A peek at Puglia.

Bari, Italy

With weather becoming a problem again, we pulled Berkeley East into a marina, rented a car and did a few daytrips around Puglia. Unlike much of Italy, the terrain in Puglia is nearly flat, which made for easier driving in our nifty little Fiat 500.

Most of our driving in Italy has been on small, windy, very hilly roads that squeeze through tiny walled cities. While the local drivers have always seemed a little crazy with their speed, it is nothing compared to the drivers we encountered on the level open highways of Puglia. We decided that it must be mandatory for anyone driving a German made car to travel at least 50 kilometers over the speed limit. Most often that meant they were going about 110 mph, so we kept our toy car out of their way.

Puglia is also very green and fertile which allows production of excellent produce. We were surprised to learn that the region produces the largest amount of olive oil in Italy and is an up and coming wine region, but the area is probably best known for the large number of castles found here.

Castel de Monte built by the Roman Emperor Frederick II during the 1240s in Andria

It felt like we drove from sunrise long into the night each day, visiting lovely towns, churches, castles and forts, but we barely scratched the surface.

The Basilica di San Nicola in Bari is an important church for both Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians from Eastern Europe

Church of Santa Chiara in Lecce, famous for its ceiling with paper mache’ decorations

Lecce Cathedral

Gallipoli, meaning Beautiful City, is a town on the Gulfo di Taranto, the west coast of the heel of Italy. The old town is located on a limestone island, linked to the mainland by a bridge built in the 16th century