by Steven Crutchfield, Villa Cappelli Head of Production
After hosting several gay Italy tours with HE Travel here in Puglia, Paul and I have learned that adventures aren’t just about hopping on a bike or hiking along a trail. It’s all about the journey with new friends. It’s about sitting around a table and forming bonds and connections that seem to last well beyond a week’s trip.
Adventures also come in many unexpected forms. One of my favorites — and the folks at HE Travel probably wouldn’t want this to be a “highlight,” although it definitely made for a great memory — was during one of our gay Italy biking tours.
We were making a quick shortcut chosen by one of our guides and unfortunately passed by some “highway workers” (actually a polite way of referring to women who discreetly help out the men who drive the highway).
“Well, at least that was just a quick view,” I thought. Needless to say, not 500 meters along the back road we were traveling on, a car was pulled off to the side. A highway worker had her dress pulled all the way up to her shoulders as a man stood in front of her and she screamed something on the order of “Give it to me Baby” in Italian.
At our next stop, the lead bike guide couldn’t understand why everyone was laughing. He had somehow missed the whole show. So our sweep guide in the back, Fabio, had to get off his bike and re-enact the entire scene for him on the side of the road. I think the guys enjoyed seeing Fabio pulling up his shirt and screaming “Give it to me Baby” even more than the first show. It was an adventure we all talked about for the rest of the trip.
It’s moments like this that seem to pop up out of nowhere and really bond each group. It always makes me super happy to see past guests having mini-reunions when they return back to their homes. And since we make our own line of Italian food products, the groups usually can order some and feel, maybe just a bit, like they are back at the villa. To me, that makes every trip extra special and it was a natural progression for us to add a culinary tour with HE Travel to complement the bike tours we have operated together since 2010.
Truly, the food in Puglia is an adventure. Every fruit stand owner or local butcher lights up when our groups arrive, delighted to share their knowledge and love of the local cuisine. Even the old ladies in town are more than happy to share their family recipes handed down from generations past. They’re all quite simple really, but with fresh ingredients so every guest can return home and recreate the magic of Puglia for their friends and family.
At least that’s always our hope. That meals and outings become memorable events, guests become fast friends, and everyone takes a little bit of Italy home with them.
Click Here, to create your own amazing memories by joining one of our gay Italy tours.
