Bari is a port town in southern Italy. It’s on the Adriatic coast, on the opposite side of the boot from Naples. Most Westerners have never heard of Bari, but it’s a vacation destination for Europeans. Our cruise ship has just arrived here from Venice, so let’s go explore Bari.
When we pulled into Bari, an announcement came over the loudspeakers of our Italian-based cruise ship. We were informed – in six languages – that we’d arrived in Bari, and that for a small fee, we could take tours to several places of interest nearby.
The announcement continued… If we didn’t want to take a tour, we could spend the day exploring Bari on our own. Or we could just stay on board and eat pizza and ice cream all day. All this in six languages.
Do you have any idea how long it takes to explain all that in six languages? It takes a VERY long time. We opted to explore Bari on our own.
But first we’d have to get from the ship to the shore. Cruise ships like the Costa Mediterranea are too big to get into harbors like the one at Bari. They weigh anchor in deep water outside the harbor. To get to shore, we board a little boat called a “tender” that takes us to shore.
A Tender Experience
Large ships use these much smaller boats to tend to everything from maintenance to loading provisions to getting people on and off. Sometimes they use tenders that the ship carries on board. Sometimes tenders come from the port where the ship is docked.
At Bari, tenders came out from the port to meet us. We joined the mass of people heading into Bari, waited our turn, boarded one of the tenders, and headed for shore.
Whoa. The water was choppy! Everyone had to hold on to something. We’d have never known it aboard our gigantic cruise ship. For all we knew, the ship could have been parked in a parking lot. But not on that tender.
After reaching the shore, we boarded a bus to take us the mile or so to town. The bus emptied out and everyone left to go on their tours, so there we were in Bari, ready to do some exploring.
Time to Go Exploring
Bari is no Paris or Venice. Tourism isn’t the main industry here. Bari is more of a working port town than a tourist hot-spot. In some ways, that just makes it more interesting, eh?
On the other hand, there are a few sites that a curious traveler might seek out. One is the Basilica San Nicola – as in “Saint Nicholas.” No, Santa Claus isn’t buried there. But the relics of Saint Nicholas are – the same Saint Nicholas that inspired Santa Claus.
Saint Nicholas was one of the most beloved saints ever, especially in Europe. His Dutch nickname was Sinter Klaas. Dutch settlers brought Sinter Klaas to America, where the name evolved into “Santa Claus.” The relics of the real Saint Nicholas were brought to Bari from Turkey 1,000 years ago to keep them safe.
After disembarking from the tender, we started walking with no particular destination in mind. We walked into what had to be the ancient part of town. No streets – just narrow walkways. Neat to see, but it was pretty quiet in there.
Then we popped out into modern Bari. There was nothing quiet about this part of town. We came to a street that was lined with nice stores. Very nice stores, indeed. Like a magnet, Bari’s prime shopping district had pulled us in. Amazing.
We went into a few stores and poked around. My purse-aficionado Better Half found a purse that was perfect for her. She decided to buy it.
We’re Not in Kansas Anymore!
This was when we realized that we were really in a foreign land, not just another tourist destination. Because here in Bari, no one even THINKS about speaking English.
Speaking Italian in Venice wasn’t difficult. If I got stuck, the person I was talking to usually knew enough English to help the conversation along. Not here, though. Here, I was on my own.
We took the purse up to the cashier. She was a cute young lady who was ringing up something for another customer. Good — that gave me time to try to remember what to say when making a purchase. In no time at all it was our turn…
Cashier — “Buon giorno. Posso aiutarla?” (“Hello. May I help you?”)
Me — “Buon giorno. Si, per piacere. Vorrei comprare questa borsa.”
(Hi. Yes, please. I’d like to buy this purse.”)
The cashier seemed to understand what I said. I’m thinking to myself that this isn’t so bad. Smooth sailing so far. No problemo. Then she said something that sounded like…
Cashier — “Vuoicheperunpacchettoregaloperte?”
Me — “Uhhhh… uh oh.”
To be continued…
Note: Nice photo of Bari Harbor at the top of this post. Credit: Sos Città
