My mind turned to Pliny the Elder as we sat in the car at teatime on All Saints day, gridlocked just south of Erculano on old Strada Statale 18. We were attempting to travel north along this narrow strip of coastal plan between the sea and Monte Vesuvio - along with what suddenly felt like … Continue reading Oh! No! Vesuvio! All Saints Day 2017

We left Campania, heading east from Atripalda towards Melfi on the northern foothills of volcanic Monte Vulture, just inside Basilicata’s northern boundary, the region of Italy perhaps least known or visited, shown in red: It feels remote and unreconstructed, and there are some desolate spaces as well as extraordinary places. Matera, which we visited in … Continue reading And on to Basilicata ….October 2017