Saturday July 26: Agropoli and the Feast of Santa Ana in Gioi
Breakfast at 8am Saturday morning was nearly identical to Friday morning, except that we were armed with sliced pancetta. There were nectarines instead of cantaloupe so we wrapped the pancetta around there and it was delish!
After breakfast we took a post breakfast nap, one of the joys of vacation, and then got ready for a trip to Agropoli which is a larger town about 35 mins away.
Arrived in Agropoli around 11am. We walked up to the fort where there was a beautiful view. There was less sun and more clouds, even some sprinkles, but the humidity was high. We hadn’t made certain plans to go to Agropoli so we were mostly wandering. There were shops and nice architecture but of course, lunch time was nearing. The area we were in was a bit touristy so I checked the maps to look for a place with good reviews. The first restaurant we stopped in to was trying to serve us breakfast at 1pm, more of a cafe than a restaurant.
The next place I found looked better but it was a 10 minute walk and the sun had come out by then. One of my pet peeves of traveling is looking for food when you are hungry. So we get to this restaurant and the seating choices are outdoors where it’s hot with no fan or indoors with no fan or AC. My tolerance for heat at this point in life is super low but the idea of continuing to walk around with a group searching for food was worse.
So two aperol spritzes, an app of calamari and veggies and a caprese salad. Then shared entree of steak and octopus. With all the breakfast bread, I am always on the hunt for protein and veggies. The food was good, but I felt like I was just eating to eat and get out of the hot situation. I kept taking the ice out of my spritz to keep cool.
On the way home, we wanted gelato, so I mapped to a place called Bar Gelateria Nazionale which is 10 mins down the mountain from us. This bar was next to a gas station but it’s super nice. We had amazing gelato and decided we would return for breakfast and all return for cocktails bc the prices were so low. I had straciatella and caffe.
Return to the agriturismo around 3:30 for afternoon nap. Well Phil napped, I wrote a blog post and mom and Nan played cards. Around 5:30 we headed up Gioi to have a pre-feast drink. My mom has been talking a lot about these festivals and it seems many of them happen in August. Honestly, it was a very moving cultural experience. But first, to Bar Max for a Negroni and a spritz.
After drinks, we walk up to the piazza (reminder that Gioi is a total of like 6 streets) and then to the church courtyard where everyone is gathering. There was a band practicing for the main event but we ended up sort of marching with them on our way.
It’s about 6:30 in the church courtyard and all 50 people of Gioi seem to be there including the 10 americani. Children were playing in front of the church while everyone stood around and chatted, some people attended the mass and others stood outside. Upon realizing that we were going to be standing around and seeing a restaurant with wine about 10 feet away, I convinced our little quad to have a bottle of wine and snack while we waiting for mass to end.
La Respensa is a cute little place that I wanted to eat at the first night we were here. They have a nice seating area in the backyard and beautiful wood tables. Turns out they make all the salami and cheese there. It was delicious and a nice little stop.
Finally around 8pm, the mass was over. The band played as the priest led the congregation out of the church and four men shouldered a huge statue of Mary and Jesus? Joseph? Saint Anne? Unfortunately I’m not sure. My mom jumped into the procession but the three of us hung back. Then the lady running the place we are staying, passed by and said (or motioned more because she doesn’t speak English) that we must walk in the procession. I’m super glad we did. The procession was around the entire town so it lasted about 15-20 minutes and it seemed that every person in the town participated.
After the procession, we arrived back in the piazza for a pasta dinner. A long table was set up for everyone to sit and enjoy and there were gigantic pots of pasta and wine in unknown bottles. There was a DJ playing music and children playing games and making crafts. It was such a beautiful show of what a community is like.
After eating and drinking, it was mostly children dancing. They played the Macarena and I decided I would get up and teach a bunch of 6 year old Italian girls to do the Macarena. It was super cute. We were out until about midnight enjoying this community celebration of Santa Ana. It was really very special and I am so glad we were here to experience this:
