It may be the heel, known as Puglia (Pool Yuh) of Italy but it held some real surprises for us. We left Sicily a bit behind schedule in part because of the ceramic shopping in the morning. Then finally made it to the car ferry which left every half hour and we were the third car on it. I got to watch the harbor side anchovies fisherman during the wait. We then ran into the slow, southern end of the A3 Autostrad which is under considerable reconstruction in order to straighten it to improve travel times. This is a tremendous undertaking since the road is basically an alternating series of bridges and tunnels through some imposing and beautiful landscape.
We arrived after dark ( 5:15 pm in southern Italy) at the town of Lecce (Lay chay). It has been described as the Florence of southern Italy and it did not fall short of that label. The city has historic roots back to the Greek and Roman civilizations but owes it more “modern” appearance to the Zimbalo family who in the 1600’s decided that the town needed a face lift. The common local limestone used as building stone is especially suitable for carving and as you walk through the city you can not be amazed by the extent of the work and the ability of the craftsman who labored to “remodel” much of the town in a Baroque style. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecce The result struck me that if a little bit of ornate decoration is good than a BUNCH would be so much better!! And it is not limited to just the major churches or civic buildings. The ornamentation extends right down to the cantilevered braces used under the residential balconies.
Another total surprise was that Lecce is a major center of papier-mache art work. There are many shops displaying wonderful creche scenes and statuary made by this technique. We spent the day doing our requisite church peeping, sightseeing, and poking into a store or two before setting out late in the afternoon for the next stop at the town of Matera. This proved to be another knock down surprise destination.
For the geographically challenged.
Coming soon to a dinner party near you! That is, if you live in Houston.
It is interesting to watch these men fish for 4 inch long fish with a rod that must be 15 feet long and collapses down to easy carrying size.
Cleaning the catch of the day with a pair of scissors the removes the fins and scales very nicely. I couldn’t tell if this was the “big one” or not.
A fisherman’s ride. Complete with custom rod rack in the back.
We arrived in Lecce after dark. Found the hotel. Found the parking garage. Walked through the park back to the hotel and came across this little gem that foretold what lay ahead.
Church peeping of the interior. The exterior was covered in scaffolding.
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The side aisle. Just about all of the churches in the city had very austere interiors.
A peak at the exterior embellishments.
You have to keep your head moving to the left and right as you walk the narrow streets. Otherwise you might miss this wonderful “Study in White” or grey. Tongue in cheek. But I like the old Vespa.
Laura doing her thing. Finding little gems at the antique market. I am not sure who was having more fun.
I really hope we were not her big sale of the day.
Laura is on a roll. This dance went on for several minutes. They talked. I took photos. Then we were on the street just outside the stalls and the gentleman found Laura and made his final offer. Laura still said we would think. One hundred feet later she turned, went back, and bought the doll.
You might call this the “Busted Balcony”
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I really like the way the light pours into a church interior and mixes with the side chapels and candle light.
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The different angles of the ceiling. The variation in glass windows. And the direction of the exterior sunlight made for a simple church ceiling to be very interesting.
This decoration gives a good idea of the extent of the work in the city. This detail is located high above the main door to the left of the window in the church in the next photo.
The same church as it sits in the piazza.
Even the not so well cared for exteriors are intriguing.
Everybody gets a balcony.
These next few shots are of an interior school courtyard that was totally done with the local caramel and white stone. It was simple, but beautiful.
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And just a touch of aged fresco thrown in for color.
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Just how small are the old Fiat 500’s???
Throughout the city there were parts of the facades that had a slightly different stone which, when it weathered, looked like giant morel mushrooms.
Another detail shot. Love the mouths on these guys. These were under the left and right niches on either side of the main door of the church in the next photo.
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Most of the city is underlain by Roman ruins. This is a small portion of a Roman theater in the heart of the town. It is also interesting that the modern roads in town often come almost up to the original second floor of the old buildings.
The churches in Italy make me wish I was Catholic. Incred pics and architecture
There are some who would say “It is never to late to change your status!!!”