Matera
Days
5 & 6
4/22 - We were up early and on the bus by 8:30 . First stop Alberobello, home of the Trulli Houses. There we sampled some incredible wine, cheeses, jams and some olive oil. It was our only real encounter with rain the entire tour!
After Alberobello we made our way to Matera. A place most of us had heard of because of the iconic movies filmed there. No Time to Die, The Passion of the Christ, and the 2017 version of Wonder Woman all had scenes filmed in Matera. What most of us didn't know was Matera is among the oldest consistently habited cities one the planet, and is famous for the Sassi cave districts. But first Alberobello.
Alberobella
4/22 - The home of the Trulli houses. These houses are dry stone limestone with conical roofs. Their design made winters warmer, and summers cooler. One of the building techniques used was dry stacking. This made the houses easy to disassembled helping to evade tax collections. Many of the roof feature varied painted symbols like crosses and hearts. Our lunch at Tholos started with wine with many tasty snacks to follow.
Matera
4/22 - After seeing scattered rain and lots of pretty scenery in and around Alberobello, we arrived in Matera. After a few minutes of moving our stuff, we found ourselves opening the door to our new home for the next couple of nights. The room had been carved directly in the cliffside, and it had a jetted tub. In and around the rooms were little seating areas where you could sit and enjoy the perfect weather. After settling in we all went to dinner at Osteria L'Arco. It was fantastic.
4/23 - Again a sunny day although the winds were a bit gusty. After another stellar breakfast we hooked up with Cosimo a local guide. He showed us around Matera and gave us a very through history lesson of this ancient city. After a quick lunch it was off to buy wine for tonight's aperitivo. We gathered, drank and ate, and planned for the upcoming coastal adventure.
