Patricia and I slept well until around 7 am. We had breakfast, a nice small buffet included with our room, and then we set out to find the train station for our trip to Matera. It turns out that finding the train station which was next to the main station was not easy. The sign was hard to find. But we had been given the name of the train line which helped us identify the building. We inquired how to get from Bari to Matera. It would require a train change which sounded pretty easy…we hoped.
We bought tickets from an automated machine and returned to our hotel to pack our bags. We left our luggage at the hotel while we visited a few more sites in Bari. The day was beautifully sunny. We walked to the Basilica di Saint Nicola located in the old town. It’s a beautiful ancient church with painted ceilings. Then we wandered along the waterfront to visit a museum that had a strange mix of old and new.
We finally decided to catch a train to Matera. The ride was not always scenic but challenging to know which stop we were reaching. At Altamura we needed to change trains. The next train leaving one minute after we arrived was on the track across from us. Whew.
The trip to Matera was fast. Then we decided to walk to our hotel. Matera is an ancient town with rough streets and hills. I thought our decision to walk was crazy until I realized that no taxi could have brought us to our narrow perch. What a crazy and beautiful view.
We were met at the gate by a young man who easily took our bags down the narrow stairs to reception and then to our very unique rooms. Hotel Sassi, like much of the area is a place carved in limestone. It’s amazing. We checked into our rooms. Then we were told about the beautiful blue hour approaching darkness. It gave us a fantastic view of the town. We drank a local prosecco before dinner then we ventured downstairs to the street below for a delicious dinner of local specialties. After much wine, we made our way back to our hotel to finish another wonderful day. Tomorrow we explore on our own.
The Adventures of Anne 