Bari, Italy

Dear Diary —

Buongiorno! Today we returned to one of our favorite countries, Italy, where we talked a lot with the local residents, and boy are my hands tired. (Sorry, that was a joke about Italians talking with their hands. Never mind…)

Specifically, we are in Bari, which was made famous by Robert and Francesca in the movie “Bridges of Madison County”. (On a side note, skip the book, as this is one of the few times that the book was really bad, but the movie was outstanding. What am I saying, diaries can’t read…)

Anyway, Bari is kinda two towns. Old Town Bari has been inhabited since 1500 bce. It’s 7000 residents live in this quintessential European village, which is exactly what  Ms. Karen has been craving. 

In a cool twist (although we did not go there) literally just across the Main Street lies “New Town Bari”, which was christened in the early 1800s by Napoleon’s brother. This newer section of town looks like any other modern city. It is called the French quarter and has 350,000 residents. 

Ahh, but Old Town Bari was everything we had hoped for. We disembarked at 7:30, and found a lovely outdoor cafe, which served us up the best lemon-filled crescents we had ever had. 

Having beat the inevitable crowds, after breakfast we wandered the street capturing photographs. Mid morning, myself and several friends had a pasta making class scheduled at a local family’s home. (Karen gave her ticket to a friend, allowing her to spend time exploring places in old town that she had researched.)

Also, though we have not talked about it much, Karen has been spreading her mother’s (Grammy’s) ashes on all of our journeys since 2016. She has found many, many precious places, and generally enjoys a bit of solitude as she shares a bit of Grammy along the way. So I am sure he had a special moment today. Good for her!

Saying arrivederci to amore mio, I joined a group of shipmates in the piazza to meet for the class. As luck would have it, the nice young lady guiding the tour walked us all right back through all of the local sites that Karen and I had visited earlier. She share some fascinating stories along the way. First stop, she treated us to a slice of focaccia barese at a famous local street market. This yummy treat is similar to pizza, but is unique to Bari. If you have never had it before, I recommend that you drop what you’re doing, and head to Bari. (Oh, sorry. I forgot, diaries don’t eat. No wonder you are so skinny. 😉

As we toured the Basilica di San Nicola, she shared the tale of local fellas dreaming up a scheme to steal the remains of Saint Nicholas from Turkey in order to bring fool luck to the village. Apparently they did, and they are now at the Basilica. Hmmm.

 During our visit to the Catterdale di Bari , she explained that  during the Summer Solstice, the building’s rose stained-glass window reflects light on the floor, “perfectly overlap the geometries of the marble mosaic in the middle of the central nave.” This is a hugely attended event. Pretty cathedral.

After admiring the nearby castle (which unfortunately, due to an earlier than usual departure time today, we did not get to tour to much) we arrived at the home of a nice family. The mamacita schooled us in the art of making Orecchiette, which as it turns out, I am not very good at.  Luckily, I took one for the team, and spent some time taste testing their local vino rojos. (Tough job, but someone has to do it!)

After a bit, the mamacita shared some homemade pasta with red sauce with us, as well as a number of secret Italian cooking tips, and introduced us to some unusual local veggies. Great time. Great house. Great people…

Little did I know that Karen was also working an Orecchiette task. She had tracked down Nonnas, a local TV celebrity made famous for her pasta-making speed and finesse. She’s always makin’ friend that girl…

Afterwards, our nice tour guide treated us to some Gelato from the oldest Gelato store in Italy (serving cool since 1882). It was wonderful!

I moseyed my way back to the other end of old town to meet Karen for a late lunch, which was equally delicious.

What a spectacular day. Thank you for allowing me to share, ol’ diary of mine. Please don’t tell anyone. It will just be our secret!

Thank you for listening dearest of diary. Maybe next time, you can tell me a tale, but that too will be, yet another story…

– Mike
“I was on assignment to Greece… and I had to go through Bari to get the boat in Brindisi. I was looking out, it looked like pretty country. So I got off the train and stayed a few days.”  
“You just got off the train because it looked pretty?”
“Yeah. I did.” …
“You just got off the train… and stayed without knowing anyone there?”
“Yeah!”
(Dialog between Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood – The Bridges of Madison County