Day 9 Baia Delle Zagare

I slept hard until the morning.  I heard my friend getting ready downstairs.  She was putting her beach bag together.  I quickly got up.  I knew we were going to head to the auto shop to see if they would  have a rental waiting for us.  She has been checking since I originally landed in Greece and they kept telling her for sure they would have it by the weekend.  Now it's Wednesday.  She wanted to drive out to the northern regions.  So far, every time I have come to visit her, we've only drove to the southern cities. 
We had a light breakfast and made our way to the auto shop.  Italians are known to take their time.  They do not rush.  Although there were some customers ahead of us, we waited patiently for our turn.  Of course, all of that waiting did no good.  We were still left without a car.  Not to mention, they took a moment to look at her boyfriend's car and confirm the clutch (along with some minor issues) were kaput.  She did not want to leave the car there without discussing the details with her boyfriend.  For now, she wanted to see what her driving options were.  The repairman advised her to drive the car at her own risk, and that's what we decided to do.  My friend could drive either 1st or 3rd shift, but 2nd shift is where the clutch would get stuck.  I trusted my friend that she felt she would be fine.  We prayed and off we went.
My friend decided we would try to reach Baia Delle Zagare once again.  Last year we drove out to Mattinata but couldn't find it.  We gave up after an hour.  This time, I had written down the coordinates from the resort's website and we entered the info on the GPS.  Driving to Mattinata wasn't so bad.  Only an hour away.  It was when we were driving up and down the cliff where things got tricky.  Because she couldn't get into 2nd gear, we had no choice but to drive super slow a couple of times.  That lead to a back up real quick, which was nerve wrecking considering we were driving on a cliff.  Even if cars wanted to pass us up, they couldn't because it was a single lane road.  YIKES!  Luckily that did not last long and eventually we found our exit.  Driving steep down was just as scary, but my friend is a pro by now with stick shift. 
We made our way down the steep and found a group of staff finishing up a conversation with the police.  Once they drove off, we went up to them and asked if we could go to the beach.  We weren't sure if it was a private beach or not.  They gave us directions to where to park the car and we stayed silent about being patrons of the hotel.  lol.  I'm pretty sure they knew we weren't locals.
Lugging our beach bags around wasn't easy.  The parking lot was a good 10 minute walk to the hotel.  From there we found the signs leading up to the beach.  There was a public bathroom by the elevator that leads you down to la spiaggia.  We changed into our swimsuits there. 
The view alone was amazing.  I couldn't help take pictures of the resort.  I secretly wondered what type of guests made it out here.  There was a lot of space for parties and weddings.  The lawn area was spacious overlooking the woods.  There were canopy lounges located on site. 
We rode down the elevator and walked up to a staff member and asked for two umbrellas.  He charged us 30 euros and then lead us to our spot.  The beach was small but luckily there were not many people there.  I have to get use to the quietness of Italy.  I'm used to some type of music being played, but here in Italy, I immediately notice the silence.  I'm drawing a conclusion they just don't like loud music.

2nd attempt trying to find this place but we did it!!

Gotta love the selfie stick! 

Eventually, the barista on site turned on the speakers and we listened to dance pop (but at a low volume).  Me and my friend couldn't help but yap out loud, which is more than what the others on site were doing.  Couples were either reading to themselves or resting.  We were the only ones laughing.
Most of the beaches in Italy don't have sand.  They have rocks, which is hard sometimes to walk on.  Not only do the rocks hurt my feet, but in the sea, they are pretty slippery.  After a while of laying out we decided to dip in the water.  The  faraglione up ahead was occupied by some young daring swimmers.  They would climb up and dive off.  They put on quite a show for us.  I was jealous of them.

I wish I could be fearless like they are.  Some of them were boys, not men!

We stayed in the water for some time.  Once we laid out again, we grew restless and went by the bar for a drink.  Since my friend does not like to be out in the sun too long, we laid out a little bit longer and then it was time to go.  They had outside showers to rinse off the salt.  We took advantage by using some hotel soaps I had brought along and we did a quick rinse down.  We were planning on staying out so this was the only way we could freshen up.  The water from the shower was cold, so we hurried up.  We made our way back to the public restroom and changed into our dresses for the evening.  My friend wore a while lace maxi dress.  I decided to change later and focus on doing my makeup in the car.  Off we went to Trani!
An hour later we arrived, but because people were getting off from work, there was so much traffic.  It took us a while to find parking, too.  I quickly changed in the car and we took a stroll in il centro to see what we should do.  It was still too early to have dinner.  The clouds looked suspicious, but luckily we only got a drizzle.  We found an adorable bistro that was showcasing art and sat outside the patio area.  I ordered a spumante.  We played around with snap chat filters until it was time to head to the restaurant.  We didn't want our hair to get frizzy.  lol.
We chose Corteinfiore restaurant because it's one of the highest rated in Trani.  I'm always down for seafood, especially in Italy, so I knew we were in for a treat.  Again, we were probably the most talkative in the whole restaurant.  I joked to my friend why everyone around us was so quite, but she informed me that Italians take their food very serious.  There isn't much socializing.  Me and my friend couldn't help getting talkative once the wine started to pour!  We tried to tone it down but it was hard.  We were too busy enjoying our night.  We laughed.  We cried.  We discussed our deepest secrets.  I've missed her so much. 
After dinner it was time for a stroll.  We didn't want to stay out too late.  Some roads are pretty dark with limited lighting.  We went back home in hopes of getting a rental for tomorrow. 

Getting to Trani in time for the sunset...

A glass of spumante before we head to dinner...



We got TURBULENCE! Part 2

After a 2 hour flight, I landed in Bari airport in Italy.  It was an hour away from the town where my friend lived.  AGAIN no working wifi.  What's up with these airports?  Regardless, I was super groggy as I walked over to claim my luggage.  I had a knot in my stomach praying it would be there since I went through that crazy ordeal at Beauvais airport.  I sighed a sense of relief when I saw my suitcase.  I waited outside for my friend.  She was late, which was fine because it gave me some time to people watch.  Now that I was in Italy, I noticed the interactions within Italians.  They are much more animated than French people.  I almost forgot how they were since I've been away.   
My friend was excited to see me.  Me?  I was trying my best to stay awake.  I still had the antidepressants and melatonin in my system.  My friend drove to nearby Trani so we could have dinner, but I couldn't keep my eyes open.  "Let's walk around and find a restaurant.  You need to eat."  That made things worse.  I was dizzy and felt we were walking around in circles.  She really wanted to go to Le Lampare Al Fortino; a $$$$ restaurant located by the harbor.  It was beautiful, but I had no appetite whatsoever.  She wanted me to experience fine dining at it's best, yet I was useless.  I just wanted to sleep.  I felt bad because she mentioned she hasn't been out in months, and here I was ruining things for us on our 1st night together.  We settled for Il vecchio E Il Mare next door; a cute bar overlooking the sea.  Some light bites will do for me.  In typical Italian fashion, we ordered a glass of wine and that was it!  I was knocking out at the table.  My friend knew she couldn't save this night even if she wanted to.  She drove us back home while I slept the whole way.  I didn't even change out of my clothes.  I headed for the guest room and it was lights out for me. 

Too bad I didn't have an appetite for Le Lampare Al Fortino.  It's breath taking!

We needed reservations but I think they could have accommodated us...

Until next time!  Definitely on my bucket list!

Next door at Il Vecchio E II Mare.  Olive oil and tomatoes bruschetta..

Octopus bruschetta...

12 Hours Non Stop!

Someone at The Big Party had mentioned rain on Monday, and now it was Saturday morning.  Me and my girl figured let's make it to the beach so we can get some sun in.  She figured out a route where we can also hit up some towns that had a good shopping district.  She had a baptism next week and was looking for a dress to wear.  We packed up a bag and threw in some clothes to wear out and away we went.  Our 1st destination was 2 hours away and it was already 12pm.  We should have left earlier but our night out wore us out.  Unfortunately, our drive started to catch up to us, and by the time we found our town, we were starving for lunch.  We knew the beach was nearby, but couldn't see it right away until we drove over this little bridge.  We noticed that people kept looking at this certain direction, and then it hit us like a ton of bricks.  It was one of the most beautiful sites I've EVER seen!  The sea, surrounded by rocks and white town homes.  We finally arrived to Polignano a Mare!
We quickly found parking and made our way below to the beach.  But with the sun hitting hard and us with an appetite, we figured we needed to eat 1st.  Luckily the beach had a restaurant, and we devoured ourselves to another all-you-can-eat-buffet.  We then changed into our bikinis and found a spot to lay on.  First of all, this was no ordinary "beach".  There was no sand.  In place were rocks, and trust me, it was uncomfortable!  We made the most of it regardless.  Italians LOVE to tan.  In fact, they can spend hours on the beach.  As for us, we only spent one good hour underneath the hot sun.  We decided to go to our next spot, but I will say, Polignano a Mare took my breath away!  It is gorgeous. 
Before we drove out, we had some gelato to cool ourselves off.  And I concur!  Italians know how to make gelato!  It was so yummy.
To change things up a bit, my girl drove to a small little town called Alberobello.  We headed to the central district where the Trulli houses were.  This village is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage site, and rightfully so.  This unique area is over 600 years old!  We walked around took a ton of pictures.  What I liked as well were the souvenir shops inside the homes.  I bought some cool stuff, along with my favorite item I got, a map of Puglia! 
On to the next, and this time we went to the city of Bari.  My girl really wanted to hit up some shops, but we were out of luck looking for a dress to wear to this baptism.  This metropolitan city had a retail shopping district, both high end and low.  I did manage to buy 2 tops, and she got a hot dress to wear out to dinner.  I changed as well, and slipped into my wedges again.  It was time for dinner and my friend wanted to go to one of her favorite restaurants.
We drove to the nearby town of Trani, and I fell in love again!  This port town is so pretty at night!  We walked around in the Marina and found the infamous restaurant La Banchina Osteria.  I ate like a queen once more.  We ordered a "Fruits of the Sea" platter and indulged in some tasty treats.  Everything was delish!  The hardest part for us was the drive back, especially after we had a huge dinner.  We got back into town and headed to the winery again, but this time for a private birthday party.  A friend had rented the space to celebrate his son's birthday.  He was turning 18 and had invited all his friends.  They were having a lively time, but by then me and my friend were exhausted!  We were all over the place for 12 hours non stop!  I did manage to dance for a little bit, but luckily we left before the party died down.