Do you take the time for luxurious spa treatments when you travel? Now enjoy the ultimate in Italy!

When you travel is it a mad dash to see as much as possible on the short time you have to "vacation"?
As a traveler you may have more time to experience a location, culture or country but do you take the time to relax while on the mission to experience everything?  
Yle introduces us to a extreme spa, where all your wishes can be granted while you are pampered in the Italian countryside.     What a great way to spend your first day in Italy while battling jet lag, the time change and trying to "do nothing"!   
What spa towns in Italy have you visited?

cremea di caffe

Let's join Yle at an Italian spa........  and dream of your customized holiday in Puglia.
continued from the earlier post:
Drinking a “caffè” (in whatever way you like) in a central bar in Lecce is often a way to meet some friends and talk to them, even if you have not planned that and that was the case. I had just asked for my lovely coffee cream when I noticed the wonderful look of a lady who was actually very close to me.                 I immediately realized I knew her and told her: “Marisa how nice to meet you here (that in Italian would be translated like “Che piacere vederti qui”). This lovely friend and her family owns in Salento some very nice resorts by the ocean and are just unique in their style. The last born is a dream place in Lecce where you truly experience a relax atmosphere while enjoying the sun.

We decided  to have coffee together and at the end of the meeting she pronounced the magical formula: “Yle come and visit me tomorrow at Masseria Luciagiovanni”, we will have a brunch together by the swimming pool” (a 1600 sqm swimming pool with Jacuzzi) followed by a spa treatment (I could choose among: sauna, steam bath, hammam, body treatments, massages, indoor/outdoor Thalassic Therapy path and Jetstream, whirlpool). 

Inspiration for the PERFECT travel experience.

YOU deserve a perfect getaway (even if it is for one day)

"Something magical happens"

Yle creates unique travel experiences for each guest who visits Puglia.   She shares her philosophy on finding inspiration and the goal of the perfect experience.  

There are days when something suddenly rings your bell,  I don’t know about you, but often,  for my my job,  I look for something special to suggest to my friends all the time, find the right place for the perfect holiday (easier said than done) and when it happens it is so nice.

When I started writing on this blog, it was a way to share with you information on how to experience this area (Puglia) in a special way, if only for a short amount of time and how your Sunday could  become a fantastic day if you look for a gem around you, I am sure you can find it.

Working on “unique” holidays and planning days for guests visiting Puglia, puts me in the position of ongoing research and selection.

When I choose one place instead of another, it is always for a particular reason:   something magical has to happen in my body/soul, otherwise I should select somewhere else and do not suggest it to people asking  for the very best.        Finding something that suits my guests needs and matches their standards, will make their holiday a lot easier and give them the perfect results they have been seeking for months in planning their vacation.

An example of where inspiration can come from:

It was a late spring day, very hot and sunny and I was planning a day tour for some American ladies.   On my list were many fun things, scheduling all the activities in the afternoon.

Actually these lovely ladies would have met me in the morning and after a long flight they would have been tired and in search of relaxation.

Drinking a “caffè” (in whatever way you like) in a central bar in Lecce is often a way to meet some friends and talk to them, even when a meeting is unplanned.  

I had just asked for my lovely coffee cream when I noticed the wonderful look of a lady who was actually very close to me. My eyes were attracted by the design of little symbols on her dress and the softness of the textile turned my imagination on and made me wish to fly somewhere under the sun.

I immediately realized I knew her and told her: “Marisa how nice to meet you here (that in Italian would be translated like “Che piacere vederti qui”).   This lovely friend and her family owns in Salento some very nice resorts by the ocean that are just unique in their style.    One in particular is a dream place in Lecce where you truly experience a relaxed atmosphere while enjoying the sun.


We decided  to have coffee together and at the end of the meeting she pronounced the magical formula: “Yle come and visit me tomorrow at Masseria Luciagiovanni”, we will have a brunch together by the swimming pool” (a 1600 sqm swimming pool with Jacuzzi) followed by a spa treatment (I could choose among: sauna, steam bath, hammam, body treatments, massages, indoor/outdoor Thalassic Therapy path and Jetstream, whirlpool).  



Yle gives us more details of her day at the ultimate spa on the next post, please click the next entry.

Cook with the Mammas of Puglia!

Yle is giving us a wonderful look inside the kitchens of some of the best Italian cooks in Puglia, a mamma!     Yle offers amazing holidays that can include hands on cooking with an expert.
I can vouch for an incredible experience when Yle introduced me to my new "nonna" (grandmother) Mamma Vita. She spent hours teaching me to make pasta!    Not only did I learn to make 6 types of pasta but I believe I found a new nonna.........

COOKING CLASS IN PUGLIA 

Life as a local

Guests often write to me via email or social networks  and ask for some very unique treats to experience in Puglia.     What they read about from other travel planners is just "touristy"   and they know that one of the things I avoid in my tours is doing what hundreds of other people do.   I create a unique travel experience specifically for you.          

A  cooking class with one of our amazing  MAMME is a must do experience. When I gave rise to this food and culinary program called “Mamme in Cucina” a couple of years ago, I thought of a unique day that I would have liked to live if myself I had been a visitor. A day to be spent with locals like a local. A unique staff that would have given guests the impression of living in the area and perfectly mingle with people and their habits.

Mamma Consiglia

I never call participants “students”, “customers" or clients”:    they  are friends and guests for me and for the mums they have the pleasure to cook with.  From the beginning of our day,  the atmosphere is casual and friendly and every part of the program is as if you are visiting friends.       

Old has a new meaning in Italy!

When Americans visit an historic city or site in the USA, we think old is 300 years, but when you walk the streets of any village or town in Italy you are walking in History!     Imagine there are no cars or motor bikes and you can see the streets as they were hundred and hundreds of years ago....


This week Yle takes us on a stroll in the streets of Puglia........dream of your next visit home to Italy
Stroll the streets of Puglia
I’ve just come back from a tour with some English friends around Puglia.      Although I live here it is always such a fun experience to explore with new friends and meet lovely folks on the way.

When my English friends  first contacted me via email some months ago,   they asked for a relaxing holiday in this paradise they had heard about (in the press) but never visited before , so I sent them some pictures and descriptions on what their accommodations and days could look like. 
It was immediate love from both sides.   Part of my job consists of matching the customer's needs to the holiday of their dreams......and this was the case.           A very nice country house was the right accommodation for them from there they could easily explore the region.  
 During one of their special tours I decided to join them and share the Puglia surprise for that day.    They had rented a couple of cars at Brindisi airport and there was place for me to drive with them in one of the cars.    There was a wine expert in my car asking me many questions about our Negroamaro wine.        I very often suggest guests rent a car because with a good map they can navigate the twisting roads and see the gorgeous countryside and little villages of Puglia.       

Can you imagin yourself on the cliff viewing the sea?

We left from the country house soon after breakfast and focused specifically on the Itria valley Tour until joining some friends for lunch  not far from Bari, in a village called Mola di Bari where there’s their gorgeous Country House called “Tenuta Pinto“.  
The Itria Valley area is very nice:   it encompasses the provinces of Bari, Brindisi and Taranto and has distinctive architectural features better known as Trulli. A Trullo (singular)  is a conical shaped stone roof designed to cool in summer and insulate in winter.      Our friends took hundreds of pictures on the way and  stopped often to exploring.

We had an invitation for lunch in Mola di Bari, nevertheless I thought that my friends would  enjoy  the experience of shopping for food from the local market in this area and visiting one of the best fish markets.  
One of the group was a professional photographer and was just amazed at being inspired by so many colors and items at the same time: multicolored doors, ancient furniture details, restaurant and shop signs, daily life scenes,  hundreds of olive groves and unique scenes at the food market.

As soon as we arrived in  Mola di Bari, we met Isa and Domenico, two Puglia natives who cultivate amazing frui – mainly a kind of grape called “Victoria Grape” – and who have recently opened their own Country House Tenuta Pinto.  

With them we are planning grape harvesting (vendemmia) starting August 2012, so should you be interested in experiencing a grape harvest first hand,  just let us know.
see this link for the wonderful lunch prepared:

Drive in Classic Cars in Italy!

           This week Yle will share with us the excitement of speeding through the beautiful Puglia countryside with the wind blowing through your hair and the wonderful colors of the Italian sky.

           You must visit to experience the colors of Italy:    the distinctive blue of the sky and the various greens of ancient trees and new crops in the fields.      Come as a traveler not a tourist. 
Yle today shows us another wonderful adventure for your visit to Italia! 
EXPLORING PUGLIA WITH STYLE: BY CLASSIC CAR
For everyone passionate about classic cars, food and fine wine, Spring or late Summer is a perfect time for exploring Puglia.

There's no better way to enjoy the area, its landscapes, colors and smells. Sometimes people ask me what is the best way to experience the area and after having tried it myself several times in the last two years, I can undoubtedly say that travelling with style is a very unique way to explore.

Many years ago, on a beautiful sandy beach on the lonian coast (an authentic paradise called Porto Cesareo) I met Massimo, a Salento native, an engineer, who told me about his passion for classic cars.  We have stayed in touch since then and when he told me about his classic cars project I told him he had a fabulous idea!    Once he told me about a sample tour, I asked him to experience it first hand and simply adorned the time I spent in those amazing cars.   Since then, we have had many visitors explore Puglia this way and Massimo and his team are lovely people to work with.

Driving a classic car is so stylish.    During one of our recent tours, we met in the main Piazza (Square) of the town for a glorious breakfast (cornetto and cappuccino) and for an insider look at the city (centro storico) – always a good time to take some beautiful pictures – among baroque palaces, then out of town through the countryside landscapes, down narrow white washed walled streets in little villages,  past beautiful villas by the ocean and an memorable drive amidst olive groves.

It’s very hard to remember the tons of pictures we took all the time…without mentioning the stops at a winery and in very cozy bakery where they make some great bread and taralli (and pastries as well!).  

This was very much like being in a movie:   huge landascapes along the coastline, wind in our hair, sunglasses and all the countryside smells sorrounding us.