Italians know what good taste means

It’s still pouring in Puglia - today it’s turned into a full-blown storm. So we’re carrying on by train. That’s the joy of traveling: no constraints, just following the wind and our whims. We simply looked at the map and came across a town called… San Severo. We couldn’t possibly pass that by! I had no idea there was a place anywhere that shared my name. Apparently, Saint Severino performed miracles there - twice, no less. So now we’re curious to see what the town of “Severine” has in store for us. The storm should ease off tomorrow, and we might be able to get back on the saddle.

I’m constantly amazed by how Italians have shaped their lives around what is truly good in life.

Food, first of all. The simplest tomato, with just a drizzle of olive oil, coffee, wine, cheese, pasta - anything, really - even in its most modest form, is simply divine.

Art, in all its forms. Italians excel at expressing it - music, sculpture, painting… the whole country feels like a living, open-air museum.

And then there’s style: clothes, shoes, hairstyles, accessories - bags, glasses, everything. There’s no denying it, Italians have a natural elegance. They understand the pure expression of beauty.

Today, I discovered a traditional dessert from Puglia called “the tit of the nun.” It’s a delicate, airy sponge filled with the most exquisite vanilla cream. There are no words to describe its sensuality or its heavenly taste. When I experience something like that- whether it’s tasting this dessert, listening to beautiful music, or standing before a painting - I can’t help but feel that some form of divinity must exist, to have given humans the ability to create and enjoy such profound pleasures here on earth.