 Introduction
While the official language is standard Italian, among themselves people in different areas will speak dialects not heard elsewhere. In the north, a version of Neapolitan Italian, in the far south, a Sicilian variation, elsewhere dialects that are heavily Greek or Albanian in flavor. Puglia offers tourists more than 800 km of coastline, surrounded by vast expanses of wheat fields, gardens, olive groves and vineyards, all flourishing under the glorious Mediterranean sun.
History and Culture
For a time, the Puglian City of Melfi was the capital of the Norman territories, but when Robert Guiscard conquered Sicily to establish the Kingdom of Sicily, with Palermo as its capital, Puglia fell into provincial status, a status it retained when the Kingdom of Sicily transmogrified into the Kingdom of Naples.
Ultimately, during the 12th and early 13th centuries, Puglia was absorbed by the Holy Roman Empire. Then the Turks, and Venetians had their turn. Finally, Puglia was incorporated into the modern state of Italy, in 1861.
Places in the Region of Puglia
In Puglia, and no where else, you will also find a very peculiar type of building - the trullo - a beehive-shaped, whitewashed, mortarless structure made of stone, usually used as barns in farming areas within the Val d'Itria, but also used as housing in fairly large-scale communities. The original Trulli date back hundreds, if not thousands of years. Alberobello's old town is one of the best places to see trulli, and is a great draw for tourists. Today, many of the trulli have been turned into shops to cater for every tourist whim. You can however, arrange to see inside houses that are still lived in. Each house starts off with just one or two domes, then as the family grows, so do the number of domes; an ideal way to expand a family home. Walls of a trullo can be up to 2m (6.56ft) thick, and no two trulli are the same, each is built individually by hand.
Bari, the capital city of Puglia, welcomes you with its extraordinary heritage of art, enclosed within the labyrinth of the streets of the old city. The most important of Bari's monuments is the basilica of Saint Nicolas, an outstanding example of Romanesque architecture which served as a model for many cathedrals in the region.
Near the coast of Brindisi arises the white expanse of Ostuni, high on a ridge, looking out over an infinite green carpet of olive trees. Today a famous tourist center, it possesses an incredible heritage of baroque palaces nestled within a weave of white houses.
Even further south, we find the ancient town of Lecce, often called “Florence of the South” for the incomparable beauty of its churches and monuments.
From Lecce begins magical Salento, the heel of the boot of Italy, a remote area containing unique landscapes and traditions, and a unique and distinctive dialect, “Griko”, a language very similar to ancient Greek.
The city of Otranto, is the easternmost city in Italy, protected by the powerful Aragonese castle and overlooking an emerald sea. On the Ionic Sea, we see Gallipoli, the Greek Kallipolis (beautiful city), constructed on an island and connected to the mainland by bridge. Another true pearl is Nard, with a piazza considered to be the most beautiful in Salento.
The fifth major town in Puglia is Taranto, on the Ionic coast. Taranto was the most powerful of the ancient Greek colonies in Italy. The city is worth a visit for the National Archeological Museum, a rich collection of the ancient art of Magna Grecia.
North of Taranto is one of the most unusual landscapes in Italy: the ravines. These are canyons with limestone walls which since medieval times have provided shelter for dozens of rocky settlements. Today you can visit these homes and churches made of rock, festooned with ancient frescoes. The best-known city in this area is Massafra, but Laterza, Castellaneta and Ginosa are also spectacular.
Events
Lecce celebrates its patron saint, St Oronzo, from the 24th to the 26th of August. On this occasion the town puts on its Sunday best: processions, illuminations and fireworks.
Links
Transport
Transport
Transport
Transport
Transport
Transport
Transport
Transport
|
Pagina iniziale
Puglia
Prenota Hotel
