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Thanksgiving in Puglia Guest Testimonial

December 29, 2014 by Zachary Moses

Gay Group Celebrates Thanksgiving in 14th century villa in Puglia Italy.

By Michael Broussard

This was my third HE Travel experience, and they have all been wonderful vacations, and all very different. I had been considering the Puglia bike tour for over a year, but at my age (60) I was worried I would not be able to “keep up with the pack,” even though I know there is no pressure to do more biking than you can manage. So I was delighted to see the addition of the Puglia Culinary Tour where the focus is more on sites and food. I was also concerned about visiting Italy in November, but the weather was nearly perfect: chilly in the evenings but generally in the 60’s during the day. It only drizzled once. Villa owner Paul admitted he could not promise such pleasant weather every November.

The other HE Travel excursions I experienced had a dozen or so participants each; this trip had only two of us: Stephen from Key West was a stranger to me but I am delighted I can now count him as a friend. The small group turned out to be a great benefit, as it greatly simplified logistics. We each had our own room with private bath; not a lot of time was spent waiting on group assemblies and decisions; changes to the itinerary were easily accomplished; and there were more flexible dining options: I’m not sure the spectacular Antichi Sapori Restaurant could easily accommodate large groups.

The villa is hundreds of years old and looks it, but after several years of renovations and improvements is comfortable and inviting. When owner Paul showed me to my room, he said: “I hope you weren’t expecting the Sheraton,” to which I replied: “I would be disappointed if it looked like the Sheraton.” My room was spacious, well-appointed and clean, and had a great view. Lovely.

View of the Villa grounds on the Puglia Gay Culinary Tour with HE Travel

Paul and his partner Steven and Paul’s daughter Casey are the perfect hosts; the other guest and I felt more like family than paying guests. After breakfast Paul would take us touring to a new lovely city or museum.We saw (and tasted) mozzarella being made on a farm, and tasted extra-virgin olive oil one minute old after watching the olives being pressed.

fresh pressed olive oil on Puglia Italy gay tour

Some days the main meal of the day was an exotic lunch in a beautiful town; one day we procured the freshest seafood and vegetables from an open air market for a long lunch at the villa; two lovely dinners were at local eateries in Terlizzi. In the evenings at the villa I got quickly spoiled by Paul’s vodka martinis, alternately garnished with caperberries, or olives, or tiny onions, all house-brined.

One highlight of the week was Thanksgiving at the villa. I didn’t have to cook the turkey, which Steven roasted in the wood-fired clay oven, but knowing this was a culinary tour I did bring my favorite Shun knife and got to chop vegetables for the stuffing, cut up apples for the pies, and potatoes for the mashed (which were actually riced, but I had to volunteer to use the ricer because it’s apparently too much trouble). I was feeling guilty about being away from my family for the holiday, but participating in the traditional dinner that the villa hosted for us and for ten of their Italian friends was awesome.

See details about the Puglia Culinary Tour HERE.

Filed Under: All Welcome Tour, All Welcome Tour, Alyson Adventures, FIT, Group Tour, Guest Blog, HE Travel, Italy, Italy Gay Tour, Men's Tour, The Gay Travel Blog, Travel, Uncategorized

About Zachary Moses

Zachary has done every job at HeTravel.com. He started in the marketing mailroom in 2010, and eventually worked his way up to serving 2 years on the board of directors for the National Tour Association and an additional two years serving as the CEO of HeTravel.com.

He ran for Governor of Utah as a Democrat in 2020, garnering international attention while running in this historically RED state.

During a 14-month long Pandemic-related forced "sabbatical," he returned to his passion of carpentry, having now restored several historic buildings. He also gave a TEDx talk in 2020 pitching an idea to save/restore the Great Salt Lake and other western saline lakes.

Zachary has returned to HE Travel, however, he is no longer the CEO and has now taken on the role of CXO or Chief Experience Officer.

Zach has been working with the company for more than a decade, and still leads tours, writes blogs, and speaks at international conferences.

© 2025 Hanns Ebensten Travel

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