Our experience in Ostuni was outstanding – so much so that we figured the upcoming cities and accommodations would be a let down. Although our next destination, Otranto, may not been quite so overwhelmingly charming as La Città Bianca, the volume increased to 11 in the accommodation category. We stayed at a killer masseria – a fortified farm house on a country estate unique to Puglia. Ours wasn’t fortified, per se, but as soon as we got there, we knew we would be skipping the next day’s loop ride just to soak in the experience.
But first we had to get there . . .
The journey from Ostuni to Otranto was the longest of the trip: we loaded our bikes on the regional train down the hill from Ostuni’s centro storico and traveled first to the little town of Squinzano, south of Brindisi, then hauled ass for 50 miles down the Adriatic coast to the oasis of a masseria.
Bike route from Squinzano, past Otranto, to the masseria
The very cool, Romanesque Abbey of Santa Maria di Cerrate, founded in the 12th century
The abbey was raided by Turkish pirates in 1711, and was left in a state of disrepair until 1965
Restoration of some of the centuries-old murals
Rather interesting child containment unit in the abbey’s museum
Olive oil press above ground, in the abbey . . .
. . . and underground, where horses worked and lived in the stalls around the press
Subterranean olive reservoirs
Very cool grotesques on the column capitals
Another masseria on the way to Otranto
Chia-trullo
The castle town of Acaya, where we had a great lunch and fortified ourselves with vino della casa for the road ahead
Along the Adriatic
The nice beach town of San Foca
Our destination after a long, hot ride – the mythical masseria. Why were we so happy to get there?
Sweet. Exactly what we had been dreaming about for the entire second half of the ride.
Yeah, I don’t think we could have been happier here – perfect place to unwind after 7 solid days of biking.
Even the bikes are happy here
Actual travel date: September 6, 2013
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