Trani, Bari (and Santa Claus)
We put in a lot of footsteps and car mileage the past couple of days. We decided to explore closer to “home,” and with my friend, Nicola di Veredicis, being from Trani, I had to check out his terra of influence.
With a pretty harbor and imposing cathedral (complete with my favorite feature—a crypt), this town would be charming enough. But the Villa Communale, which is the green space along the waterfront, is a lush central park filled with pretty flowers and all sorts of art. Modern sculptures contrast with ancient urns. There is a concentric circular path up to what is left of a watchtower, and a fortress.
Ahhhh; thank you, Nicola. Yours is a charming town. Next time, we must meet there—it’s got to be halfway between Minnesota and Pretoria, right?
Since we’re basically staying in the elbow of Bari, we had to get in to the city itself. It’s famous for its orecchiette-making grandmas, its Puglia-style taralli, and the dish Riso Cozze Patate. Our Bari visit — food oriented!
First, to the Arco Basso. Once you pass under this low arch, you’re on a street filled with orecchiette vendors. If you’re lucky, some of the Nonne will sit outside on a warm day to do their craft. It’s been really warm here; I had my fingers crossed!
It was over salted and the secondo was a plate of rubber bands. I was so so sad. Badly made food bums me out. But, the rice dish gave a general idea of how it should taste, and I plan to try making it (the right way) at home. But we sat outside, which was pleasant, and the wine was decent!
A couple of Italian men, apparently also visitors to Bari, stopped on the street to look at the restaurant, and caught my eye. I slowly shook my head and made a throat-slitting gesture. “Ma no?” “No. Solomente l’insalata non รจ sopracotto,” I explained that it was only the salad which wasn’t overcooked!
Poor Joe. He hates listening to my restaurant reviews.
Bari had it’s good points, and it’s a lively city well worth exploring. Next time I’ll do better food research. But today, Trani was the darling of the hour.
Back at the B&B, I rested for a bit before we went into Spirito Santo for a light bite to end the day. It felt good to do nothing for a while. The sweetness of doing nothing, as the Italians say.
Later, not wanting to disappoint ourselves with potentially bad food choices, we headed back to Da Giacomo. Anna greeted us, and a long table seated with a family celebrating a kid’s birthday were next to us. Two boys, 7 and 8 years old, one being the birthday kid, reminded me of my son John and nephew Sam at that age. Always in motion and getting into trouble!
The family began chatting with us, with more of them arriving as the night went on. We had a nice time talking about kids, being “seniors,” traveling, food, Puglia, Sicily, and soccer. Anna brought out a heap of the candy-sweet Adriatic shrimp, which we didn’t order, but it was a gift, as she wanted us to try it. Yum!
She suggested a seafood orecchiette for me, and Joe wanted his favorite again, linguine and clams. We shared a spiedino di mare. With wine, good company, and a warm atmosphere, this favor-packed meal was a perfect way to end our day.
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