"Where is Puglia?" is the question everyone asked me before we went this summer. "It's the heel of the boot," I'd reply. People would give you a nod of recognition and move on.
That's because Puglia isn't like other places in Italy. Sicily and Tuscany as filled with British holidaymakers looking for an escape from the wet British Isles in July - but they don't tend to go to. Puglia is where Italians go on holiday.
We were staying in a villa just outside Ostuni in the middle of the Italian countryside, just twenty minutes drive to the coast. And it was hot, like REALLY hot. Most days the average temperature was 34°C, which was a heat wave even by Italian standards.
When the mercury is hitting these heights, the temptation is to spend the day between the pool and the shade - but there's plenty to explore in Puglia.
What to do
Head to Torre Guaceto if you're looking for a nice beach. All the beaches in this area of Italy are small and crowded. Your best bet is to walk a little further down
Go snorkelling. The water is beautifully clear and warm in Puglia. While marine life isn't abundant, you will definitely catch sight of fish, jellyfish and maybe the odd octopus.
Hire a boat from Marina di Ostuni. If you want to explore the coastline and find a swimming spot away from the crowds, this is your best bet. However, make sure you check if fuel is including in the rental price before you set off - and always challenge them at the end if they charge you an extortionate amount.
Go wakeboarding. The Aegean sea in the height of summer is generally super flat, which makes it perfect for wakeboarding and waterskiing. We gave it a go at the beaches around Capitolo near Monopoli. It was €20 for fifteen minutes (guaranteed you'll be knackered after that).
Make a trip to the Trulli of Alberobello. Trulli are little white limestone huts that are dotted all over southern Puglia. The trulli village is a UNESCO World Heritage Site - and we can vouch for the fact that it's really worth visit. Go early before the crowds and the heat make it unbearable.
Take an Italian cooking lesson
We learnt to make pasta from scratch with pasta pomodoro and polpette di melazane (aubergine balls in tomato sauce) with the Artisans of Taste near Brindisi. Our host Cinzia was an olive oil expert. She travels all over the world to take part on olive oil tasting panels. What did we learn?
Never buy olive oil in a bottle - it should always be kept away from the light in a tin can. Good olive oil will smell grassy and leave you with a spicy aftertaste. Make sure you buy high quality olive oil as it's better for you - cold-pressed extra virgin is the way forward.
Eat
Orecchiette is the local pasta. It's made from durum wheat and resembles a small ear in shape. The rough texture and domed shape helps keep the pasta sauce sticking to the pasta as you eat it.
Deep fried courgette flowers stuffed with cheese are everywhere - don't leave without trying them. Oh and the flat peaches, we couldn't get enough of these.
Ice cream. Obviously. Although I would steer clear of ice cream which looked like chocolate, but was actually pure Nutella on a cone. Sounds delicious, but one sickly treat in reality.
If you're looking for a really special meal, you've got to go to the Cielo Restaurant at the Hotel La Sommita in Ostuni and pick the Creativeness menu. Think Heston Blumenthal's creativity but less sheep trotters.
Every course has a sense of humour - for example, one dessert looked like an egg, cracked into a pile of flour. The shell was made of white chocolate and inside was creme brulee. It wasn't out-of-this-world price outrageously price either, around €60 a head. The same meal would be double the price in London.
My parents said it was the best meal they've ever had (trust me, they don't make statements like that very often).
Remember...
Bring insect repellent. Mosquitos plagued us all in the evenings, particularly in the middle of the countryside. I would recommend bringing some of this 100 per cet natural repellent from Incognito with you.
Take out euros before you arrive. There are ATMs in the major towns, but these are few and far betweeen.