One or Two Curse Lunch?

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The plan for today is to take a trip to the town of Matera which is around 80 kms inland from Monopoli. It seems to come up pretty regularly on lists of must-see places in Italy, so why then do they seem to have made it so hard to get to? Maybe the plan is to stop it getting overrun with tourists? If that’s the case why haven’t they tried something similar in places that are already overrun, like say Venice - surely it wouldn’t be that hard to blow up the only bridge and make people swim there. Anyway, back to the real world … My ever-reliable app that shows us how we can get from anywhere to anywhere else in the world tells me that I can get there on a bus …. in nine hours, or by taxi … for $500 return - I could probably hire a helicopter for that. I opt for a train. That‘s only about three hours each way, with two tight changes, so six hours travelling for about three hours sightseeing … and that’s assuming I can run fast enough to make all the connections. If the looks on Issy’s face are anything to go by I suspect she thinks I’ve been spending too much time in the sun.

I need to be sure I make the most of my three hours. One suggested itinerary recommends hiking down into the deep gorge next to the town, crossing a footbridge, and then scrambling up the other side. It says this will get me the best panoramas, which sounds excellent. The Google machine guides me from the station through a maze of streets and alleyways to the start of the path down the cliff. Huh? What’s this? Red and white striped tape stretched across the start of the track? Not far past that there’s a forbidding looking cast iron gate. It’s secured with a large padlock, and just to be sure you’ve got the message they’ve attached a bunch of large spikes to the top of it. Hmmm. This wasn’t part of the plan. No problem however for the family in front of me. They duck under the tape and then start trying to scramble up over the gate. Whoa Dad, careful of those spikes! That’s made my eyes water and it’s not even happening to me. I hope you weren’t planning on having any more children.

So it’s over to Plan B, only there isn’t a Plan B, so now it’s just aimless wandering. First stop is the Chiesa di San Pietro e Paolo. It looks old and it is; I read that it was built way back in 1218. The standout feature here is the frescoed wooden ceiling.

Matera is apparently thought to be one of oldest inhabited settlements on the entire planet. There’s evidence in caves around the area of human habitation dating back to the Paleolithic age, which ended way back in 10,000 BC. The settlements then became more permanent in the Neolithic Age (8,000 to 3,500 BC). It’s apparently particularly notable for the cave houses and rock architecture of its two Sassi Districts, Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano, both of which are UNESCO World Heritage listed.

Next stop is a typical cave house and a small cave church in Sasso Caveoso. The house looks a bit grim. Apparently the Sassi districts became so impoverished after World War II that a law was passed ordering their evacuation. They then lay abandoned until the 1980s, when the government financed their renovation, which then led to the 1993 World Heritage listing.

Next up is the spectacular Chiesa Rupestre di Santa Maria di Idris. This is carved into a massive rocky outcrop that sits high above the surrounding buildings of the Sasso Caveoso. It doesn’t look overly much like a church anymore, more a series of cave-like rooms. The main features of interest are the frescoes, some of which apparently date back to the twelfth century.

It seems no town in these parts would be complete without the local horror show, the Purgatory Church, or Chiesa del Purgatorio. Unlike Monopoli this one doesn’t have robed skeletons on display to give everyone nightmares, but there are still all the obligatory skulls and crossbones on the facade. Who thought that was a good idea? Anyway time for lunch, so it’s over to a cafe across the road from the horror show. The menu says I can get a package meal deal of either “1 curse” (sic) or ”2 curses”, and I don’t think the authors were being deliberately funny. Hmmm. I wonder where I can go to get those lifted - hopefully not back into the Purgatory Church.

A bit further along is the Chiesa di San Francesco d’Assisi, which has an impressive facade and ceiling. Some think the great Saint himself visited here way back in 1218; the church in its current form is mainly from the 18th century. Then it’s off to the local Duomo, the Cattedrale di Maria Santissima della Bruna e Sant'Eustachio. It was built in the 13th century on the rocky spur above the two Sassi districts. It‘s got a ridiculously ornate interior including a large and very detailed nativity scene.

Next up is a wander down through the Sasso Barisano, including a visit to another grim looking cave house. Apparently the residents here typically had large families, averaging six kids, all packed into these tiny caves. The forced evacuation must have been more of a humanitarian rescue mission than anything else; the conditions here look like something straight out of the Stone Age.

I could keep wandering, but it’s getting late, and hot … not to mention dangerous. The precipitously steep streets and alleyways here are all paved with ridiculously slippery stone. I’ve been watching people slipping and sliding around me all day and it’s not even wet; it must be carnage when it rains. Maybe that’s why they’ve made it so hard to get to - they’re worried that the hospital’s not big enough. Anyway, time to leave. We’re supposed to be going to Greece tomorrow, and I’m not sure Issy‘d be overly happy if I slipped and broke my neck and she had to go on her own.

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Beautiful
I'd love to see this at some point.

[RENanDREW]

Gorgeous!
Matera is definitely on our list for our next trip to Italy - thanks for taking us on your walk through! I've been waiting to get to your Greece blogs :)