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Published: April 27th 2016
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"The oldest mother in the world"
This pregnant woman was found near Ostuni in a prehistoric tomb dating back to 45,000 bcc We traveled eight hours by train from Padova to Ostuni on Saturday. The train ride was pleasant and not very crowded in first class, and you could get espresso in the next car from a surly baristo!
We are staying in an apartment on a very busy piazza, not far from the historic area of the town. It's well-located for catching buses and trains, if a bit noisy. The first two nights were really active, since it was a three day weekend (It was Liberation Day...we were disappointed that we weren't invited to some sort of festivity, being descendants of the liberators...). Ostuni is known for it's chicness and nightlife and people come for day-trips and the weekend. We've seen a few Americans, but most tourists are Italian. Ostuni has a small, hilly, and maze-like historic center, with many restaurants and shops. It's on a hill, is mostly white (thus its nickname "The White City")and looks like a Moroccan town from a distance...
We've spent our time here relaxing, trying to stay warm and dry in the storms and cold weather, and visiting nearby towns.
We first visited Lecce. "Because of the rich
Baroque architectural monuments found in the
IMG_2299
Built by Fredrick the second for no known reason...we could see it from the train... city, Lecce is commonly nicknamed "The
Florence of the South".
The city also has a long traditional affinity with
Greek culture going back to its foundation; the
Messapii who founded the city are said to have been
Cretans in Greek records.
To this day, in the
Grecìa Salentina, a group of towns not far from Lecce, the
griko language is still spoken. In terms of industry the "Lecce stone" is the city's main export, because it is very soft and workable, thus suitable for sculptures. Lecce stone is a kind of
limestone.
Lecce is also an important
agricultural centre, chiefly for its
olive oil and
wine production, as well as an industrial centre specializing in
ceramic production." Wikipedia
Our second day trip was by bus to Martina Franca. "The town has a particularly beautiful old town surrounded by stone walls with prominent Baroque gates
leading to piazzas and narrow, winding streets. Piazza Roma is the largest square in the old town, with a greenspace in the center of a largely triangular grass pattern, facing the 17th century Palazzo Ducale. he centre of Martina Franca is charming, and worth roaming around for an hour or two, with cameras at the ready. The oldest part of town is called the Lama, where you can still see the pointed-roof buildings which are a local tradition. Wandering the lanes and alleys you pass eighteenth-century palaces, some of which are shabby with age, as well as humbler dwellings. All are tall and squeezed together in this small area within the old town walls. Ornate balconies and archways decorate the more elegant buildings, along with fancy baroque windows, and those ubiquitous cherubs. The centre has a lived-in feel, with laundry and sometimes foodstuffs hung outside to dry. Although it is mostly pedestrianised, little three-wheeled ape trucks occasionally appear, plunging alarmingly down the narrow lanes; sheets of metal are screwed onto walls to protect buildings from the knocks of vehicles squeezing past."
The bus ride there was almost better than the town: beautiful green country side spotted with the traditional
"trulli" buildings. We had an overly friendly bus driver on the way there, who wanted to tour us the next day (for a fee) and was very pushy in trying to find out where we staying...but also informative..
Today is our last day here, and we are spending it catching up on internet, since the service in our apartment is worse than pathetic....and packing. Tomorrow we rent a car and I drive for the next three days (unless we can add Bill, since there are age limits to car rental...), to the ferry to Sicily....where we spent the night in Messina, travel by train to Palermo...and settle in another apartment for a week...
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george
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She-Wolf
That would be the she-wolf that fed Romulus and Remus. G