We park in a huge, almost deserted lot just a few hundred meters from the start of the forest.
Wide paths lead to different spots along the coast: we take the first one that presents itself.
Turning left toward the sea, we reach the beach of the same name (Porto Selvaggio), where there are still a few people around.
A (too) quick glance at Maps.me makes us think that by taking the path just behind the beach, we’ll get back to the parking lot faster (kind of like taking the hypotenuse of a right triangle instead of the other two sides 😏).
Mistake! (And it won’t be the last one of this trip 😎!)
The path does lead to a parking lot, but not ours—it’s a tiny one that’s completely full!
But why didn’t I drop a pin when we parked???? 😅 Well, because we thought we’d come back the same way we went!
We drifted—*a lot*—and the parking lot where the car is ended up being 3 or 4 km away 😕!
Two options: the road with its black asphalt, not a square centimeter of shade, or the edge of the forest via a slightly sketchy little trail (we can’t tell if it goes all the way because it runs alongside private property).
We still go for the trail (it’s past 2 PM, 35°C in the shade, and there’s not a breath of wind).
😅 Phew! We finally find the right parking lot 😏.
On to the last stop of the day: Gallipoli.
😕 Which really disappointed us.
Entering the old town, guarded by a fortress
And two beautiful monuments (closed at this hour, but this time we knew 😛): the diocesan museum
And the duomo
Both are really hard to photograph because there’s no room to step back.
The lack of space is due, as everywhere, to the already narrow streets—but also because these streets are half taken over by clothing shops or “souvenir” stands that don’t seem very local 😠.
And it’s this commercial side we hadn’t seen anywhere else (except maybe in Alberobello) that we didn’t like: the few main alleys are literally packed with bars, restaurants, and “made in China” shops all selling the same trinkets, while the other streets (there aren’t many, it’s tiny) are pretty dreary, with nothing remarkable.
Not to mention the crowds (in the shopping streets—the others are deserted).
Anyway, we don’t linger and head back home.
Wednesday, May 27:
Last stop of the trip: Matera (which isn’t administratively in Puglia but in Basilicata).
Our host (Mariella) is waiting for us in the early afternoon, and we’ve planned to stop along the way in a few villages bordering the Puglian canyon: Massafra, Castellanetta, Laterza, and Ginosa.
The landscape changes—it’s a bit hillier and much greener.
First stop in Massafra: we just want to take a quick look at the canyon from the bridge that spans it, but the railing is completely fenced off.
Next up, Castellanetta—a pleasant surprise, with charming, very quiet little streets...
After Galatina, we’re heading to Nardò and its historic center 😏.
