The drive on south coast of Italy

What an incredible day. Twelve hours of driving exploring and discovering magic on the southernmost coast of Italy. Tomorrow the Ionian Sea. Today we stayed on the side we are staying on, Naples, etc.The road goes to Reggio in Colabria … Never heard of it before but every sign points that way around here. Up at five thirty am, to shower and head out. I took a few minutes to cheer on my youngest daughter who turns 28 today when it is today where she is … She is still in yesterday when I wrote this today, this morning. Lol.

Off we go, three of the five women travellers. We are armed with maps and some food to nibble on, having prepared and eaten breakfast. We packed bathing suits and towels in hopes for a swim some time along the coast.

Our first stop is at the end of the parking lot, not two minutes from our resort parking lot …. Christ the Redeemer is shining bright in the morning sun. Brilliant really, against the sky, it required a picture 🙂 off we go, …. For more.

Our road is well paved and easy world. We pull off to a sign for Diamente, not even an hour out of Maratea. Crazy little streets in town are unexpected and a bit hairy … I have to back up once to get around a sharp corner. At the end of that little street is the sea, and a wonderful boardwalk. It is funny to be in such a tight spot and then the vastness of the sea is before us, wide and open, wild and wavy. Brilliant blue sky with not a cloud anywhere to be seen. We park and walk a boardwalk.

It takes my breath away. We walk and walk. Along the sea followed by a remarkably warm breeze and it is not even nine am. Ti amo, written many times on walls and sidewalks, summer love left its mark!

We say Bon giorno to all we meet and greet and finally we stop at a cafe for the gals to have an Italian Americano and I have a frizzy water … Sun shining brightly .. Overlooking the sea. Wow! Magic and amazing. A moment.

We head out of town. Next stop at a cafe to use the facilities and then head to the beach. We walk, find a store full of magic and incredible items to look over. A Vesace black suit, jewelry, alpaca scarf, designer jeans made in Italy, pasta and olives, furniture … It was huge and fabulous! We walked to the beach after and put our feet in the warm water. We talked about our earlier life decisions … A moment!

Later we stop and get a plate of fries to share, and use facilities! Lol. Only men it seems sitting around, and us three girls.

Great vistas all along the way .. Every corner presents more and more to see and enjoy. Ancient fortresses long forgotten high on mountain tops standing guard and once provided protection for the sea. Hotels, and fancy resorts and spas. Homes and farms. Miles of beaches. Sandy, rocky, almost abandoned. It seems the season is over for Italian tourists although we are enjoying the heat of the day and relative spaciousness. Almost ghost towns. And of course Italian towns seem to close up between noon and five daily for siesta?

We drive on.

Highlights of today’s trip
Pictures with Christ the redeemer early in the morning on our day trip along the coast
Diamonte, went for a walk on the boardwalk took pictures of graffiti expressing love and life. and had an Italian coffee iand fizzie water n a little cafe on the board walk overlooking the Mediterranean Sea
Beautiful hotel San Michele along the coast
Belmonte Calabro. Lovely little village. Went into a store right off the road looking for a bathroom. Omg. Specialty foods, chocolate, candy, gifts jewelry and some designer clothing. What a treasure we stumbled on. We decided to take a walk down a little street and to our surprise around the corner was the beach. A practically empty beach. We soaked our feet in the water and had a magic moment sharing stories of our 1st marriages. Collected precious stones and shells. Found a little grocery store for water and snacks for the next leg of our trip.
San lucido. Beautiful little town higher up than the others. Built on the side of a mountain with windy road to the beach. Streets were quaint with many picturesque people’s homes and businesses and a beautiful monument of a women searching for her love.

We changed into our bathing suits in the car … Lol. and had yet another magic moment swimming in the Mediterranean Sea!The water was crystal clear and fairly warm once you submerged yourself in it.

When you leave a town there is a line through it like a no smoking sign

Taking pictures of the sun set in our resort parking lot. Magnificent.

Ciao tutti, till tomorrow

Love P

Wish you were here. Ti Amo!