Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Porto Selvaggio.

Sunday morning the entire OSU group and I trekked to the bus stop nearest our school, for a day in the province of Nardo, at Porto Selvaggio, a gorgeous, rocky coastline with clear waters and cliffs spanning for miles. Because of the location of the beach, we had to hike for about a mile to get down to the water.



We were all surprised when we saw the Romanesque lookout tower nestled atop the tallest cliff, adjacent to Porto Selvaggio, and we all stopped in awe for a few minutes, in typical tourist fashion.



Beaches are extremely popular in this region of Puglia, especially on Sunday, when most stores in the city close, and families have nothing else to do but relax al mare. This day was no exception, as a hundred or so Italians spread out all around the rocky shoreline.



Shortly after arriving at the beach, I noticed a trail that led up the side of the mountain, presumably leading to the Torre at the top. I wanted to investigate the scenery first, before swimming or lounging about. Here are a few shots from our (Frankie, our friend Jim, and myself) trek up the mountain.







The climb up was actually quite a trek, as we followed an almost unnoticeable path leading up in between rocks and groups of trees. Once we reached the top, however, some 20 minutes later, the view completely assuaged any fatigue we felt.



Torre Rinaldo is a typical coastline lookout tower, constructed most likely during the beginning of the Roman empire. It’s nestled in between Gallipoli and Porto Selvaggio, and offers amazing views of the coast along the Ionic Sea. I spoke with the two Uomini (men) on top of the tower stairs, whose job it was to keep an eye on the beach below with a few trusty pairs of binoculars. One had been doing the job of a watchman for almost 20 years, he said, and the other, presumably his son, had just started.

The rest of the day was spent swimming in the cold, refreshing water, and jumping off a small rock formation with a few Italian kids. Italian kids are nuts, by the way, as most of them already drive scooters in the insane Italian traffic by the time they are 12. More on that topic in a later post.



Underneath the rocks in this picture, where I was standing when I snapped the photo, was a grotto that went underground for about 30 or 40 feet. The rocky ceiling had holes in it, allowing the afternoon sun to seep in and light the underground cove. The water was even more translucent and blue in there, and it was times like that in which I wished I had an underwater case for my camera, like Jeff over at Jeff in Puglia.

Tonight is my Scalpellino (stone carving) course, and I plan on bringing the camera along to document the happenings. It’s a great class, and it will only get better as I get the hang of those pesky sege (saws) and chisels.

Fortunately, I think i'm balancing the inane amount of panini and calzoni I'm eating with the equally inane amount of walking we do around Lecce. It's a fairly simple city to navigate, which is nice, but it's big. And I don't mind it at all.

3 Comments:

Blogger jayne and mark said...

Hello John Cropper! I am enjoying your blog and photos. It appears you are on a well organized and fun expedition. You are a very good writer and youo obviously are learning much about the Italian culture through your outgoing personality. Be safe, don't dive off of those cliffs into uncertain waters below! THERE - that is my auntly-nurse advice. Your grandfather would tease you about taking a class is rock chipping! He would have enjoyed reading your blogs also. We will expect to have a demonstration on rock chipping the next time we see you! Mark say hello.
Jayne

7:59 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

John,

This was, as usual a super post. And, I am totally on board with "aunty-nurse" Jayne - Don't dive from the cliffs! Blogs are great and we are living your trip through your blog. Keep it up!

Love,

Dad, & Mom

8:06 PM  
Blogger Jeff Gromen said...

John,
You get to play with Leccese stone! Man, I'm jealous. I wonder if there is someplace I can buy a piece to chip away at.
Sounds like they keep you busy if you have trips planned every weekend.

Jeff

3:32 AM  

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