10 Days in Puglia

We spent our first 10 days in Italy in the Southern region of Puglia.  Fabio's mom's apartment is very small, and since his brother and brother's girlfriend were also coming down, she decided to rent a trullo.  Puglia is dotted with homes called trulli (plural for trullo).  Trulli have been around for hundreds (maybe over a thousand?) years.  They are white stone homes that have cone shaped roofs, mostly located on farms, and were lived in by farmers and their families during the summer months because they stayed very cool.  Many have been renovated and now serve as vacation homes. 

This was our trullo.  It had been renovated and was beautiful inside.  It had three bedrooms and two bathrooms and a nice sized kitchen:

The nearest village, San Michele Salentino was only a few kilometers away.  We went there for pastries and cappuccinos and hot chocolates on a regular basis.

We had Boxing Day lunch at a quaint little restaurant in Ostuni.  Part of the restaurant was built into a cave.  The food was delicious too.  Teo looked so cute in his new outfit from Nanna!

 Fabio and I stayed behind in Ostuni for a walk, while Teo went home with la nonna.  Ostuni is famous for its quaint white, cobblestone streets.

 Check this out.  Fabio in 2011:

Fabio in the same place when we visited in 2007:

We stopped at an old trullo in the country.  It was really cool to see one as it was left, who knows how many years ago.

I visted Ceglie Messapica with Ugo and Valentina.  It's another charming white village.  All the villages had Christmas trees in their piazzas and had lights hanging in the streets.

 We visited the city of Lecce, which is famous for its Baroque architecture.  Too bad we were visiting during nap hours: 1:00-4:00.  Grrr.  Everything was closed.  Even the churches.

 Loved seeing the bridal photo shoot!

The whole family, minus Gianni (aka: Nonno Bis). 



We mostly had fun just hanging out together in the trullo, making trips to San Michele and eating lots of good food together.  Fabio's family hadn't spent Christmas together in 15 years, so it was quite a momentous occasion, and everyone loved doting on Matteo.