Voyage to the 'tip of the heel'

MONOPOLI

A small town on Puglian Coast between Bari (North) and Brindisi (South), we enjoyed a couple of rainy days here investigating the old walled town and finding an excellent restaurant.

One of many holy shrines

Unusual tower of seminary

Wooden hull being lovingly restored

Rainy Monopoli, Alan in distance returning to boatyard

We had driven through Monopoli on our journey north and inspected the little harbour which didn't appear to accommodate visiting yachts, however on our return we were given the telephone no. of Vicenzo who runs part of the boat yard and manages a small pontoon which we were able to use.  It was a fascinating experience to walk through a working boat yard and observe skilled ship wrights at work even in the rain.  Yes unfortunately it rained for most of our visit but we sought refuge in probably the best restaurant of our trip - Guazzetto which Vicenzo had recommended.  

During the day the harbour was in constant use by rowers, all age groups.

rowers training in the early evening

View from the boat with spectacular evening light on old Monopoli

From Monopoli we continued our journey south stopping at Brindisi and Otranto.  Our final stop in Puglia was on the very tip of Italy's heel - St Maria di Leuca - a true resort town.

ST MARIA DI LEUCA

This town sits on the southern most tip of the Salento Peninsula where the seas of the Adriatic meet the Ionian.  For many decades it's been a popular resort for wealthy Puglians as witnessed by the extraordinary Summer Homes dotted along coast.  

We spent a couple of days here and were quite overwhelmed by the villas (many Art Nouveau), it seemed they were all trying to outdo each other in grandeur.  In early June most were shut up but were undoubtedly due to be flung open for their Summer residents.

From the tip of Puglia we sailed across The Gulf of Taranto, our first stop in Calabria was at Crotone. 

VIESTE & THE GARGANO NATIONAL PARK

VIESTE

Vieste was to be the most northerly point of our travels in Puglia and also the final destination with sailing friends, the Garcias.  It is a stunning small town built out on a rocky promontory jutting into the Adriatic Sea.  

We moored the boat in a marina around a small headland north of the town and in the evening we walked into the centre catching a glimpse of white washed Vieste in the setting sun, it literally took our breath away.  

Alan and I ended up spending about 10 days here and enjoyed every minute.  The town was very relaxing, busy with people going about their day’s work, school children in their overall type uniform going off to school - it was wonderful to observe life going on as we sipped our coffees and best of all Alan was able to secure a copy of The Herald Tribune.  

View from outside the Castle Wall along the never ending white beaches....

A bank of poppies surrounding the old Castle

Interior of the Cathedral, originally Norman and rebuild in 1800

The opposite side of The Promontory

Of course Vieste also had a centro storico – most of which has been restored.  The old lanes lead UP to the Cathedral and finally to the summit where there’s yet another Frederick II castle; today this is closed to the public and used by the Military.  The views over the stunning stretches of white beach on either side of the promontory are wonderful.   It’s a fantastic coastline which hasn’t been spoilt by encroaching urbanization due to the Gargano National Park which surrounds the town.

Old Vieste and Alan enjoys a lunch of mussels and beer........

Another lovely lunch with Cathy and David in Vieste

Trabucci - a complex and ancient system of poles, levers and nets

Trabucci and restaurant on headland

This coastline is also home to the Trabucci – an ancient form of fishing.  The Trabucci are found all along the coast and I think a photo describes it better than my words……….  Some of the Trabucci are now restaurants.

One day we took a drive through the Gargano Park into the Foresta Umbra.  As we left Vieste we drove through rolling farmland, then gradually climbed tree clad hills eventually entering the forest.  It's called the Foresta Umbra, 'shaded forest', because the canopy of leaves is so thick very little light penetrates.  It forms part of the last of Puglia’s ancient forests with Aleppo pines, oaks and beech trees.  We saw deer but there are also wild boar, badgers, foxes and many varieties of birds.  It’s a popular place for hiking and biking. 

View of Vieste before entering the Foresta Umbra

Giant beetle on picnic bench

There are picnic areas where the trees are more sparce allowing dappled light to penetrate and it was in one of these spots that we discovered the giant beetle…………. 
The forest must be a great place to escape to in the heat of the summer.

Another day we took a trip on the regional bus with all the local school children to Peschici – another white washed village on the north side of the Gargano promontory.   It is built on a steep rocky headland – not good walking for Alan – but the village is dramatic and apparently in summer it attracts thousands of visitors to its huge expanse of white beach (sorry no photo!)

From Vieste we travelled south revisiting some of the ports already described - Trani, Bari, Brindisi and Otranto.  In addition we visited Monopoli which I'll describe in the next post.

Travelling North along the Puglian Coast

BARI

Once regarded as the ‘Bronx’ of Southern Italy, Bari, Puglia’s capital is a large and busy port.  It’s not really set up for cruising yachts, but on both our visits we managed to secure a good berth, albeit a long walk along the docks to reach town.

One of many shrines

Washing protected by plastic during the rain

Great swathes of polythene covered washing suspended over the streets and at every corner there was a shrine – maybe more than usual as our visit coincided with the end of the celebrations for the Feast of St Nicholas 7-9 May.  The festivities mark the arrival of the relics of St Nicholas in 11^th Century, they were stolen from Turkey by Italian fishermen.  A special Basilica was built to house the remains and it’s an important site for pilgrimage.  When we visited the church we also saw groups of Russians led by their Orthodox priests.  St Nicholas is the patron saint for children and prisoners – ironic considering the way the relics were procured……….

Intricate carving on church window

Inside the fortified walls of old Bari ‘Bari Vecchia,’ we discovered a fascinating warren of narrow streets which were a pleasure to explore – even in the rain.

Glances into windows as we walked framed ladies busy making pasta, the housing had an old fashioned feel with heavy lace curtains, pot plants and the inevitable shrines.  Tiny ‘alimentari’ grocery stores and enotecas were discreetly hidden away behind beaded curtains.   

Narrow lanes inevitably lead to wide spacious piazzas, we ended up in the Piazza Mercantile where we had another excellent ‘Puglian’ lunch.

The next stop -  

TRANI

Entering Trani harbour

The beautiful Norman Cathedral dominating one end of the Port

Yacht safely secured

The rains disappeared and the sun shone as we entered Trani harbour.  Trani is known as ‘the pearl’ of Puglia, it’s a very attractive sophisticated town with colourful refurbished buildings, restaurants and cafes lining the port.  

 Fishermen work on the harbour front, mending their nets, gutting their fish and also selling them on small stalls.

Front, Interior and Rear views of the Cathedral of St Nicholas the Pilgrim

A stunning Norman Cathedral stands at one end of the harbour overlooking the sea – it’s tall and imposing and was completed in the 13^th century.  The interior is awe inspiring in its simplicity with huge colonnades lining the central nave, the whole building has been magnificently restored and is dedicated to St Nicholas the Pilgrim not to be confused with Father Christmas' predecessor, St Nicholas the patron saint of children and prisoners.

Modern looking Trani Castle completed in 1233

Beyond the cathedral lies a magnificent Castle built by Frederick II, it has a very pared down modern appearance.  Apparently Puglia was his preferred place of residence and this is just one of the many castles he built throughout the state.

Cathy admiring central courtyard and main staircase 

The castle in Trani has undergone a wonderful restoration; the refurbishment shows the basic medieval structure, then the 16^th Century modifications to accommodate more modern weaponry and lastly renovations connected to its final use as a prison (1844-1972) .

As well as a beautifully restored historic centre with the usual warren of narrow lanes lined with faded palazzi, there’s also a well laid out large modern town with wide boulevards and tree-lines piazzas.

Horse and Ass on the menu

The real focus for visitors at Trani is around the port with its many restaurants and bars, although we did find a restaurant that focused on horse and ass meat, the main attractions remain the fresh seafood.

Final view as we reluctantly sailed away.

From Trani we sailed to our most northerly destination - VIESTE.

VALLI D'ITRIA, TOWNS OF ALBEROBELLO, LOCOROTONDO AND MARTINA FRANCA

ALBEROBELLO

Having enjoyed Ostuni we decided to hire a car the next day with the intention of visiting more of the interior towns.   The most famous and definitely the most eccentric was Alberobello, it’s a Unesco World Heritage site and famous for being the centre of Truilli  - these are dry stone conical houses with pointed roofs painted white.  

Nobody knows the history or reason why these houses were built in such a manner – they look straight out of a fairy tale.  The town is named after the primitive oak forest – Arboris Belli.   Truilli are found all over the surrounding countryside, in the form of farms, guest houses and ordinary homes.

Alberobello, Locorotondo and Martina Franca are all towns located in the Valle d’Itria in the centre of Murgia.  In May the rolling green countryside looked beautiful with olive groves, vineyards and almond trees – it all looked extremely fertile and it is - Puglia is the food basket for the rest of the country and provides 80% of Europe’s pasta,  most of Italy’s fish is caught off the Puglian Coast and 80% of Italy’s olive oil comes from Puglia and Calabria.

LOCOROTONDO

Locorotondo, another hill top town with some truilli in the foreground

Beautiful detail on the buildings

Locorotondo, another hillside town, is rated as one of the most beautiful towns in Italy, it too sits on a hill and the buildings of the historic centre are a stunning white. 

MARTINA FRANCA

Lastly we visited Martina Franca, it’s the highest town in Murgia and was founded in the 10^th century by refugees from Taranto after an Arab invasion.  This town has the reputation for fine foods, whilst we were in Puglia much of the produce carried the Martina Franca branding.  Although we only explored a small section of this town we found it to be a gracious with fine piazzas and buildings.