After breakfast we set out to explore Matera. It is a very old city that was originally cave dwellings many thousands of years ago. We walked the cobblestone streets to the main square to find an open air market. The produce was beautiful. I bought some pepperoni cruschi which is a condiment used locally. It’s not very spicy but very tasty.
It’s a bit challenging to wander the old town streets because the street names in buildings are either absent or very hard to read due to aged paint. We crossed through the main square and visited some very fancy food shops before heading for the cathedral. We passed some spots with beautiful views facing into our part of the old town. When we reached the cathedral, we paid an entrance fee to visit their collection of reliquaries and paintings which then led to the cathedral. There were a few areas of floor covered by thick glass that revealed an older church and burial sites. So much of Europe is ancient. They are always finding old ruins as they excavate.
As we came back towards our hotel, we stopped for a shared sandwich of prosciutto, tomato and arugula on nicely warmed thin bread accompanied by local wine, Primitivo. We are learning our way around the town.
We sat on our small porch when we returned enjoying the afternoon sun. We met Alice, our tour leader, in the dining room. She gave us an introduction to the next 2 days as we met our fellow travelers. So far, it seems like an interesting group.
We walked together back into town and to our “welcome “ dinner. Matera is a town filled with hills and steps. Since this is the rainy season, it can be a bit challenging but we all made it.
We will meet tomorrow to do a trip through some churches. Alice explained that art in Italy is mainly in churches. That’s not very surprising.
Lots more to see and more fun.
The Adventures of Anne 
Thanks, as usual, for bringing us along.
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