We use booking.com to book our overnight stays. Several of the BnBs where we have stayed are businesses that have nicely renovated, full floors of a building creating several hotel style rooms as well as a breakfast area. The space is well managed like a small hotel. The staff are always friendly and we have enjoyed staying at all of them. Breakfasts are simple but always sufficient to get us moving along. The coffees are made to order and excellent. Pat was very happy that today`s breakfast included a soft boiled egg and toast.
Our ride was short so we took our time meandering along the coast with some good turns and others not so much. The riding has been very similar to the last few days through quiet towns and on quiet roads.
Our BnB for the night was located on the second floor with a fabulous view.
Punta Prosciutto, the most popular beach in Salento. Sales pitch From the web, ¨Expanses of soft golden sand, a crystal clear sea set in a breathtaking natural landscape. Here unspoiled nature, sea and wonderful beaches meet to offer a spectacle that is really hard to forget.¨
A sight that surprised us. The pink flamingos are present in Torre Colimena during the spring months, usually around March. During this period, many species of migratory birds, including flamingos, choose the area of Torre Colimena Salina Nature Reserve as a resting place during their journey, an incredible spectacle of nature!
We circled around the coastal town of Campomarino and headed East, inland to the small town of Maruggio. We organized to stay in Maruggio primarily because it fit nicely for the day`s riding distance. We were quite surprised to find all the town`s shops and cafes were closed in the afternoon when we rode into the centre of town. However, there was one quiet bar with outside seating that faced the main piazza where we could get a refreshment while we waited to meet our host at 3PM.
We are staying at another nice BnB. We left our room in the early evening to find a restaurant that our host told us was a good place to eat. Walking the main street in town, all the businesses were now open and the streets were busy. Completely different than when we arrived a few hours before! Unfortunately, the restaurant could not take us until 8:30 PM. With few other choices we went to a nearby pizza place, finding that it would also not open until eight! Too long for us to wait... With no other obvious choices, we settled on some wraps and chips at a nearby bar. Not the best dinner for us but the small town of Maruggio provided few other options for the starving riders.
The Maruggio Clock Tower dates back to the late 1800s, and in 1939 it saw the addition of a high relief war memorial.
