Heelward bound

Just remember you will need some type of an extend stay visa if you are going to be there six months. Probably should starting work on that now.

Try Lonely Planet or Michelin guidebooks for more information on Puglia. It's beautiful and covers a lot of territory, with nature preserves and islands to beautiful coastlines. Are you aware that a normal visit to Italy is 90 days (Schengen Rule)? You can stay longer but there are some hoops to jump through.

Thanks for the tips. I'll pick up a Lonely Planet for sure. Fortunately, I'm good to stay, so far, visa-wise. Sadly, I have no Italian ancestors. I don't hear about the southeast on this forum much. No particular negatives, though, would you say?

Sarah, We are headed there next week. I am told by a Puglia native that Brindisi is "just another city" but the smaller towns, including Lecce, are fabulous. Puglia s very up-and-coming as a destination. It is written about in many Italian travel magazines of late. It is hard to find info, but as mentioned, there are guides out there from Lonely Planet, etc.
Laurel

Laurel: I would really (really really) appreciate reading a report (perhaps as a reply to this post?) when you get back. I am amazed that I am trying this - I'm 60 and doing this 'da sola' on the theory that you have to be somewhere. I'm thinking that a small town on the train line would be perfect. Have a lovely time. Of course, given where you live, you must anyway! Sarah

Hi Sarah We spent 3 weeks in Puglia last October, including a week in Lecce. We were testing Lecce to do as you are contemplating ... find a place to settle in sometime and spend a month or two. We were amazed to see that EVERYTHING in Lecce closes down around 1 or 2 pm daily and does not reopen until around 5 or 6 pm, with restaurants (even pizza) not reopening until 8 pm. It becomes a ghost town. If you're hungry at 4 pm or 6 pm, you'd better have some food in your room. If you don't want to siesta like the natives do, you wander around empty streets or leave town, which is what we did ... 4 day trips in our last 4 days. There is little tourist infrastructure in that part of Italy. Just finding the proper ticket booth at the Lecce train station was an adventure. There is a different booth depending on where you're going. We luckily purchased round trip tickets in Lecce as the train stations in both Otranto and Gallipoli were unmanned, with not even a schedule posted. Perhaps if you're driving it would be easier to get around the heel and you could escape every day, but I get the sense that you'll be travelling by train. We loved Gallipoli, a beautiful town. Not sure if it would make a good long-term base though. We just passed through Brindisi, so I can't comment on that. We loved our stay at a masseria near Fasano, but you couldn't do that for six months. Maybe Trani? or Monopoli?
By the way, this was our 4th trip to Italy. We've also visited France, Germany, Croatia, Spain, Morocco, Montenegro, Albania, Greece and most of the Caribbean. Love the tiny islands in Greece, but we also love Paris and Venice. We don't need to be sightseeing every minute, but we found walking through a deserted city every afternoon to be very depressing and weird.

Charlene - You are a good writer! I think you gave me a great assessment. I did think that there was a University in Lecce, though. I'm so very glad I've decided to check out where I might live. My daughter spent a very scientific year in Leeds without doing any research, so I'm set on seeing where I'd live. I definitely need more of a train station than that, particularly being on my own! There's no substitute for good information. Perhaps I'll use a car for the exploration of small towns. You gave me a lot to consider.

Thanks, Sarah. In Lecce's defense, I must add that it has some beautiful Baroque churches and monuments ... 101 churches, we were told, each more ornate and extravagent than the next. It does have a university. And my husband reminded me that some coffee shops were open in the afternoon. We had some very enjoyable day trips around the area (especially a winery tour in Salento, and the trip to Gallipoli). So for a short visit, as a base, it would be fine. But honestly, for a long-term stay, our personal opinion is that you can do better elsewhere. On that same trip, we visited Senigallia in Le Marche, on the Adriatic coast. IMO, this would be a great place for an extended stay. Admittedly we like being near water, so the miles of sandy beach were a huge draw for us. But we found the town itself delightful. It's an old city, with a 17th century palace and a gothic castle, a picturesque downtown area, daily outdoor fruit & vegetable markets (at least when we were there) near the castle. There's an amazing coffee shop downtown where we got hot cocoa with a bowl of whipped cream and plate of cookies on a rainy day. Perfect! We found the town vibrant and welcoming. It's well-connected by rail (about 1 1/2 hrs. from Bologna and 40 minutes to Ancona) and bus to other Marche towns (Urbino, Ascoli Piceno) and sights (Caverns of Frasassi). We loved walking on the beach in the morning, hopping a bus, and finding ourselves in the 14th century hilltown of Corinaldo two hours later! Restaurants were inexpensive (homemade gnocchi with fresh seafood for 10 euros). People were very friendly; we were the first Americans that the people at our hotel had ever seen, so they gave us a huge coffee table book about Le Marche when we left! We were drawn to Senigallia by the following article:
http://www.aarp.org/home-garden/livable-communities/info-07-2010/best-places-retire-italy-le-marche.html