Trullo Solari » Trullo Solari

Christmas at Trullo Solari

megelley — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 06:38:42 +0000

My family has been lucky enough to holiday twice at Trullo Solari. The first time during the summer that they opened, in the over 40c heat. Phew!
Then we returned for Christmas 2009 with our extended family.
What an amazing place to get away from it all. There were 7 of us staying in the house, and 2 more visiting every day. But we never felt crowded or that we needed more space.
The weather was lovely and mild, the rain stayed off so we could make pizzas in the outdoor pizza oven on Christmas eve. There were long walks on the beach or in the lanes around the Trullo, and shopping for last minute ‘stuff’ in town.
When it got chilly in the evenings, we lit a big log fire in the fire place and played silly games or watched DVD’s and dozed. On other evenings we made the expedition into one of the surrounding towns or villages and went and found wonderful local food. The annual Natale celebration was going on in Ostuni, and we went and took part in the parade of people admiring the nativity scenes and visiting the cathedral.
Getting away from the crazy shoppers and parties in London and having a fun family Christmas with Aunts, Uncles and Cousins made it an occasion we all remember.

Maggie

Battles with Nature

cathyinpuglia — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 15:34:17 +0000

This week has been one of contrasts, good news followed with bad, followed with good. Sometimes we always seem to be battling against nature, and then rewarded by her huge acts of kindness.

A few weeks ago our bees deserted their two hives. We only got them last May and everything seemed to be going to schedule; then one and a few days later the other left home en mass. Our supplier’s theory is that they had a mite (still trying to translate Varroa) and they left to see if they could shake it. Then, this week, when we went to pack the empty hives up until we try again in the spring, we found a few hundred bees had returned to one of the hives. I can’t imagine that such a small number will survive the winter, but we’ve got them a sugar feeder and crossing our fingers.

Our next insect encounter was with the dreaded Rhinoceros Beetle that is systematically destroying so many of the palm trees around the Mediterranean. The beetle is an inch long and up to 2000 new beetles can emerge from an infested palm. Ever since our neighbours lost one of their trees we have been diligent, and it was only an impromptu visit to Trullo Solari when we noticed some drooping fonds on one of our two palms. We returned that day with chain saw and insecticide – our first use in six years of organic gardening – and fought back. As we trimmed the lower branches and sprayed the poison we could hear what sounded like a Doctor Who alien attack as the big bugs munched through our palm. Luckily the next day we returned and the munching had stopped, along with the satisfying sight of dead beetles. Hopefully we’ve saved the palm, although it has a pretty severe short back and sides.

Otherwise we’re ripening pumpkins, cauliflower heads are poking through and the citrus trees are coming in to bloom. We’ve also been gifted a dozen raspberry canes and transplanted some beautiful yellow flowers from our neighbour’s garden that hopefully the bees will love – either this year or next.

We’ll never win the war, but I think the week’s battles went well.

Zero Food Miles

cathyinpuglia — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 07:23:39 +0000

Inspired by Hugh FW’s Fish Fight, I just spent 5 euro on a jar of locally caught, artisan-preserved tuna in olive oil. Tuna will no longer be a standby, but a luxury item. But it got me reflecting, once again, how great it is hear to have access to this kind of food in Puglia, to be able to make those choices.

Local fruit and veg are abundant at Trullo Solari

We try to grow our own fruit and veg, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. (We’re still learning!) But when it doesn’t, or when we fancy something different, the Saturday market in Ostuni is full of fresh, beautiful, seasonal produce. There is a 400 metre stretch of stalls, from the “muddy” end, which are little guys selling what they’ve grown, to the more “shiny” end which sell imported bananas and have carrots wrapped in plastic. Sure, there are supermarkets, but we also have the choice to go and buy raw milk from the farm, or today’s ricotta, or the mozzerella that you can watch them making. We go to the coast to buy fish from the little port market. We go to the mill in Ceglie to buy flour. One day we’ll grow our own wheat and take it for them to mill, but that day hasn’t yet come! And of course we have the gift of our own olive harvest and traditionally pressed olive oil. Those concerned with how the demise of fossil fuels will impact the food supply predict everyone will have to move back to this way of life. But for now we are loving and appreciating what we have.

Guests at Trullo Solari can obviously join our appreciation for this quality of food while you’re here. Our sat-nav is loaded with all of our favourite delis and food producers, and is yours for your stay. And if the short drive to get there spoils your envionmental conscience, you can of course be content picking the fruit from the garden!

Spring cleaning with new friends

cathyinpuglia — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 08:12:02 +0000

We’re busy sprucing up Trullo Solari for the new season. Our first spring guests are arriving at the end of the month and we’re weeding, gardening and painting ready for everyone to enjoy their Puglia holiday. We’re also putting the final touches to the new deck, installing the central mosaic and re-treating the wood.

To help us out this year we’re hosting a couple of great volunteers through the Workaway scheme. In return for board and lodging Liesl and Amy give us five hours hard work a day. They’re both Americans travelling through Italy. It’s a great scheme and we’re looking forward to other volunteers coming later in the year; there’s always plenty to do.

Our biggest problem at the moment is the changeable spring weather. Yesterday an unexpected shower washed half the paint off the wall and on to the patio. But it’s sunny again this morning, and we’re off to put it back where it should be! Roll on summer…

Yoga in Puglia

cathyinpuglia — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:41:01 +0000

We’re loving the response that we’ve had already to our new venture Yoga in Puglia. We’re celebrating the return of Paul Fountain, our favourite yoga instructor, to Puglia with some weeks dedicated to yoga holidays. For three weeks in May and September individuals or small groups can come and stay at Trullo Solari for a fully catered week of fun and yoga. There will be yoga sessions every day and organised excursions and celebrations guaranteeing a great week for all. Take a look at our new website here, and be sure to tell any friends that may be interested!

Puglia Navigator

cathyinpuglia — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:15:21 +0000

Driving in Puglia is something to experience. There are some strange rules of the road to learn, such as randomly giving way to the right; and some rules that are unusually optional such as one way streets and stopping at red lights. Then there are the locals that you share the road with, from the contadino in his 3 wheel Ape to the budding Grand Prix driver that is so close to you he might disappear up your exhause pipe. Having said all of this, the overriding experience of driving here is that it’s a bit of a game, but no one gets upset and people demonstrate ten times more patience than you generally experience on roads in the UK.

Your next challenge is, of course, to find where you’re going. And this is where we can now help our guests. We’ve been spending the summer programming our new TomTom with all our favourite restaurants, shops and places to go. No more trying to explain how to find the Masseria to watch your mozzerella being made, the Trullo Solari TomTom will take you right there. Looking for that little fish restaurant right on the ocean, or the trattoria in the back street of Ostuni old town? Don’t worry, it’s all programmed for you! We want our guests of enjoy Puglia as much as we do, which is why we’ve made it easier to share some of our secrets…

An Ape in Ostuni old town

“Human Kind Cannot bear very much reality “- T.S.Eliot

tobiaspfunk — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:51:03 +0000

“Human Kind

Cannot bear very much reality “- T.S.Eliot

And so taking Mr. Eliot at his word we all need to find a place in which we can escape the dreaded reality that surrounds us. Trullo Solari is a good place to start! Rolling hills, ancient, gnarled and twisted olive trees, beating sun, shady corners, cooling water and most importantly when you travel in a group – a bathroom for all!! ;o)

Places to visit – Martina Franca with it’s chic feel, good food and shops. Cisternino for excellent eating (try Bella Italia). Locorotondo for a wander and lunch at Trattoria Centro Storico (otherwise known as da Giovanni). Torre Guaceto for a pretty beach. Alberobello if you really have to! You can see much prettier trulli around the above towns and you don’t have to suffer the tourist tat hell!! As you may have guessed it didn’t leave much of an impression! If you’re feeling adventurous and you want to see some seriously blue sea head south for 50 minutes to Punto Prosciutta near Porto Cesareo or to Lecce for some baroque splendour. However, there’s always the temptation to just hang out by the pool, drink cocktails, read books and practice your pizza making skills in the evening. The place is truly wonderful and the guys have done a fantastic job of renovating it in a sympathetic and very comfortable style with everything you could possibly need.

If you want to escape from your reality, eat fantastic food, laze around, get some culture, see the most fantastic light you could possibly hope to find and stay in a wonderful place then you could do much worse. We loved it. You will too.

Toby

Trullo Solari Arrival Menu

cathyinpuglia — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:57:00 +0000

We’re delighted with the response to our new Arrival Menu. As most people arrive at Trullo Solari late on a Saturday, and shopping opportunities are limited on Sundays, we have always offered to buy food in for our guests’ first meals. The only problem with that was that I would generally find myself wandering around the supermarket trying to work out what people would like to eat!

To make things easier on everyone, we have now devised a “menu” that you can choose from, some starters (such as prosciutto and melon or zucchini frittata) and main courses (including spaghetti con calamari or swordfish with fresh pesto) that are quick and simple to cook when you arrive. We also have recipe sheets for you, in case you need some help putting it all together! There are also a couple of dishes that I can cook for you (roast vegetable lasagne) and will just need heating when you arrive. Of course there are a couple of dolce to choose from too.

We’ve offered this service to our guests arriving in the next few weeks, and one has ordered the whole menu so that they have enough food to last until Monday!

Welcome

cathyinpuglia — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:25:04 +0000

Welcome to the first Trullo Solari post. I’ve decided to start a blog so that you can see what’s new at Trullo Solari, some of the projects that we’re undertaking, what’s going on in our wonderful countryside and the latest gossip from Puglia. If you’ve been to Trullo Solari already then I’m sure this will stir some very happy memories; or if you are thinking about coming to stay, I hope that you’ll find something here to interest you.