Albergo del Sedile Matera

... inside the two or three room caves that served as their homes. The sanitary conditions were abysmal, and the infant mortality rate exceeded 50%. <br><br>Then, in the late 1950s, the government of Italy got involved and began to move (sometimes by force) all residents out of the Sassi and into new government apartments built in a &#8220;new&#8221; section of town. By 1963, the Sassi was deserted and had become a true ghost town. Then, in the 1980s, the government ...

... well preserved, and the Sassi ('stones') districts are now undergoing stylish renovations and are now host to bars, restaurants, and chic boutique hotels. <br><br>Our hotel, the 5* Palazzo Gattini, was stunning, and combined old world luxury with every modern comfort. The view from the terrace and the balconies to the ancient caves was magical and entrancing. Wandering through the Sassi ...

This is where Pietro, an old Italian guy, jumped into Bruce and navigated us to the trulli. He saved us from a traffic jam in the narrow streets of Puglia.<br><br>Pete was also called Pietro while in Italy. :-)<br><br>Trullo comes from the Greek word, "tholos" &#8211; meaning &#8220;dome&#8221;. See the pictures of the wee houses.<br><br>We found the Belvedere pub here too - also the name of our local in Aus &#8211; meaning &#8220;beautiful view&#8221;. It was beautiful.

... to go and are doing u-turns randomly before having to wait, not knowing what for. The pedestrians are told to wait and then pointed in a direction that doesn't appear safe for pedestrians and lastly for the cyclists, chrissy and I, none of the employees actually know whether we are supposed to wait in a really long vehicle line, or follow the pedestrians into that building. However, they all confidently tell us contradicting things ...

... much so that heaps of films have been made there, King David with Richard Gere and Mel Gibson´s The Passion of the Christ amongst them. <br><br>We arrived late afternoon and looked down on the valley of houses from the main square, and in the distance saw a campervan on the edge of a cliff the other side of the valley, a km or so away. Now wouldn´t that be a cool spot to spend the night, wake up with a cup of ...

... relaxing afternoon in the country away from the hustle and bustle of the cities. One of the days I went for a walk through the streets of the old Sassi region - The Sassi district consists of all the old cave dwellings where the people lived and the streets are narrow and wind their way up and down a hill. There were cats everywhere lazing about, as usual! I also have relatives living in Matera Gianluca's parents and his grandmother ...

... hostel was situated right in the middle of this old section of the town, so that I was able to dine, work and nap surrounded by this tranquil, yet lively village. I am continuing towards Bari tomorrow and then to Greece. I am excited to head back out on the road in an unfamiliar territory but in the same time I am already feeling a little sad to leave. All in all, I have had a wonderful time here in Italy; I am sure I will be back sooner than later.

... hauled the bike up to the closest auto-washer and gave my bike a good rinse. We then returned to the shop were his son gave the bike a careful oiling (after I cleared the left-over smudges with some paper towel the shop-keeper provided me with). At the end of the process the owner wished me good luck and refused to take any money, "you can buy me a coffee tomorrow morning!" he said. The next encounter I had was in the local ...

Short ride yet breathtaking. Via Appia is magnificent! An ancient roman road which is situated comfortably on the mountains above the highway is also amerced in natural forest and meadows, dotted here and there by small town houses, grazing sheep, pigs or hens. There is barely any traffic on the road - definite a bikers heaven. The mountain peaks reach a hight of more than 1000 m.

... the family, and upon saying I am full and can't eat any more am ordered to drink extra servings of Padre Peppè, a local digestive liqueur made from walnuts. I am happy to do what I'm told, then have a siesta, and in the evening we're off to the Sassi for a wine bar crawl - I shouldn't be telling you all this as you will all think I'm louche (work that one out for yourselves), but you might as well know what I'm really like, warts and all. <br>One of the bars we go to is the ...