Friday 12 February 2021

A Series of Favourite Sites Garnered from our Travels

....................................Southern Italy

With no prospect of leaving these four walls in the foreseeable future, I have been reliving travels past to various countries. If you would like to know more about each place then click onto the highlighted link below each image. 

The first country featured is Italy, which we have visited many times across the years, but this post will concentrate on it's southern "boot", an area less well known and with far fewer tourists. 



 Lecce  "Florence of the South"

Matera - a 9,000 year old town
The trullis of Alberobello
The relics of St. Nicholas in Bari

44 comments:

  1. What a great idea Rosemary. Your posts about Southern Italy were so enjoyable, and I loved seeing them again, especially Matera. Thank you for sharing it all.

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    1. I am pleased that you enjoyed seeing them again Patricia - may be you too will get Matera one of these fine days.

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  2. At least we have the memories and the photos to dream away for a moment.....:)

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    1. Each of our blogs are full of personal memories which is something that I really appreciate being able to delve into at this moment in time.

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  3. "Far fewer tourists" - that's the key!

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    1. There are certainly very few tourist anyway currently.

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  4. Are they the relics of Father Christmas?

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  5. Hello Rosemary,

    It has been delightful to tour these lesser known Italian treasures with you and to catch up on your adventures. We have been away too long but it is good to return and to see you well and thriving in Blogland.

    Alas, we tend to revisit our favourite haunts in Italy without venturing further but you have truly tempted us here, particularly with Lecce. The honey coloured stone with its vast array of architectural features is simply stunning. No matter what is under wraps, there must surely always be plenty to discover there. We must try to get there one day.

    And, what a perfect time to travel vicariously with you. These strange and challenging times need us, perhaps more than ever, to reach out and connect. Thank you.

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    1. Hello Jane and Lance - I think that you would both enjoy and appreciate the charms of Lecce, it is certainly somewhere that I would be happy to return to.
      It is good that you have returned to Blogland. I know that you have both been greatly missed.

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    2. Dearest rosemary,

      That is so kind. Thank you.

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  6. Dear Rosemary, Big sigh. Will you share more of your travel posts?

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    1. Dear Gina - if you are happy to see them, then I am happy to look back on my memories and show more.

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  7. Such gorgeous photos! The furthest south I got in Italy was Rome so, not really far south at all.

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    1. The southern part of Italy has lots to offer, and yet it tends to be neglected, which from my point of view gives it more charm. It doesn't have high rise hotels, loads of tourists, and is far, far, cheaper than the popular cities in the north.

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  8. Glorious photos of an area I don't know at all, my Italian adventures being confined to the Dolomites and a day in Venice. I always meant to go back to the country but never did. I think it'll be a while before there are many tourists in the north or south.

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    1. I too have enjoyed several holidays in the Dolomites and of course Venice, which I love, that is apart from all of the tourists.

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  9. I had to look up trullos and was thrilled that you had such a good photo of them. Thanks for the educational glimpse into an area I haven't discovered before!

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    1. I am pleased to know that you have discovered trullis through this post Barbara - thank you for letting me know.

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  10. Hello Rosemary, You have been to so many interesting and colorful places. I am quite jealous of your broad travels, not to mention your inherently better picture taking. These days it is nice to get out the photos and spend some time reflecting on favorite places.
    --Jim

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    1. Hello Jim - will I ever be able to travel again? That is the big question. At least I do have lots of memories which are greatly assisted by my photos.
      I haven't been looking back at my travels until just now, but I agree with what you say about spending time reflecting on favourite places. There are lots of little details that I had completely forgotten about that I have enjoyed.

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  11. Such a wonderful photos. I like roofs, old houses and colors in each picture.
    Hugs

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    1. Thank you Orvokki - glad you enjoyed seeing the photos.

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  12. Dear Rosemary,
    It was relaxing and enjoyable to travel with you to the boot of Italy. The Trulli construction is really amazing! I'm so glad we have our memories to look back on during these times.

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    1. Dear Lorrie - I am now really appreciating all of the memories that I have written and shown on this blog, it is far better than an album of photos could ever be.

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  13. Dearest Rosemary,
    Such great photos never get boring for reviewing and admiring the melting–together of different cultures over the centuries. History remains one of our most interested things and always, with that in mind, you travel so differently!
    Hugs,
    Mariette

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    1. Dear Mariette - this Pandemic period has given us all so much more time in which to reflect on the past and also ponder what the future might hold for all of us. History records countless dreadful periods across the centuries, but humanity moves inexorably forward.

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  14. I really like Italy but all my trips there concentrated on the alpine north for the highest mountains and climbing so I know very little of the south except for Inspector Montalbano (great scenery,unusual acting and script at times) and Respiro set in Lampedusa, my favourite Italian film by far. Fairly brave going that far south as I know certain areas, like Naples, still have high crime rates.

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    1. We have travelled to the toe of Sicily and visited Montalbano's haunts. We are great fans of his too, we love the characters, the humour, and of course the scenery. Naples is not as bad as its reputation suggests, it is an exciting city for a visit, and has some wonderful historic buildings and museums to visit.

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  15. I too am enjoying having my blog to look back on to view, and read about, not only my times in Italy but also so many places around the world.
    These are beautiful photos Rosemary and although I've seen a little of southern Italy, I see there are many other fabulous places remaining for future visits!

    Thank for sharing - hugs, Mary

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    1. When I started the blog I hadn't realised quite what an asset it would prove to be at a time like this. It is so lovely to be able to look back at times past, remember them, and even dream.
      Take care both of youX

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  16. I know it is not a competition but I would vote for Bari. All Italian port cities are wonderful to visit, but Bari is very special. If Covid ever ends, I will jump on the first plane available.

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    1. Dear Hels - I shall look forward to hearing about your trip to Bari, perhaps in the not too far distant future.
      I am convinced that eventually we will learn to live with Covid one way or another. Scientists are far more intelligent than any virus.

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  17. I'm off to look and travel where you have been in the past.
    Thanks for sharing and things are not looking good for travel for a very long time Rosemary.
    Even here in Australia you never know when a State border is going to close so we are only going to travel our Island we live on, it's the safest thing to do at the moment and probably a long time.

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    1. Time is of the essence Margaret - we all need to be very patient. However, I know that for many people the wait is beginning to take its toll both financially and emotionally.

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  18. You have visited some of Italy's countless gems, at least you have the memory , as traveling seems to be something we can only dream about for now .

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    1. Dear Jane - we are now coming up to almost one year since this wretched virus arrived in Europe. How many of us could have imagined that we would still be in the situation we are today.
      I would really love to be able to visit Italy again.

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  19. Yes armchair travel is the way to go. I could almost feel the warmth as I read your post. It’s definitely going to be staycations for quite some time. B x

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    1. We all need patience and care - I have almost forgotten what it is like to visit exciting new places now, and wonder if we shall still be capable of handling it in the future. I am so grateful that I now have this blog so that I can look back and remember.

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  20. Hello, Rosemary. I’m especially attracted to Alberobello and Matera. Both are uniquely and distinctively beautiful.

    Yoko

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    1. Hello Yoko - I would be really happy to return to both of these places should there be a possibility in the future.

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“You can't stay in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you - you have to go to them sometimes”

― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh