Italy – Apulia 2004, part 10 (Santa Maria di Leuca, Gallipoli, Galatina, Maglie, Lecce)
The previous sequel of my travelogue tells the story of a trip through the Italian region of Apulia in September 2024, and I ended it by mentioning that I left the car I rented for one day in a parking lot in the town of Santa Maria di Leuca – almost the first one I came across. I thought that from there I could easily go on foot and take a little walk around this place at the very southern tip of the Salento peninsula.
Anyway, here's a map where you can see exactly where this happened:
And indeed, that's exactly how I started. I first headed towards the Santa Maria di Leuca lighthouse, which I also mentioned in the previous sequel.
Along the way, I had the chance to take a look at the large marina in this town.
I even walked a few hundred metres, but then I changed my mind, took another photo of the marina, and then I started heading back.
Namely, a few days earlier, I had suddenly bent down while carrying a large backpack on my back, and that caused me some trouble – I probably triggered some kind of sciatica. On the first day when this happened, I could barely walk, but now I was much more mobile, though there was still a constant mild pain or at least a sense of discomfort.
That day, I managed quite well, but I started feeling the pain a little more, so I concluded that it was pointless to keep walking towards the lighthouse I had already seen (and photographed), and the additional details didn’t really interest me.
Admittedly, near this lighthouse, which is the second most important one in Italy, there is also the Basilica of Santa Maria de Finibus Terrae, meaning the church dedicated to St. Mary (after whom the town was named), with the addition that means "the end of the land." The basilica was built between 1720 and 1755.
Despite all this, it didn’t seem like a strong enough reason to continue, so I simply turned around and started heading back.
I also kept in mind that I had parked the car in a rather inconvenient parking lot that was still far from the centre, so I went back for the car and drove it down to the coast. My plan was to at least take a short walk there, which I did.
The coast seemed quite sleepy, with not many people around, and the main reason for that was definitely the weather. It wasn't cold, but the wind was blowing and dark clouds hinting at rain covered part of the sky.
I took a selfie on a small bridge leading to the sea and then I went to a bar where I had a coffee. I needed something to wake me up a bit and also to rest my back, spine, and legs.
After a nice break, I headed back to the car, took a few more shots of the promenade by the sea, and then I continued on my way.
My next destination was the city of Gallipoli on the western coast of the Salento peninsula, which is less than 50 km from Santa Maria di Leuca.
Once again, the road took me past stone retaining walls and although these were probably made with the help of modern machinery, this still struck me as impressive.
In addition, I was somewhat concerned about the dark clouds covering the sky in the direction I was driving, but in the end, with a lot of luck, I managed to pass through without rain (until later in the evening, but by then it wasn’t as important to me).
Gallipoli is a city on the coast of the Ionian Sea, consisting of an old town built on an island located close to the mainland, and a newer part of the city on the mainland. What’s particularly interesting is that these two parts are connected by a bridge built in the 16th century.
My route took me to one of the main streets in the new part, Corso Roma, which leads directly to the bridge and the old town. Having learned from my experience in Santa Maria di Leuca, I drove almost to the end of the street, in order not to have to walk as much. Luckily, I found a good parking spot, so I could calmly start my exploration.
However, my back and right side were hurting quite a lot, and it was clear that this would be a quick tour. To begin with, I reached the very end of the "peninsula" where the new part of the city is located and from there, I had a beautiful view of both the old town and the bridge connecting the two parts of Gallipoli.
The dark clouds were creating a dramatic scene in the sky and it was really interesting to watch them.
On the other hand, just as I was about to cross the bridge, a ray of sunlight managed to break through the clouds.
I can immediately say that I didn’t pay much attention to all the interesting places in the city, let alone visit or photograph them. To tell the truth, due to the pain and discomfort while walking, I just wasn’t in the mood. The pain wasn’t strong enough to cause serious problems, but I was concerned that it might get worse and that worry really affected my mood. On the other hand, I felt that since I had made it this far, I should at least make a little effort. Just a little. I think you can easily spend more time in Gallipoli than I did, but it is what it is...
In any case, already in these first photos published here, one of the notable sites can be seen, and that is the Gallipoli Castle built by the Byzantines in the 13th century.
I decided not to enter the old town directly, but rather to walk around a bit first, so I could get a better impression of the place. From a small elevation where the street gently ascends, I had a great view of both the newer part of Gallipoli and the harbour area.
Still, at this point, I was most interested in the old part of Gallipoli and there are certainly various picturesque houses there, including a local church.
Soon, I found myself in the narrow streets of old Gallipoli, while the sights there were very picturesque and pretty.
I eventually reached the main church in the city, the Gallipoli Cathedral, which is dedicated to Saint Agatha of Sicily. Officially, it is called the Co-Cathedral Basilica of Saint Agatha the Virgin.
The construction of this Baroque church began in 1629 and was completed in 1696. The facade of the church is very beautiful and richly decorated.
Here I decided not to visit anything else in Gallipoli and just slowly head back to the car. By the way, just a few hundred metres away, but in the opposite direction from the one I took, there is quite a beautiful city beach – Spiaggia della Purità, which often appears in pictures advertising the city.
However, I reached the southern side of the Gallipoli Castle and then continued on the street that runs along the western side of the citadel.
This street eventually turns towards the bridge and this was where I headed.
Soon enough I got into the car and continued on my way. It was clear that sitting and resting was pleasant, but I had one more visit planned, though I knew it wouldn't take long. The destination was the town of Galatina in the centre of the Salento peninsula. Although the optimal distance between these two cities is around 23 km, the navigation confused me in one part, so in the end, I drove a few extra kilometres, but it didn’t bother me. What mattered was that I found a good parking spot very close to the church I wanted to visit. It was the Basilica of Saint Catherine of Alexandria (Basilica di Santa Caterina d'Alessandria).
Although this church was built between 1383 and 1391, and is undeniably Romanesque in its architectural style, you can also see Gothic, Byzantine and Norman influences. The front facade especially highlights the exceptionally beautiful and richly decorated portal, as well as the rose window.
The construction of the church was commissioned by Raimondo Orsini del Balzo (c. 1350-55 – 1406). I probably wouldn’t even mention him if I hadn’t read that he ordered the church’s construction and its dedication to St. Catherine after returning from Mount Sinai and visiting the Monastery of St. Catherine there (see: https://www.svudapodji.com/en/egypt-2008/).
What is particularly interesting is the legend that, at the end of his stay on Mount Sinai, while kissing the hand of the saint (of course, as part of the relics), Raimondo Orsini del Balzo allegedly bit off one of her fingers and brought it back to Italy. Supposedly, these sacred relics are kept in a silver reliquary housed in the treasury of this church.
The interior of the church consists of a main nave and two side aisles on either side. There are also gently pointed arches on the walls separating the naves, ribbed cross vaults in the main nave, lower semi-domed vaults in the side aisles, and extremely beautiful capitals on the columns... But what particularly impressed me here were the frescoes, which were created in the first half of the 15th century. The richness of their execution is absolutely extraordinary. The impression is exceptional and this is one of the churches that I believe must be visited if you're travelling to southern Italy.
Right next to the basilica is the cloister, which is also frescoed and was fully reconstructed between the 16th and 17th centuries.
As for the town of Galatina, you can also see the beautiful Baroque Church of Saints Peter and Paul, with its richly decorated facade, built in 1633 on the foundations of a Greek church. When you search for Galatina online, this church usually appears in photographs, rather than the Basilica of Saint Catherine of Alexandria. However, I was no longer in the mood to walk and explore, so I simply returned to the car and headed back toward Maglie.
After all, I needed to return the rented car and then walk about half an hour to get to the room where I was staying in the city. But once I had done all that, I was happy to lie down and relax my back.
However, I couldn’t stay in that position for too long. I had already had lunch and it was time to eat something again.
I found a restaurant nearby and headed there. As it turned out, it was a spectacularly good experience. But first, I had to hurry a bit, as the rain had started pouring down heavily. Fortunately, I had that jacket I had bought in Lecce.
To begin with, I had a beer, as I was planning just to nibble on something. But this was a special place and even the beer wasn’t served in typical glasses, although it was certainly very tasty.
I chose a dish myself, while the restaurant owner recommended others, and there was definitely a lot of food. In the end, I managed to eat almost everything. I don’t regret it – it was truly extraordinary.
As I leisurely finished my dinner, the rain stopped. I slowly made my way back to the room, where I peacefully and contentedly went to sleep.
The next morning, I woke up feeling great, my back and leg weren’t bothering me too much. I packed up my things and then realised something was missing. It was my new jacket and I quickly understood that I had forgotten it in the restaurant where I had eaten the previous evening. There was nothing I could do since it was still early in the morning and the restaurant certainly wasn’t open at that time of day.
Luckily, I was greeted by a beautifully sunny day, so I didn’t need the jacket after all. But the weather was so nice and inspiring that I took a few more photos of the city's landmarks as I passed by them.
In order to reach my next destination, the city of Matera in the Basilicata region, I had to take a train to Lecce first, and then to Bari. There, I practically changed train stations and continued my journey on a local train to Matera.
In the beginning, the train from Maglie passed by olive groves and stone fences arranged in neat rows, and once again, I was impressed (by the stone fences, not the olive trees).
In Lecce, I had enough time to buy a coffee and enjoy it while sitting at one of the tables arranged on the plaza in front of the train station. As I was sipping my coffee, a group of cyclists, who had come here by train, were preparing to start their ride. Cycling is extremely popular in Italy and all trains have designated spaces where bicycles can be brought inside and transported to the desired destination.
What I particularly liked in this situation was that all the cyclists seemed (to me) older than I was. It always makes me happy to see people in their "mature years" who are still full of life and energy.
But, I’m not too bad for my age either. Although I’ve had more or less problems with my back, spine and right leg (the previously mentioned self-diagnosed sciatica) during this trip, I still bravely and energetically carried most of my luggage on my back, with the rest in front of me. To be honest, I didn’t really have any other choice.
So, from Lecce, I took the train to Bari and there I had to switch to the nearby train station (literally buildings next to each other, with the tracks initially running in parallel) because the other station serves local lines, including the one to the city of Matera.
It was good that I had already been to Bari before and during that stay, I had checked exactly where the other train station was and where to buy tickets, as now I appreciated moving as little as possible considering the weight of my luggage and the condition of my back.
And so, with my ticket purchased, I was able to sit down and calmly wait for the train to Matera.