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life’s a beach they say

Friday, September 4th, 2009

Capitolo, Italy

there’s not much to say

get up, have breakfast, do family devotions, complete chores (which doesn’t take long in such a small space, even including the hand washing), head for the beach

return for lunch and naps and writing and reading

back to the beach for as long as you think the kids will last without falling to pieces

home for showers (cold from outdoor nozzle or with water heated in bottles in the sun all day) and dinner and mosquito fighting as the sun sets

Ah yes, mosquitoes….at three this morning we were nearly ready to leave Italy! Most mozzies encountered so far have been the quiet variety that might bite, but at least let you sleep. Not the Capitolo ones. They buzz, they bite and they call for war in the middle of the night. So we fought by torchlight. Casualties were high on both sides. We killed a lot, but we all look like we contracted chickenpox in the process!

However, we didn’t need to get to the beach to change our minds about staying. An email from Grandpa, who had needed to get up in the night to add a blanket to his four degrees bed and shivering as he hung his washing out at only eight degrees at ten in the morning, wearing more clothes than we even have in our packs, fending off calls from telemarketers within hours of arriving home….that all reminded us we’re in a grand place!

then there was the beach, of course

he lingers

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009

Capitolo, Italy

We cut the breakfast rockmelon into eleven slices.
Rob ate two, as Grandpa was out of reach, somewhere over the Indian Ocean.
He joined us for lunch though – we discovered two emails from Dubai in the inbox just as we were slicing into our semolina bread and bright blood red tomatoes.
When we got to spreading mascarpone under the strawberry jam, Mboy6 announced, “I’m glad Grandpa’s gone.” Wondering eyebrows raised as we waited for further explanation. None was forthcoming and so we pried deeper.
”Well, now there’s more room to sleep. It’s so hot up in the alcove, but it’s cooler with only two people.”
True enough.
And thankfully he added, “I’ll miss him though.”
Others reminded him of the ancient’s propensity to buy icecreams and all agreed, that *that* too, would be missed!
”And remember when we were in Malaysia and he always bought us cans of fizzy coz it was so hot and we were all thirsty?”
”And remember how he got icecream if we went out with him on our own?”
”And remember…”
”And remember…”

Grandpa might not be here, but he has certainly not gone.

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Last night we slept on the side of the road. A quiet, well-lit safe-feeling residential street. With no adult in the van to ward off possible intruders, the big kids were under strict instructions to leave the windows locked (yes, even though it’s still 30 degrees), and not open the door to anyone. At any hint of trouble they could push their dog button – the alarm, sounding like a miniature poodle, would not scare off even a cat, but at least it would alert The Protective Daddy to danger. If all else failed, there was the van horn. But that really is a last resort. It takes three pushes before it even makes a sound, and then there is not a word croaky or feeble or weak enough to describe the pathetic cough it sputters.
Fortunately, there was no need for any of the precautions, and no-one woke until Rob’s alarm went off signalling yesterday’s need to rise early to get to the train station on time! We enjoyed the sunrise. And rockmelon.

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Now we are stationed at a camper park. In addition to our favourite facilities (toilet and waste water dumping and a potable water supply), we have real toilets, a cold shower, an outdoor kitchen (sink and BBQ), shadecloth overhead as well as trees, and the beach is no more than a minute’s walk away.
We were going to travel down to Gallipoli and Lecce before catching a ferry from Brindisi, but there is something very appealing about the thought of just staying here for a week and going nowhere! The sea is so blue-green, the sand hot, the sun shining….bread, pizza, vegetable and fruit sellers wait at the gate…it’s safe…..most holiday-makers have gone home….and it’s quiet apart from the lilting Italian, which makes beautiful background music.
We are thinking of staying here. Whether we end up back on the free street, or just put down paid roots, I don’t mind. The thought of not driving for a few days is an attractive one! Besides, we need to take some time to plan our northward route, to pore over maps, choose some places to visit, read up on road rules and refresh our memories regarding the Cyrillic alphabet. Lecce may be the Florence of the South, but we missed the Florence of the north too so we would not be able to compare. Gallipoli has an important ring about it for Kiwis, but it’s the Turkish one that features in our history, not the Italian one!
So a week on the Adriatic Coast might just be in order.

We just know Grandpa would approve of the decision!

soul food

Friday, August 28th, 2009
somewhere near Altamura on the SouthEast Coast, Italy We woke in mozarella di buffala country…..from Naples onwards we had seen billboards and shops advertising the cheese the region is famous for and we had resolved to try it. Surely one ... [Continue reading this entry]

beach blessings

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009
Paestum, Italy

We have seen a famous volcano (Vesuvius), accidentally ... [Continue reading this entry]

the untold story of italy

Monday, August 24th, 2009
Bacoli – virtually Naples, Italy Have you ever watched those travel documentaries or family-goes-to-find-their-dream-property-in-Italy programmes or read books of the same ilk? We’d read the books, but have heard the televised version exists too. However, I’m beginning to wonder if ... [Continue reading this entry]

when in Rome….

Saturday, August 22nd, 2009
….let your imagination run wild.

I scurry from shadow to shadow, snatching what cool I can, evading the fierce rays beaming down from the eternally blue canopy. I wait in line at one of the ... [Continue reading this entry]

all roads lead to Rome

Friday, August 21st, 2009
Rome, Italy yea, even the bumpy, patched, pitted, potholed ones. At least that’s the one we came in to the great city on. Not that we have made it right in to town. We’re basking in the shade of the ... [Continue reading this entry]

singing in the supermarket

Wednesday, August 19th, 2009
Santa Fiora, Italy After a cooler night that facilitated better sleeping, the air was heavy with pressing heat as we sat down to fresh melon for breakfast. We acknowledged it was certainly going to be another scorcher, perhaps even the ... [Continue reading this entry]

now we know

Monday, August 10th, 2009
by Rachael Nyons, France We haven’t exactly left France yet, but our tiny taste is drawing to a close. We were just contemplating (read: blog post author just grilled everyone for ideas <wink> actually, the contributions flowed thick and fast and ... [Continue reading this entry]

slow travel

Saturday, August 8th, 2009
by Rach industrial estate just past Montpellier, France the wind still blows; not a whisper, not a howl, just sufficient to render the beach unattractive we move on the map indicates about 170km, not too far so we stop and shop, a whole week’s ... [Continue reading this entry]