Experiencing Italy the Slow Way

subiaco-italy

Subiaco, Italy. Photo by Donna Hull.

By DONNA HULL

After a month at home in Montana, my feet are itchy to explore again. This time, Alan, my husband and travel partner, and I are traveling on a road trip in southern Italy followed by a cruise through the Mediterranean and across the Atlantic back to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I hope you’ll check in as I share a weekly photo that highlights something special that I’ve discovered from the trip.

So let’s get started:

The town of Subiaco set the tone for our Italian road trip with guide, Claudio Fontana of A La Carte Italy Tours. After parking at the very top of this hill town about 40 miles from Rome, we wandered the quiet cobblestone streets back down to the cathedral. On our way, cooking aromas wafted from open windows, cats took naps in warm sunshine and the sounds of rapid-fire Italian being spoken in the small shops and cafes provided plenty of ambiance. We were the only tourists, American or otherwise.

After visiting the Renaissance style cathedral, we climbed back up the hill slowly, stopping at a local restaurant to enjoy our first lunch of authentic Italian food as we sat at a table on a stone patio overlooking the street. A table away, men smoked cigarettes and drank beer or wine while joking over events of the morning.

Claudio read the menu to us, offering advice about the local specialties to try. Of course there was wine, antipasto and the first of many delicious pasta dishes on this journey of eating and exploring to the very tip of Italy’s heel.

This is the way we like to travel in a country, getting a feel for the local culture, tasting regional dishes and slowly experiencing a place. It’s not necessary for a town to have something of note, like a cathedral or castle, to see. Instead, it’s all about the life of the place, of course a scenic location makes it even more special. And Subiaco provided that experience in spades.

How do you like to explore? Let me know in the comments section. And stay tuned for next week to see what I discovered on a road trip to southern Italy.

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Donna L. Hull writes about active travel for baby boomers at My Itchy Travel Feet, The Baby Boomer’s Guide to Travel. She is also the author of My Itchy Travel Feet, Breathtaking Adventure Vacation Ideas, available at Amazon Kindle, Nook and iTunes.  See all of Donna Hull’s blogs.

 

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