City Break - Lecce

Lecce, Puglia, Italy. Friday/Sunday 22/24-May-2026.

We wanted to be in Lecce on the Sunday for Cortili Aperti (Open Courtyard). Rather than drive down to Lecce and back for parkrun on Saturday and then do it all again on Sunday we decided to treat ourselves to a little mini break and halve the drive time. We booked ourselves an economically priced room 15 minutes walk from the old town rather than pay top dollar to be in the centre.

Friday 22-May-2026. 

Checked into the apartment then went out for a walk round town, a aperitive on the main street for people watching and a supper at Restaurant Pezzetto.

Saturday 23-May 2026.

Salento 23/05/26 29:26 [12/28]

On Saturday morning we enjoyed an extra hour in bed and a 20 minute drive instead of our usual hour and ten minutes. 

One of the visitors was an Australian who was staying in Lecce and had got up horribly early to get a bus to somewhere near parkrun. So we offered him a lift back into town where he could get some much-needed sleep having been out drinking late the night before.

The afternoon was spent wondering about the town including the fascinating Faggiano Museum. A fascinating home-turned-museum, where sewerage excavations led to the chance discovery of previous occupations all the way back to the Messapian culture of the 5th century BC, Roman crypts, medieval walls, Jewish insigna and Knights Templar symbols in the rooftop tower. The house itself dates to the 12th century and was used for a period as a convent.

Mary spotted boards in the Roman amphitheatre indicating that it was either now open to the public or would be soon. Previously it could only be viewed by looking down into it from street level but we saw this too late to investigate but resolved to check it out later.

Then we had an interesting wine and food tasting at La Strada Del Vini. As the nibbles were not too large we were able to squeeze in a light supper later that evening at Tranquillo.

Sunday 24 May 2026.

Sunday was Cortili Aperti in Lecce. A bit like Open House in the UK but in Lecce's case it is their fabulous courtyards that are opened to the public. Hidden behind the huge wooden doors of many of their palazzi (grand houses) are lush gardens, ornamental architecture and evidence of previous epochs, even going back to Messapian times (7th to 3rd centuries BC). 

We last visited Cortili Aperti in 2011 and it was a delight to return. We planned a morning timetable taking in some of the most interesting buildings combined with dance, music and theatre performances.

First stop Marcelline Institute of Culture and Languages promising "Scenes from a 19th-century ball, featuring dances and costumes typical of the Romantic bourgeois period." There was a real Jane Austin vibe about the whole event.

Unfortunately our planned itinerary all went awry when the performance in our first stop started more than 30 minutes later than timetabled. But it was worth the wait, especially as, unexpectedly, a friend from parkrun was performing.

Onwards to continue our itinerary. Several of the houses had live music.

Castello Carlo V, one of the most important monuments in Lecce, constructed in the Norman era (10-12 AC) and actively used since, transformed into a barracks late 19th century and now a museum. Suitably imposing fortress with square towers and sharp angles - about as unwelcoming as they could be.

Between 10am and 1pm we saw around a dozen buildings or courtyards, walked about 6km and then we were done.

As there was a break in the programme between 1pm and 4pm, it was time for a lovely lunch and a rest in the Giardini Publici before heading back to the car and Cisternino.

Back home we went for a sundowner at Quirico and were treated to a religious parade for Maria Ausiliatrice (Mary the Helper) down the street. A procession of the devout.

Followed by the Madonna on an electric float then a brass band. Apparently to be followed by a solemn mass.

Finally supper at home. A cracking weekend.

City Break - Palermo

Palermo, Sicily, Italy. Thursday/Sunday 07/11-May-2026.

Of course it was parkrun that triggered this trip. We had heard that Uditore parkrun was at risk of closure. So we decided we would pop over for the weekend to visit Palermo for the first time and to tick this parkrun off the list.

Thursday 07-May-2026.

A mid afternoon flight so a mid morning start - very civilised times for a Ryanair flight. A drive to the long-stay car park and we had a late lunch airside before our 15:00 flight. The flight is only one hour long so it was over almost before it began. 

Our apartment was lovely but a bit inconvenient for travel into town so for our first night we decided to stay local. We found a nearby highly rated fish Ristorante Pescheria CB Sea Food but we made mistakes in the ordering. They offered a €40 four course deal. First mistake was choosing a primo that had many of the same ingredients as the secondi. 

The second problem was their quantities were very generous and we were so stuffed we had to forgo half the main course and the dolce.

The first couple of starters were delicious.

Sadly the other two starters were disappointing - the limpets were chewy like rubber and gritty - not a pleasant experience. The seafood paella was ok but a little stodgy.

The primi was seafood risotto which was tasty. The secondi course was mixed fried seafood with all the same components as the paella and the risotto but deep fried so not enough contrast in terms of taste and texture. Sadly I would not go back there again. 

On the other hand the white wine was delicious. Grillo is a local grape variety and we were impressed by the exotic, floral notes.

Friday 08-May-2026.

A full day of doing the tourist stuff. One of the interesting things about Palermo (and Sicily in general) is the mix of architectural styles: Roman, Norman, Arabic, Byzantine, etc. reflecting the different invasions over the centuries. 

Our first stop was the tourist information office where the very helpful chap gave us a map of the city and sketched out some of the key places to visit. He highlighted the sights for us to visit and gave us a brief description of why they were important.

First stop: Quattro Canti (Four Songs), the main crossroads that marks the centre of the old town.

From there we walked up to the main cathedral. We bought a ticket that gave us entry to the main building, the crypt where a number of Roman sarcophagi had been repurposed for mediaeval bishops, the treasury where religious gold and silver artifacts were on display, and the rooftop.

The viewer from the roof was spectacular but a little scary. I’m not a huge fan of heights, but the railings were sturdy and I kept to the centre of the walkway where possible.

We then continued west to the Royal Palace and explored the area around there, passing the Porta Nuova.

We had a wander around the church of San Giovanni degli Eremitio which had been the mosque at one point. A fascinating mix of Islamic domes, Romanesque cloister ruins and tranquil gardens.

Next, as advised by the man at tourist information, we went down to Ballarò market area and found ourselves a lunch spot at Greta’s where Mary had a delicious Caponata (a traditional Sicilian dish) with added swordfish. We have made it at home twice since we got back and it will be entering our standard repertoire.  

After lunch, we’re headed north for a tour of the Teatro Massimo. We took a bilingual, guided tour of this fascinating concert venue, built around the same time as the Royal Albert Hall but more ornate.

Like the Royal Albert Hall, it has seating in a horse shoe shaped auditorium and tiers of boxes plus a Royal Box which we got to see.

In the grounds of the theatre was this entertaining art installation of garden gnomes crossed with the Terracotta Army, a temporary art exhibition by Italian artist Max Papeschi titled Extinction: The Twilight of the Gnomes. The installation, described as a "dystopian" army, serves as a critique of modern society, aiming to highlight hypocrisy regarding peace, war, and environmental destruction.

For supper we decided to head down to Notarbartolo which seems to be the Clapham Junction of Palermo where there were plenty of well rated restaurants. Being a tourist is thirsty work so we went for a cocktail before dining. Mary had this very tasty melon version of an aperol spritz while I, of course, had to try a local Palermo gin and tonic.

While there we were stunned to spot a K6 Telephone box across the road! The shop behind was called Cabine Inglese.

We had a very nice meal at a restaurant coincidentally called Terracotta.

Saturday 09-May-2026.

Uditore 09/05/26 29:35 [13/39].

Uditore parkrun in Palermo today on a lovely day, albeit a bit hotter than we are currently used to. The oldest parkrun in Italy, two weeks away from their 11th birthday and at risk of closure! According to the petition for the park supporters, which stands at over 25,000 signatures: 

"Uditore Park represents one of the few green spaces within the urban context of Palermo, providing a vital space for relaxation, sports, and community gatherings. Unfortunately, by 2026, the existence of this urban and social asset could be at risk due to a lack of funding from the Sicilian Region. This situation is unacceptable, both for environmental conservation and for the well-being of the local community.".

The latest success is that the water meter has been replaced thanks to generous donations from supporters. The ball is now in the court of the authorities.. 

Today, as well as the park runners and walkers, it was well used by all sorts of people: people walking and running the paths, families with children in the play parks, older kids chattering on the grass, dogs being walked and playing in the large dog parks and a bunch of martial artists practising with real, very scary looking swords! 

In an area full of high-rise flats, this would be a significant loss to the community as well as the parkrun family.

Lovely to meet up with the five fellow tourists from the UK.

Back to the apartment for the obligatory (and necessary) shower and straight back into town. First stop a delicious, light, salad lunch at Bar Al Capriccio.

We went down to the old harbour which was lovely and went in to the nearby Chiesa Parrocchiale di Santa Maria della Pietà.

Porta Felice down by the harbour.

We then had an hour to spare before a booked wine tasting so we popped into the botanical gardens which were excellent. We spent a very pleasant time wandering around.

What I liked was that the informative plaques not only told you what they were and where they were from but also included a small item of trivia for every single one.

The wine tasting was at at Bottega Monteleone. The selection of wines was interesting, representing some of the range produced locally (one each of sparkling, white, rose, red and sweet) and we liked them all. The food pairings worked well and they were very good at adapting to cater for Mary’s lactose intolerance. Full write up at Sicilian Wine Tasting With Snacks.

After the gastronomic indulgences of the first couple of nights we decided to go for a simple pizza at the highly rated Alex Bar - Pizzeria near our apartment.

Sunday 10-May-2026.

Because of the timings we did not have any opportunity for doing tourist stuff on Sunday. We packed up, cleared out of the apartment and sat in the garden enjoying the sunshine for an hour. Then headed off to the airport which took two hours by public transport, got ourselves our airside and had a snack lunch.

The flight landed 10 minutes ahead of schedule and with no formalities to go through we were off and away back to Cisternino in record time for an aperitivo at Oltramura and a meal at Chirico.

City Break - Belfast

Belfast, Northern Ireland. Friday/Monday 06/09-March-2026.

Our first ever trip to Northern Ireland. Oh, look there is a Queen’s parkrun which gives us a “Q” for our second alphabet!

Friday 06-March-2026.

Another first: flying out of Newcastle Airport. A modest sized, regional airport slightly larger than Southampton and on a much more human scale than the London behemoths of Gatwick and Heathrow.

Our accommodation was in the Queen’s University area which, like many cities that expanded in the Victorian era, was a mixture of typical bow-fronted terraces with a mixture of Georgian until you got closer to the centre when shiny office blocks took over. 

Supper at the local Holohan’s Pantry including the not-often-seen Guinness West Indies Porter.

Saturday 07-March-2026.

One of the high points of the weekend is that #parkrun/parkwalk in Northern Ireland, like the Republic of Ireland and Scotland, does not start till 9:30 so we get an extra half hour in bed.

Queen's Belfast 06/03/26 31:21 [126/183]

Fabulous event with sun and blue skies. A lovely, slightly convoluted course composed of an out and back with a loop round twice at the far end with its own out and back. Mostly on tarmac paths, around sports pitches and parklands with mostly gentle ups and downs. 

Great crowd of marshals so no chance of getting lost, thanks to all of them. Lots of tourists, some like us, there for the "Q". Cafe at the sports ground for parkfaff afterwards..

Afternoon was sightseeing. Here are just a few of the fabulous buildings in and around the centre. Clockwise from top: Queens University, view along May Street and the back of the City Hall, the bustling St. George's Market and a splendid looking former Methodist Church sadly now boarded up.

We booked a two-day open top bus ticket and spent some of the afternoon being driven round the city. Then got off and had a nose round the foyer of the city hall with some impressive stained glass windows. 

Appropriately these included the Belfast Women's Window, as it was the eve of International Women's Day. The window was unveiled in the week of International Women’s Day 2016 by the Lord Mayor, Councillor Arder Carson on Thursday 3 March 2016 and was designed, manufactured and installed by Alpha Stained Glass.

Celtic Myths & Legends Window 

"This window was commissioned to contribute to our shared history and to demonstrate that this is a City Hall for all. The central story is from the Cattle Raid of Cooley in the Ulster Cycle of myths. Queen Medbh of Connacht and her warriors attempted to steal the great bull, Donn Cuailnge, owned by the men of Ulster. Medbh wanted the bull to match the white bull of Connacht, Finnbennach, owned by her husband. The central figure is Cuchulain shown at the 'Gap of the North, protecting the borders of Ulster against the onslaught by Medbh's armies. The Connacht warriors were no match for Cuchulain, who was said to become divine when engaged in battle. The Irish text on the window roughly translates as a blessing be upon all such as faithfully keep the Tain in memory as it stands here and shall not add any other form to it and was taken from the 12th Century Book of Leinster."

That evening we had an excellent seafood supper at Mourne Seafood Bar followed by a stoll round to soak up the atmosphere.

We ended up in Lavery's for a night cap with excellent live music from Donal Scullion and the House Band.

Sunday 08-March-2026. 

After breakfast we took the bus into town for a meander round the river and visit the Salmon of Knowledge.

We then took the open top bus tour (day 2) and completed the rest of the route we didn't cover on the Saturday. We were booked in for the Titanic Exhibition which, as it turned out, was not just about the liner but also featured extensive information about the growth of Belfast through its massive expansion in the Victorian era thanks to the linen and shipbuilding industries.

Included in the ticket was a tour of SS Nomadic which acted as tender to ferry passengers to the Titanic at the start of that fateful voyage. The SS Nomadic toilets feature Thomas Crapper’s Valveless Waste Preventer.

That evening, we dined in The Crown Liquor Saloon. We ate upstairs in the less fancy dining room and then went down to find ourselves a snug in which to have one last drink and admire the fabulous Victorian décor:

Our snug!

George and the girls drank Guinness but many of the pubs serve an Irish red ale which for me is a very acceptable alternative to Best Bitter.

Back to the apartment tired after a full day.

Monday 09-March-2026. 

Up bright and early for a flight at 10:30. At Newcastle we were parked in the short stay 2 carpark in the corner nearest to the terminal and carrying hand luggage only which meant a fast getaway and home in time for lunch. 

Road Trip - January 2026

Witham, Cisternino, Blackpool. Thursday 24-January/Friday 01-February-2026.

A three part road trip:

• 2 nights in Witham, Essex with our friend Andrea
• 6 nights in Cisternino, Italy checking up on the apartment
• 3 nights in Blackpool for the Blues, Rhythm and Rock festival. 

This came about due to a combination of factors.

• Mary likes to celebrate her birthday in Cisternino and use it as an opportunity to check up on the how the apartment has survived over the winter.
• We had tickets to go to Blackpool for the Blues, Rhythm and Rock festival the weekend following Mary’s birthday

The only flights available at this time of year are from Stansted courtesy of Ryanair. Since our friend Andrea lives not far from Stanstead we decided to go down a couple of days early, spend some time with her, fit in a parkrun, and take the Saturday afternoon flight out to Italy.

Thursday, 23-January-2026.

The long drive down from Penrith to Essex and supper in with Andrea. 

Friday 24-January-2026.

Chilling out with Andrea, another delicious supper of slow-cooked lamb shank cooked by Andrea.

Saturday 25-January-2026.

Malden Prom 29/01/26 30:56 [270 / 473]

Saturday is of course #parkunday so we went to our NENDY (Nearest Event Not Done Yet) from Andrea‘s place which was Malden Prom and we were rewarded with a lovely sunny day. 

Two and a half loops on a varied course, mostly tarmac with some grass and trail. Big crowd and lots of encouraging marshalls.

Mary left her phone behind so had no music or prompts to push her on, so she was expecting a slow time.

After a shower back at Andrea’s, we headed off to dump the car at Stansted Mid Stay car park and fly off to Italy. 

Following an uneventful flight we picked up a hire car at Brindisi as it was cheaper than a taxi at either end of our trip and using our own car once we got there. We ate on the plane and arrived in time to park up and wander around the town and have a beer in Umberto’s.

Our newly installed Internet enabled controller for the boiler appeared not to be working. Although Mary thought she had switched on the heating remotely a few days we arrived to a freezing cold apartment. We slept under multiple blankets that night.

Sunday 25-January/2026.

After checking out the boiler and the electricals and restarting the boiler, we finally cracked it by unplugging the boiler, leaving it for 10 minutes and then plugging it back in again. Upon rebooting it burst back into life and started working. So we had heating but the entire apartment worked like a reverse night storage radiator soaking up all the heat we could pour into it and it took several days for the apartment to get back up to normal temperature.

That night we met up with friends Patsy and Les and ate in Da Tonia.

Monday 26-January-2026.

Mary‘s birthday! We were travelling very light courtesy of the minimalistic, tiny cabin bag, but I did manage to smuggle in a birthday card and a small present so that Mary had something on the day. 

I am still dealing with the fallout from my wallet being lost /  stolen when we were in Bologna in October. The bank card was replaced a couple of days later, the carta d’identita turned up a couple of weeks later, but no sign of the replacement driving license after a couple of months. So Pietro and I went down to the police station to put in a repeat application. The very helpful policeman examined all my documentation, issued me with a temporary permit to drive and put in a formal request for a replacement. He said it would take about 20 days which turned out to be the case.

That night we dined at Piatti Chiari, one of the better restaurants in town, that was open on a quiet Monday.

Tuesday 27-January-2026.

In the morning we went for a walk along the escarpment behind Hotel Lo Smeraldo then drove down to Savelletri for lunch. We drove via the monumental olive trees at Masseria Pettolecchia and whilst there were treated to an impressive murmuration.

Wednesday 28-January-2026.

We picked up 10 litres (two times 5 litre tins) of new season olive oil from Gaetano who runs the linen shop and a holiday apartment both in our street. 

Supper was in the unpretentious, family run Restaurant 21 on Via Roma. It has an Italian-German theme to the menu because the husband lived in Germany for many years. 

Thursday 29-January-2026.

We took Pietro, who has helped us with our properties for over 30 years, and his wife Nunzia for a “thank you” meal at Il Cucco. We were joined by Carole and Mino who able to join us. We hadn’t seen for ages so it was great to catch up with them!

Friday 30-January-2026.

Drove to Brindisi airport to drop off the hire car. The flight back to Stansted was uneventful and on time. We jumped in the car and drove straight to Blackpool in time to see Mississippi MacDonald  He was followed by the Deborah Bonham Band of which we saw half their set but were so knackered from travelling we bailed early and went for an early night.

Saturday/Sunday 31-January/01-February-2026.

Two days of music (plus Lytham Hall parkrun) which had its own blog post: UK Blues Festival 2026. 

Monday 02-February-2026.

Drive home.

Parkrun Tourism Part 09 - 2025, Epilogue

All over the place. January to December 2025 - Epilogue.

So in summary: this year we managed 53 (Mark, A3228002) / 52 (Mary, A4975813) parkruns in 32 locations of which 27 were new to us, plus 5 countries of which 3 were new to us. That means over 50% touristing!

So much tourism this year I have broken this summary into chapters.

• Parkrun Tourism Part 09 - 2025, January to March. New Year's Day to our New Zealand trip
• Parkrun Tourism Part 09 - 2025, March to July. Up to my 100th venue
• Parkrun Tourism Part 09 - 2025, August to December. Up to the end of the year including Mary's 100 / 250
• Parkrun Tourism Part 09 - 2025, Epilogue. And in conclusion

Although we missed two weeks due to events with Friends of Carlisle Victorian and Turkish Baths we still managed 53/52 parkruns thanks to the special days: New Years Day (Penrith), Ascension Day (Copenhagen) and German Unity Day (Munich).

Highlights of the year:

• Mark: Cowell Club (100 locations)
• Mary: 250th parkrun
• Mary: Cowell Club (100 locations)
• Both: completing all parkruns in Cumbria
• Mary: Namely (GALASHAN)
• Both: Old MacDonald (E-I-E-I-O)
• Both: Snakes (10 "S")
• Both: Special Events (Munich and Copenhagen): the special event trips were great fun; exploring cities we had not visited before, and meeting lots of fellow mad tourists.
• Parkrun in a prison was unique and a great experience
• Three more countries (Australia, New Zealand, Denmark)

Full list of all touristing in 2025:

January to March Tourism:

• Faskally Forest (Scotland)
• Greenock (Scotland)
• Hackney Marshes
• Barrow
• Fleetwood Promenade
• North Sydney (Australia)
• Hagley (New Zealand)
• Greytown Woodside Trail (New Zealand)
• Ōrākei Bay (New Zealand)

March to July Tourism:

• Muncaster Castle
• Crosby
• Black Combe (HMP Haverigg)
• Leazes
• Milano Nord (Italy), not new
• Fælledparken (Denmark)
• Amager Strandpark (Denmark)
• Southampton

August to December Tourism:

• Skipton
• Riemer (Germany)
• Westpark (Germany)
• Whinlatter Forest
• Victoria (Scotland)
• Rising Sun
• Ingrebourne Hill
• Levengrove (Scotland)
• Edinburgh (Scotland)
• Strathclyde (Scotland)

I have posted the following before but smugness demands I repeat here:

Mark's performance by year.

Someone in the parkrun discussion group on FaceBook asked, “What have older people's thoughts been about seeing their performance drop off? How do you feel when you look at your times from a few years ago and notice a decline?”

Of course I had to do an analysis of my average time and age percentage by calendar year.

I looked back and my average time is the same in 2025 (age 73) as it was in 2017 (age 65) and the age grading has correspondingly increased. Feeling Smug!

The improvements in 2018 and 2019 are attributable to training for the London marathons. The improvement in 2021 was thanks to twice weekly runs with Nigel around Penrith during lockdown when you were allowed to exercise with one other. Looking at the two parkruns bracketing the lockdowns I improved by two whole minutes, from 29:07 to 27:07.  

Mary's performance by year.

The same analysis for Mary would show slowing down with age and injury but would not really be worthwhile as she occasionally volunteers as tailwalker or parkwalker which would skew her results.