JOHN IRVING, writer, translator
Echoes of empire, p
Despite living all his adult life
in Italy, Irving visited Trieste for
the first time this year. “I’m well
acquainted with the major cities
in Italy,” he says, “but Trieste was
missing from my list.” He wasn’t
disappointed. “I’d always been
drawn by its past under Austrian
rule, by its contemporary
contribution to Italian culture.”
But the locals impressed him
most. “Outgoing and lively but
polite and well-mannered.
Picture Neapolitans transplanted
to Vienna.”NATASHA PULLEY, novelist
Unpacking, p
From inquisitive llamas to
Japanese pub stories, historical
fiction writer Natasha Pulley
finds the best adventures on her
research forays are often the
smallest. “I never know exactly
what I’m looking for when
I travel,” she says. “Authenticity,
language, better understanding
of culture, something strange –
it’s embarrassingly vague, and
what I need to know changes
with each book. But I do trust I’ll
know it when it comes galloping
across to steal my lunch.”ED ANDERSON, photographer
Postcard from Puglia, p
California-based photographer
Ed Anderson has a soft spot for
Italy’s south, where the pace is
slower, the summers hotter, the
hospitality enthusiastic. “With
beautiful coastlines, stunning
architecture, and the freshest
seafood, Salento, in Puglia, at
the tip of the Italian heel, doesn’t
disappoint,” he says. “It helps to
have a well-considered itinerary,
and a willingness to scrap it at
a moment’s notice.” And the
reward at the end of a day
on the road? “Aperitivo hour.”DAWN TAN, illustrator
Bittersweet victory, p48,
and Mondo panino, p
Dawn Tan is an illustrator
and teacher with a flair for
watercolour. Tan grew up in
Singapore, where she says food
is an obsession, so painting it
was a natural progression. This
month she took a break from
painting Wagon Wheels and
Sara Lee meals, and turned her
brushes to GT. Her pitta ripiena
and more sit aside John Irving’s
history of panini, and Paulette
Whitney’s prose is brought to
life by her vibrant bitter greens.Torre San
Giovanni,
Pugliap 150
18 GOURMET TRAVELLERContributors