Sogginess Is Not Good For The Soul

Sunday 14^th May.  It rained most of the night and then most of the day at the beach resort of Riccione on the soggy Rimini coast.  So the main topic of conversation over breakfast was of course….. the dreadful weather. We even thought about heading back to England to dry out !! The campsite swimming pool looked forlorn, the sand was brown, the sea was grey and the sky was filled with bruised and leaking clouds.  It was a day of tumble dryers, hairdryers and raincoats. During a grey, but not wet, interlude we braved a stroll to the sad looking beach to eat fish n’ chips (so Italian, not)  in a restaurant that was set on the sand.  Quite frankly, we were a little bit annoyed with this weather. Reggie’s awning still hasn’t come out, the outdoor table and chairs are still in the locker and the bikes have still not been ridden. Even the weather ahead didn’t look promising.  Was returning to England a better option? No, it couldn’t possibly be, could it?  So we keep telling ourselves that the sun shines more brightly after rain…….one day sometime, soon?

        

Monday 15^th May.   Some sunshine was resting on Reggie, the paths to the bathrooms were dry ish and when we cleared the Rimini area it was a pleasant 20c.  It felt good, but we knew it wouldn’t last.  Only 20 kilometres south, the grey clouds were looking at us and the radar showed we would be back in the rain before Termoli.   350 kilometres, five hours driving, and only one wee break got us to Parcheggio Marina di San Pietro, an aires style parking spot for motor homes, set beside the Marina in Termoli.  Sadly Saint Peter wasn’t smiling on us.  The rain continued to pour down on us.  Finger crossing for dry weather is becoming rather tedious and the outlook looks dismal anyway.

Tuesday 16^th May.   During an appalling night, with Reggie being drowned by heavy rain and rocked by strong wind, the power went out at 2:30am.  We knew because we were woken up by the fridge beeping and flashing its lights at us.  There was no way anyone was going outside in that weather to check the power point, so Rodney switched the fridge to gas and we tried to get back to sleep with ear plugs in.  At 7:15am, when we blearily crawled out of bed, there were breaks in the clouds and we spotted some much-needed cracks of sunshine.  After a cold shower in the marina bathrooms and a quick breakfast, the rain was still holding off. So we strolled round to the old town to stretch our aching bodies and to find a cafe for a drink and cookie. 

We finally exited Termoli at midday and continued south on the Autostrada Adriatica.  Matera was easy to find and then rather painful to drive through.  We actually gave up trying to find our intended campsite.  Having driven past a car park full of motorhomes, we decided to stay there instead.  It turned out to be opposite the police station, safety in numbers, and free for 24 hours. Bargain! Then despite being tired, it seemed silly not to wander down to the old city; plus it wasn’t raining….. yet. At last, finally, we found an amazing scene of houses, churches, cave houses and a palace all tumbling down the sides of steep valleys.  At last, somewhere for us to be looking around corners again.

I have no idea if there was any town planning involved.   Who built the first house? And then in what direction did they spread from there? Up the hills, down the hills, sideways first?  It’s a complicated maze to get lost in and the layout of the endless steps and lanes seem to be completely random with no rhyme or reason as to their direction.  It is chaotic architecture at its most crazy.  After 1 ½ hours of wandering up and down cobbled zigzagging lanes, we flopped exhausted into the Osteria Alla Vigna to share a pizza, a sorbet and to breath in the incredible view.