5 towns worth a visit in Central Apulia, Italy

I am just back from a trip with my family in Apulia, with the main purpose of scouting new locations for my photo tours and photo walks. It was a nice week, blessed with beautiful warm weather, great light and some rest we all (my wife, our little daughter and myself) needed. We set our base close to the sea in a former animals and shepherd shelter converted into a nice, quiet and comfortable hotel. There, among old and beautiful olive trees, we could rest, our daughter Livia met new friends and from there I started for my daily scouting. The countryside is full of photographic opportunities: a flat plain between the sea and the hills, completely covered by twisted, aged, olive trees. And in springtime these scenic trees are surrounded by multi colored flowers.

Not far from our hotel, there is a dolmen, a prehistoric  funerary monument made by three huge stones in a shape of a rectangle: two vertical stones with one laying horizontally over them. As I said, the sea is nearby, with beautiful sandy beaches and dunes. Among these dunes there are also good locations for bird watching. Within 25 kilometres from our base you can visit many beautiful towns and the distinctive karst landscape of the “Murgia”.

So here are the five cities of the area I really think you should visit if you happen to be in Apulia!

1) Alberobello is famous for its Trulli, conic shaped shelters made of bricks. Crowds of tourists visit daily Alberobello, but you can try to avoid the biggest part of the huddle. For example, don’t limit your visit to “Rione Monti” that’s the most spectacular and touristic part of the town, obviously the most crowded: just walk in the opposite direction, towards the church and you’ll get into a quieter part of the town, still with beautiful whitewashed Trulli, less cool, but alive, lived, inhabited.

2) Cisternino has a very small yet beautiful old town: narrow lanes flanked by whitewashed buildings, corners that conceal intimate visions, arches and porticos, as in a small labyrinth. It’s so tiny that you can walk and get lost and will eventually end your tour in the central square, opposite the town hall with the clock tower and the umbrellas of bars dehors that quiver gently in the late afternoon breeze; here you can comfortably sit and have a rest.

3) Martina Franca is a beautiful Baroque old town. It’s almost like being in Spain, with big churches, baroque buildings, the sun beats the white stones and creates glares and heat blazes; plenty of photographic opportunities among the narrow lanes and the large squares of this enchanting town.

4) Locorotondo is pure charm. A fascinating silent town not yet crowded by the big tourism. The historic part has whitewashed buildings with arches and baroque balconies, a beautiful cathedral, and not far away another amazing Romanesque church that pitifully sits surrounded by grey tarmac.

5) Ostuni is called The white town: you can see it from far away, sitting atop a hill with all its whitwashed houses hit by the sunlight. Together with Alberobello, Ostuni is the most renowned and touristic spot of the area. Choose the right time for visiting it: early spring or late fall, low tourist season, when temperatures are more pleasant and there is a better light; perhaps early in the morning, when the sun rises from the sea: even Ostuni can offer silence and solitude, which is what a photographer needs to get into the spirit of the place. At the real summit of the hill stands the beautiful gothic cathedral that at sunset shines with golden light. All around it, the old town is another labyrinth of narrow lanes that descends the hill. On the opposite side, a vast panoramic terrace offers a spectacular view over the olive trees on the plain and the sea.

Exiting the old town, in the middle of a vast square, a baroque column pushes the local saint skywards to the point from where he would take care of everybody. Open air coffee bars are all around in a mix of sacred and profane that’s typical of Southern Italy.

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Moon and the stone. Ostuni cathedral at sunset

Who am I?

I am a free lance outdoor photographer based in Avellino, Campania, in Southern Italy, not far from Naples, Amalfi Coast, Pompeii and Herculaneum.

My photos have been published on the Italian issue of Digital Camera Magazine, on the Italian travel magazine Viaggi del Sole, on the Italian issue of GEO Magazine.

One of my travel reportages, about the Hadza tribe of Tanzania was performed in November 2010 in a collective exhibition titled Africa yesterday and today held by the “Chatwin Prize” in Genova.

 My main activity is based on travel reportages and landscape photos, and this has brought me to know in depth the most beautiful corners of the area where I live.

 

With the time I started to ask myself why shouldn’t I share with other photographers the beauties I was witnessing, being them the most famous (think of Amalfi Coast, Capri, Ischia) or the less known.

This is why I decided to offer photo tours and photo walks in distinctive sites located in the area where I live and around.

Being a landscape photographer my main goal is to express into an image the beauty of the places and the emotions I felt while clicking. And I would like to address the participants to my  photo tours and photo walks to capture in their images shot while with me what they feel rather than what they see. 

A postcard can be bought at every newsstand, an image with an emotion has a louder voice and a distinctive character.

Some of the best known sites I can get you to are:

Amalfi Coast (Amalfi, Ravello, Positano, some hidden gems scattered along it and less known).

Upon agreement I can also be with you along some of the most scenic walking path of the area, like: Sentiero degli dei (God’s path) that leads to Positano and offers fantastic views of the rugged coastline and – far away – the island of Capri, or Valle delle Ferriere: a very scenic path among rare plants, waterfalls and old paper mills

 Pompeii and Herculaneum

Paestum, majestic Greek temples scattered in a vast plain, among oint trees, between the sea and the mountains.

Caserta’s Royal Palace and Caserta Vecchia, a masterpiece of the Baroque with huge, impressive gardens and an ancient town with a gorgeous view

Procida, tiny, colourful, fascinating island in the gulf of Naples

Alberobello and Trulli, the whitewashed cone-shaped distintive buildings typical of that area

The “white towns” in Apulia (Ostuni, Cisternino, Martina Franca, Locorotondo)

Matera and “Sassi”

But if you like to be off the beaten path, I can suggest different itineraries where you can find less crowd, more silence and inspiration.

For example, the Wine Road in Irpinia:  among gentle hills and green landscapes (or ochre or yellow, it depends on the season) we will visit vineyards and wine cellars where the tasteful and well known Taurasi  is produced along with the more gentle white Greco di Tufo.

 

Or we can pay a visit to one of the many ghost towns located in this area: fascinating old villages, abandoned and partly destroyed but full of charm and photographic possibilities.

We can also have a tour along and old railroad, built in the XIX century and now abandoned: majestic iron bridges, old stations, rusty rails, beautiful landscapes and interesting villages.

 

There are many other possibilities, and it’s also possible to tailor a program on your needs and interests.

A photo walk is not less than two hours up to one whole day, while photo tours are usually one weekend long.

You’ll have the assistance of an experienced photographer who will also lead you to the best photographic spots. Upon request and arrangement I can offer pick up and transport service, accommodation and meals.

Based on my experience, the best time for this tours are springtime and early autumn, when temperatures are mild and the big crowd is away, but the tours are available all year long.

If you need any other info please don’t hesitate to contact me at

info@photosontheroad.eu.