Today our BnB breakfast was a little bit different. We were provided with a coupon for a coffee and croissant at a small café just around the corner. We enjoyed sitting outside in a very small piazza being warmed by the morning sun. It was fun to watch people in the street as they prepared for their day. We were in no hurry as the ride to Matera was not long and there were no obvious towns along our way. The small breakfast may need to hold us for a while!
Leaving Castellaneta should have been easy as we just needed to return to the road we arrived on and turn right. But because of one way streets and some Garmin map issues we went up and down a few small side streets until we finally picked a road out of town. After couple of kilometres on a fairly busy road we were able to turn on to a lighter traffic road and pretty much followed it all the way to Matera. It was a lovely, simple, quiet ride in the countryside.
Newly paved and straight. As you cross a district line, road conditions sometimes change. We think that we may have left Puglia and are now in the Basilacata region.
Scott AndersonThis is such an extraordinary area up here on this plateau. I think it’s my favorite cycling area in Puglia. Reply to this comment 1 month ago
Our last push to Matera got a bit tricky as the route went to a gravel road and then joined a busy highway just before reaching the town limits. Even then, we rode a stretch on a wide sidewalk to avoid the traffic and parked cars on the busy, narrow street.
We had the usual wayfinding challenges locating our BnB for the night. With limited street name signs available and building numbers often hit and miss, a mapping app on your phone is a necessity. When we found our building, our host met us at the door with the simple ring of the bell. It is nice when it is so easy.
Old Matera has two ancient districts of the city: Sasso Barisano and Sasso Caveoso. We are staying in Sasso Barisano and walked down many steps to a restaurant for dinner - also in Sasso Barisano. We enjoyed our lovely dinner in a building that was partly a cave. More on the cave stuff later as we are here tomorrow and will take a local guided tour highlighting the historical areas of Matera .
