Train to Trani, and Other Meanderings

Monday, September 02, 2024
Bari, Apulia, Italy
Saturday evening, we did go out looking for panzerotti, one of the foods that Bari is known for.  A couple of the "top 6" places on somebody's list were in Bari Vecchia, so I got their locations and we wandered out for a light dinner.  Well, one of the places had totally disappeared from where it was supposed to be, in Piazza Mercantile, and the other one, once we found it, was really a takeout joint that didn't allow you to sit and eat a panzerotto.  We were getting hungry, so we pivoted and went for lasagna in Piazza del Ferarrese.
Sunday we headed up the coast about an hour by train to Trani, a very picturesque seaside town with a lovely port/marina area in a very protected harbour and a very nice, big park, Villa Comunale.  And outside the harbour wall, was a great example of Italian determination to define a "beach" as anywhere where you can swim!
We wandered around exploring the harbour and back streets a bit and actually found a spot for gourmet Panzerotti for lunch.  They were actually more like a kind of taco made with a panzerotto crust, but were really good.  It was a very hot day, so we were constantly seeking shade, but there were breezes in spots.  We headed home in the early evening, and of course the train, which starts up in Foggia, was about 20 minutes late and it was sweltering on the platform. 
We were going to just stay in for some cheese and prosciutto, but we needed some bread and it was Sunday so everything was closed early.  We ended up going around the corner to Riviera, where we went our first night, and I tried the peppered mussels, which are a local specialty and were excellent.
Monday, we did a little wandering away from the old town, looking for a left luggage place near the train station, which it turns out we won't need tomorrow because we can get into our apartment in Monopoli early (yes!!), and to find the apartment that we will stay in for 1 night when we come back to Bari, before flying to Corfu next week.  I know, maybe a bit too organised!  Anyway, we headed back through a different part of the city towards the "back" of the old town, finding a palace, Palazzo Fizzarotti, that we were sort of looking for, as well as some interesting buildings that we weren't.  For lunch, we went back to Cantina dello Zio, where we had dinner before, because it was good and we knew it would be open for lunch before 1 PM, which is not common here! Then home for a little blog writing and organising for tomorrow's travel and maybe finally finishing off our cheese and meat for dinner tonight and just relaxing.
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