Due to seasonal restrictions, this time we took by far the longest travel break since we began our world trip in 2017: almost exactly a year! The reason is quite simple: We wanted to finish our last trip through Central America before the rainy season began, so we returned to Europe in March (and Shujaa in April by vessel) last year after 10 months of travel. Our next destination – the Silk Road via the Pamir Highway and then via Mongolia to China – can only be traveled in the core area during the summer. Given the necessary travel time to get there (and we also want to explore Turkey and Georgia on the way there), March/April would be a reasonable start time in Central Europe… This would imply we would have had to head straight to Asia after picking up Shujaa in Bremerhaven… which was simply too tight for us.
The time at home was wonderful: maintaining and strengthening friendships, various road trips through undoubtedly beautiful Europe, skiing etc…. and so the time passed pretty quickly. But the desire to start again and travel to the last continent “missing” on our world trip grew stronger and stronger with each month of our travel break!
So now the wheels are rolling again, and we can once again hear Shujaa’s deep, sonorous motor and the subtle whistle of his turbocharger. We found everything perfectly at Shujaa’s winter camp in Barcelona, and this time there’s no expensive, stressful and nerve-wracking freight shipping to our next destination; instead we can reach the Asian continent by car. Almost… because we’re taking two ferries (one from Barcelona to Civitaveccia (Italy) and one from Brindisi to Igrounomenitsa (Greece) to optimize the route… but ferries are relatively cheap and relaxing compared to shipping cargo.
Rome is our first destination: since we already know it well from a classic city sightseeing tour in pervious times, this time we just stroll through the city, breath in the atmosphere, and check out selected highlights. The real highlight, however, is an excellent dinner… Our expectations for the Silk Road are rather low in terms of cuisine, so we’ll naturally take what we can along the route, especially in Italy. Karin also stocks up on tons of fresh pasta and other Italian delicacies.
We explore Apulia from north to south, starting on the Gargano Peninsula which is still very quiet at this time of the year: narrow roads (right at the beginning I have to reverse several times on a hairpin bend… that’s good practice), tranquil towns and beautiful beaches. The weather is still kind to us, but unfortunately that changes the further south we go. We of course include highlights such as the picturesque fishing village of Trani, with its church perched on the headland, the imposing Castel del Monte, and the rock city of Matera which is well-visited even at this time of year… only better weather would have made it even more atmospheric! We commute back and forth between the sea with its pretty harbor towns of Polignano a Mare, Monopoli, etc. and the inland with its enchanting and funny-looking Trulli houses and well-known towns such as Alberobello, Locorotondo and Ostuni. Unfortunately, the weather remains mixed also when visiting the so-called “Venice of the South” – Lecce. Instead, we enjoy the fantastic Italian cuisine.
This time, we’re only passing through Greece in transit for two days on our way to Turkey – with a stop in the already familiar port town of Keramoti. Thanks to being the ferry port to the island of Thassos, many tavernas are open here even at this time of year, and there is a lovely overnight spot right by the sea. Of course, we don’t want to leave Greece without having Greek salad, tzatziki, and delicious fish!
