Went
We finally got to visit Puglia, in the very south of Italy in April. I’ve been to Italy many, many times over the years (it’s soooo easy for coeliacs to eat there) but this was my first trip to Puglia. I loved this region very much for its surprisingly green hills.
The green rolling hills in Puglia were a big surprise to me because I was expecting some sort of barren, lunar landscape in this most southerly region of Italy. But nope, gorgeous green-ness all around. Although, it did rain a great deal while we were there so that could’ve been a clue!
We stayed in a wonderful trulli, complete with outdoor hot tub and indoor swimming pool. The location of this trulli was absolutely perfect – right in the middle of the region where the trullis can be found.
After a week in Puglia where the day-time temperature was around 14C, we headed to the Isle of Wight for 5 days. Incredibly it was 10C hotter on the Isle of Wight, who needs trips abroad, eh?
Ate
Not as much pizza as I had expected….
The good – I thoroughly enjoyed this thin and crispy beauty in Polignano a Mare
The okay – gluten free and lactose free frozen pizza. I found this available everywhere (although different brands).
The ugly – from the pizzeria now referred to my 5 year old pizza connoisseur as “the worst pizzeria in the world”.
All of our pizzas featured the local cime di rapa (turnip tops or broccoletti depending on your translation tool) which, whilst delicious, had not been drained properly before adorning the pizza. So it wasn’t long after being served that our pizzas started having their own green sludgy pizza pool party.
Gluten free fish and chips at The Boathouse on the Isle of Wight:
Loved
Spending a week in Italy. Italy truly is a coeliac’s paradise and I never fail to be amazed how easy it is to eat out and shop as a gluten free customer. Even in the tiniest Italian towns and supermarkets you can still find gluten free options in Italy.
I’ll be sharing some of my gluten free finds from Puglia as we did a lot of driving around in case anyone is planning a trip there and might find them useful.
In the meantime, I’ll leave you with this cracker of an ice cream I enjoyed in Martina Franca, a lovely town located close to our trulli:
The Easter sunshine and warmth on the Isle of Wight!
I did not expect to be paddling in the sea every day…..
….or to enjoy such stunning sunsets.
A trip with the kids and grandparents to the Robin Hill Country Park which. Great fun! Plus it was carpeted with gorgeous bluebells.
The BBQ café at Robin Hill also had gluten free buns with a choice of either pulled pork or a veggie burger. A great & surprising find for lunch:
What’s everyone’s plans for the two Bank Holidays in May?
Italy is such a dream for finding safe food (except that sludgy pizza, sounds very disappointing), I really need to go back. It would make a nice change from the run of not great experiences I’ve had recently… Your trulli sounds amazing! I’ve always wanted to stay in one. I used to have a colleague who went to Puglia every year with a group of friends and they just ate excellent food and drank excellent wine for a straight week. Now that’s living.
Author
Wow now that really IS living! I’ve spent a lot of time in Italy and always thought the food in in Tuscany or the northern Italian regions/cities was the best but, honestly, I was so impressed by both the food and local wine here. (Sludgy pizza excepted). I’d be very happy to be back living the good life in Puglia every year!