Slightly cloudy but still reasonably warm as we juggle our way out of Bari through road closures and very confusing road junctions but once clear we make good time and are soon parked up oln the outskirts of Trani. As it turns out we are parked a short distance from the local refuse centre and there is a continuous stream of vehicles arriving to dump there household waste – proof that there is an alternative to dumping it in laybys! It wasn’t the most fragrant place to park but as we have no intention of spending anytime in the van it seems as safe a place as any to park.

We quickly pass by the tip and make our way through the by now usual myriad of grubby back streets until we turn a corner and are confronted with this beautifully preserved Castello di Trani on the sea front….

Across a building site as it appears that much work is going on to create a promenade along the sea front lies the again immaculate Cattedrale di Trani – these buildings are such a contrast to the neighbourhood we have just walked through….

The fort across the harbour appears also to have had a recent face lift with works ongoing at Sant Antonio Church….

Unlike many of the other towns we have wandered around the main hub of Trani seems to be around the busy fishing harbour with fishermen selling their ware literally off the boats….

Now I am not a fishy person so most of what they were selling is beyond me but there were several buckets of octopus which certainly didn’t make me want to try it!

Only a small town we did wander back through the back streets around the harbour which were certainly a lot more appealing than they way we had walked in….

We collected the van and did a little top up of groceries before leaving Trani, as the site we are headed for is a distance from any form of civilisation.

From Margherita di Savoia we drove along the thin strip of land, separating the sea from the salt basins and wetlands, where I was delighted to spot a flock of mulitcoloured flamingos grazing along the wetlands. Unfortunately there was nowhere safe to pullover and stop to watch them for a while.

Another 20 miles or so up the road we arrived at our campsite for the next few days as we are hoping to hide from the worst of the weather that seems to be stuck over the middle section of Italy at the moment – you could say that Autumn has arrived!….

The electrical system here looks a little sketchy….

But the beach at Lido Salpi just 50m from our pitch more than makes up for that….

Today’s stats:

• Miles driven – 72
• Miles walked – 5
• Beaches – 1
• Fuel – £85.70
• Groceries – £18.48
• O/N – £14.00