Apulia Region

Long and narrow, with more than 800 kilometres of coastline and vegetation ranging from prickly pears to chestnut trees, Apulia is a region rich in works of art. Its colours are the green of the olive trees, the yellow of the wheat, the white of the .limestone and the blue of the sea. The bright sunlight lights up the colours of this land, where for centuries men have worked to transform arid calcareous ground into green fields: the land of wheat, vines and olives starts just behind the coastal belt.
To the north lies the Gargano peninsula, with the steep cliffs of its coastline, with numerous caves and crags and clean, clear sea, and the vast Tavoliere plain, covering about 80 kilometres; where durum wheat, the main ingredient of the dark, tasty Apulian bread, is grown. Like a panoramic balcony overlooking the Tavoliere, the town of Monte Sant’Angelo is full of alleyways and stairways, with the imposing Norman Castle at the top and the old town centre enclosed by walls. Other walls surround the beautiful Manfredonia Castle, overlooking the sea, which houses the Gargano National Museum where there is an interesting collection of Daunian steles from the 6th-7th centuries BC. But Apulia’s most celebrated castle is, without a doubt, the one in the province of Bari: Castel del Monte, famous for its octagonal shape and eight angle towers.
The Gargano promontory is clothed with coastal forests of pine and ilex and orchards where almonds, oranges and olives grow. At an altitude of 800 metres is the majestic Foresta Umbra, heart of the Gargano National Park, with its wonderful, thick beech woods silhouetted against the sky: in some parts the sunlight hardly gets through. Set like pearls in this luxuriant vegetation are towns that still have their ancient forms, with winding alleyways and white houses, like Vieste, overhanging the sea, and Peschici, perched on a rocky promontory.
Rodi Garganico is where the ferries leave for the Tremiti Islands, with their clear waters and indented coastlines rich in inlets and caves, while the Murge plateau, with gentle cultivated hills, is terraced down to the coastal plane in calcareous steps where deep, narrow pits, the gravine, open. These bear the signs of an incredible rupestrian civilisation, as can be seen in Massafra, which stands along the beautiful gravina di San Marco: churches and crypts from the basilian period are carved out of its prickly-pear-covered walls. The vineyards and olive groves of the Murge yield esteemed wines, like the reds of Barletta, Canosa, Trani, Castel del Monte and Altamura, and excellent oils. Bari is symbolised not only by the Fiera del Levante show but by the delicious orecchiette (little ears) pasta, shaped like a small hat with a slight rim and a rough exterior, still made by hand and served with turnip greens; their secret is linked to the air, the water and the Apulian durum wheat semolina.
Another of the region’s pearls is the enchanting Trani Cathedral, overlooking the sea, one of the loveliest examples of Apulian Romanesque and, also, the Duomo Vecchio in Molfetta, overlooking the harbour and dedicated to Saint Conrad (San Corrado) of Bavaria, with three domes, two towers, majestic volumes and clear-cut shapes. Apulia is famous for its splendid caves of stalactites and stalagmites near Castellana Grotte: 3 kilometres of fantastic sights visitable as far as the incredible white cave, the Grotta Bianca; with its dazzling beauty and the crystal formations, it is thought by many to be the most beautiful cave in the world. There are also the famous trulli, the circular houses that make the town of Alberobello unique. The Valle d’Itria is scattered not only with these typical buildings with their conical roofs but also with elegant dry walls, marking out many plots of red land dominated by vines and a variety of white farmhouses, grouped in big rural settlements, isolated and protected by walls.
At the end of the gulf of Taranto stands the lovely Castel Sant’Angelo, overlooking the navigable canal with its swing bridge; the Cathedral is one of the oldest Romanesque churches in Apulia. and the National Archaeological Museum is one of the fullest and most important in southern Italy. To the south lie the rolling Salento peninsula and the cities of Otranto, with the amazing mosaic flooring of its Cathedral; Gallipoli, the “beautiful city”, on a small island where the atmosphere is oriental; Ostuni, with its whitewashed houses; Leuca and Lecce. The old town centre of Lecce is marked by unique and matchless baroque, influenced by the theatrical taste of Spanish culture and made possible by the malleability of the local golden-hued stone: its heart is piazza Sant’Oronzo, much of which is occupied by the splendid Roman Amphitheatre, aristocratic palaces and fine shops.

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