Gallipoli

Saturday April 15, 2023

We awake to another magnificent breakfast with the addition of biscotti made by Donatellas mother. Don Nino BNB has exceeded our expectations. We all head to the station and a few blocks away Donatella comes running up behind us. It turns out that Dave is a chia e ( key) thief and was Leaving with the two keys and room card in his pocket. At the train station, we validate our tickets and walk to track 8 which involves a tunnel and walk along track 6/and 7 and then across track 8 to its platform. The train arrives shortly and is another one car diesel train. The hour and 45 minutes goes by fast as I journal and watch the southern Italian countryside go by. We arrive in Gallipoli about 10 minutes early and buy our tickets for Monopoli on Monday. The walk to our BNB goes smoothly and we are happy that it is sunny as the forecast was for rain. Our rooms are ready and we get all checked in. The place is a palace that has been in his family for over three generations. Our rooms look over the castle and port, out to the Ionian Sea. It is really nice with a spacious room and a grande bathroom. 

We head out and decide to see the Castle while the weather is nice. Unfortunately it closes for siesta at 1300 and it is 1250 so we will have to come back at 1500 when it opens again. We wander about town looking for a place to eat and checking out a few possibilities for dinner. Strike two for the day is when we go to a sandwich place rated #1 in town and it is closed. Dave and Gwen stop at a small sandwich place while Carol and I explore a little longer. When we return they are waiting for their sandwiches so we decide to eat there also and Oder two focaccia bread pizzas. Gwen asks what this round looking flaky bread  item in the display is and she says it has cheese, peppers, tomato inside and Gwen says you should get that ( kiddingly) so we do. It is amazing with a bechemel sauce in it . We finish it, their sandwiches arrive and we walk to the sea, find a bench and enjoy our lunch. It is a little breezy but sunny which is much better than the 90% chance of rain that was forecast. Apparently, the weather forecasters went to the same school as ours and cannot predict with any accuracy. 

The old city where we are staying became an island in 1484 when the Venetians took over Gallipoli.For defense, they cut the strip of land that connected the peninsula to the mainland. The bridge was built in the 16th century with 12 arches and a wooden drawbridge. Over the centuries, the town has been invaded by Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, Spanish and Normans. After a bit, Gwen and Dave decide to just stroll, while Carol and I visit the Castello Arogonese. 

The castle was built in the 13th century and was enlarged in the 16th century by the Arogonese. The fortress is surrounded by the sea and several rooms have videos with a person in character telling some of the history. The videos have English subtitles and there are nice informative signs that have English as well. We learn about the importance of olive oil production which made Gallipoli a great commercial entity, giving it power and wealth. The oil was not used for cooking but rather for lamps and was sent to many places including United States, London, Spain, and Russia. We also learn that they used the by products of the oil production to make soap. One video is of Catherine the Great talking about the importance of the oil and Carol says “Isnt’ she the one who had her husband killed?” (We had visited her palace in St Petersburg) and as if on cue, Catherine says “Don’t pay attention to the rumors that I had my husband murdered, although it is true I had many lovers and did not like my husband at all. He would not have ruled as well as me”. We tour several other rooms including one domed room that used to be the armory and has great acoustics. Standing in the middle of the room, you can tap your foot and hear a multitude of echoes, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap. We climb up on the bastions and enjoy the views of the sea although it is now partly cloudy which hides some of the brilliant water colors. We enjoyed the visit and when we leave, we walk around the islands edge until we reach the Spiaggia del Purita, the city beach. 

We get a short burst of sun and take a few pictures. Across from the Beach is the Church of Santa Maria della Purita. The church was built in the mid 17th century and the exterior is only decorated with three majolica panels of the Madonna della Purita, Saint Francis and Saint Joseph. This is in contrast to the interior which has every inch decorated with gold trim and 18th century paintings.  We exit and run into Gwen and Dave. We walk along the wall and find a way down to the beach. They make fun of me as i said I was going to go swimming (if the sun was out, which it no longer was) and instead, I roll up my pants and just wade in up to my knees. It is a bit brisk but overall not bad and invigorating. We then walk to where a young man who was fishing is packing up. I ask in Italian if he’d had any luck and he reaches into his bucket and shows me his catch which he calls Bigoli. I think it is a sardine but will have to check. From here we walk around the rest of the island and return to our BNB for some wine in our room overlooking the harbor and sea. Later, we go out to dinner and have a nice seafood meal. Carol and I split grilled swordfish, spiced salmon, and grilled vegetables and a half bottle of Primitivo wine, an excellent choice all around. When we leave the 90% chance of rain has arrived but it doesn’t matter as our day is done.

Expenses Train Lecce to Gallipoli 8.80E Lunch at Bar Picciuli 7.50E  ( Cash). Arogonese Castle 10E Dinner at Trattoria Santa Monaca 48.50E Dessert at Martinucci 8.50E BNB Palazzo Barba 67.32E Walked 7.7 Miles