Morano Calibro

With our new Michelin Agilis tires installed, we bid Rome a fond arrivaderci and headed south on the autostrada. We'll be back in early June, then again in mid-June, then again toward the end of July. The road past Naples was relatively familiar. Last time we were south of Salerno was 2011 or so and much of the freeway was under construction. The bridge/tunnel/bridge/tunnel... routine starts thereabouts or a bit further south. Vicki had found a promising sosta in the mountain-side town of Morano Calibro, and there we stayed, joined somewhat later by a young German family. A sosta is a free or low-cost parking area, generally with water and a dump, that towns and cities often provide for self-contained motorhomes. This one was great, at the foot of the interesting little town. We couldn't resist hiking up to the castle ruins. Well, I could have resisted, but Vicki was intent.

A kilometer's walk, entirely uphill a couple
hundred meters

The surrounding mountainous terrain; snow in them thar hills,
still

In the lower precincts

We just kept walking up and in the direction of
the castle, at every juncture...no signs, little in
way of a road, just steps and more steps

Many of the buildings we passed were
abandoned or in poor shape; had this place
been in northern Italy it would have been
all duded up and crawling with tourists,
tipica cuisina and souvenir shoppes at every
turn; as it was, it was not easy to find a liter
of milk (although the same little alimentari
had a bottle of single malt scotch for 12.50E
which I couldn't resist

Ever upward

Finally, the castle ruins

Hill-top church; a mass was underway

Remains of a fresco in a former abbey; scenes from the Passion

 

Nice, quiet, safe place