Hotel Del Campo 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%.

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 “new” section of town. By 1963, the Sassi was deserted and had become a true ghost town. Then, in the 1980s, the government ...

... in a humid cave which so recently housed entire families, and gazing across the ravine to opposite cliffs where shepherds sheltered for millennia, we got a sense of how hard life was here for so many. Stepping through the courtyards, ancient wine cellars and narrow streets, however, you do also get a strong sense of the communities which survived and flourished against the odds.

Tiny ...

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.

Pete was also called Pietro while in Italy. :-)

Trullo comes from the Greek word, "tholos" – meaning “dome”. See the pictures of the wee houses.

We found the Belvedere pub here too - also the name of our local in Aus – meaning “beautiful view”. It was beautiful.

... we get to customs where there's complete disorder. Then we see the road ways. I've never seen so much disorder in my life.

Last nights rest on the boat was awesome. We wanted to get some sort of cabin, but all were full and we were forced to be deck passengers. There were a lot of us and most everyone crowded into a lounge and attempted to make beds out of dining booths. Chrissy and I were the only ones to set up our sleep mats ...

(Note : All entries from now until Perth in November are way
shorter than they should be, as all out text got stolen, together with
our laptop, all our valuables, and almost our whole campervan, when it
was broken into and trashed in Rome at the end of October. Have a look
at that entry if you want to have a look at the damage the *******s
did. The next month or so´s text is written 6 months later, so we ...

... who is the sister of my grandfather). Gianluca's mother prepared delicious meals both days we visited and I ate so much I could hardly walk. Gianluca's grandmother looks exactly like my grandfather and she has a fantastic sense of humour. It was quite overwhelming to meet one of my grandfather's siblings and family in Italy and speak in Italian with them! Anyway, it was a great weekend, and I hope to go back there again before I leave! The ...

I decided to remain in Matera for an extra day. The old city, boasting a heritage of nearly 10,000 years is clearly majestic in its effect on the first time visitor. Not too touristy (yet), the city gives out the real feeling of what living in a small, secluded, cliff hanging cave town would be like. One can easily imagine this by looking up towards the still vacant stone houses and caves or looking down at the creak and the rocky hills surrounding it ...

... where the two pharmacists, once again, proved to be extremely kind and helpful. Armed with a dictionary and query Italian, I tried to remember the words for "rash" and "crouch". In the end I settled for a few jesters and finger pointings. "where? where? - oh, down there.. OK..", the pharmacist finally said, heading towards the baby ointments section. The whole process took 5 long minutes; the line behind me grew, yet the ...

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.

... but in another way it is simply an extension of natural hospitality - often when I have been introduced to a friend or relative of a cousin they have invited me for a coffee or icecream or a meal with them.
The last night is my birthday and there's no way I'm going to be allowed not to have it with my family so we head over to my aunt's and our noses are wonderfully assaulted by the aroma of freshly made pizzas - simple traditional tomato and young mozarella, and faccia ...