Italy – Apulia 2004, part 5 (Martina Franca, Locorotondo, Alberobello, Ostuni)
After an absolutely wonderful lunch in Martina Franca, an exceptionally charming town in the Apulia region (or Puglia, as the Italians call it), I set off for a walk through the historic centre of the city, with the intention of visiting a few more interesting places.
However, here it is enough simply to walk aimlessly, as there is something beautiful and picturesque to see at every corner. For example, I passed by the "The Courtyard House Le Marangi” from the first half of the 18th century. As I read on the plaque that stands there, at some point, they began to build townhouses with multiple residential units, as well as buildings for domestic animals and storage, all around a shared courtyard. This essentially represented the transition from rural to urban life and this house is one of the rare examples of this type of building that has survived in Martini Franki to this day.
There were other picturesque details as well.
And then I returned to one of the main squares – Piazza Maria Immacolata.
By a building on the corner of this square, the woman I had captured in the photograph published in the previous section was still sitting calmly on an improvised bench, probably waiting for someone.
As for Piazza Maria Immacolata, since the sun had started shining on it from the other side, it looked even more beautiful than when I first arrived there.
From here, I could also see the Collegiate Church of St. Martin of Tours on Piazza Plebiscito, so I then continued to that square.
Now I glanced once again at Piazza Maria Immacolata and then I slipped into the narrow streets of the historic centre of Martini Franca.
This way, I arrived at the former Convent of the Augustinian nuns, but everything there seemed calm and closed off.
Since the streets here are extremely narrow and winding, it was very difficult to find a good angle to capture a building, and this former convent could easily appear as just a regular townhouse if it weren't for the cross on the top.
I also decided to take a little walk through the old neighbourhood called La Lama and then I headed towards the train station, as I was on my way to another charming town in the Itria Valley.
That other town is called Locorotondo and it is located roughly halfway by train between Alberobello and Martini Franca. It really doesn’t matter in which order these towns are visited. I wanted to go to Martini Franca first, but it would have been perfectly fine if I had visited Locorotondo first.
What I found interesting along the way were the landscapes through which the train passed.
In addition to seeing fields, olive groves and vineyards, various trulli could often be spotted as well, which only shows how popular this method of building structures is here.
Everything looks even better, or rather, gives a better impression when viewed in video format:
And then I spotted Locorotondo at the top of the hill.
From the train station in Locorotondo, it takes about 15 minutes on foot to reach the historic centre of the town. Along the way, I occasionally stopped to capture a beautiful or interesting detail.
When you reach the top of the hill, directly across from the entrance to the town centre, there is a park with a monument to the fallen soldiers. However, what was more important to me – from there, you get an outstanding view of the Itria Valley. This is definitely a spot worth stopping at.
On one side, I could see the areas I had just passed through by train and in the distance, there was Martina Franca.
On the other side, much closer, I could see the farmland, as well as some tourist facilities. In any case, everything looked very beautiful.
Now I set off for the historic centre of the town. Locorotondo literally means "round place," as it has a nearly perfect circular layout. It is also a part of the group I Borghi più belli d'Italia (The Most Beautiful Villages of Italy), which is the name of a private association of small Italian towns that are particularly interesting in historical or artistic terms.
Locorotondo is smaller than Martina Franca, and it seems to me that it’s also more compact, which might make it appear more modest in some way. However, it certainly deserves a walk and I thoroughly enjoyed it that day. So, I first went to Palazzo Morelli.
Once again, the narrowness of the street prevented me from getting a better shot of the palace, but the details visible in the previous and next photographs are illustrative enough.
This is a palace that represents a good example of local Baroque architecture. It’s not exactly known when the first building was erected on this site, but it is known that it was significantly renovated during the 18th century, while the facade seen in my photos dates from that period. What I found particularly interesting is that the top of the portal is actually a balcony.
I took some photos of the some details and then continued to the nearby Parish Church of St. George the Martyr.
This is a church the construction of which began in 1790 on the site of an earlier church from the 12th century. Due to various reasons and problems, the church was completed only in 1825. The church also has a tall bell tower, but it is only occasionally visible (again, due to the narrow space).
The interior of the church is exceptionally beautiful and elegant.
After leaving the church, I wandered a bit around the streets nearby, hoping to spot something details a bit more better. Well, I didn’t...
Then I left the historic centre of Locorotondo, but only for a short while, as I went to visit the nearby Church of Madonna della Greca, the oldest church in the town. The first building on this site was erected in the 7th and 8th centuries, but that church was reconstructed in the 15th century.
It is believed that this church was built in 1481, just outside the city walls, and this decision was linked to the lack of available land in the crowded centre. This situation is exactly what led to the narrow streets I mentioned earlier in the text.
What I particularly liked about this church was the rose window above the portal, while the interior, all in white, was very elegant.
Now I returned to the historic centre of Locorotondo and wandered for a while through the very beautiful and charming streets, which were full of various picturesque details.
I also stopped for a coffee, while a little later I made my way down to the train station, waited for the train and headed back to Alberobello. The landscapes were still very picturesque.
Upon returning to Alberobello, I first went to the flat I had rented here and a little later, when it had already gotten dark, I went for a short walk. Of course, first I had to visit the viewpoint, from where I marvelled at the beauty and charm of the whitewashed trulli with their distinctive conical stone roofs, even at this time of day.
Then I descended to the area between the two hills (Parco Largo Martelotta) and took a stroll through the Monti district. Although it wasn’t very late, it was incredibly peaceful and I would only occasionally come across a few other visitors who, like me, enjoyed walking through these streets in the evening.
Later, I returned to the flat and the next day, I continued my journey through Apulia. In the morning, I wasn’t in a hurry and, overall, my pace of exploring Apulia was quite relaxed, especially compared to how I usually travel.
Although I was still on the move and exploring, it seems to me that I took more breaks than usual and those breaks were definitely much longer than what I’m used to. After all, I was in Italy and while I think they are a hardworking people, they did come up with the saying Dolce far niente! (literally: "It's sweet to do nothing").
I’m not sure how the Italians arrived at this, but the way I see it, this saying fits perfectly with my stay in Italy because, no matter where I sit, there is always so much beauty and interesting details around me that I never feel like it’s too much or boring to, for example, stretch a coffee out for an hour or more, even though I could objectively drink it and "enjoy the break" in just 10 minutes.
All in all, after a leisurely wake-up and packing, I left the flat in Alberobello and headed to the train station. My next destination was the town of Ostuni.
Although these two towns are only about 30 km apart in a straight line, even by car, it takes around 40 minutes to drive because you have to go around a bit. Public transportation takes much longer, as it requires a transfer.
To get an idea of the places I visited on this trip, here is a map showing them all:
As for my transfer by local trains, I had already settled into my relaxed rhythm, so none of it bothered me. After all, by rule, I could only check into all the rooms/flats I rented on this trip after 3 p.m., so there was no point in rushing, especially since I couldn’t leave my big backpack everywhere.
However, in Ostuni, I had arranged with the flat owner that I could come as early as around 2 p.m., so I adjusted my rhythm to that time.
What’s special about Ostuni is that the train station is not in the town itself, but in the nearby settlement of Zona Sisri (though the station is called Ostuni). From there, you need to catch a local bus that takes you, among other places, to Ostuni, which is about 4 km uphill.
I got off the bus relatively close to the flat I had rented, so I put my big backpack on and started walking uphill. I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised by my fitness. I did occasionally get out of breath and had to stop for a short break, but I still felt relatively light on my feet. And there were some very demanding sections!
The owner of the flat was there when I arrived and he was actually still finishing up the cleaning of the flat after the previous guests. However, it was enough for me to leave my luggage, both the large and small backpacks. I then casually started heading towards the centre of Ostuni.
The historic centre (centro storico) of Ostuni has an elliptical layout and in many ways it is similar to the historic centres of the towns I had already visited. However, that doesn’t mean it’s not worth a visit. The place is very charming and has several particularly interesting buildings.
Since it was already afternoon, I didn’t want to start sightseeing right away. Instead, I decided to sit down at a restaurant on the spacious Piazza della Libertà, just outside the historic centre, and have lunch.
This time, I chose pizza, primarily because they offered a version with Calabrian sausage ’nduja (which I really liked). I also ordered wine, which I usually avoid in the middle of the day because it makes me very sleepy. But since I wasn’t in a rush, it was perfectly fine.
The pizza was so visually impressive that I had to take a photo of it from another angle.
And the taste... Well, the taste was spectacular and I continued to enjoy it for a long time, gently digesting in my stomach.
After the wonderful and long relaxation following lunch and thanks to that glass of wine which "knocked me out" a bit, leaving me feeling a bit sluggish, I eventually started strolling around Ostuni.
To begin with, I noted some buildings and details right on Piazza della Libertà.
On the square, there’s the municipal hall of Ostuni and right next to it is the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi. I decided to leave the visit to the church for later.
At the opposite end of the square, where the street branches off and forms another smaller square, there is the Column of Saint Orontius. Saint Orontius is an important local Catholic saint and, according to legend, he even met Saint Paul and was appointed as the first bishop of the city of Lecce.
Then slowly, since I was still feeling the effects of that wine, I started my walk around the outskirts of the historic centre of Ostuni, before eventually wandering into its narrow streets.