Agriturisimo Refuionare

We left Guardia on June 11 and drove across Italy to the Adriatic coast to stay in an Agriturisimo that had been recommended to us. We were told it would be hard to find, and it was, despite looking easy on Google maps! The GPS did not do well, but got us close. Several inquiries and the kindness of strangers who jumped in their cars and said, via Google translate, "follow me", we arrived. The Agriturisimo was in a beautiful location, with very comfortable accommodations. The old farm had been renovated by Bepe, a fine woodworker, and Brunetta, an architect, and their skills were evident everywhere.

A view showing we were quite high on a hill above the sea.

This is the lawn in front of the dining area with seats on formations completely covered with mosaic tile and fabric-covered art installations.

Diane checking out the seating and taking a closer look at the mosaics.

There are four guest rooms, all looking out to sea and facing east for good early morning sun.  More fabric-covered art installations.....

 A great place to lie in the sun.

The beach restaurant, Ristorante Cavalluccio was just below where we stayed, but down a very steep and winding road. We did not eat there, but the location was beautiful.

Another restaurant placed on an old-style fishing structure, known as Trabuccos. We were told that the long booms above the sea that you can see in the photo, used to have fishing nets attached that would be lowered into the sea to catch fish on incoming tides.  No longer in use, these were common along this section of the Adriatic.

The dining room which is open to the morning breeze.

There was unusual artwork everywhere, this being one example.  "Rosetta" the chicken sitting on her nest, with the "eggs" in a basket on the shelf below.  Very quirky, but lovely, bringing a bright and playful touch to the dining room.

 " Violetta" the flying chicken graced the breakfast table each morning.

Yet more fabric artwork that covered this armchair in our room! He has something to do with the name of our room.  Not exactly sure of the translation, but maybe he was a shepherd, notice the sheep and baby lamb?!

Saying farewell to our hosts, Bepe and Brunetta, we were fortunate to meet Lucio, the artist responsible for all of the artwork in and around Rifugiomare.  It is all quite remarkable with a light-hearted spirit.

This short stop on our journey was quite lovely and restful.  It is certainly a place we would like to revisit and stay for a longer time. This part of Italy, Abruzzo, looks to have many interesting towns and national parks that we would love to explore.

Next stop, Parma.

Guardia Sanframondi

Leaving Paris on June 2nd, we took the TGV from Garde de Lyon on route to Guardia Sanframondi, just northeast of Naples. The TGV was a very fast and smooth ride through the mountains, and then the pace slowed to a smooth and gentle ride on to Turin. Here we had to change trains to catch the night sleeper to Naples, but there was a slight hitch in the plan! Turin has two stations, Porta Nouva and Porta Susa, which somehow I had missed, or made an assumption they were the North and South sections of the same station. As you can now guess, we arrived in Porta Nouva and the next train left from Porta Sousa. Luckily we had enough time to catch a taxi and haul ourselves and our luggage to the correct station and platform. By the time we got to the sleeper car it was about 11p.m. and still 92 deg F. The two-berth sleeper cabin was about as big as a closet, but we managed to stash our bags and climb into our bunks as the train left the station. The ride was not at all restful, but the air conditioning finally kicked in as the train got underway. This was our third attempt at sleeper trains and I think probably our last!!

Arrived at the Naples Train Station early in the morning and spent time drinking Capuccinos while waiting for the next train to get us to our car rental location.

Diane's father's family came from a town called Cosenza, and here we found a train leaving for that destination later that morning! We hope to make it there on another visit.

The next train destination was Caserta, where we would pick up a car. Arriving at the station, we thought that the rental agency was near the train station, as it was described as "Caserta downtown"! After some fractured conversations we managed to get a taxi to the Eurocar rental office, not downtown, but in an industrial area outside of town!!

At last the GPS we brought with us was set up and would get us, eventually, to Guardia Sanframondi.

We had stayed in Guardia in 2015 and were happy to return and find that many of the old streets and buildings had been completely renovated.

The stonework is high quality and reflects old-world craftsmanship. As can be seen from the above photo, the streets in the old "Centro Storico" are very narrow, but never-the-less, some cars make it, as well as some building equipment.

Len at the front door of Clare's Arthouse in the Centro Storico where we stayed.

Met again with Adelina and Clare.  Adelina in the native costume of Guardia which the women hand embroider.

Shopped at the local market, notice the 1 euro table.  Great bargains to be found.

Fresh local fruit and vegetable stalls.

Diane enjoying a quiet afternoon on the balcony.

and soaking up the view.

Clare took us on a drive to the top of the mountain that we could see from our balcony at the Arthouse.  This is a trail we took through the Beech forest.

Some pretty steep and winding roads to get there.

It was pretty hazy as we returned to Guardia, but this photo gives some idea of the view across the valley.

We decided we should visit Pompeii and were advised to take the train as the drive and parking was difficult. We managed to buy train and Pompeii tickets on line and the journey was quite easy. We did have to make sure we were on the correct platform and get on the appropriate trains.

The ruins of Pompeii cover a large area and it was a hot day, so Diane managed to find a cool hat, bought from a street vendor near the entrance to the ruins.

We chose to wander the old streets to avoid tour groups. The map available to navigate the site was pretty useless, so for much of the time we were effectively lost!

All of the buildings exhibited an artistic approach to their construction, this kind of work was to be found everywhere.

A small statue in the middle of a tiled courtyard. The major houses must have been quite spectacular in the day.

 It is always amazing to see such beautiful pieces of old buildings just lying around.

Back in Guardia, we spent time soaking up the local scene. These men were at this bar most days playing some kind of card game that involved the onlookers as much as the players, no money seemed to be in play.

Alchimie is a new bar and restaurant that was not open on our visit two years ago. It quickly became one of our favoutite places as the food was terrific and we were introduced to the idea of afternoon "aperitivos".

An aperitivo before we set off again on our Italian journey.
Next step, the Adriatic coast.

Normandy

We left our Paris apartment early on Wednesday, May 24, taking a taxi to Gare Saint Lazare to take our train towards Normandy. The end destination for or train was Cherbourg, but we were to get off at Carentan where my brother Jeff was to meet us. We were not sure of the train stop prior to Carentan, but then realized that French trains run on schedule, so we knew just when we would arrive.

We spent the remainder of the day and evening catching up since we last visited almost exactly two years ago.

The part of Normandy where Jeff and Oriana live is very green and lush this time of the year, so it also means that keeping the lawn in check is an ongoing need. We visited several gardens nearby that are pretty amazing, with micro climates supporting unexpected plants and trees.

The local town of Port Bail is always a pleasure to visit, with Tuesdays being market day. Markets in rural France are a special treat with many stalls selling local produce, meats and cheeses, etc

One stall was selling a selection of cheeses from a kind of sample table, so we had to buy five for the remarkable price of 5 Euro, (about $5.50)

Each piece of cheese was quite large and it made for a great way to sample different varieties. We also found a farmer selling home made butter within which was incorporated seaweed, absolutely delicious and unusual.

There was also a large stall selling nothing but nougat. We were able to taste a number of versions, I had forgotten how sweet nougat is, and yes, we did buy some!

There were mobile barbecue rotisseries roasting chicken and lamb, it all looked delicious.

Part of the town of Port Bail.

This part of France has one of the top tidal ranges in the world, and during our visit we witnessed one the highest tides of this year. It is a community event, so we had to go and see it happen.

What is not obvious from this photo is the fact that this whole area has no water in it at low tide, and the area extends for what seems miles.

During our visit I began to have dizzy spells and suspected that I was dehydrated, but after a couple of days decided to see a local doctor to make sure it was not more serious. It was a good chance to experience the French medical system. And so with the help of Jeff and Oriana. I was able to get an appointment to see Dr Eve, within 24 hours, very efficient, a complete exam which verified my self diagnosis of dehydration. The doctor herself took my payment and gave me a receipt, total cost for more than a 20 minute appointment was 25 Euro, (about $28).
I also got a small prescription, filled at the local pharmacy for less than $15, where the medication was delivered by a computer controlled system down a chute near the pharmacist.

We also visited the most northerly point in France, and the light house, Phare du cap de la Hague, close to the town of Auderville.
It was a good day to be by the ocean, pretty cool, but very fresh!!

The lifeboat ramp nearby.

We had the most amazing meal in Auberville which consisted of sampler plates for each of three courses. It is a great idea as we got to sample small portions of almost every dish the restaurant prepared.

 As you can see from the above photo, we sampled seven deserts. I only took photos of this plate, but both of the others were similar.

 

And so that you know what everything is, they bring the descriptions on this little chalkboard to the table.

This truly was a different and wonderful experience.

Jeff and Oriana are keen gardeners and were in the process of building new planter beds for vegetables and I was able to help a little bit.

The beginning.

Diane and me in the garden.

There is a bar overlooking the estuary that leads into Port Bail, which was really beautiful on this sunny day. Miles of sandy beaches and a view to the island of Jersey.

France is a lot about food, (maybe that is an understatement), and so there are many opportunities to sample great dishes in old world surroundings.

We had dinner at this restaurant which was another great experience.

Diane had the oysters, harvested locally,

and I had the plat de fruits de mer, which, as you can see, was just phenomenal. It was also just the "starter".

On Friday, June 2, we left for the next part of our journey, an early train to Paris. We had booked all of our train tickets before we left the US and this all worked really well.

 

Very comfortable seats for a  smooth and quick journey back to Gare Saint Lazare.

Again, we took a taxi across Paris to the next main rail terminus, Gare de Lyon to connect with the high speed TGV train to Turin Italy. That day was very hot and humid in Paris, and with a long time to wait for our train, it was a challenge to find a cool spot to plant ourselves and our luggage.

The station was very crowded and busy. We had not realized that this was a holiday weekend in France and many people were off to a weekend away. Everything worked out just fine and then we were off to Italy.

 More to follow!!