Month: January 2022

Cavetown of Matera

With Matera we had reached the region of Basilicata. The town lies above a canyon carved by a river. The part known as la città sotterranea (“the underground city”) is a complex of cave dwellings carved into the ancient river canyon. From the other side of the canyon we had a great view over the town. The cathedral …

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Taranto and the Gorge hike

After spending the night outside of Taranto, we found a parking near the old town and went for a walk. The historic centre lies on an island, separating the Mare Piccolo (more like a big lagoon) and the Mare Grande (the sea), a perfect location for a town with a secure harbour. Founded by Spartans …

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Hike @ Porto Selvaggio

We wanted to explore more of the rough and rocky coast around Gallipoli and went on a hike to one of the view beaches: Spiaggia di Porto Selvaggio. The karst along the sea is craggy and sharp-edged. Just one little bay offers a beach, which is surely well visited in summer. The Porto Selvaggio Regional …

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Exploring Gallipoli

Gallipoli was founded by Greek settlers and until today the Greek dialect Griko is spoken here. It is located on an island connected with a bridge to the mainland. Specialising in olive oil, it became the largest olive oil market in the Mediterranean. Olive oil mills can still be found in many old houses. We came past …

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South! Along the coast

When we left Otranto, we stopped just outside of town to walk around the “Cava de Bauxite”, a lake where bauxite was once extracted and which is striking due to its intense colours. We continued along the coast, past the most eastern point of Italy to the most southern point of Apulia. With Santa Maria …

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@ Otranto

We stopped at different places along the coast to look at the coastline and went for a hike between Torre dell’ Orso and Torre Sant’Andrea, where fascinating rock formations can be found. Afterwards we drove south to Otranto. The small holiday villages were all deserted, so we continued our way to Otranto, where we managed …

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Hike around Lago Alimini

Just behind the coast north of Otranto lie the Alimini lakes, which are very unspoiled, with not many points where you can reach the shore. We went for a hike around the bigger on, starting from the bridge, where the lake is connected to the sea. There is not a continuous path around the lake, …

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Touching Brindisi

We had planned a short visit to Brindisi and a hike in the countryside afterwards. We first stopped next to the airport of Brindisi, where an exceptional church stands, surrounded by planes, cars and industrial buildings – Chiesa Santa Maria del Casale. The church of Santa Maria del Casale is a Romanesque – Gothic construction, erected at the end of the 13th …

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The Baroque walk

We had found a place at the coast again, before we went to explore another city, this time Lecce, the capital of the Apulian baroque. According to legend, a city called Sybar existed here already at the time of the Trojan War. It was conquered by the Romans in the 3rd century BC, receiving the new name of Lupiae. After the …

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