Down the Salento Peninsula

[4 March 2004]

A leisurely Thursday morning. Sue does some more wash before we set out for a road trip down south. We decided to drive down to the Salento peninsula, down toward the tip of Puglia. By 10am we're on  the road after filling with gas and after about 60 kms get off the superstrada onto a secondary road reportedly running along the Adriatic coast. At least that’s what the atlas shows but in fact very little of the road is along the coast but a bit inland. 

We track from resort town to resort town each one of which appears totally uninhabited; shops and most buildings shuttered, hardly another soul in sight. It felt quiet eerie. Still, one can see from the businesses that this must be a thriving place in the summer. 

Anyway the day is sunny although cold and very windy; plus the drive is very nice and little (and I mean little) traffic so we enjoy ourselves. The beaches are empty of people but many are still littered with the debris and detritus from the previous season. Not especially attractive. At one point we find ourselves driving alongside what appears to be some serious maneuvers of the Italian armored unit and notice numerous tanks, self-propelled howitzers running parallel to our road and just a few meters away. Pretty spectacular actually.

We arrive in the coastal town of Otranto and decide to park and look for some lunch. We do find a few shops open selling souvenirs of course and we do take the opportunity to buy some more wine for our pantry. It is extremely windy and quite cold here but the sun is out which is a consolation.

During a walk around the old part of the town – which is mostly designed to cater to the summer tourist business apparently – we find ourselves in a most unusual little church in the middle of the old section. The floor is virtually one enormous mosaic telling a great many different bible stories. And in one of the side chapels, very well lit I might add and quite striking in its miniature duomo-like appearance we see the walls are covered with glass and behind the glass are literally hundreds of skulls and various other skeletal components. Apparently these were the inhabitants of Otranto who were massacred by the Turks many centuries ago and subsequently enshrined here. Curious to say the least. We ask the sexton to see the underground crypt and chapel which is small to be sure but has over 40 Norman columns separating the space and the walls are adorned with very old frescoes, paintings of various saints, angels, etc.

The seasonal curse continue to haunt us and we strike out in lunch – as usual – and head back north this time take the superstrada. We opt to get off at Lecce to check out the city and look for lunch. Here we strike out again but in a rather different, and potentially disastrous way. 

 As I was turning into a parking space a young woman on a motor scooter comes out of nowhere and hits our driver side rear door. Fortunately no one is hurt and little damage is done to the car. The girl’s motor scooter is damaged to the extent it won’t start and we are now at an impasse. She can’t speak english, we speak very little Italian of any value in this situation. She is calm, and we try to be. 

I try to call Avis – thank heavens for renting a cell phone – but their emergency number produces a recorded message, which is, of course, useless. The local Avis office does not answer. 

Anyway the young woman calls her friend and a few minutes later he shows up on a bicycle. We fill out the paperwork provided by Avis – one good bit of news – and after about an hour or so say ciao and we’re off again, a bit shaken. I am beginning to tire of driving around to what seems little purpose. The rare time we do find parking we find very little is open. It’s a frustrating combination.

So, it’s back home again in time for wine and cheese and a siesta before going out to pick up laundry from yesterday. Dinner at home this evening: pasta with a sauce made from fennel, onion and balsamic vinegar.