, the walk back, of course, was uphill. I think the face in the below photo says it all. (the road sign said it was a 16% gradient)